The Game Master Pt. 03

He thought that finding the cure to the disease that took his father would be the hard part...

Colwyn Smalley never questioned the role he was meant to play. The labels which would define him were assigned before he left primary school: genius; aloof; innovator; driven. After his father was handed a fatal diagnosis, Colwyn swore to find a cure... to save his hero.

He failed.

Haunted by his father's death, he dedicated the next quarter century to fulfilling his vow with barely a passing thought to his own happiness outside of his love for the role-playing games which gave birth to his nickname.

In place of the expected acclaim and jubilation upon revealing that he has miraculously succeeded, he encounters suspicion and corporate politics more interested in riches than saving lives. When he refuses to let his work be hoarded by the wealthy, his employers decide there's only one way to silence him. Framed, imprisoned, and left for dead, Colwyn faces a brutal reality--until an enigmatic being offers him a new path.

Gifted with the unnatural power to force those bent on doing him harm to his will, Colwyn emerges from the ashes of his former life as something far more dangerous than the unassuming, forgettable nerd his foes perceive. Just as Colwyn begins to experiment with his newfound powers, his world is again upended when the woman of his dreams appears at his doorstep. Now Colwyn must choose between getting revenge against those who wronged him, finding a way to bring his long-sought discovery to the world, or, for the first time in his life, pursuing his own happiness - a task which is soon complicated when he discovers that his biggest challenge may be in restraining his new powers, rather than unleashing them.

Packed with sensuality, sharp wit, and a provocative look at power and morality, The Game Master is a contemporary erotic fantasy about a man who sacrificed everything for his quest--only to discover that love was the prize he never knew he was searching for.

Author's note:

I've split this novel into three sections for publication here.

Make no mistake, this novel delves into some weighty subject matter. Trigger warnings for on-page violence and depression.

All sensuality (on page or otherwise) takes place between characters who are eighteen or older.

100100

"Ok, there he is," Heidi whispered conspiratorially. "Is he a red?"

Colwyn focused for a moment before shaking his head despondently.

"Ok, then its plan B. You ready?"

"Yes. Are you sure this is necessary?"

"No time to debate it now. Wish me luck."

"Good luck," he muttered as she rose and hurried over to a nearby alcove.

She waited for a few moments before he gave her a reluctant nod, whereupon she strutted in the direction of the front door. Her attention was focused on her phone, but Colwyn doubted anyone else in the lobby could possibly have had their eyes anywhere else but on her breathtaking body. She was wearing a dark blue dress which hugged her curves like a second skin. Her purposeful steps caused her spectacular breasts to bounce libidinously and her flawless ass to move in a way which made his cock twitch, despite the anxiety coursing through him.

She approached their first target, acting as though she was completely mindless of her surroundings. As she neared, she glanced up and yelped in surprise before dropping her handbag. The man's eyes widened alarmingly as she knelt to retrieve the items which had burst from her bag. Colwyn growled as he watched the man's eyes widen as he stared down the deep valley of Heidi's admittedly staggering cleavage.

"Well... that checks 'might be gay' off the list of things to worry about," Colwyn muttered to himself.

He watched while the exec continued to help Heidi. He could see her chatting with him casually before she rose and, after thanking him profusely, walked out the front door. He waited to a count of one hundred before rising and exiting through a different door. He rendezvoused with her in the parking lot, her having already entered her car.

"So far, so good. He'll be here through tomorrow. Said he's got a full day ahead, so chances are good he'll be at the reception tonight."

"How did you find him? He looked rather lecherous from my perspective."

"So did you, the first time we met. And you turned out pretty fantastic. Besides, you can hardly blame him for checking out my girls, that was kind of the point. He seems like a decent guy, nothing spectacular. But he certainly didn't give off an evil rich guy vibe. Like I said: so far, so good."

"Where's the reception tonight?"

"Here at the hotel. We could guess as to the exact location, but certainly someone on staff is a red and could just, you know, tell us. I won't even have to flash my boobs at them."

"Good."

"Aw... are you jealous about some people catching the faintest glimpse of what you have complete access to at all times?" She reached over and took his hand, placing it on her breast as she grinned at him wickedly. "Need I remind you that you came on my tits, just this morning?"

"No," he replied sullenly, although he did not remove his hand. "Sorry. I'm trying to be mature about this. But it's... challenging."

"I know, babe. I'm sure I'd be climbing the walls if you were going out of the way to get girls to ogle Vesuvius."

"Is that what you settled on?" he asked with a chuckle at her ongoing crusade to name his penis.

"Yes, because it's as big around as a city and massive amounts of molten awesomeness shoot from its summit."

"Hopefully without the massive loss of life."

"That just means its my job to make sure its always pointed in a safe direction when it goes off. With great power..."

He smiled and said, "Indeed."

***

Late that evening, Colwyn entered the side door of the hotel. He had spent the afternoon doing recon, occasionally cornering a susceptible member of the hotel staff and probing them for information. He knew where the reception was taking place. He had even toured the room with the somewhat willing help of a busboy. In addition to gaining a lay of the land, he had also identified several different people who would be both responsive to his ability and in a position to grant him access to the room.

He approached the room in question an hour after dinner was to have been served. He had worried about missing their target, but Heidi had insisted that it would be impossible for him to get their man alone if he was still in the middle of eating dinner. He spotted a waitress he had previously identified as having a magenta aura and said, "Good evening. You will answer my questions to the best of your ability. After I depart, you will forget this conversation ever occurred. Understand?"

"Yes," the young woman answered quietly.

"Has anyone left the dinner yet?"

"No. We just served dessert."

"Good. I need to know where Quincy Meadows is seated."

"I'm not sure, I don't really pay attention to names."

"Can you get me inside without either of us being spotted?"

She thought briefly before saying, "No. But I can take you to the AV room. I can't guarantee no one will see you there, but it's fairly inconspicuous."

"Let's go."

Peering out from the elevated AV room, Colwyn had a good view of the conference room where the heads of most of the country's biggest pharmaceutical firms had gathered to discuss strategies for minimizing government meddling and maximizing profits. Strictly speaking, such a gathering was tantamount to collusion. But, since the gathering also contained many of the country's top members of the establishment responsible for regulating the industry, it was unlikely that anyone would raise a fuss.

Colwyn quickly spotted his target, seated near the back and making little effort to hide how bored he was with the endlessly chattering person seated to his left.

Colwyn turned to the waitress and said, "Go tell him he has a phone call. I suspect he'll be relieved for the interruption. Bring him up here. Then you can return to your duties."

She departed, returning shortly with Mr. Meadows who looked around before demanding, "What's this about?"

"I apologize for the subterfuge, but I wanted to speak with you away from all those jackals down there."

The man regarded Colwyn for a moment before saying, "I'm quite busy," and taking a step toward the door.

Colwyn raised his voice a bit and said, "I have come up with a formula which will cure several forms of heart disease."

The man's stopped walking but did not go so far as to turn back in Colwyn's direction.

Colwyn continued, "I developed it while working for one of your competitors."

"Then it's of no use to me, or do you not understand how patents work?"

"They refused it. And I developed it without their knowledge, hence the termination of our relationship. And they don't hold the patent on it, I do."

The man turned to face Colwyn and said, "So? Why tell me about it?"

"You know the answer to that. A man cannot bring a new medication to market. But your company could."

"Why me? You could walk into that room and sell it to the highest bidder."

"I'm not interested in profiting off this formula."

"Bullshit."

Colwyn shrugged and said, "Believe what you will, but it's the truth. My only interest is in this medicine getting into the hands of the people that desperately need it."

"What's the catch? The way I was brought up, if something sounds too good to be true, then it is."

"You must sell it as cheaply as possible. I will not begrudge you a modest profit, but my aim is for this medicine to save thousands of lives, not make a handful of people ridiculously wealthy."

"I see. What about trials and government oversight?"

"I can guarantee that this medicine will clear those hurdles. My former employer lured me from academia with an eye on getting me to use my research to reduce their failure rate. Not a single medicine which was evaluated, and in most cases improved, by my software failed to go to market."

"You're the guy I heard about last year. The super genius who wrote thinking programs. What's your name, Smallville?"

"Smalley. And my programs don't think, they just appear to think in the eyes of people who aren't so good at thinking themselves."

"Tell me something? Was this a once in a lifetime thing with the heart disease breakthrough?"

"I have my own reasons for choosing to work on this particular form of heart disease. But there is no reason that I couldn't adapt my methods to apply to other maladies."

He took several steps and stuck out his hand. "You drive an intriguing bargain, Mr. Smalley. Would you be willing to meet with my research team?"

Colwyn retrieved his hand from the man's strong grip and said, "Bring four of your top people. I will pick one of the group who will have one hour to ask me anything they want. I'll even let them evaluate my work. As I said, I am uninterested in making money. I only want to help people."

***

As agreed upon the prior evening, Quincy Meadows arrived at a local diner early the next morning in the company of four of his employees. Colwyn scanned each of them before sending a silent command to his waitress to step outside and inform Meadows which of his employees could enter. Colwyn ensured that the other three departed before turning his attention to Meadows and a surprisingly young man with a wispy goatee and an ill-fitting sport coat. The pair sat down, and Meadows introduced his companion as Felix Taylor.

"Good morning," Meadows began. "Have you eaten?"

"I waited for you, as we agreed."

"Felix, Mr. Smalley asked me to offer no details until we arrived. I know this is an extremely tall order, but you're one of our best and I have faith in you. Mr. Smalley tells me he's come up with a cure for several forms of heart disease. He's not a doctor, or even a chemist. What he is, is perhaps one of the smartest people alive when it comes to AI. He claims he wrote programs which came up with this formula. I need you to figure out if he's full of shit. No offense," this last comment he directed at Colwyn.

Colwyn nodded and said, "Actually, I write programs which write programs. You have to go five dimensions deep to get to where the actual formula creation happens."

Felix made a sour face and looked pointedly at his boss. "I don't know computers, Mr. Meadows."

"I know," Meadows replied reassuringly. "That doesn't matter. I need you to figure out if the formula is legit. Don't worry about how he came up with it. I merely gave you background so you didn't' think this was some kind of... I don't know..."

"Russian spy shit?" Felix offered.

"Sure. Let's go with that. Why don't I order for us while you two get into the heart of the matter?"

Colwyn was unsurprised by the quality of Felix's questions, but he was caught off guard by the ferocity with which the questions were fired at him. It was as if Felix had stayed up all night preparing for this exact conversation. His questions were pointed in a way that showed deep familiarity with both the maladies the formula aimed to cure, and the types of medicines currently used to cure them.

Colwyn held nothing back in answering the questions, even making use of his laptop to demonstrate some of the models he had created. As they neared the end of the hour, Felix finally slowed down and began to eat his now cold food.

Meadows said, "So... what do you think?"

"I can't promise it'll work, but he's almost certainly not full of shit. Some of his theories are pretty groundbreaking, but I can see the potential. Kind of thinking about taking the day and just seeing where we might be able to adapt this approach to some of our work in progress."

"Well," Colwyn interjected. "Are you convinced?"

"So how does this work, in your mind?" Meadows evaded. "Do you come to work for us?"

