Chapter 4

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Jake sat down across from Jason at one of the more remote tables in the lunchroom. Jake pulled out a plastic container with leftover spaghetti.

“How’s the ex-con?”

It had taken Jake a year and a half to free Gil. He had been stymied until he learned that the governor has the power to pardon a convicted criminal.

It had taken Jake three months to get close to the governor. The opportunity finally came when the governor had given a reelection speech at the senior citizen center. While the governor was glad-handing after the speech, Jake had eased close to him.

Not having much time to study the governor’s mind, Jake had gone with a heavy-handed, high-probability approach. He had pushed Gil’s name and circumstances into the governor’s mind and linked it to outrage at the severe sentence. Then Jake had inserted the belief that voters favored politicians who were dedicated to correcting such injustices. Jake didn’t like using brute force, but he didn’t have a better idea.

It took another six months for the pardon to be granted which almost drove Jake crazy. Apparently, there had to be reports written, commissions convened, and board hearings held before the governor felt it was prudent to act.

Despite Jake’s displeasure at the glacial pace of justice, he hoped there would not be any side effects from his ungentle tampering in the governor’s head. Minds are complex. A mind reader cannot always anticipate all the consequences. And though Jake later read that the governor had granted a record number of pardons, Jake was still not going to vote for the plodding bastard when he reached voting age.

When Gil was finally released, he was not the same boy that Jake had compelled to throw that chunk of concrete. He had become surly, suspicious and contemptuous of authority. Jake had hung around the Hambry’s place a lot over the following month, reading Gil and trying to undo the effects of his time at the reform school.

When he had finished Jake was pleased with the results. He had used a light hand, patiently tweaking an attitude here, an emotional response there until mostly the old Gil was back. The new Gil had come to have an element to his personality that might be best described as sadder but wiser. On balance, Jake thought that Gil’s life would be about as good as it would have been if he had never meddled in it.

“He hates it when you call him that,” Jason said, glancing over Jake’s shoulder. “He came home last week. He just finished his first year of college.”

“Why do you keep looking behind me?”

Actually, Jake knew why. Jason was mooning over Julie DeRizzo who was eating lunch with Carol Finch. Jake wondered what Jason would say if he knew that Julie had a bit of a crush on Mrs. Harrison.

Jake focused his awareness on the girls behind him.

Jason’s staring at you again, Carol said.

Mentally eavesdropping on a conversation was not any harder than listening to thoughts. In fact, it was essentially the same thing, except that Jake had the option of listening to the mind of the person speaking or that of the person listening.

I know, Julie said.

He’s cute.

I suppose, but I like Jake more, Julie said.

That got his attention. Jake had not known that Julie felt that way about him.

Ugh, he’s too weird, said Carol.

Jake was used to that, though it hurt his feelings. His classmates had noticed that there were ways in which he was different from them, differences that were maybe inevitable for someone who spent so much of his time studying the minds of others.

He avoided groups, preferring to interact with individuals. He was less boisterous and more watchful. His need to avoid chaotic thoughts and discordant emotions caused him to steer clear of about half of his classmates, including a number of the popular and influential ones. Instead he gravitated towards more interesting and pleasant minds. Since some of them were social oddballs, he was occasionally tarred with the same brush.

More damning were the times he acted out of character for his age. He sometimes went on about things no one else knew and used vocabulary that was too advanced for the others to follow, leading some classmates to call him a showoff.

Jake was aware of how he alienated his fellow students. He tried to fit in, but it took vigilance to maintain the façade of a normal eighth-grader. Sometimes, particularly when he was distracted or engrossed in a subject that fascinated him, the real Jake would emerge.

His classmates were especially unnerved by his interactions with adults. He was too comfortable with them, treating them as equals and joking with them. Their discussions were sometimes at a level of ideas and diction that went over their heads.

Still, Jake was a good-looking boy, taking after his mother, and he was confident around his classmates. Those things alone ensured that he had admirers.

“What do you think of Carol?” Jake asked Jason. “She likes you.”

“How do you know that?”

“I overheard them talking.”

Julie was exceptionally pretty. Jake did not know if he could divert Jason toward Carol.

