Chapter 86

Keith McGowan:

Everyone was up bright and early Friday morning -- even those males doomed to go down to the colony without a sponsor. I was somewhat embarrassed at being in bed with Bernice only a couple of days after cutting Annie and the kids loose, but it had been more about comfort than lust. We went to breakfast together and I promised that I would do my best to look her up at the colony, but neither of us had any idea how easy that would be. For all I knew, she could end up just up the hall or clear across the planet -- and transportation seemed to be almost instantaneous if you had a good reason, but was visiting a woman a good reason when you're an unassigned male concubine? I had no idea.

The AI communicated to me via my collar as I watched her depart, "Keith McGowan, report to Medical immediately." You don't argue and I had nothing better to do, so I got up and followed the directions to Medical.

"Why am I here?" I asked the medic.

She -- and she was a cute thing wearing very little, probably a concubine -- frowned at a display and said, "The AIs want to retest your CAP."

"Why here? Why now?" I asked.

She shrugged and some incredible tits went in different directions, "It's convenient?"

The AI answered, "Your recent behavior is inconsistent with your recorded profile, Keith McGowan. It is believed that your CAP scores may have changed. In any case, an examination is prudent. Please enter the tube."

Great. With my luck it would probably go down...

In the tube, I wasn't asked many questions; mostly, my mind drifted in a dreamlike state. I remember the AI asking what motivated me to try to help Bernice and what my concerns were over the fate of Annie and the kids, but I couldn't answer; I guess the AI picked the answers out of my head. Then the lights went out momentarily and the nurse was hanging over me through the open tube cover. "Wake up, Sir!"

"Sir?"

<Keith McGowan, it has been observed that you have undergone a psychological breakthrough, > the AI said -- in my head, not via my collar. <You began recently to exhibit selfless regard for others, which, after several incidents, triggered a flag to have you re-evaluated for Confederacy service. Congratulations, you now possess a CAP score of six point nine. It is assumed at this point that you will volunteer for Confederacy service... >

"Huh. Yeah, I guess..." In the first place, what was I going to do? Hitch a ride back to Earth? In the second, there was Annie and the kids, and in the third...

<Duly recorded. Initially, you will be assigned to the naval shipyard; it is anticipated that you will quickly assume a management role after your initial training. You are allocated two concubines, based upon your scores. Will you be offering sponsorship to your former mate?>

"I will."

<You needn't speak -- merely subvocalize -- the full sponsor augmentation package was deployed to you while you were in the tube. The nursing concubine will provide you with a uniform and other items, after which a connection to your former mate's quarters can be set up at any point.> There was a short pause before the AI ventured, <Given your recent interest in the welfare of the female Bernice Wells Farris, do you have any intentions regarding her sponsorship?>

I pursed my lips as I climbed down from the tube; the nurse evidently recognized the fact that my attention was no longer on her, because she dropped back, looking a little miffed, and trotted off to get me a uniform. 'That's a good question. I may, but I can see her saying no -- she thinks she owes a lot of people ... Besides, I would want to brief Annie first.'

<The female Bernice may continue to perform the function she currently performs after accepting sponsorship, > the AI noted. <This is more a function of your guidance concerning her utilization than anything else.>

Was the AI pushing a bit? 'We'll look into it.' The nurse returned with a uniform and I donned it and received several other items, including an armed forces ID that proclaimed my new CAP score, among other things. I thanked the nurse and sent her on her way, then left Medical, headed for an office or whatever where I could get privacy. The AI, divining my intent, led me to a nearby office and set up a call.

"Keith?" Annie blurted. "You're wearing clothes!"

I chuckled. "Among other things. Anne McGowan, I offer you my sponsorship!"

"I--I accept! What happened?" Annie gushed.

"It's a long story," I replied. "Are Mike and Katie in class?"

"Yes."

"Gather their things and meet me in Suite Seven Forty Four; I'll contact the school administration and have them redirected there after class."

"So we're a family again?" Annie smiled.

"Yes."