"I'm not sure that would be a good idea. Strictly speaking, I have a non-compete in place which precludes me from working in the industry. I have, however, consulted an attorney and there is nothing in the non-compete which prevents me from entering into an agreement which would allow you to manufacture the formula. I'm only prevented from actually working for you."

"I see. So, how much would you charge for the formula?"

Colwyn sat back and said, "It isn't for sale. But I will grant you a license to manufacture it, immediately revocable by me if you do anything I don't like."

"How much will the license be, then?"

Colwyn smiled broadly and said, "One dollar."

100101

"You've got that freaked out look in your eye again, babe," Heidi observed from her spot in the passenger seat.

"What?" Colwyn exclaimed theatrically. "No I don't?"

"You're about ten seconds from steering us into an embankment. It's going to be fine. Dad will adore you. I'm certain of it. You already met my sister and that went fine."

"That was via video chat. This is in person. Not only that, but we're staying at his house. In the same bedroom, no less."

"I'm not a teenager anymore, Colwyn," she retorted in irritation. "I stayed with my dad for two years. During that time, I was, as near as makes no difference, his caretaker. He's cool, but even if he wasn't, we're way past me needing to pretend I'm not an adult around him. He knows we're having sex."

"He does?" Colwyn gulped.

"He as much as said so when he asked if we'd need two rooms prepared. And then I confirmed it when I told him that even though we don't live together, we sleep together more often than we don't. We're an adult couple in a committed, deeply serious relationship. Honestly, he should be worried if we aren't having sex. Relax. It's fine."

"If you say so," he responded, sounding decidedly unconvinced.

"If, dare I say when, we go visit your mother, will we share a bedroom?"

"That is different."

"Why?"

He took her hand, brushing his lips across her knuckles. "Because I am not trying to impress her."

"You don't need to impress me, babe. I already know that you're the best."

"But your father does not. This isn't about some archaic nonsense where your father's opinion matters more than yours. But that doesn't mean I don't intend to do everything possible to hide from him just how undeserving of you I am."

"I should scream at you for continuing to carry this torch," she groaned.

"But you kind of like it, don't you?"

"It inspires me to also bend over backwards to treat you like you deserve. Relationships have been built on worse foundations than two people constantly moving heaven and earth to demonstrate how much they care for their partner."

"Indeed. But this conversation has caused me to realize that I have allowed a truth to exist in your head which I feel compelled to correct. I have not yet told my mother about our relationship, or indeed about you at all. I..." At this point, he turned to face her and saw the devastated expression on her face. He hastened to add, "Oh, baby. It's not like that. I mean, I guess it's not going to sound great, but I haven't omitted mentioning you to her. I literally have not spoken with her since our relationship began."

Heidi's expression changed, but not necessarily for the better. "But... why?"

He shrugged and said, "I call her on her birthday and on holidays. She will sometimes call and remind me that it has been months since we spoke. But that has been our way for as long as I can remember. I am not avoiding her. It's just that since she moved, our lives have almost no overlap."

"I don't understand. I thought you two were close."

"We are. We have no arguments. The fact that I don't often feel the urge to call her does not mean I dislike her."

"I just don't get it babe. Help me understand. I have a close relationship with my family. By that, I mean I talk to them on the phone at least weekly and I visit them at least a couple times a year. I'd go crazy if I went for months without talking to them."

He considered this for a moment before spending a few seconds manipulating the steering-wheel mounted controls. Shortly, the unmistakable sound of a dial-tone came over the coupe's speakers.

"What are you doing?" Heidi asked worriedly.

"Righting a wrong."

"God dammit," she muttered as the line picked up.

"Colwyn!" his mother's voice said exuberantly over the car's speakers. "What a wonderful surprise. Is everything ok?"

He glanced at Heidi as though to drive home the point that him not having called his mother recently was not cause for comment, but she was staring daggers at him. So, he quickly shifted his eyes back to the road.

"Everything is wonderful, Mother."

"Well, that's a welcome change."

"Prudence dictates that I make you aware that I am in a vehicle in motion, and that I have a companion who can hear your every word. Her name is Heidi Boyd, and I am very proud to call her my girlfriend. Assuming that is, that my decision to call you in her presence, and without her permission, has not jeopardized our relationship status. I should also point out that she is the most beautiful woman in the world and the best woman I have ever known. Well, one of the best two."

The silence that descended, both over the phone and in the car, was like a weighted blanket made of neutron stars. Colwyn felt the breath being literally dragged from his lungs while he waited for someone, anyone, to speak.

"Mother? Are you unwell?"

"Oh honey, I'm not sick. I'm just so fucking happy."

"Pardon?"

"I know," she gushed. "That's not very ladylike, but I've waited so long for this day. Please don't judge Colwyn too harshly, Heidi. I hope you know by this point that he approaches some problems a bit differently than the rest of us."

"I am very aware, Mrs. Smalley," Heidi replied with a glare in his direction. "But that's one of the reasons I'm crazy about him. One of many."

"Oh, Jesus. I need to sit down." There was a momentary pause, with a whispered conversation in the background, before she came back to the line. "Please, Heidi, call me Alice. And call me as often as you like. I'm just overwhelmed by curiosity. How did you two meet? How long have you been together?"

"I will answer all your questions in time, Mother, but we are currently en route to Heidi's father's house. I called to bring you up to date, but also to make a promise and ask a question."

"I am literally shaking in anticipation."

"The promise is that I will call more frequently. It is scandalous that the best thing to happen to me since..."

"I know, honey," his mother interjected warmly.

"Anyway, it is unforgivable that Heidi consented to start dating me weeks ago, and I am only telling you now."

"I forgive you, honey. I'm just so happy."

"You are not the only person whose forgiveness I must seek, Mother."

Heidi was still giving him a queer look, but she patted his arm and said, "I forgive you too, babe."

Soft sobs came through the phone, but his mother said nothing.

Colwyn pressed on and said, "As to my question: when would be most convenient for Heidi and I to come visit? We both started new jobs recently so it will likely only be for the weekend to start. But I intend to see you more frequently. Much more frequently."

"I have literally nothing on my schedule that is more important than my son and his wonderful girlfriend. I would cancel on the Pope if you came and visited."

"We will check our schedules and let you know what works best. In the meantime, know that I miss you... and that I love you very much."

Undisguised sobbing now filled the cabin via the vehicle's Bluetooth connection. At length, his mother managed to say, "I love you too, sweetheart. And I'm very, very proud of you. And I'm so, so happy for you both. I can't wait to meet you, Heidi."

"I look forward to it," Heidi replied.

"Farewell, Mother."

"'Bye sweetie."

Silence once again filled the car after Colwyn disconnected the call. At length he said, "I understand if you are upset that I acted without your consent, but there was a wrong that needed righting. I could not bear the thought of you believing I was anything other than humbled and honored to be your boyfriend."

"Thank you, babe. I'm touched. And don't ever fucking do that again."

He glanced over and was relieved to see the first hints of a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. He said, "Yes ma'am."

***

"It's the second house on the left," Heidi said, pointing out a small cerulean bungalow to emphasize her point.

"We're here already?" Colwyn asked nervously.

"Would you relax? It's going to be great. Dad's already halfway to loving you based on nothing but my description of you."

"That's what I'm worried about. I'm not nearly as fantastic as you think I am."

She sighed and said, "As literally the only person in this equation that is familiar with all involved parties, I guarantee it will go flawlessly. And, if you happen to need a bit of encouragement, just keep in mind the fact that I'm not wearing any panties."

"What?" he gasped.

"No time to talk now, babe," she replied with a sinful grin. "He just peeked out through the window, so I know he knows we're here."

Colwyn muttered, "Into the valley of death rode the six hundred..." as he rose from the car. He quickly made his way around to open Heidi's door. She took his hand and slid a leg out to place it on the ground. Somehow, her demure, yet alluring sundress had ridden up her hips and he caught a glimpse of her unmistakably unclothed pussy. He glanced around furtively, relieved to find that he was the only one in a position to see what her smirk promised was a show carefully planned for an audience of one. She stood quickly and her dress flowed back into position as she slid her arm through his.

"You're going to do great, babe," she assured him quietly as they approached the front steps. "Feel free to go commando when I meet your mother if it makes you feel better. Perhaps then I'd spend the whole time thinking about your perfect penis rather than trying to focus on impressing Alice. You don't need to put on a show for him babe, just be your regular wonderful self."

"Just because you're wise beyond your years doesn't mean you're not also the antichrist."

"You love it," she whispered before kissing his cheek.

The front door opened as they climbed the steps and Colwyn got his first glimpse of Lawrence 'Larry' Boyd. He was an imposing man, standing just under two meters tall and built like a man who juggled beer kegs for entertainment without finding it necessary to empty them first. His full head of hair was silver, rather than grey, and he was clean-shaven. His forearm had a single tattoo which suggested his past included military service. He was dressed comfortably, in shorts and a linen shirt.

"And who might you be?" he boomed in a voice which seemed to come straight from the parade ground of the nearby special forces headquarters.

All the moisture seemed to have fled from Colwyn's mouth in an instant, but he brought the full force of his will to bear on the objective of not humiliating Heidi. He stuck out his hand and firmly announced, "Good afternoon, Mr. Boyd. My name is Colwyn Smalley, and it is my distinct pleasure to be your daughter's boyfriend. She is the most remarkable person I have ever met, and she is a testament to both you and your dearly departed wife. I'm very sorry."

"Spend long practicing that?" her father responded without any sign of emotion. He also made no move to accept Colwyn's outstretched hand.

"Yes, sir."

He turned to Heidi and said, "I thought you said he was funny."

"He would be if you weren't scaring the shit out of him. Lighten up, Dad."

Larry grabbed Colwyn's hand, only applying a fraction of the knuckle pummeling force which Colwyn suspected he was capable of delivering, and shook it animatedly. "Pleased to meet you. Do you go by Cole or Colwyn?"

"Whichever you prefer," Colwyn answered carefully.

"Colwyn, Dad. He goes by Colwyn."

"Please, have a seat. Make yourselves at home, not that I have to tell Heidi that. Anyone want a drink?"

Colwyn took a cautious seat next to Heidi on the couch, not allowing his back to touch anything but air, and said, "No, sir."

Heidi squeezed his hand before turning to her father and saying, "Did you go to all your appointments this week?"

"Most of them."

"Dad!"

An uncomfortable silence settled over the room. After a moment, Colwyn sprang to his feet and said, "Why don't I give you two a chance to catch up. I'll make dinner."

Before they could object, he had departed the room. He had some trouble when he realized he had fled into a bedroom, but fortunately the bedroom had two exits and he was able to make his way to the kitchen without being forced to choose between reentering the living room or jumping out a window.

100110

Heidi and Larry wandered into the kitchen some time later, having apparently found a resolution to the appointment conundrum. Colwyn was in the midst of using a mandolin to turn large pieces zucchini into very specifically shaped smaller pieces. The counter was covered with a collection of bowls, each filled with a different carefully prepared ingredient.

Larry said, "This looks like quite a production."

"It's no trouble," Colwyn replied. "I enjoy cooking."

