Chapter 27: A Big Step

I moved the rest of us to my office so Bob and Rebecca could have the cabana to themselves.

As soon as we arrived Shannon said, "Debriefing," and everyone dissolved into laughter again. Once we settled down I reached to remove Amber's collar again, "I told you you could take the night off and be yourself, so..." but she pulled away.

"Please don't," she asked.

I almost slipped and let it go but then I snapped at her, "I did not ask you. You have not yet earned your place, take it off, now."

She hung her head and removed the collar. As soon as it was off her head came back up and Angela looked me in the eye. "Does it hurt you to do that?"

Allison answered for me, "Yes, it does. It's very hard for him, Angie. He's not a master and slave kind of guy. He only does it because he loves you and it's what you need to heal and get on with your life. How are you doing with all this? I mean, it's just as new to you."

"Me, I'm doing fine. Now that I understand everything that's been happening, it's like this huge weight has been lifted. I know that this is what I wanted all along." She looked back at me, "I'm just glad I have someone who loves me enough to help me get through it. Most people would have run screaming just at the reality of what I was, what I wanted, but you didn't. You hung in there, all of you hung in there for me, and I love you for it." She let go of my hand and stepped back, "In fact, now that Amber is out of the way, I'd like to express my thanks on a more personal level. Who wants to be first?"

Shannon immediately volunteered - big surprise. I quickly checked that Lizzy was still in session with her current patient so Allison and I went to the glade to prepare for our visit to a certain male doctor we had been wanting to meet.

As soon as we were alone, Allison asked, "What happened to Amy?"

"Rebecca showed up in the same dream. She felt it as soon as I did; you saw what it did to her."

"And you."

"No, mine was a reaction to Amy's pain. I guess that answers the question of trying to get them together in a dream."

"Big time. Jimmy, I'm worried about what Rebecca said about the case in Palm Springs. Do you really think there is a chance he could get away with a slap on the wrist?"

"I was thinking the same thing. I think I may need to encourage him to confess to everything."

"How are you going to do that?"

I gave her a wink and yelled, "Walter!"

A large hairy shape stalked out of the bushes not far away. "Could you give me break with the volume? Try to remember I hear better than you, a lot better." He rose up on two feet and bowed to Allison. "Miss Allison, lovely to see you again." Then he turned back to me, sat down on his haunches, and asked, "What's up? You lose another girlfriend?"

"Nice to see you again too, Walter. No, I haven't lost another girl; I was hoping I could interest you in a little side work. How's Bobby doing by the way?"

"Young Master Robert is doing very well," he answered with obvious pride. "He has come a long way since you first gave him into my care. You should drop in if you get the chance; I think you will be pleased."

"I am sure that he has benefited greatly from your time together, sir. I may take you up on the visit later. Right now ... How would you like a chance to exercise your sense of justice?"

"My sense of justice is as fit and healthy as it has ever been, but what did you have in mind."

"There is someone I'd like you to spend some time with. I'm hoping you can encourage him to confess to his crimes and save everyone else a lot of time, money, headache, and heartache. The heartache would mostly be from his victims. It's going to be very traumatic if they have to go through a long trial."

"It is the price of justice," he said. "The system may not be perfect but one must allow it run its due course if it is to serve its purpose."

"I understand that, but in this case I'm concerned the DA may offer him a deal. I think it would be best if he didn't have that option."

Walter looked at me oddly for a moment, "Really? What is his crime?"

"He raped four ten-year old girls, we caught him in the act of kidnapping the fifth."

Walter's face is a pretty frightening thing to begin with. Don't get me wrong, he's a pretty decent guy as monsters go, but he basically looks like the werewolf Hollywood has always dreamed of. The look that came over him now would have made a lawn gnome wet himself; lips drawn back into a snarl, exposing an impressive array of teeth. Fire didn't actually come from his eyes but you could see the glow. And then of course there was the howl...

"Where is this parody of a man?" he demanded, spittle dripping from his teeth. "Show me this mockery of a human being; I will rend his very soul!"