It took Annie a little over twenty minutes to arrive, at which point we kissed and cuddled like teenagers -- we were both CERTAINLY more demonstrative than we'd been in some time. At length, I addressed the second issue. "You know I have a second slot..."

This pulled Annie back from the gushy zone like a rubber band releasing. Her face got serious, "Yes."

"I met a woman," I began. "She is sort of the house mother for the unassigned males. She goes around trying to ease their pain..."

"Florence Nightingale?" Annie ventured.

"Well, it isn't that simple," I replied. "She went through a very rough patch herself and is still recovering. From a personal standpoint, she's trying to atone for past sins."

"You slept with her." It was a statement, not a question.

I could have taken the rigid stance that it wasn't her concern and she might as well get used to it, blah, blah, blah -- but I didn't. "Eventually," I admitted, "After she'd given me a shoulder to cry on and I'd given her the same. It wasn't about how hot either of us was -- it was a healing gesture."

Annie frowned and eyed me strangely, "Keith? Is that really you?"

"Yeah," I nodded, hanging my head, "The new me -- the one who cares for other people. It actually started when I decided it was best for you and the kids if I left on Tuesday, but it's been developing. It's why I'm in a uniform, instead of still naked and collared; I needed to get over my selfishness to move up..."

"This isn't one of your flings, then..." Poor Annie had suffered through dozens of THOSE!

"No."

"You don't even have to ask," she muttered. "I've been through the training. I expected to be the 'other woman' in some sponsor's family, not come back to you and..." She gathered herself. "Yet you ask me -- why?"

"I owe you," I replied. "I treated you like a concubine while we were married; I owe you a little respect now." Annie said nothing, so I went on, "Bernice may not accept; she may feel that she has to hold herself out there, available, for the men she's trying to help."

"What has she done?" Annie asked.

"It would be a betrayal of confidence for me to go deep into it, but she was in an accident and while recovering from her injuries, she became addicted to painkillers. Everything else flows from that."

Annie nodded, thinking. "Addict and hooker seem to go together."

I nodded. "That was part of it. She's kind of broken, sexually -- hooking isn't about sex for the hooker -- but she's coming back. She needs ... help."

Annie cuddled up. "Given what you've told me, I wouldn't say no, even if I could." She paused a moment, then said, "The new you is amazing -- I like him a lot."

"Thanks, Babe." I kissed her on the top of the head. After a quick hug, I waved her aside and initiated communications.

Bernice:

It was Friday morning and the natives were restless at the BUCQ; we were moving into an uncertain future and a lot of the boys were scared. There had been a recent edict passed down that they would be able to interact with their mates and kids during the daytime -- but many of them felt that this was harder than just staying away. I mentioned this to Gonzalo, and he said that it could easily be accommodated; the males could make the choice whether or not to re-engage with their families at will. Ultimately, it wouldn't change where they slept at night.

The guys were low on the totem pole for unloading, which only made them more antsy; I flitted from place to place, patting a shoulder or handing out a hug here and there. There were a couple of fights, even; the automatic stingers came on, but no one stopped by to collect those who got stung. I asked Gonzalo about THAT, too, and he said there would be a general amnesty in recognition of the fact that stress levels were high.

About eleven, I got a surprise; the AI announced, "Bernice Farris, you have a communication. It is recommended that you accept it in private." I nodded and headed for what I thought of as my 'day cabin' -- a room with a couple of couches and controllable lighting that provided a semi-private place to help someone come to grips with things. Settling on the couch, I said, "Okay," and the wall lit up.

It was Keith -- or at least, I THOUGHT it was Keith. He was in a uniform, though, which struck me as strange... "How's it going?"

"If the boys had somewhere to go, there would be a stampede," I related, "but they don't, so everything is kinda shaky. What happened to you?"

"Basically?" Keith replied, "You cured me -- or you helped, big time, at least. Now I would like to return the favor. I can offer you sponsorship..."

My heart thudded in my chest, but... "I can't. The boys need me. Besides, if I helped you, that's a tiny bit of what I owe paid up, but it isn't much. I can't just tuck myself away in a family and be the happy little concubine. There are too many payments left on my mortgage."