"He's also brilliant at it," Heidi added, sliding up next to him and surveying the ingredients. After a moment, she said, "I give up. What are you making?"

"Trade secret, my dear. But if either of you see anything you're allergic to, or just plain don't like, now's the time to let me know."

"I'll eat anything that doesn't fight back," Larry said with a sly grin. "And I suspect you already know what this one likes," he finished with a gesture in Heidi's direction.

"Indeed." Colwyn turned to Heidi and said, "When would you like to have dinner?"

She said, "I'm easy."

Colwyn turned to Larry, who nodded almost imperceptibly and said, "Same."

"Then we shall dine shortly."

They watched him heat a wok up to near re-entry temperatures before he began adding ingredients. He kept everything in constant motion, adding a new ingredient every few moments until the bowls on the counter had all been emptied. He poured the wok's ingredients into a serving dish and shut down the stove.

He glanced up to find both Boyd's watching him with rapt fascination. He picked up the serving dish and said, "Where would you like to eat?"

Larry pointed at the dining room table, and they were soon seated. Colwyn watched with great trepidation as they each took their first bite. Most bites followed quickly and Colwyn breathed a sigh of relief. It was not until several minutes later that anyone actually spoke.

"This is wonderful. But I still don't have the foggiest idea what it is."

"It's chicken parmesan."

"Says who?" Larry asked good naturedly.

"I just changed it up a bit. I seared the chicken rather than breading it, made the sauce, such that it is, in the pan and used zucchini instead of grain-based pasta."

Larry said, "Like I said, it's terrific. But why change what ain't broke?"

Heidi's eyebrows rose and she leaned over to kiss Colwyn's cheek unhurriedly. She then turned to her father and said, "He changed it so it's basically zero-sugar." She turned to Colwyn and said, "You're the best, babe."

"I'll be damned. Think you might have to write that one down, son. It's a keeper."

They finished their meal soon after, but Colwyn had no recollection of anything other than Heidi's adoring gaze and Larry's term of endearment.

Heidi insisted on cleaning up, leaving Colwyn alone with Larry. The latter led the former out onto the porch and handed him a beer. They settled into a pair of rocking chairs and watched the grandchildren of one of Larry's neighbors race their bikes around the cul-de-sac.

"Heidi tells me you work with computers."

"That's correct. I spent a long time in academia, learning everything I could about my field and improving my approach. Once I felt I had gone as far as I could there, I transitioned to the private sector. That was about a year ago. I just recently started working for a consulting firm who let me dabble in many different industries."

"She also said you're pretty smart."

"Perhaps. But there are many areas where I still have much to learn."

Larry chuckled and said, "Like springing her on your mom while you were driving down here?"

Colwyn sighed and said, "I arrived at an impasse and chose what I believed to be the best path."

"Don't sweat it son. The good ones don't hold a grudge when your heart's in the right place."

Colwyn took a drink and said, "She is certainly the best of the good ones."

"If you don't mind me asking, when did you graduate from college?"

"I have done so more times than I can count. But if you're asking how old I am, I am nine years Heidi's senior. I can understand why this would concern you..."

"Stow it. I learned a while ago not to place much faith in the actuarial tables. I was literally just making conversation. I had a hell of a time getting just the one degree. Hard to imagine getting so many you lose track."

"I did not mean to sound elitist. It is just that several of the universities who hired me offered honorary degrees as part of the package. I'll also sometimes receive what amounts to a job offer by way of an honorary degree."

Larry shook his head and said, "So can you do math in your head. Like that guy in the movie?"

"Only if I concentrate. It can be more of a burden than a benefit. Who wants to see a phone number on a billboard and have their subconscious report that it is the product of two primes?"

"Fascinating. What's Heidi think of all this?"

"I regret to inform you that I have, thus far, been unsuccessful in convincing her that she deserves far, far better than me. Her opinion of me is unrealistically optimistic."

"I'm guessing she won't hear word one of this kind of talk."

"Indeed. In fact, she insists that the condition I described is true, only in reverse. I would do anything to ensure her happiness. Thus, I will strive endlessly to be the man she deserves."

Larry drained his beer and stood up, clapping Colwyn on the shoulder. He said, "That's the secret, son. Never take them for granted, and never stop working to be the man she thinks you are. Love ain't complicated, it's just about making each other happy. Heidi's mother taught me that."

Colwyn looked up to find Larry staring absently out over the neighborhood with shining eyes. Larry swiped his hand over his eyes and said, "We best get inside. Heidi's bound to think I'm raking you over the coals out here."

***

"Looked pretty serious, out on the porch earlier," Heidi observed as they strolled alone along the starlit beach.

Colwyn said, "It was fine. I believe we reached an understanding."

"That sounds ominous. Is there a dowry involved? I'll have you know that my father has no say in my romantic life. I want him to like you, but I didn't bring you here for him to approve of you."

"It was nothing like that, I assure you."

They walked for several more moments before she said, "You're really not going to tell me what he said?"

"It was not my intention to be evasive, Heidi. He simply agreed with my opinion that I do not deserve you."

"I'm going to kill him. Do you mind going to the movies or something? I need to drag out my old yearbooks and remind dear old Dad what truly underserving boyfriends look like."

"Hang on, honey. It wasn't like that."

"Then enlighten me."

Colwyn released her hand and wrapped an arm around her. She snuggled into him agreeably. "He told me that working tirelessly to be the man you believe me to be, and always making your happiness my top priority, is the secret your mother taught him."

"She really did. They were so great together."

"So I gathered. She must have been an amazing woman. Her goodness is still evident in both you and your father."

"I wish you could have met her. She would have loved you."

"That would have been fortuitous, considering I am in love with her daughter."

"What?" Heidi gasped.

"I have suspected it to be the case for some time. It is a difficult hypothesis to evaluate considering the lack of a generally accepted definition..."

Colwyn lost the power of speech when Heidi's lips crushed into his. Her hands cradled his face with a tenderness that threatened to steal the strength from him. Their kiss deepened until it felt as if their very souls were merging. He felt her own affection flowing from her lips in a way that transcended language. Their tongues danced languidly as their kiss deepened unhurriedly. She shifted her hands to the back of his head, fisting them in his hair and pulling him closer. He cupped her cheek gently, brushing away the tear which had escaped her tightly closed eyes. He could perceive, with perfect clarity, every molecule of her pouty lips, every pore of her angelic face, every golden fleck of her beautiful brown eyes. He knew her every movement without the need for his senses.

She broke the kiss gasping and gaped at him in the darkness. She whispered, "You love me?"

For the perhaps the first, and certainly the most important time in his life, Colwyn spake as a human. "I really do."

She kissed him again eagerly. This kiss was more abridged, but no less meaningful, than the last. She pulled back and stared up at him with soulful eyes and said, "I was going to tell you. So many times, I was going to tell you. But I wasn't sure how you would feel about it, so I got scared. Go figure, after all my pep talks about confidence, it was me that chickened out."

Colwyn looked around before sitting down on the sand and saying, "Come here, honey."

She crawled into his lap, straddling him and wrapping her arms around his neck. He leaned in to kiss her, but she whispered, "Wait."

He paused, once again awestruck by the how, even in the dimness of the light pollution diminished starlight, her beauty still radiated as if powered by some ethereal inner light. "What is it, beautiful?"

"I am madly, soul-meltingly, desperately, unquestionably, completely in love with you."

Colwyn choked up, suddenly unable to form words in the face of a dream he had not dared to dream coming so perfectly true. He pulled Heidi in for a kiss, feeling their connection intensify with each passing moment.

"Make love to me," she whispered as their lips parted. "Right here. Right now."

"As you wish."

He slid his hands up to cup her supple ass and realized she was still without panties. He felt her reach between them and free his cock from the confines of his jeans. She wasted no time, rising up and taking him deep into her molten core. Colwyn gasped at the sensation before crying out in anguish.

"We forgot a condom, honey."

"No... we didn't. I'm on the pill, so no little Colwyn's yet. But nothing will ever again come between us, my love."

"Fuck," he panted. "You feel amazing."

"You have no idea," she whispered before taking his earlobe between her lips.

She rode him with unhurried passion as they each savored the pleasure their lover gave unreservedly. He kissed his way down her neck before freeing her breasts to pleasure them with his tongue. She pulled him closer as he worshiped her incomparable breasts, her moans steadily increasing in volume until they threatened to drown out the roar of the surf.

"You're so fucking perfect, Heidi. You're my dream come true."

"Oh, my God. Babe. You're everything I ever wanted."

They sped up their pace as their orgasms neared, both focused on their partner's pleasure to the exclusion of all else. He felt the first tremors of her velvety channel rippling along the length of his manhood and knew his release was imminent. He pulled her closer, whispering in her ear, "I'm close, honey."

"Fuck. So am I."

Her lips crushed against his, their tongues twining anxiously in a silent declaration of their love.

She gasped, "Cum in me... I need to feel... feel you fill me... oh fuck."

Her inner walls clamped down on his cock as her orgasm consumed her. He thrust a final time before joining her in bliss, erupting deep into her heavenly depths. Their mutual orgasms fed from each other, ever expanding waves of pleasure washing over them in time with the slowly approaching surf. The lover's embrace of the woman he loved, effortlessly cradling his manhood, his body and his soul, drove his pleasure even higher. This was quickly eclipsed by the certainty that she was perfectly in sync with him and receiving every ounce of love he had to give with flawless clarity.

She collapsed in his arms as their pleasure receded. He held her there for countless minutes, confident in the knowledge that even though this perfect moment must eventually end, he would remember it forever.

100111

"Hey handsome," Heidi called out as she bounded down the stairs salaciously to find Colwyn in his office. "You left your phone in the bedroom. I went to take a pic of my boobs to set it as your background and I saw you missed a call."

"Thanks, honey." Colwyn took the offered phone and nearly dropped it after having unlocked the screen.

"Never said I didn't go through with it," Heidi snickered as she sauntered from the room.

"I love you," Colwyn called after her.

"I love you more."

Colwyn regretfully changed his background back to a photo he had taken of Heidi on the beach during their weekend at Larry's house, but not before ensuring that he had saved the jaw dropping pic she had snapped of her magnificent breasts. He clicked over to his phone app and his mood instantly turned sour. He tossed his phone on his desk and drummed his fingers angrily on his chair, his work forgotten.

Heidi returned moments later and handed him a perfectly prepared cup of coffee, collecting a kiss as payment. She paused, however, when she got a good look at his face. "What's wrong, babe?"

"The call was from Kurt."

"What does that sack of shit want?"

"I'm sure it's nothing good, but he declined to leave a message."

"Well, fuck him. He's got nothing you need, baby. Want a blowjob to cheer you up?"

And explosive laugh escaped from Colwyn's lips, made all the louder by the juxtaposition between her lascivious offer and her innocent expression. He pulled her into his lap and kissed her tenderly. His hand wandered over her hip to pull her closer as their kiss continued. She sighed into his lips as her hand toyed with the top button of his shirt. The indefatigable smile on his face when they broke the kiss caused her to snicker before kissing him briefly once again.