"My feelings exactly," Allison said. "But I think you really should give him the chance to do the right thing on his own first, Jimmy. After all, they just caught him today." She stepped close to Walter, who still looked like he was ready to bite a redwood in two. "I'm sorry we've upset you like this Walter, can I make you some tea?"

"And I am sorry for letting my wrath get the better of me, my dear. Tea would be lovely." And just like that he was back to his civilized self. All except the eyes, they still gave the impression that smoke should be rolling out his ears any second.

"I'm sorry too, Walter," I said. "I guess I should have discussed it more with Allison before I dragged you into it."

"Do not apologize," he answered. "She is correct of course, he must be allowed the opportunity to confess of his own free will, but I assure you, confess he will. Now, about that tea..."

We passed a few quiet moments together over tea and cakes, Allison and I with porcelain cups, Walter drinking his from a larger bowl in a matching pattern, then we bid him farewell and prepared to return to our plans for the evening. As Walter disappeared back into the brush I realized I had forgotten something earlier.

"Crap."

"What?" Allison asked.

"I was so happy to see Rebecca back, and so distracted by what happened with Amy that I forgot I've wanted to talk to Rebecca about getting some information on the Vegas crowd, starting with doctors Essex and Hendricks. I'm hoping to be able to have her start doing some basic background checks; maybe we can find a common thread to tie them together."

"Now there's a long shot. It looks like they have gone to great lengths to assure that they can't be tied together. Neither one knows the other; they work on different groups of girls. Do you really think there is something that ties them together?"

"Not really, but it never hurts to hope, and while we're on the subject of the good doctors ... Why don't we go pay a visit on Hendricks?"

"Are you sure you got enough of him from Samantha to do it?"

I didn't bother answering. Taking her hand, I concentrated and suddenly we were in hell.

Well, apparently it was Hendricks's idea of hell anyway; he was in surgical scrubs working feverishly to repair a life-sized broken doll. Around the room, which was much larger than the operating rooms you see on television, were life size dolls in all states of dress and undress, all with pieces missing, some bleeding, some with broken limbs, some just sitting and crying, and others just sitting, staring into space with haunted eyes.

"Ho-ly shit!" Allison whispered. "I guess this answers the question of whether or not he's a voluntary player."

"Maybe," I said. "Or he could just be having a nightmare. I know we were just going to ask questions but maybe a little interaction would be better in this case." I concentrated and the doll he was working on came to life and sat up. Hendricks pulled back as she swung her legs over the edge of the table.

"Thank you doctor," She said, then pointed to one of the other dolls. "Can you help my friend?"

"I'll try," he answered.

Together they lifted another doll onto the table and began working on her. In moments she was whole again and the three began working on another. Soon there were four dolls dressed as nurses helping Hendricks at the table while others carried more toward them. They were fixing dolls so fast their hands blurred and in a short while all of the dolls were whole once more. As the last doll stepped down from the table, a group of people wearing robes burst through the door. The dolls screamed and cowered behind Hendricks.

"No!" he screamed. "You can't have them. I won't let you hurt them anymore." He grabbed up a scalpel and slashed at the first robed figure he could reach. Behind him some of the dolls picked up other implements and moved to help him. The hooded figures howled in rage, pulled baseball bats from their robes, and began smashing the dolls. Hendricks fought on but no matter how many times he stabbed at them it made no difference, soon the room was littered with broken dolls once more. As the last doll fell the hooded figures began laughing. Exhausted and defeated, Hendricks dropped his scalpel, fell to his knees and hugged one of the broken dolls to his chest. With tears running down his face he whispered, "I'm sorry, I tried but I couldn't stop them." He looked up and screamed at the hooded figures, "Are you happy now? They're all broken and now there are no more dolls for you to hurt!"

At this the hooded figures laughed even harder. As Hendricks watched they each pulled a box with a bow on it from somewhere in their robes. Inside each box was a naked doll. They dropped the boxes and as each hit the floor it broke open and the tiny figures began to emerge, growing before his eyes into life sized girls, and as one they knelt before the hooded figures and asked, "How may I please you, my Lord?"

Hendricks screamed and started to charge them but suddenly strong chains appeared and began grabbing at him like steel tentacles, he broke them but there were always more and no matter how much he struggled he could not reach the hooded figures.