Jake watched as Jason considered the girls. Jake boosted Jason’s desire for Carol, which was not insignificant to begin with. Carol was an unusually curvy girl for an eighth-grader. To stack the deck, Jake used a technique that he had recently perfected. He pushed into Jason’s mind a subtle association between Julie and one of the less attractive lunch ladies — the heavy one with the mole on her upper lip. Jason would never become conscious of it, but the association would induce a slight aversion.

“You want us to talk to them?” Jake asked.

Anxiety.

Jake had expected that. None of the other boys were as comfortable socializing with girls as he was. He would have to take the lead.

“Just play along,” he said and turned around to face the girls. “Hi, Julie. Hi, Carol. Jason and I want to get to know you better. Would you mind if we walked you home after school?”

Surprise. Anxiety. Excitement

Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Julie squealed internally and flashed a bright smile. Then she remembered herself. Get control. Don’t look desperate.

“I don’t know, Jake,” she said. “Give us a minute to make sure we don’t already have something planned.”

They huddled together.

“I get Jake,” Julie whispered.

“You can have him.”

“We can’t let my mom see us with boys.”

“I don’t want to take them to my house,” Carol said.

“We’ll only go with them as far as the park. But what if Jake wants you instead of me? Boys can’t resist your tits.”

“Shut up about my boobs. We’ll just have to figure out a way to pair him up with you.”

The girls raised their heads and looked at Jake and Jason.

“If you want to, you can walk with us after school,” Julie said. “But only as far as the park, and don’t get any funny ideas.”

“We’ll behave,” Jason said.

Jake just laughed. People are so entertaining.

Jake took his new seat in social studies well before the bell, so he could start reading Mrs. Harrison.

She was standing next to her desk dressed in sweater and slacks. The sweater was not very tight, but her generous breasts still attracted attention. The slacks were tailored, showing her ass nicely. She looked like she was focused on papers on the desk next to her, but Jake knew better. Most every boy who entered the class checked her out, and out of the corner of her eyes, she watched them do it. Jake smiled when Julie DeRizzo eyed her, too.

Mrs. Harrison’s libido was at a light boil. Jake felt it percolate even higher when she looked over and caught him staring at her breasts. When Mr. Pollard, another social studies teacher, came in briefly to discuss the schedule, her arousal plummeted. That surprised Jake. Mr. Pollard was about the same age as she was, and he was a pretty handsome guy. And he was eying her breasts just as avidly as the boys.

The bell rang and the lecture began, although it might be more accurate to call it a performance. From his seat in the front, he could read Mrs. Harrison easily. She loved being the center of attention. Her arousal returned and simmered throughout the lecture and the discussion that followed.

In the last few minutes of class, she had the students turn to their textbooks and start the next chapter. Jake tried to tune them out as they droned away at their reading. He focused on Mrs. Harrison who stared at but did not really see a piece of paper in front of her. She rehashed a restaurant meal with her husband the night before that had bored her. She considered the sex she had had with him following the dinner that had failed to excite her. She anticipated seeing him again that evening with indifference.

When the final bell sounded, his classmates filed out, but Jake dawdled. Mrs. Harrison’s arousal increased as she watched the boys watching her.

Look at all those hard, little dicks. I could have any one of them if I wanted.

Jake smiled. Yes, this was a lever that would move Mrs. Harrison. No one is content when she scorns what she has and desires what she cannot.

He did not bother to conceal his erection. Her lust climbed as he approached her. He pushed it higher yet as he stood in front of her, waiting for the last of the students to leave. She waited patiently for him to speak. He never would have guessed by looking at her cool demeanor that she was so thoroughly aroused.

“How long have you been teaching, Mrs. Harrison?”

“Four years, Mr. Fielding.”

“How long have you been married?”

“I’m not sure that’s relevant or appropriate, but two years if you must know.”

“Mrs. Harrison, I’ve got a personal problem — a problem of a confidential nature. I’m desperate to talk to an adult about it. It’s not the kind of thing I can talk about with my mom. Do you think we could talk? Just us? Away from school?”

Even though she kept her face neutral, Jake felt her surprise and agitation.

What’s his game? That sounds like a proposition. A pretty good one at that.