He said, "I'm the luckiest man alive."

"I know," she cooed before kissing him again. "When did you say your first meeting was?"

"In..." He glanced at the clock on his computer, "twenty-three minutes."

She shrugged and said, "We've got time."

"You bet your ass we do," he grunted as he stood with her in his arms.

She yelped in delight and wrapped her arms around his neck. As he neared the stairs, his phone chirped with the distinctive notification which signified that someone had entered the property. He slowed and said, "Someone's here."

"Are you expecting anyone?"

He shook his head before placing her on her feet. He pulled his phone out and said, "It's the cops."

"So much for ignoring them," Heidi muttered.

Pounding soon began sounding from the direction of the front door and they could hear the officers demanding entry. Colwyn peered at them through the app on his phone and was dismayed to find that it was the same two officers who had responded to the break-in.

He opened the door casually and said, "Good morning, officers."

"Sir!" the male officer barked. "I'm going to have to ask you to put your hands where I can see, ok? Right now!"

Colwyn slid his other hand from behind the door slowly and said, "What's the meaning of this."

"We have reason to believe there is a substantial quantity of narcotics on the premises."

Colwyn huffed and said, "And what reason would that be?"

"We are not obliged to provide that information. Now, please follow my partner outside. We're going to need you to wait in the squad car while we search the premises."

Heidi looked at him worriedly from where she stood out of sight in the kitchen, but he kept his eyes on the officers and said, "May I see your warrant?"

"Sir, if you don't cooperate, we will be forced to place you under arrest for interfering with an active investigation."

"That's not how this works, officer. I don't grant you permission to search my house. Furthermore, I'd like you both to leave. Right now."

"Told you he'd resist," the female officer said exultantly. "Good news, stubby. You're going to get booked again. Remember how much fun that was last time?"

She took a step in Colwyn's direction as she reached for her handcuffs. She then spotted Heidi in the kitchen and yelled, "Watch it. There's another one in the kitchen."

The older officer reached for his gun as the younger roughly shoved Colwyn against the wall. Heidi was yanked by the arm into the foyer, a grunt of pain escaping her lips as she was forced up against the wall beside him.

"Get your fucking hands off her," Colwyn growled.

"You're not in charge here, tiny dick," the female officer sneered as she snapped the cuffs onto his wrists. "We are."

"Heidi, baby," Colwyn asked quietly, heedless of what the officer was doing behind him. "Are you ok?"

"I think so," she murmured, carefully eying the older officer who was looming over her, his hands hovering mere centimeters from her, with a confused expression on his face. Heidi nodded at the officer behind Colwyn and said, "Is she the one you told me about?"

"One of them," Colwyn grunted as he was forced to his knees by the officer who was so narrowly focused on him, she had not yet recognized something was amiss.

"Tell her to do whatever I tell her to," Heidi whispered conspiratorially.

Colwyn focused every ounce of his will on the female officer and said, "You will follow my partner's instructions without hesitation."

Heidi tentatively said, "Take the cuffs off him."

His tormentor said, "The hell you say." But Colwyn soon felt the cuffs slide from his wrists.

"Get away from my man," Heidi said, this time more boldly. "Over there."

Colwyn turned and spotted the rage on the male cop's face. Colwyn stood and seethed, "You will stand down, officer. We are not your enemies. And I assure you, there are no narcotics here. Now, we'll need a full accounting of what brought you here this morning."

"We..."

"No," Colwyn interrupted. "I want you to write it all down." He pulled a legal pad from a table in his office and pointed in the direction of the dining room. The cop took a few steps in the indicated direction before Colwyn added. "Leave your utility belt and all communication devices in here, officer."

Colwyn supervised the officer divesting himself of his radio, phone and weapons before turning back to Heidi.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed upon seeing the female officer removing her uniform shirt with a murderous expression on her face.

"How's it feel, you hateful bitch," Heidi whispered venomously.

"I'll kill you for this," the cop seethed.

"Too bad you won't remember it," Heidi responded cheerfully. "You can't make her remember some things, but not others, can you?"

Colwyn shook his head and said, "I'm not sure, and this certainly wouldn't be the best test case to find out. This isn't necessary, honey. She won't remember it anyway. Besides, it just feels scummy."

"Fine. Come on, cunt. Get your clothes on and follow me."

Heidi waited for the officer to dress before leading her upstairs. Colwyn turned back to the older officer in time to see him drop the pencil on the table.

"Read it," Colwyn commanded, indicating the paper.

"Not much to tell. We received an anonymous tip that there were several kilos of heroin in the van in your garage. We proceeded to the house at..."

"Wait. You were prepared to search my house, without a warrant, on the basis of an anonymous tip?"

"I was told it was a very reliable source."

"By whom?"

The officer stared at him condescendingly and said, "My captain."

"Fine. But who told him?"

"The DA, who heard it from a trusted source."

"Well, we might as well go prove just how untrustworthy this source was. Come on."

Colwyn led the officer out to the garage and pointed to his van-slash-RV. "Be my guest."

The cop eyed him warily before proceeding to the side door of the van. He opened it and poked his head inside before peering back in Colwyn's direction jubilantly. "Jackpot."

"What?"

Colwyn rushed over to look over the officer's shoulder. Sitting on the steps, just inside the door, were a dozen or so sandwich sized zip-top bags filled with what appeared to be a white powder.

The cop reached for his handcuffs and said, "'Fraid I'm going to have to place you under arrest."

"Go back inside and sit at the table."

The cop shrugged and said, "Fair enough," before doing as instructed.

"Honey," Colwyn heard as they reentered the house. "I think she needs another shot of 'obey juice.' She's getting a bit feisty."

The female cop shouted, "You cut my fucking hair, you fat, diseased, whore."

Colwyn hurried to the foyer to find Heidi regarding the female cop warily. He turned to the latter and said, "You will apologize. And you will never speak to her like that again. Ever. In fact, you will never speak to her again for any reason."

The younger cop stared at him, fury emanating from every pore of her body. After a pregnant pause, Colwyn said, "Well?"

"She can't apologize, babe. You told her not to speak to me. I'm good, in any case. I feel like the scales have been balanced." She glanced at the older cop and said, "I assume these two will be leaving now?"

Colwyn shook his head and said, "Not quite yet. They found quite a bit of what appears to be narcotics in the van."

"Fucking Kurt. Has to be. Stupid bastard can't even come up with a new M. O."

"I suspect you are correct. And I aim to find out."

***

"Listen, buddy," the elder cop grumbled from the front seat of the squad car. "He ain't here. He ain't at his office. He ain't at his house. He ain't at his club. When are you going to admit that you're not going to find this guy by simply driving around like this?"

"He's right, babe," Heidi whispered. "Time for plan B."

"Damnit," Colwyn breathed. "Fine, take us to the airport."

"Gladly," the elder cop grumbled before putting the car in gear.

Colwyn tried to calm himself against the worry which was gripping him like a vice. It was becoming increasingly apparent to him that Kurt was not, and never would be, content to let sleeping dogs lie. And whether his objective was the formula, or merely to be more certain of Colwyn's acquiescence, he was unquestionably growing more bold. The female cop, who Colwyn was trying very hard not to stare at lest he once again snicker at the reverse mohawk she had given herself at Heidi's suggestion, had said the street value of the drugs planted in the van was in excess of one hundred thousand dollars. If Kurt was willing to, figuratively speaking, set that much money on fire, there was no telling how far he would go to achieve his goal.

As they neared the airport, Colwyn instructed the officer to take them to the private terminal. Upon arriving, he instructed them to forget everything that had occurred since the beginning of their shift, and to return to the station. He was mildly curious, but not concerned, about the drugs since the cops had helpfully agreed to relocate them to Kurt's pool house once it became clear he was not home.

As they watched the squad car drive away, Heidi turned to him and said, "You think I'm a crazy bitch, don't you?"

"What?" he exclaimed theatrically. "No! Why would I think that?"

"Because it's going to take years for that hateful cunt's hair to grow back. And I'm not the least bit embarrassed by what I did. She called down the thunder when she messed with my boyfriend. And that shit will not stand."

"I'm honored. And turned on. And a little scared."

"Excellent," she murmured happily, steepling her fingers together wickedly. "So, what's the plan?"

"Don't really have one. You picky about where we go?"

"Well, ideally they'll have Wi-Fi so I don't get fired. Assuming, that is, that your little VPN doohickey will make it so we can get online without anyone tracking our location."

"I trust it implicitly."

"Ok, then my only requirement is that there's a comfy bed so we can pick up where we left off when we were so rudely interrupted this morning. By the way, why are we flying private?"

"Because this way I only have to convince a handful of people to look the other way, rather than a whole company. Also, no security. Come on."

He led them through the front door, operating on the 'act like you belong' principle. They proceeded to the lounge, where they took a moment to get the lay of the land. Colwyn let his eyes linger on everyone there before zeroing in on the bartender. He walked up and took a seat.

When the bartender approached, he said, "Get me a list of today's scheduled departures, including the number of crew and passengers for each and the capacity of the plane. And a Mai Tai for the lady."

"I don't have access to that information, man," the bartender replied as he began assembling drink ingredients.

"Then what do you know?"

"I know the old codger at the other end of the bar has been in here every week this month. Seems he's bound and determined to check joining the mile-high club off his bucket list, but he can't seem to get it right. First it was the escort he hired freaked out 'cause she thought he was kidnapping her, and locked herself in the lavatory. Next, it was his boner pills wearing off before they got up to cruising altitude. This time, he swears he's got everything all worked out."

"Does he go anywhere, or just circle around until he finishes?"

"He didn't before, but apparently this time he had to promise to take his escort to the beach. He's down there with a little blue pill in his hand and his eyes glued to the clock. Soon as they're ten minutes to wheels up, down the hatch."

Colwyn turned to study the man in question. He was the kind of man whose wealth was so evident, it was practically tattooed on his forehead. He was wearing an expensively tailored suit which did an admirable job of hiding his bulk. He had a clean shaved head and a van dyke beard which was as black as coal. He wore a wristwatch normally reserved for the best racecar drivers and had diamond encrusted cufflinks. His aura was also beet red.

Colwyn said, "What do you think, honey. Want to cock-block a billionaire?"

"After the day we've had? Hell yes?"

101000

"This doesn't look like the beach," the billionaire's 'friend' snapped as they climbed from the jet.

"I wish you'd make your mind up," the billionaire huffed. "I thought you wanted to go to Atlantic City. I was going to take you to the best restaurant in the city and we have the Emperor's Suite reserved."

"What about the tennis bracelet?"

"That too. Shall we?"

Heidi held Colwyn's hand as they watched the pair depart. She sighed and said, "A match made in heaven. They both love money so much, they hardly notice the other's presence."

Colwyn smiled at her and said, "Indeed. What should we do next?"

"You're the man with the mystical abilities, Dr. Awesome. I'm just tagging along."

"You have some pretty awesome abilities yourself, beautiful. What's your preference? Figure we could get into a casino without any trouble. Heading into Philly is likely the same. If we wanted to head out of the city, it might be more challenging as we'd have to figure out a way to get a car."