"I'm told that you can continue what you're doing -- you would just have a place to come home to and decompress at the end of the day. You can't pay your debt in full if you kill yourself or burn yourself out," Keith retorted.

"Keith, Honey, I sleep with guys if they need it sometimes. You KNOW that! Is that fair?"

"In the first place," Keith retorted, "I'm perfectly capable of putting up with it, knowing why you do it. In the second, you won't have to pick among them if you don't want to; you can just come home to us."

"Us? Did you pickup Annie? That's GREAT! But what does SHE think of all this?"

A dark-haired woman stuck her head in the visual frame. "Keith has explained things, within limits -- he didn't want to reveal any secrets, but he gave me some general information. I'm fine with it. I think he's right -- you need a stable home to come home to at the end of the day and be able to let your hair down. Besides, you know he needs to have a second concubine, anyway -- I could put up with him hunting down some hot-looking chickie based upon looks alone, or I could say yes to you, knowing there is more to it than that. I like the fact that he's trying to help..."

She might have implied that I wasn't good-looking in there, somewhere, but I didn't think that was where she was going. "That's real nice of you, Annie, but..." I turned to Keith, "You told her, right?"

"That you slept together? Yes," Annie answered for him. "That you both needed it? Yes." She smiled crookedly. "Bernice, you saved my whole family. Let us help you. Why don't you come up and see us and we'll talk some more about it?"

"I'd like to, but it's bad down here," I related. "The boys are all real nervous and there have been a couple of incidents -- I don't think I should leave."

"Maybe you need help..." Annie flicked a glance at Keith. "We can come there..."

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" I worried. "Normally, I would say sure, but the guys are really upset. There have been a couple of fights..."

Keith looked concerned, but Annie said, "Are we going to help or just pretend we care?"

That put Keith in gear. "We'll be down." The wall resumed being a wall and the situation was out of my hands...

When they got down to my stomping grounds, I was amazed; Annie was a little pint of peanuts maybe five feet four -- a head shorter than me. You could smell the tension in the main entry where I met them, but she seemed to have no fear. I worried a little that Keith might draw fire, being a sponsor, but there wasn't any immediate flare-up. Annie came to me and held out her hand, "Hi..."

"Hi. Look, like I said, things are kind of explosive around here..." I said quietly.

"I'm here to help."

"I really appreciate it, Honey, but what if one of the guys gets ... rambunctious?" I cautioned.

Annie turned this look on Keith. "Gee, I dunno -- you mean, like, what if I have to sleep with him to settle him down?" I shut up; this was between them. Annie was OBVIOUSLY giving Keith the needle ... After a pregnant moment where nobody said anything, she added, "At least it would be for a good cause..."

Keith eyed her. "Babe, back when, I was wrong -- but you let it ride. Now, though, you don't have a leg to stand on, so why are you bringing that up?"

"I guess I'm asking the question," Annie replied. "If Bernice can do that if she has to and I'm doing what she's doing, what are my limits?"

"Is this about helping people or getting even with me?" Keith asked.

"Yes," she replied, eyeing him.

I figured I'd better say something. "Honey, what are you looking for, here? If I was him, I wouldn't know the right answer -- you could flip either way -- but he doesn't HAVE to put up with that kind of shit..."

"If he loves me, he will," she replied flatly. "If he doesn't and I was just a convenient piece of ass all these years, I need to know that NOW!"

"Bernice is right -- this is one of those loaded questions with no right answer like, 'Do these pants make my ass look to big?'" Keith gusted, sighing. "I'm guilty of using you and taking you for granted -- I admit it -- but I left you Tuesday in order to do the best I could for you because I DO love you and the kids. I wanted you safe, and me being around wasn't accomplishing that. If there is a right thing to say here, I don't know what it is, but I'm going to try ... You do whatever you think you need to, then come on home to me."

Annie looked at him, surprised. "Do you really mean that?"

"Well..." Keith muttered, clearly wondering if he'd blown it, "If you're going to help Bernice, then it's the job, you know? I can ... deal ... with that."