That made her arousal increase, but she forced it back down.

Jake didn’t want to make it easy for her to refuse him. He stepped closer to her and pushed her libido higher. She fought him gamely.

“Mr. Fielding, are you familiar with section 21.12 of the Texas Penal Code?”

“No, ma’am.”

“It’s called something like ‘Improper Relationships Between an Educator and her Student.’ I’m very familiar with it, because I, like all the other teachers in this school, have been lectured on it at length, including the fact that it is a second-degree felony. Do you know what the punishment is for a felony in the second degree?”

Jake did not, so he read the answer from her mind.

“A prison term of two to twenty years and a fine of not more than ten-thousand dollars.”

How the hell would he know that? she thought.

“What is it that section 21.12 makes illegal?” Jake asked.

“Sexual contact or sexual intercourse.”

“I know what sexual intercourse is. What does it mean by sexual contact?”

“I am told that that is any contact with a student’s breasts, anus or genitals.”

“Well, there you go,” Jake said with his best smile. “At first, I thought you were saying that just talking was against the law. We can talk all we want so long as we don’t do those other things. I can live with that.”

The little prick is smooth for a thirteen-year-old.

Jake did not like being called names, even if it was only in her thoughts. He bumped up her arousal more. A light sheen of sweat appeared on her forehead and her nipples became more prominent. She began to fidget, though she tried to hide it. Jake watched her resolve begin to crumble.

What’s going on here? He’s a good-looking kid, but he’s not all that special. I haven’t given in since I became a teacher. Why’s it suddenly so hard?

“We all need to be able to talk in confidence at some time or other,” Mrs. Harrison said. “But you have to understand that I’m putting myself at considerable risk to do this for you. Do you have a safe place for us to talk? A discreet place?”

“I live alone with my mother. Our place is empty until she comes home from work sometime after five-thirty. I can’t guarantee that my mother would never come home early but I can’t remember it ever happening.”

He felt her wavering and gave her lust another nudge.

“Ok, I’ll come. Right after school lets out.”

Jake was tempted, but he was already going to see Julie DeRizzo.

“I’m afraid I’ve already got something going on after school today. Something that I can’t get out of. How about tomorrow?”

The little bastard is going to make me stew. Why do I want him so much?

“Ok, tomorrow. No one can ever find out, and I mean no one. Agreed?”

“Gladly, Mrs. Harrison. You can trust me. Let me give you my address.”

Jake ripped a page out of a notebook and wrote it down. The students for the next period began to file in.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Mrs. Harrison, and thank you,” he said as he walked out the door.

Jake eased her arousal enough that she would still be able to function. But he left it high enough that she should be ready to burst into flame by the time they got together.

Jake and Jason met the girls at Julie’s locker after the last class. As soon as they were out the door, Julie attached herself to Jake, leaving Carol to Jason. Jake read Jason to see if he was upset. Jason was surprised to find that he was not finding Julie all that attractive. It only took a minute for Carol, walking with her bosom proudly thrust out, to completely capture his attention.

Jake watched Julie as they walked along. She was tall for a girl their age, perhaps five foot six inches. She was slender with small breasts and small hips. In eighth grade, most of the girls still lacked much in the way of a figure but Julie had enough curves to attract him. He was enjoying her excitement.

“I don’t think I know any of your family, Julie. Do have brothers or sisters?”

“Yeah, my big sister is a senior and my brother’s a sophomore. You?”

“I’m an only child. That must be neat for you.”

“Not really. My sister is Kara. Mostly she ignores me. She’s too busy running around with her friends. Brian used to be my buddy, but now we go to different schools. But he’s still very protective. He’ll kick your ass if you try anything.”

Jake laughed.

“Yes, ma’am. I have been warned. So does Kara ever teach you girl stuff?”

Julie looked at him suspiciously. “What does that mean?”

“Nothing bad. You don’t need Brian to beat me up. I always thought that an older brother or sister could tell me all the things I can’t find out from kids your own age. You know, the things that they wish they had known when they were our age.”

“I see. Like how to dance and what to wear. Or how to put on make-up.”

“That’s the idea. Maybe tell me about girls. My mom doesn’t really help me there, so I’m having to figure it out on my own.”