I glanced at Allison, "I think I've seen enough, how about you?"

"What do you have in mind?" She asked.

"The direct approach." I turned back to the scene and yelled, "Stop!" in a voice that echoed and boomed around the room. Suddenly Hendricks was the only one moving, or trying to: the chains were still holding him as I stepped through the door in my usual disguise. I moved around the frozen figures, carefully stepping over the broken dolls until I stood before Hendricks. "Do you really want to stop this doctor?"

"How can you ask me that?" He answered, still struggling to break free. "Of course I want to stop it!"

"Then why don't you call the police? Surely they would help."

"Hah!" He scoffed, "They'd just kill me, maybe even some of the girls, the rest would deny anything was wrong and then it would go on as before."

"Why would the girls lie to protect them?" I asked.

"Because if they talked they, and their families, would be killed, or worse."

"Couldn't they put them in protective custody?"

"It wouldn't help, not really. There are too many of them. They might get a few, but then the rest would just keep doing what they are doing."

"But once some were safe, wouldn't others come forward?"

"Safe? They wouldn't be safe. Don't you understand? No one is safe."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean it's been tried, twice. Once a girl turned her father in to the police; he was killed while he was still in jail and the girl, her sister, and her mother were killed that same night."

"I know, they made it look like the mother had killed the girls and then herself, but I know who really killed them."

"What do you mean you know? How could you know unless..." Suddenly fear shown in his eyes.

"No doctor, I'm not with them. And I'm not with the police. Who I am is not important; that I am working to put an end to this is all that matters. I had heard some things about you that suggested you may not be doing all this voluntarily, that maybe you didn't have a choice. Is that true?"

"Yes. But it doesn't matter. You can't help me, or them."

"What if I could get all of them? All at the same time so there was no one to retaliate and scare the rest into silence?"

"There are too many, and no one knows everybody."

"There may not be as many as you think, and I've made a good start already." I pulled the chart out and showed it to him. I had color coded the circles; the confirmed bad guys were in red along with names and pictures, not that there were many of them. So far, just Essex, Frank and Irene Watkins, and the others I had gotten from Jasmine. So far Hendricks was the only one in green. The girls were now in stars instead of circles so you could quickly tell them apart. The girls I didn't have names for had question marks next to their pictures.

He stared at it for a few seconds, "Where did you get this?"

"Here and there," I answered. "You see, all of them know someone, and those someones know someone else. What I need from you..." I pointed at the group still frozen behind me, "Is to tell me who they are. The girls are your patients, the rest are people you know to be involved. I need names and faces for them so that I can fill in more of the puzzle. Eventually I will have them all, and then maybe I can stop this."

"How? Even if you arrested them all..."

"I don't know yet, but I expect I'll have all the help I need when I figure that out. The question, Doctor Hendricks, is whether or not you will help. Do you really want this to stop? Or are you just telling yourself that there is nothing that can be done in order to soothe your conscience so you can go on fucking all these pretty little girls?"

Anger flared in his eyes and he lunged at me, but the chains held him just out of reach, "How dare you! I don't have a choice."

"Just checking, I believe you, Doctor." I released him from his chains and pointed to the people behind me. "It doesn't matter which one you pick, just point at the figure, think of their face and say their names. If you know of any others that are being coerced as you are, please tell me. I know you treat many of the girls, just point to one of the dolls and they will change as well. One thing I'm not sure about, do all of the parents know?"

"Yes, it would be too difficult to hide what is going on if they didn't, especially in cases of ... discipline."

"Yes, I've heard of some of those, as well as some of the training methods. How did you get caught up in this?"

He looked away and closed his eyes before whispering, "My wife." He took a couple breaths before continuing, "I don't even remember what happened. My loving wife Kathy came to me one day and said we needed to get out more. She told me I was working too hard and needed to have a little fun. She told me she was worried that we were falling into a rut. Especially me," his voice took on a bitter tone, "She said she thought I was losing interest in sex and that maybe what I needed was some variety. My first reaction was to think she was having an affair and was hoping to justify it by getting me to fool around. I confronted her about it but she denied it and said I could ask them myself, but that she hadn't slept with any of the other men. She admitted she had fooled around with 'a couple' of the girls, but that was all. I assumed by girls she meant the other wives.