"Atlantic City works for me, although we should pick a different hotel than those two, just to be safe."

The flight had been a study in patience for them both. Colwyn's ability had convinced their fellow passengers that he and Heidi were both expected and disliked, granting them a measure of peace. He had also managed to convince the billionaire to abandon his mile-high quest, albeit with considerably more effort. The flight crew, however, had been another issue. None of them featured the necessary red aura, so Heidi and Colwyn had been forced to rely on the compulsion of the billionaire and his escort.

They made their way through the private terminal and flagged a cab. The trip to the casino passed in silence with Colwyn choosing to pay in cash rather than use up more energy on using his ability. Upon arrival, Colwyn followed Heidi through the lobby and into the casino where they made themselves comfortable in the bar.

"What made you choose Atlantic City?" he asked after taking a satisfying sip of his drink.

"Seemed like we could blend in here easy enough. And it was within the range of the jet Chrome Dome chartered. Why? Did you have somewhere else in mind?"

"Like I said, I'm not picky. Now that we're here, what should we do next?"

Heidi shrugged and said, "We wait. We just need to figure out who the big man in charge is."

"You mean the pit boss?"

She shrugged and said, "Maybe? Look, in every movie about Vegas there's a scene where somebody is killing it at the tables and a mysterious person shows up and comps them a suite. I figure we just need to figure out who that person is, and you can convince them that we won big. I suspect that'll also help with the untraceable cash problem."

"So, how do we find him... her... them? Should I try to win big, somehow? Maybe I could get a dealer to help me out."

"You're not big on casino movies, are you?"

"My speed is more fantasy and sci-fi, if I'm honest. Why?"

She grinned and said, "These places make an appalling amount of money. Appalling. And one of the reasons they do is because they invest heavily in preventing any sort of cheating. They'll kick people out for even the appearance of counting cards, much less actual cheating. No, babe, I think we're better off just waiting for someone else to win big so we can find our man."

"Or woman," he offered.

"You'll see."

***

"This is a hotel room?" Colwyn muttered to Heidi as an effusively helpful bellhop guided them around a three-bedroom suite that seemed like the apex of luxury.

"Are you kidding?" Heidi chuckled. "I'd wager our host from the plane wouldn't be caught dead staying in a place like this. Their suite likely has a dozen rooms and a pool."

"Perhaps. Well, I suppose we'll be able to make do. Think we can tip our tour guide with casino tokens?"

"I suspect that's considered a bit gauche."

"Well, we don't have any other cash after the cab ride. Perhaps we can soften the blow by tipping a few hundred bucks."

He did just that and soon they were alone. It was only mid-afternoon, but he felt like he had already experienced the equivalent of several full days since rising early that morning. He led her into the living room and took a seat on the couch next to her.

She burrowed into his side and said, "Well... we got a room for the week. What exactly do you intend to do now?"

"Don't hit me," he began seriously.

"Why on earth would I ever..."

"We should probably... um... work?"

She frowned and said, "Oh... you... frustratingly logical man. Ok, fine. But I certainly hope you'll have a better answer than that when quitting time comes around."

They compromised, as neither had any meetings. They sat together on the couch, each surrounded by the accoutrement of their profession but still close enough for the occasional quick caress, or lascivious grope. Colwyn worked quickly, doing eight hours' worth of work in a third the time. When he finished for the day, it was obvious that Heidi still had work left to do so he began researching options for their evening entertainment. The comped suite, and attendant privileges, he had convinced the casino's representative to give them included carte blanche to the restaurants and night club. It also included a ten-thousand-dollar line of credit in the casino. It occurred to Colwyn that Heidi might enjoy an evening of gambling, so he added that to the list of possibilities. He also researched all the restaurants and stack-ranked them based on what he perceived would be Heidi's level of interest.

She slammed her laptop closed just as the clock struck six and said, "Quitting time."

"Splendid," Colwyn exclaimed. "I have an agenda ready for your approval."

She slid next to him and watched the several minutes long presentation he had prepared suggesting they visit a highly rated sushi restaurant for dinner before taking in a magic show and then concluding at a dance club."

"What makes you think I like dancing?" she inquired when the presentation ended.

"I have no data on the matter, but my understanding is that it is an activity from which many American females derive happiness."

"You are that from which I derive happiness," she replied coquettishly. "I have an alternative suggestion, if you're willing to listen."

"That is literally the least I could do," he agreed, closing his laptop with flourish.

"We stay in. In fact, we stay in the master suite unless it's to answer the door for room service. I want you all to myself tonight."

"I like your proposal better. I accept."

She leapt up and ran into the bedroom with a whoop of delight. He quickly followed suit to find her shedding her clothing. She said, "One more rule. No clothes. Unless you're answering the door for the aforementioned room service."

He watched her shimmy out of the last of her clothing in unabashed awe. No matter how many times he was fortunate enough to gaze upon her unclothed form, he never lost the sense of wonder. She was the most beautiful sight his eyes had ever, would ever, behold and he knew he would never lose that sense of wonder he felt when she graced his eyes with her body.

He kicked off his shoes and socks. His jeans and button-down shirt soon followed. She stood before the bed, watching him hungrily. He took a step in her direction, but she waggled her finger at him and said, "Wait. You're not adhering to the rules of the game. Lose the rest."

He winced and said, "I just figured..."

She stomped her foot and pointed at him accusingly. "Do you believe me when I tell you I love you?"

"Of course."

"Then why don't you believe me when I tell you you're devastatingly handsome?"

"I have spent decades coming up with strategies to use clothing to best conceal my true form. I appreciate that you are not repulsed by this," he waved a hand in front of his body. "But that's a far cry from having it imposed upon you."

Her face softened and she said, "I get it babe. I've spent the last decade hating myself a little more each day because of what was happening to my body. But you changed all that. You make me feel like a goddess."

"That's because you are a goddess, honey."

"I just wish I knew how to do that for you. I don't care what anyone says, babe. To me, you're perfect. And that includes your body."

He sighed and said, "You're just saying that because you love me."

"So? Maybe you're just saying you think I'm pretty because you have an infantile obsession with mammary glands."

He shook his head and said, "That's not why." She glared at him knowingly, so he added, "That's not the only reason why. Your beauty is an immutable fact. Like gravity or the second law of thermodynamics."

She groaned and said, "Maybe I think you're handsome because I love you. Maybe I love you because I think you're handsome. Ultimately, the only thing that matters is that I do believe it. And whether you believe that I believe it. You can't pick and choose the things you choose to believe me about, babe. At a certain point, this stops being about all the pieces of shit that ever made you feel less than the remarkable, fantastic, devastatingly handsome man you are, and it boils down to two people that love each other enough to let go of all that history, drop all the barriers, and just be together without any reservations."

"I want that very much, honey. More than I've wanted anything since..."

She reached out to cup his cheek lovingly. "I know babe. I feel the same way. Your father, and my mom, would want us to be happy together. I truly believe that."

He pulled her into an embrace and kissed her, conveying a lifetime of longing without words. He felt her hands struggling to free him from what remained of his clothes and briefly relinquished her lips to assist her with her objective.

"There's the man of my dreams," she whispered before claiming his lips once more. "This is my dream, babe. Us, just like this."

"You're my dream, baby. And I don't ever want to wake up."

She guided him over to the bed and sank back onto the covers. She looked up at him with hooded eyes and whispered, "Take me, Colwyn." She snickered and murmured, "Holy romance novel!"

He climbed onto the bed beside her and took one of her nipples between his lips. She pulled him closer with a sigh of contentment.

Colwyn tickled her other nipple, grinning widely as he watched it harden. He whispered, "I think they like me."

"I know they do." She paused for a moment before whispering, "I meant what I said earlier, even if it sounded ridiculous. I want you to take me; make love to me; fuck my brains out. Whatever you want. My body is yours to do with as you please. No limits. In fact, the wilder, the better. I trust you with my life, Colwyn. Let me give this to you."

"I could never ignore your needs, honey."

"Do you honestly think I won't get off on whatever you decide to do to me? It's not like you typically have to spend hours going down on me just to tease an orgasm from me. Besides, after dinner it'll be my turn."

"That's almost more exciting than what you're proposing for me."

She grinned wickedly and said, "I know. That's kind of the point."

"Any last words?"

"Yes."

He flicked her nipple again, eliciting a gasp of pleasure from her lips. He said, "Ok. Let's hear it."

"My last word is yes," she replied with a salacious wink.

101001

Colwyn buried his hands in her titanic breasts, cherishing their impossible beauty. Her nipple hardened against his tongue as he sucked her into his mouth hungrily and suckled her eagerly. He groped her breasts with the desperation of a man finding an oasis after weeks lost in the desert. Her soft moans only spurned him onward.

"All yours, babe," she whispered as she gazed down at him.

He rose up and took in her beauty as he continued to caress her tits. A gasp escaped her lips as he tweaked her nipples. She reached down to grasp his cock and grinned widely. A swipe of her finger across his glistening tip caused a shudder throughout his body. His cock throbbed at the sight of her raising the dollop of his seed to her lips.

"Yummy."

"You want some more?"

She opened her mouth wide, a smile in her eyes, by way of answer. He shifted around so he knelt next to her shoulder, and she took him deep into the ecstasy that was her mouth.

"Dear God, that feels amazing."

Her hand slid up the back of his thigh to the small of his back and pushed him forward. He thrust gently into her mouth, and she hummed loudly around his cock in appreciation. The look of anxious anticipation on her face as he picked up the pace nearly brought him to release. He pulled back with a gasp, his pleasure heightening even further at the pouty look on her face at the loss of his manhood.

"You're too good at that, baby. I can't last."

"That's the point, babe. I'd love it if you filled my mouth with your delicious cum. That'd be so fucking hot."

"You are so fucking hot."

He moved to straddle her belly and placed his throbbing manhood between her tits. Pressing them together, he moaned loudly at the sensation of her supple breasts enveloping his cock. He fucked her languidly, the slickness from her blowjob providing all the lubrication they needed. She angled her head forward to lick the tip of his member each time it peaked out as he reached aphelion. Shifting his hands to tweak her nipples earned him a grunt of pleasure laced pain from Heidi.

"I love it so much when you fuck my tits babe. The look in your eyes: it makes me feel so incredible. I could have an orgasm, just from this."

He grinned dopily and said, "If I recall, you did cum once from this."

She smirked and said, "Well, that was with the added benefit of you covering me with your awesome sauce. The look on your face just sent me over the edge."

He grunted at the memory, both of their shared moment of ecstasy and at how achingly sexy she had been, smiling like it was the best moment of her life; not in spite of his essence covering her face, but because of it.

He thrust a few more times between her breasts before lifting up and offering his cock to her once more. She swallowed him enthusiastically, taking him to the back of her throat in one movement. She tried to smile but was hampered somewhat by his girth. But there was no mistaking the pleasure in her eyes when he gazed down at her.

He pulled back and moved to stand beside the bed. After a brief appraisal, he beckoned to her with a crooked finger and said, "I do believe this bed is the perfect height."

She grinned maniacally and scooted over to place her flawlessly rounded ass on the edge of the bed. Colwyn took her feet in his hands, rubbing them for a few teasing moments before running his tongue up the sole of her foot.