“I wish it was like that. Me and Kara are always fighting about something. Sometimes Brian still spends time with me, but it doesn’t happen very often. He’s usually with his friends.”

Julie steered Jake into Central Park. Carol and Jason followed. It looked like they were struggling to find things to talk about.

Jake nodded over toward them.

“They’re not saying much. Maybe we should bring them into our conversation.”

“Ok.” She turned to Jason and Carol. “Jason, where do you live?”

“I live on the other side of school. Jake does, too. We only live a couple blocks apart.”

“So why go out of your way to walk us home.”

“It’s just like Jake said. We want to get to know you better. We think you’re both very pretty.”

Jake smiled. He had not known that Jason had it in him to sweet-talk girls.

Both girls looked over at Jake expectantly.

“What he said.” Jake pointed to one of the sidewalks that disappeared into the woods. “Look, there’s a clearing down this path. We can sit there by ourselves and have a little privacy and talk.”

“Remember,” Julie said, “no funny stuff.”

“I promise. Have we given you any reason to worry?”

“Not yet, but the day’s still young.”

They came on the clearing and sat on the short grass.

“So, what are you two looking for from us?” Carol asked.

“Nothing that you’re not willing to give freely,” Jake said.

“That only narrows it down a little bit,” Carol said.

“I’ve never had a girlfriend,” Jake said. “ I think there’s something special about Julie. I was hoping we could start going out.”

Jake felt Julie’s pleasure. Oh, I like this guy!

Jake smiled. “As suave as he is, there’s only so much Jason can teach me about girls.”

Jason ripped up a handful of grass and threw it at Jake, the blades falling to the ground well short of him.

“So, we came to the source,” Jake said. “I was just telling Julie that I’m an only child, so I don’t have anyone to tell me about girls. Sometimes the Internet isn’t enough. You have to get your hands on the real thing, uh, so to speak.”

“And we’re the real thing?” Julie asked. “You’ll be wanting to get your hands on us?”

He slid closer to her. “Julie DeRizzo, there’s nothing I would like more, but we gave our word that we’d act like gentlemen.”

Damn it, now he’s got to behave. How can I get him to kiss me now?

“So, Julie, why did you let us walk all this way with you,” Jake asked. “What are you looking for from us?”

Julie blushed. She looked over at Carol.

“Carol, why did we let them walk over here with us?”

“That’s easy. We want them to kiss us. Why else?”

Julie blushed even more.

That girl is such a slut, she thought.

Jake stifled a laugh.

“Carol, that was refreshingly honest,” Jake said. “But, as much as I’d like to help you out, and believe me that I’d like that very much, we have a problem. Jason and I have given our word that we would do no such thing.”

“You’re saying we’ve reached an impasse,” Carol said.

“I think that is a good word for what we have here,” Jake said.

“Maybe not,” Carol said. She leaned into Jason, and kissed him. “Now that I’ve started the kissing, Jason is free to kiss me back.”

Blast that girl, Julie thought. If I don’t kiss Jake now, I’ll look like a coward. If I do, Jake will think I’m as boy crazy as she is.

“Julie, it’s up to you,” Jake said to her quietly so that only she could hear. “I’ll understand if you don’t want to kiss me, but I’d like for you to be the first girl I ever kissed.”

Jake felt her relief. She could kiss him on those terms. She moved her face toward him and pressed her lips to his. They were soft. Jake placed his hands on her cheeks. He moved his lips to the corner of her mouth and kissed her there and then to her cheek before he returned to her lips and kissed her again.

He drew back and looked in her eyes. They were dark brown, the same color as her hair. She looked at him shyly and smiled. Jake leaned his forehead against hers and sighed.

“That was worth waiting 13 years for,” he said. “Can we do that again sometime?”

“I’ll have to check my calendar for an opening, but I don’t see why not. How about tomorrow?”

“That sounds great — no, wait. I have to be home tomorrow right after school.”

“We’ll figure some time out. We’ll have to find a place, too. Maybe someplace a little more private than the park.”

“Why not my apartment? Or how about your place. You could introduce me to your parents.”