"The truth is I was fine with our sex life, I just wished we'd had more opportunity, but I hadn't been out of medical school that long and I was working hard to get my loans paid off so we wouldn't have so much debt hanging over our heads. I was reluctant at first but she finally convinced me to go. We went over to this house; there were two other couples there and we did the usual; dinner, introductions, just routine ice breaker stuff to make sure we were comfortable with everyone. We did some question and answer stuff, and then we headed home and talked about it some more. Kathy was so horny that night I couldn't believe it. God, she was all over me, couldn't even wait until we got home, she started kissing me while I was driving, half way home she went down on me and I had to pull over or I would have probably killed us both.

"Two nights later was a Friday night and we went back. Everything started out just fine; we had some drinks and hors d'oeurves and the next thing I know I'm waking up in my bed at home the next morning. I passed it off as having too much to drink; even joking about how if I had had such a good time it would be nice to remember it. She said she had just the thing to jog my memory and went to make a phone call. Something about the way she said it bothered me. When she came back I asked her what she meant and who she had called. She said to just wait and I'd see soon enough. I tried to press her and suddenly she got really cold, told me to just shut the fuck up and wait. I couldn't believe her reaction. About an hour later a man I didn't know showed up. He was wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase. It seemed really out of place for a Saturday afternoon. I introduced myself and shook his hand but he didn't tell me his name. Then he actually kissed my wife right there in front of me. Naturally I got angry, assuming I had been right all along and that this was the guy she was having the affair with.

Before I could say anything he held up his hand to stop me, saying "Doctor Hendricks, I'm sure you are wondering what the heck is going on so if you will please sit down I will explain everything."

I said, "What do you mean sit down and you'll explain?"

Then Kathy points at the couch and says, "Steven, just sit down and be quiet and all your questions will be answered."

Hendricks hadn't noticed yet, but as he had been speaking the scene had been taking shape around him. He was lost in the memory and just kept narrating over the scene as it played out.

"Then he handed her a disk and she put it in our DVD player and turned on the television. When it started playing I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was me fucking this young girl, not having sex, not making love, just fucking her like a madman. In the ass, no less. I'd never done that to anyone before, I brought it up once when Kathy and I were first married, we'd rented this porno and they were doing it in the film, but she flat refused to even try. Yet, here I was pounding the crap out of this girl I didn't even know. After I finally came, another girl came over and started sucking and licking me until I was hard again; just like that, she didn't even wipe it off first. There was more after that, a lot more, there were three of the girls, all obviously under age and me doing all sorts of depraved things with them. Then the guy starts talking again.

"Now then, Doctor Hendricks, you understand the position this puts you in? Of course you do, you're an educated man after all. What we need from you is simple..."

"How much?" I asked.

His voice took on a heavy edge, "Doctor Hendricks, I know this is all a bit of a shock for you so I will forgive your rudeness this one time, but let me make this clear, do not interrupt me again, is that clear?"

All I could do was stare at him in shock.

"I asked you a question, Doctor Hendricks?" He growled.

"Yes," I answered, "Yes, it's clear."

Then he was all polite and smiling again, "Very good, this is not an attempt to extort money from you doctor. My people require your professional assistance. The girls you were with last night are just normal everyday teenagers and as such they require medical assistance now and then. Routine check ups, school physicals, the odd flu shot, that sort of thing. You will provide these services, you will also provide them with birth control, and monitor them for correct dosages. We know that the wrong dosages can have unfortunate side effects on some girls so you will be required to keep a close watch to make sure they do not gain weight; that can be so hard on a young girl's self esteem you know. There may, from time to time, be more serious problems which may arise. You will perform whatever procedures are necessary. If you require assistance, your wife will be your nurse. Now don't look so glum doctor, this is after all, the reason you became a physician in the first place, isn't it, to help others? And it's not as if you will not be compensated. You may, at any time, before after or during their visits do whatever you like with the girls. You will find them quite accommodating; simply ask and they will do anything you like. Some of them are really quite gifted."