"That tickles..." she began before he plunged his length into her. "Oh, fuck," she gasped. "I'll never get tired of how you fill me up, babe. Your cock was made for me."

Gripping her thighs firmly, he drove his manhood into her with nearly agonizing patience. Each time he bottomed out, he held himself in place for a moment before giving a tiny thrust of his hips and pulling back once again. Her breasts heaved with every thrust, unrestrained by her arms which she stretched languidly toward the headboard to put her body on maximum display for his loving gaze. She gripped him firmly with her core muscles once when he stilled for what she deemed to be an unacceptably long time, causing him to glance down at her awe-inspiring pussy. She had taken to painstakingly shaving everything except for a small triangle of pubic hair just above her clit after pestering him until he reluctantly admitted his preference.

"You're just so beautiful, honey."

"I'm so glad you think so," she replied breathlessly.

"I want to take you from behind."

"Yes please. Where do you want me?"

He licked his lips and said, "At the end of the bed. In front of the mirror."

She scrambled to comply, giving him a coquettish grin over her shoulder. He reached for her ass, kneading it voraciously as he lined his cock up with her soaked entrance. Colwyn slid home slowly, savoring the way her molten core welcomed him.

"Give me your hands," he rasped, barely able to hold off the orgasm that was desperate to escape his loins.

He took her wrists, encouraging her to arch her back as he began thrusting into her velvety depths. His eyes were gifted with the sight of her supple ass jiggling temptingly each time their hips met. The mirror held an even more enticing visual feast as her breasts shook titanically.

"Oh, fuck," she grunted as he sped up his strokes. "It's so deep, babe. It feels so fucking good."

"I want you to cum for me," he panted.

"So close. So fucking close."

Colwyn again increased both the speed and depth of his motion. He had no idea what deity smiled on him to allow him to resist the lure of his own pleasure, but he managed to hold off. He felt her inner walls rippling along his length, signaling just how close she was. The sight of her face in the mirror told him everything he needed to know. Her hooded eyes; her half-open mouth; her tongue which moved according to its own schedule. She had ceded all control to Colwyn, trusting him to see to her pleasure. He pulled her up until her sweat-soaked back slicked against his chest. Cradling an arm beneath her incomparable breasts, he flicked his tongue along her earlobe.

He whispered, "I am so fucking in love with you, Heidi."

Wetness surged from her core as her orgasm crashed into her like a tsunami. Low guttural moans rumbled in her chest as her inner walls rippled along his length. Each time his cock languidly slicked into her spasming depths, she gasped in pleasure and her orgasm was renewed.

"Too much," she gasped with ragged breath.

Colwyn stilled his movements, holding himself deep in her pussy's welcoming embrace. Picking her up, he rotated around and placed her gently on the bed. Her panting was the only sign of movement he could detect until a small smile spread across her face.

"That was amazing babe," she whispered as she opened her eyes and smiled dazzlingly at him. "But this was supposed to be about you."

"I assure you babe. I enjoyed the hell out of that."

"We're not done until you cum at least once. What's your pleasure? Want me to go down on you, or jerk you off all over my face and tits? Or would you rather wait until my cash and prizes come back online? That was a hell of an orgasm, but I should be good to go in a couple minutes."

"I can't decide. I feel like the man who starved to death, stranded between equally appealing options for sustenance."

"Then why don't we combine the options? If you decide you're unhappy with the service, we'll try again once you're recovered. And we'll keep at it until you do achieve nirvana."

She slid around until her shoulders were at the end of the bed and her head hung over the edge. Colwyn bent over and blew gently on her clit before giving it a gentle flick with his tongue.

"Still not ready for that," she squeaked. "Come stand by the bed."

He followed her instructions, coming to stand before her outstretched body. She took his manhood in both hands and began stroking him while she took one of his balls into her mouth.

"Fuck," he wheezed.

Her breasts jiggled lasciviously with the movement of her arms. The warmth of her mouth came off him with a pop an instant before he felt her tongue trace along the underside of his cock. She released his manhood to slide her hand down her body and into her perfect pussy.

"Mmm," she moaned as he felt her tongue lap at the tip of his throbbing member. "I want you to cover me with your cum. Colwyn."

She daintily claimed his other testicle, caressing it with her tongue as she stroked his cock faster. Reaching out to grope her tits only heightened his pleasure. He moaned in bone-deep contentment as he savored the experience. This was, unquestionably, one of the most erotic moments of his life. But Heidi's love made it also one of the most tender, most loving, most remarkable moments he could ever imagine. His amazement did not stem from her willingness to accede to his fantasies, although he knew in that moment that he would never again want for a partner to make fantasies a reality. Nor was it the achingly, breathtakingly, magnificent display of her incomparable body on display solely for his pleasure. It was instead from the certain knowledge that everything she did came from a place of true love. Their love for each other cemented their unflagging desire to strive, to the exclusion of all else, for their lover's happiness. And, in so doing, being granted both personal happiness and the much more impactful satisfaction of attaining one of life's few fundamental achievements: a pure act of true love.

"I will love you forever," he whispered like a benediction.

"Oh babe. I love you so much."

He pulled back before bending over to kiss her passionately, but briefly. He scrambled around the bed before climbing on the other side. Taking her by the foot, he pulled her properly onto the bed, earning a happy yelp for his efforts.

"I need to be inside you, Heidi."

"Yes," she moaned as her molten core hungrily welcomed his intrusion. "Oh, God, you feel so good."

"Perfect," he breathed before claiming her lips.

Their bodies moved in perfect synchronicity. Her hips were already rotating to accommodate him almost before his knees moved in search of even deeper bonding.

"Cum for me, babe. Cum inside me. I need to feel it."

"I'm so fucking close, baby."

"I love you, Colwyn Smalley," she whispered into his ear after pulling him even closer. "I will always love you."

"Heidi," was all he managed to whimper before the most powerful orgasm of his life arrived like a thermonuclear detonation. His muscles locked as he erupted deep within her womb. Every nerve ending in his body fired simultaneously and his brain was overwhelmed by the flood of sensation. Every place his skin touched hers felt at once as though it was on fire, and frozen, and being electrocuted. Yet, rather than being painful, the sensation was the most mesmerizingly spectacular feeling he could remember. This phenomenon was exceeded by an order of magnitude along his manhood when Heidi joined him in bliss. Her femininity gripped him so tenderly, so completely, that he felt as though their very thoughts had merged. He could feel her love radiating from where they were joined like it was a living thing. Their lips found each other with almost comical urgency, their tongues twining with the desperate need to convey the love they felt for each other.

They broke the kiss breathlessly as their pleasure receded. He dropped his forehead to hers, unwilling to completely relinquish this moment to the annals of history. At length, he rolled to the side as he knew that even though she would never mention it, it could not have been comfortable for her to lay beneath him. She rolled with him and settled beneath his arm, cuddling with him affectionately.

"I will always love you, too," he whispered. "That's what I was going to say before you broke every cell of my body at once."

"I regret nothing," she replied sleepily. "Especially considering you returned the favor ten seconds later. Now, sleep love. Once we've regained our strength, we'll pursue your earlier suggestion of sushi."

"I thought you wanted to stay in."

She chuckled tiredly and whispered, "Oh, I do. My first order of business, once it's my turn, is going to be decorating your amazing body with my dinner before I enjoy a very relaxed meal."

101010

"Hey babe," Heidi called into the living room where Colwyn worked as she exited the bathroom. "I think I heard your phone ringing."

"Well, shit," Colwyn muttered as he looked around helplessly. "I thought it was right here."

"It's on the bedside table. Did someone get distracted this morning?"

He rose and stepped into the bedroom, scooping his phone up before pulling a still enticingly naked Heidi into his arms. Their kiss was passionate, but brief, and he smiled brilliantly down at her after their lips parted.

"You are never a distraction, my love. It's everything else that occasionally, regretfully, distracts me from you."

"Just don't let it happen too often," she murmured before turning in a slow circle and saying, "Now, where did I drop my panties?" She completed the turn to spy the look on his face and continued, "Don't you say a goddamned word. Or I'll scale back to only going down on you three times a day."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he stammered around a smile he was desperately trying to contain. "I wasn't going to say anything."

"Yeah, right. Get back to work, or you'll have used up your dick getting sucked quota before we have our coffee."

She whacked him on the backside with a playful gleam in her eye. He glanced back into the room a final time as he exited. She placed her hands behind her head and gave her hips a libidinous shake, causing her supple curves to jiggle salaciously for his enjoyment.

"Sweet Jesus, I love you," he called out as he took his seat once more.

"Love you more," she replied before closing the door to the bathroom.

Colwyn glanced at his phone to find a missed call from an unknown caller. He was prepared to ignore it altogether until he noticed a corresponding text.

'this text is intended for the Glaive bearer from the gadget maker. things are progressing re: the data you provided but I require a rendezvous to coordinate next steps and contingency planning. heard you left town suddenly. hope all is well. I can come to you so long as you're still on the eastern seaboard.'

Colwyn leaned back in his chair and thought for several moments before realizing the options he was considering would require Heidi's consent. He set the phone back down and focused on his work until he felt her lips press to his cheek briefly as she headed for the kitchen. He rose and followed her, wrapping his arms around her for a proper kiss before broaching the topic at hand.

"That was Quincy. He says we need to meet."

"Is everything ok?"

Colwyn frowned and said, "So it would seem, but something must be up if a phone call won't do. I have no reason to distrust him. Unfortunately, the inverse is also true. I was considering suggesting we meet him, but that we do so with the intention of moving on from this place. Just in case."

"Fine by me. This place is glorious, but we'll certainly have to leave eventually. It would also be nice to be able to get outside without the crush of humanity."

"Where should we go next? I worry about going back home before we get a better idea of what Kurt is up to."

"I agree. His desperation is worrying. Perhaps we could go visit your mother. Unless you think Kurt might anticipate that."

He looked thoughtful and said, "It's possible. But maybe we could come up with a way to get her out of the house as well and rendezvous somewhere neutral."

"That would be wonderful. Any idea how to swing it? It's not like we're swimming in cash at the moment."

"I've had a few thoughts," he replied with a wink.

***

"I can't believe you did the hand-wavey thing," Heidi whispered fiercely as they walked from the car dealer. "You're such a nerd."

"You loved it," he replied quietly.

"Of course I did, I dared you to do it. I just never thought you'd actually go through with it."

"I couldn't help it," he replied with an unabashed grin. "Not after he asked to see my identification. I mean, who talks like that?"

"Do you think he'll end up getting fired for 'agreeing' to let you take the car for an unlimited test drive? I mean, this will cost them a fortune in lost value."

"Perhaps," Colwyn allowed. "But after the way he was eye-fucking you, I can't say I'll lose sleep over it. Besides, the car isn't exactly new so the diminishment in value won't be nearly as much as it would be for a new car."

"What happens when we're done with it? Or do we just get to keep it forever?"

"That might eventually raise some suspicion. I figure we can just mail him the keys along with the claim slip to some random airport parking garage. They'll send some lucky porter to fetch it."