“I don’t know about that. What if they say I can’t see you anymore?”

“I’m pretty good with adults. I have a lot more experience with them than I do with girls. I bet I can get the parents to let us see each other. If it turns out to be a problem, then we’ll just sneak around.”

“If you think so I’ll talk to my mom.”

“I’d like that.” Jake touched her arm. “That was my first kiss. How many boys have you kissed?”

“Uh, I, uh, you’re my first,” she said haltingly, blushing.

“Forgive me for pointing out that you had a little trouble giving that answer. I’m not your first kiss?”

She looked down, embarrassed. “Not exactly, uh, but that was the first time I kissed a boy.”

“Oh?”

“Carol and I have practiced kissing,” she said blushing.

“I’m scared to ask how I compare to her.”

“We’ve practiced a lot. Carol is really good.”

That brought some interesting memories to the surface of Julie’s mind.

“So, you’ve ... Oh, I see.”

Anxiety.

“What do you see?”

“You and Carol. I’ve seen you looking at Mrs. Harrison, too. You like girls.”

Fear. Tears started in her eyes.

“No, no. Don’t cry,” Jake said. “I think it’s kind of cool.”

The tears spilled from her eyes before she could get control.

“Cool? What do you mean?”

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong if you’re attracted to girls. I like girls, too.”

Suddenly Carol was standing over them and glaring at Jake.

“We haven’t been here for thirty minutes, and you’ve already made her cry! What did you do?”

Julie jumped to her feet. “It’s okay, Carol. He didn’t do anything. I just got emotional.”

Jake stood, too. “I mean it, Julie. I think you’re great. You can be yourself with me. I’m looking forward to getting to know you. I’m sure there will be other surprises, too. I’m looking forward to them all.”

Jake took her cheeks in his hands and kissed her again, slowly and gently on the lips. When he took his lips away, she was smiling again.

He got a piece of paper and a pen from his book bag.

“Here’s my phone number. Call me when I can meet your family.” He turned to Carol. “Thank you for teaching Julie how to kiss.”

“What?” Jason said, looking confused.

“Let’s go, Jason,” Jake said. He turned to Julie and Carol. “We’ll see you girls tomorrow at school.”

Jake and Jason had only gotten out of sight of the girls when Jason ran out of patience.

“What the hell was that at the end?”

“I’ll explain, but you have to promise something.”

“What?”

“I learned something about them, a secret. I’ll tell you, but you have to swear that it goes no further. If it does, I’ll kick your ass.”

“As if you could. Ok, I promise. What’s the secret?”

“Julie and Carol, they’ve done stuff together.”

“Done stuff? What does that mean?”

“Kissing for sure. But it’s gone further than that. I don’t know how far.”

“Oh, my God. But how did you that find out?”

“Julie told me a little of it.”

“Really?”

“Some of it. The rest comes from reading between the lines, but I’m sure I’m right.”

“Carol and Julie?”

“How does that make you feel about Carol?”

“I ... I don’t know. I’ve never thought about that before, you know, girls with girls. They’re lesbians?”

“No, they’re not lesbians. They’re attracted to boys, too. That’s why they were with us today.”

“I don’t know, Jake. I have to think about it.”

“You do that. Can you at the very least keep your mouth shut about them?”

“Yeah, I guess I can.”

Jake was not so sure. Jason was confused, and Jake had just undermined his expectations about Carol. Jake would keep an eye on Jason but take no action. He didn’t want to change something as fundamental as Jason’s attitude toward same-sex relationships. He would have to keep watch and see what developed.

“Good man. I’m going to veer off here. I need to run by Aunt Steph’s house.”

“Look at you. You’re getting so big! Billy, come over here and look at Jake.”

Uncle Billy walked into the foyer and gave Jake the once over.

“No doubt about it, Steph. Young Jake Fielding is growing up.” He turned to Jake. “What brings you to Chez Miller?”

“I have something to ask Aunt Steph. It’s kind of personal.”

“No problem. You all have a seat and talk. I’ll go do something useful in the garage.”

“What’s on your mind?” Aunt Steph asked when they were seated.

Jake looked down uncertainly.

“I asked Mom about my father yesterday. She told me that she didn’t remember anything, but I got the impression that you might know something.”

Steph studied Jake for a moment.

“Yeah, I do. Billy does, too. Let’s get him in here.” She called over her shoulder. “Billy, would you mind coming out here and talking to Jake?”

Billy appeared after a moment.

“Sure, Sweet Cakes. What’cha need, Jake?”

“Jake wants to hear about Ellen’s kidnapping,” Steph said.

“I can tell you what I know,” Billy said with a frown, “but I expect it will raise more questions than it answers. And it might upset your mother if you talk about it with her.”

“She hasn’t heard your story?”

“She’s heard it, but she finds it, well, disturbing. But I think you’re entitled to know. A man needs to know where he comes from. What do you think, Steph?”

“Sunshine is good, Billy. It’s about time took Jake took an interest in this. Tell him.”

“Ok, big guy, here’s what happened. Your mom and Steph and I and Jeff Lester — you don’t know him; he didn’t come back from Iraq — were talking at the mall. This guy that no one knows comes up and takes Ellen away with him. She doesn’t show up again for three days.

“If that’s not weird enough, there are the two things that are even spookier. Your mom, she just left with the guy. She didn’t know him from Adam. He said let’s go, and she just left. Like she was hypnotized.

“Spooky fact number two: When Jeff and I see what’s going down, we rush the guy. We’re like going to tear him open a new one. We almost get to him when all of a sudden, we can’t move. We’re just frozen there until your mom and that man are gone. And Jake, I mean we were literally frozen. We couldn’t move. All my muscles were seized up. I’ve never experienced anything like it before or since.”

Jake tried to keep his face impassive, but he was shaken. Billy’s story made a sick kind of sense. Holding someone immobile was a trick Jake had never had a reason to try, but he was sure he could do it. He also did not doubt that he could make himself irresistible to women if he was of a mind.

If his father had done those things to his mother and her friends then the inescapable conclusion was that his father and he both had the same gifts. The son had inherited the father’s abilities. It was simple genetics.

Since the time that he had messed up Gil, he had known that his skills could be dangerous and needed to be used with care. For some reason, it had never occurred to him that someone might use them for evil. But someone had, and that person was his own father. It made Jake feel dirty to share his genes.

“Jake,” Auth Steph said, “I can see that this is bothering you, and it’s lousy alright, but there is something else you need to know about your mom.”

“Huh? You mean it gets worse?”

“No, not worse, but you need to hear it all to understand what it did to your mom.”

Billy frowned. “Steph, maybe you need to be careful here.”

“Someone needs to do something.”

“But he’s just a boy, and he’s her boy.”

“If you’ve got a better idea, why don’t you tell me what it is?”

“You know I don’t, but that doesn’t mean this is a good one.”

“Jake’s a special kid. He understands people. He’s kind.”

“Well, I would hate to know those kinds of things about my mother.”

“Shut up, Oedipus. Jake’s a good boy.”

Jake watched the exchange, growing more anxious.

“Here’s the rest,” Aunt Steph said. “You know that your mom is pretty.”

Jake nodded and Uncle Billy snorted.

“Calling Ellen pretty is like saying the Pacific Ocean is a little damp. There is no one prettier than your momma, Jake. Not here, not in Hollywood, maybe not in the whole world.” He paused a moment. “That is, except for your Aunt Steph.”

Steph laughed.

“That was a valiant save, Billy, but it doesn’t hurt my feelings to admit that Ellen is better looking than me.

“Jake, the point you have to understand is that she is also the most sheltered girl I ever met. Your grandparents figured that she would attract buzzards by the dozen, so she was always chaperoned. Your folks meant well but your mom never really developed socially.

“Back then when she was thirteen, she was so shy she couldn’t hardly even talk to boys. That was my job. I’d already figured out what made you male varmints tick, and I’d made it my duty to prevent you all from doing her any harm. She was so beautiful and so, well, so innocent that men couldn’t help themselves. It was like moths to a flame.

“So that’s the background. Then she is kidnapped and returns three days later with no memories, but there’s a baby growing in her belly. If she’d been sheltered before, it’s now ten times worse. Plus, there’s the shame of the pregnancy.