"Works for me. Where to next?"

"We're meeting Quincy in a few hours. That should give us enough time to skim some cash off some high rollers in the bar. I identified a couple hotel chains that will accept pre-paid cards to let a room, albeit much less luxurious than where we've been staying. But it should allow us to stay off the grid for a few weeks if necessary."

When Quincy walked into the steak house at the casino later that afternoon, Heidi had pre-paid cards in her purse worth slightly less than twenty-four thousand dollars. Their baggage was packed in their 'test drive' vehicle, which was being held at the valet stand. Colwyn had tipped lavishly for the privilege although he suspected they would have done it for free considering the grand tourer had sold for nearly a half million dollars when new.

Quincy approached them quickly, glancing at Heidi not unlike nearly fifty percent of the restaurant's patrons had as they passed their table. He then took a longer look and said, "What were you, the advance team?"

Heidi smiled as Colwyn said, "Quincy Meadows; my girlfriend, Heidi Boyd."

"You appear to have outkicked your coverage, my friend."

"Assuming you refer to how fundamentally unworthy I am to be with someone so amazing, I am well aware. Now, if we have satisfied the formal pleasantries portion of our engagement, kindly tell us what has gone wrong."

Quincy looked around furtively and said, "What makes you think anything has gone wrong?"

"You requested an immediate in-person meeting and, I assume, you were willing to spend five-figures to fly private to meet me here at the spur of the moment. Ergo, something is wrong which could not be discussed over the phone."

"Fine. But it's not wrong so much as it is... murky."

"Please elaborate."

"Wouldn't you be more comfortable if we discussed this in private?"

Colwyn's glare caused Quincy to flinch, albeit slightly. At length, Colwyn sighed and said, "I keep no secrets from Heidi, Mr. Meadows. I trust her implicitly. If you're unwilling to discuss business in front of her, then perhaps I should be in business with someone else."

"Settle down, buddy," Quincy said calmingly. "If you trust her, that's good enough for me. But I've learned not to assume anything."

Heidi was noticeably quiet as Colwyn collected his thoughts. At length he said, "It is fine. I apologize for jumping to conclusions, and I appreciate your discretion. Now, shall we commence?"

"First off, everything looks great as far as your formula. We've fast-tracked it for trials and have every expectation that it will be ready to submit for government approval by the end of the year."

"So, what's the problem?"

"The board of directors are... uncomfortable with our arrangement. They feel I was rash to agree to this course of action, and that there is nothing to prevent you from allowing us to carry this formula through trials and government approval before yanking our license in order to go to the open market and seek the highest bidder."

"I am unwilling to grant you, or your board, exclusive license to manufacture it."

Quincy sighed and said, "I know. I explained that to them. Luckily, they're no more willing to forgo this opportunity than I am. They just seek some insurance."

"How so?"

"They want me to force you to buy shares of the company. Literally all you can afford, and that includes all the credit you can scrape together. Their logic, and it isn't without merit, is that you'll make your money back several times over even with your pricing restrictions if this drug makes it to market. But it also puts you in a position where if you screw us over, you're also screwing yourself over."

Colwyn said, "Their logic is sound, after a fashion. But the equation is still unbalanced. They expect me to take a significantly higher proportional risk for the same reward they hope to collect."

"It may not surprise you to learn that I pointed this out to them."

"What do you propose?" Heidi asked, joining the conversation for the first time.

"Let us set that aside for a moment. What do you know of sickle-cell anemia?"

"A rare blood disease which effects exclusively non-Caucasians. Typically inherited, but there's no known cure."

"Indeed. Why do you believe a cure has never been found?"

"Because the pharmaceutical industry has not yet reached a critical mass of non-Caucasians to be willing to make the investment," Colwyn responded evenly.

"So you're saying you don't think it's an unsolvable problem?"

"Why are you asking me this?"

Heidi said, "I'm so sorry, Mr. Meadows. How old is your child?"

He dropped his head and said, "Six. Our daughter got the diagnosis when she was twenty-one months old. The next week, I sold my investment firm and started this company."

Heidi turned to Colwyn and said, "Is it possible?"

He sighed and said, "Nothing is certain, but I will do my best."

"How long did it take you to create the heart disease formula?" Quincy asked raggedly.

"Decades," Colwyn answered without hesitation. Quincy's shoulders slumped and he shook his head woefully. Colwyn hastened to add, "But much of that was building the programs, indeed even waiting for sufficiently powerful computers to be created. The effort to adapt my methods to a new disease should, in theory, take significantly less time. I should be able to get you a more accurate time estimate after I build the model."

Quincy looked up wearily and said, "How long will that take?"

"Unknown. There are too many variables to consider."

"Such as?"

"I cannot work on this to the exclusion of all else. I must continue my consultancy in order to earn money. I am also newly in love with my beautiful companion and have no intention of neglecting her lest she come to realize that I have, as you put it, outkicked my coverage."

Quincy smiled at Heidi and said, "Good plan." He looked back at Colwyn and said, "What if you didn't have to work? Or, more accurately, if your work was for me, finding this cure?"

"As you know, I am forbidden."

"I know," Quincy huffed. "But what if... what if you were in a completely different role altogether?"

"I'm not sure I follow."

"Let's say, for shits and giggles, you did purchase a significant amount of stock in the company. And, based on your newly acquired interest, you accepted a position on the board."

"I don't have the money..."

"Shut up," Quincy snapped. "Just let me finish the part where I lay out my extremely legally dubious scheme before you poke holes in it."

Colwyn shrugged and said, "Be my guest."

"Anyway... you join the board at the same time as you quit your job. This will free you up to devote as much of your time as you're willing to this new initiative."

"How will I eat?" Colwyn asked with exasperation.

"I get it," Heidi gasped before looking around in embarrassment and giving Quincy an apologetic look. "He's going to make it look like you sold the formula, babe. That explains the fact that you'll, ostensibly, stop working. You can do all of your work at home, so you needn't worry about the optics of going to the office. It gives you plausible deniability to work on the new gig without anyone getting suspicious."

"That only leaves the problem of how I'll afford to live, not to mention how I'll afford the stock. I have no intention of actually relinquishing my formula."

"I do believe he proposes to compensate you for this, quite handsomely unless I miss my bet."

"Indeed," Quincy replied with a nod in Heidi's direction. "Your shares will come from my own holdings, at a discount which will get me sacked if anyone ever finds out. But my company is still private so that won't be an issue unless either of you make mention of it. As far as the salary, we can work out the details later, but I have brought an advance which will hopefully get you through the next few months."

"Why the next few months?" Heidi asked simultaneous to Colwyn asking, "How much?"

"To answer the lady's question first, once you join the board our lawyers will begin focusing the entirety of their time and effort on breaking your non-compete. I have no doubt they will eventually succeed, but I want to ensure they have sufficient time to work their black magic." He turned to Colwyn and said, "Two million. All in crypto currency and utterly untraceable. And a job offer when the lawyers free you from purgatory. Whatever salary and title you think is fair, so long as it's less than I make and the role is subordinate to me."

Heidi nodded and said, "And the story that Colwyn sold his formula covers anyone curious about his sudden infusion of cash."

"We'll need a way to square this before the end of the year," Colwyn observed. "I have no intention of going through all this effort to bring my formula to market only to run afoul of the government over perceived tax evasion."

"That's no problem. Once you come on board for real, we'll amortize this out to make it the signing bonus it truly is. If the lawyers don't square it by the end of the year, we'll figure something else out. I'm not real picky about the details. All I care about is my daughter. Does this mean you accept?"

Colwyn looked at Heidi for several moments before she said, "What?"

"What do you think, honey?"

"This is your call, babe. I'm just your girlfriend."

"You've never been 'just' anything. And this certainly affects you as much as it does me. Even if it didn't, I would value your opinion as my friend and confidant."

She smiled wanly and said, "It sounds like a pretty good deal, babe. And I know it would make you happy to get back to doing what you love."

"You are what I love."

She smiled shyly and said, "You know what I mean."

"Indeed," Colwyn replied, pulling her close and kissing the top of her head. He turned to Quincy and said, "I accept."

Quincy sighed mightily and stuck out his hand to seal the deal. After Colwyn released his hand, Quincy offered it to Heidi and said, "Thank you. Both of you. You've given me hope for the first time in longer than I care to think about."

101011

Later that evening, as they prepared to execute a de orbital maneuver to exit the DC beltway, Colwyn looked over at Heidi and asked, "Decision time, honey. Shall we choose the direct route, or take the scenic route through the Shenandoah Valley?"

She smiled at him wanly and said, "It's up to you, babe."

He sighed and said, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, babe. I'm fine."

He drove for a few minutes more before reaching out tentatively to take her hand. She laced her fingers into his and gripped him comfortingly.

He murmured, "I don't know how to do this."

"Do what?"

"Be a partner. Or a boyfriend. Hell... even being a friend is fairly new territory for me."

"You're doing great, babe. At all of them."

"My research indicates that when one's partner exhibits a change in behavior, and when questioned about said change insists that things are quote fine unquote, that things are very much not fine."

"Research?" she asked with a grin.

"I have been studying exhaustively in hopes of avoiding catastrophe."

"When? We haven't been apart except to use the bathroom in over a week."

He shrugged and said, "Well certainly then. But, also in the morning before you wake up. Or when I'm waiting for code to debug."

"What are you studying?"

"Articles about relationships; those written by women, though. The ones written by cisgendered hetero males are... unsettling. And... some books?"

She turned to stare at him with more happiness than he had seen in her eyes since their day's adventure had begun. "Are you reading romance novels? For me?"

"I would do anything for you," he answered seriously. "In any case, some are quite good. I am particularly fond of..."

"You're serious?" she gushed, cutting him off. "You're giving up sleep just to do 'research' so you can be a better boyfriend?"

"I tell you three times. It is the least I could do."

"And what has this research project of yours taught you?"

"That I should pleasure you orally until you pass out from the pleasure, and that it is unreasonable for me to expect you to reciprocate. In fact, my research seems to suggest that the male orgasm is almost entirely beside the point when it comes to intimacy."

"Typical," Heidi grumbled. "What else?"

"That if you appear displeased, but say things are fine, that they are anything but. What's wrong, baby?"

"I still can't get over the fact that you're reading romance novels just for me. We should read the same one and have our own little book club. Maybe I'll rope in Naomi, and you could get Vincent and Zoe to join."

"I cannot help but notice you excluded Gil and Ross."

"They can come to, just doesn't really seem to be their scene. That reminds me, I had been meaning to ask you if they're together."

Colwyn chuckled and said, "You mean, romantically?"

"Or maybe just fucking each other silly every Saturday after they leave your place. They don't necessarily have to be romantic even though they're obviously totally in love with each other."

"I have never inquired. I have also never seen them apart, although that does not necessarily mean that they're actually inseparable. But I did not ask about our friends."

She sighed and said, "I know, babe. I swear on my eyes, I'm not mad at you. It just sort of felt like a ten tonne weight landed on my shoulders today. I've never doubted anything you've told me but being caught up in all the cloak and dagger shit Kurt's forced you into over the last few days really kind of hit home when you were talking to Quincy."

"Why do you do that?"

"Do what?"

He said, "Turn we into me." She pointedly looked out the window, but she did not release his hand. He continued, "I cannot decide if I have erred by failing to convey my devotion to you; or if I am unduly pressuring you into more commitment than you feel comfortable with at this juncture; or if I have so disastrously misjudged the situation that I cannot even fathom the nature of my error."

She whipped around to face him and firmly said, "Oh babe, it's nothing like that. You've been so amazingly wonderful, every step of the way. I'm just so worried about letting you down."

"That's not possible."

"Oh, but it is. This will sound like a rebuke, even though it isn't, but you're setting kind of a high bar, babe. Wait," she disrupted his attempted interruption, "Let me finish. I think you think that you're a novice at this relationship thing while I'm some kind of expert, but nothing could be further from the truth. You're the first man I've ever fallen in love with, babe. We're both learning how to be in a real, committed, relationship together. And you're killing it while I'm playing the part of the wet-blanket girlfriend because I'm terrified about what will happen."

"I see," Colwyn replied carefully.

She gripped his hand tighter and calmly said, "Colwyn?" He glanced over to see her gazing at him with eyes that held so much love it was all he could do to not execute an emergency stop just to take her into his arms. She continued, "I'm not worried about loving you, babe. Perhaps your articles would call me a fool, but I trust our love more than anything else in the world. My worry is that you place too much trust in me, too much confidence."

"You are my girlfriend, Heidi. My partner. Hopefully more than that when the time comes. As I told Quincy, I trust you with my life. Furthermore, it would be an insult to you to exclude you from discussions which impact your future just as much as mine."

"I get that," she huffed. "And I swear I'm not playing the dumb girl to manipulate you, but you're smarter than me babe. By a lot. I mean, not only are you the smartest person I've ever met, but it's also not out of the realm of possibility to say you're the smartest person in, what, the country? The world?"

"Preposterous," he scoffed.

"Is it? Have you ever met anyone smarter than you are?"

"That is hardly a statistically significant sample."

"Suffice it to say, you're way smarter than I am. And that's no shade on me, I'm plenty smart. You're just on another level. You see things different from the rest of us, babe. I worry that when you ask my advice, I could talk you out of something while being completely ignorant of several contributing factors which you think are obvious but which I failed to consider."

"Let's say you're right, a point which I am unwilling to concede for anything but a rhetorical exercise..."

"Ok?"

He said, "Even in the extremely unlikely hypothetical situation where your intellectual understanding of a situation could be less than my own, your counsel would still be essential."

"Why?"

"Because I'm an emotional moron, baby. There have been three people in my life who never once looked at me like I was an alien, or a monumental asshole. At least after our initial meeting where my infantile obsession might have caused me to behave inappropriately." She snickered at the memory. "One is meeting us at our ultimate destination, one died more than two decades ago, and the third is the person you see when you look in the mirror. No one else gets me. More crucially for our current conversation, I don't get anyone else. And I need your help dealing with people. You picked up on what Quincy was evidently too, I don't even know what, to just come out and say. And, I might add, hours before it would have occurred to me what he was implying. Face it, baby: even if you were less smart than I, which you're not, your advice would still be of critical importance. We make a great team, Heidi. That's not so say we won't make mistakes, but I'd far prefer to make a mistake with you at my side."

"Ditto, babe. And... I appreciate your faith in me. I'll work like hell to deserve it."

They rode in silence for a few moments before she said, "So, if you're studying on the side to be a better boyfriend, what should I be doing to be a better girlfriend?"

"Outside of the fact that you're already perfect in every way, I did have a thought about that."

"Do tell."

"Well, I figure I've admitted a deeply personal truth in the form of the aforementioned studying. That can only mean one thing. It is your turn my love. Truth or dare?"

Colwyn had his eyes on her as he spoke, and he could not help but notice that Heidi's squeal of delight caused the driver of the car he was passing to turn their direction in amazement.

***

"What's the wildest prank you ever pulled off?" Heidi asked between sips of her cocktail.

They had stopped for the night in northern Virginia and were seated in a quiet brew pub located within walking distance of their hotel. Their game had continued since Colwyn first mentioned it in the car, not even pausing while they checked into the hotel and freshened up before striking out in search of sustenance.

Colwyn said, "What makes you think I ever pulled pranks?"

"Because you were in college for, like, two decades. I know you were busy, but you must have gotten up to some mischief. In any case, evading is against the rules."

"I suspect you will consider this a bit of a cop-out, but the closest I came was when I was working on my doctorate in computer science at a prestigious engineering school in Atlanta. The holy grail of pranks at that Institution was also the most challenging: stealing the 'T' off the tower in the center of campus."

"Why challenging?"

He said, "Because it was done so much in the seventies and eighties that the school eventually installed a security system which could rival what was found on nuclear missile silos. There were three separate alarms: a mundane one for the building itself; a system just for the 'T' and a third for the platform which was the only way to get to it. For nearly a decade, no one managed it. Until some guys I knew got their hands on the schematics for said security system. I put together the boards which helped them bypass the security. Of course, that was only half the battle. There was also the fact that the thing weighed over a hundred kilos and was on what amounted to the tenth floor. Not to mention that if you managed to bypass the alarms and get the thing off the building without breaking it, there was the small matter of getting caught with it meaning instant expulsion."

"That sounds pretty awesome. Why would I think that was a cop-out?"

"Because I didn't participate beyond building the boards?"

"Oh. So, what did they do with it? Is it in some guy's man cave to this day?"

"No. They took it to the president of the Institute's house and woke him up to give it to him."

"I thought you said they'd get expelled for stealing it."

He grinned and said, "Only if you get caught with it. If you graciously return that which you innocently 'found', all sins are forgiven."

"You smart people are a weird lot."

"Indeed. Does that suffice for your question? I hope it does, because second place is much more tame."

She rubbed her chin conspiratorially for a moment before muttering, "I'll allow it."

"Very well, truth or dare?"

"Before I answer that, I need to mention something. The whole point of this game is to get to know each other and have fun. While I appreciate the fact that you are almost certainly holding back on my account, you really shouldn't. We'll have a hell of a lot more fun if we really push each other. That being said... dare."

Colwyn thought for a moment before saying, "I dare you to... finish your drink without using your hands."

"Better," she muttered. She then glanced around furtively before reaching behind her back for a moment. Her hands then grasped her breasts and captured her glass between them. Using her breasts, she lifted the glass to her lips and drained the remaining liquid. Her control slipped, however, as she finished the beverage and several ice cubes escaped down the front of her top.

"Jesus, that's cold," she murmured after returning the glass to the table. She reached back to re-clasp her bra before settling back with a satisfied look on her face. "Now, I shall give you a master class in this best of games, with all apologies to the games you run my love. Dare."

"Isn't there supposed to be a 'truth or' preceding that?"

"Not this time."

"I'll play along. Dare."

"I dare you to ask our waitress for a single pubic hair."

"Do you want us to get kicked out?" he gasped.

She shrugged and said, "Not particularly. I have supreme confidence in your discretion."

"Can I tell her why I'm asking?"

"You can tell her whatever you like, babe."

He felt his panic level begin to increase, and it only worsened when their waitress appeared at their table side, as if by magic. "I can't do this," he whispered fiercely.

"Then you lose," she responded breezily.

"You need a refill?" the waitress asked, taking a seat next to Heidi as if the group had spent the entire night together.

"We... um..." Colwyn stammered.

"You don't mind, do you? It's been a long day, and this is the only table in here where no one's looking at me like they want my top to fall off. How long have you two been together?"

Heidi said, "A couple months. I'm Heidi and the devastatingly handsome man to my right is Colwyn."

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Uma. Nice trick, by the way, with the drink. Damn near caused the frat boys in the corner to knock their pitchers over."

Heidi shrugged and said, "He dared me."

Uma pouted and said, "I love that game. I want to play."

"Unfortunately, it's Colwyn's turn at present and he seems to be considering ending the game early."

"Boo. You can't chicken out. That ruins the fun."

Colwyn huffed and said, "I must ask something of you, but please understand that I have no wish to offend."

"Ask anything you like, but I'm not showing you my tits. Besides, your girlfriend's got the best tits in the county."

"Whatever," Heidi scoffed. "These pains in the ass just knock my drinks over and make my back hurt." She paused for a moment before adding, "And they're the love of my life's favorite thing in the world, which makes them totally worth it. But your tits are amazing. They're the perfect size to fill the hand of a lover without getting in the way."

"Anyway," Colwyn interrupted. "I was not intending to ask you to remove any clothing. I merely need a single pubic hair to satisfy the gaming gods."

"Oh," Uma responded cheerfully. "Is that all? Do I need to pluck one out here or can I bring it back by? I could take Heidi with me so you'd know it was authentic."

"Strictly speaking, I only needed to ask to satisfy the dare, so the remainder is entirely up to you."

Heidi cut in and said, "I'll totally come with you. And you're up next. Colwyn and I have been playing solo all night and we need some fresh ideas."

101100

"This place is amazing, Heidi," Alice gushed as they strolled through the picturesque town center of the small town north of Tampa where Quincy had, at Colwyn's request, rented a small house for the weekend. Colwyn knew it was slightly riskier than continuing to stay at seedy motels which accepted pre-paid cards, but he calculated the risk as acceptable considering he was loath to allow his mother to experience anything but the highest quality. Quincy had made the arrangements to have Colwyn added to the board of his company. No announcement had been made, but several missed calls from Kurt suggested that the secret was out. Their plan was to continue to keep a low profile until Quincy's lawyers had a chance to take some action to get Kurt to cease and desist bothering their newest board member.

They had arrived separately from Colwyn's mother earlier that morning, rendezvousing at their quaint rental and immediately deciding to tour the town on foot. Colwyn had inquired if Heidi was experiencing any of the same anxiety he had felt upon meeting her father, but she insisted she was nothing but excited to meet Alice. The initial meeting had gone splendidly, except for the small matter of Alice bursting into tears upon seeing him and hugging him as though her life depended on it.

They decided to stop off in a shop which specialized in a baffling array of trinkets emblazoned with the town name, none of which appeared to have any real-world value. His mother cozied up to him shortly after Heidi excused herself to locate a restroom.

"She's gorgeous, sweetie," his mother whispered conspiratorially.

Colwyn grinned and said, "You needn't whisper, Mother. I tell her as much, frequently."

"No. I mean, she's really beautiful."

"I know, Mother," he huffed. "If your implication is that she is far too beautiful to be with me, have no fear. I make that point to her at least once daily."

"Bite your tongue. Of course I didn't mean that. I always dreamed you would one day find someone special enough to catch your eye. I'm just very happy for you. And very impressed, if I may say so."

"What'd I miss?" Heidi gushed as she wrapped an arm around him.

"Just catching up," Alice responded cheerily.

"My mother agrees that you are far too good for me," Colwyn replied without rancor.

"Colwyn!" Alice gasped.

Heidi grinned and said, "He tells me that every day. And I tell him that I'm the one who is lucky to be with such an amazing man. Not to mention one so devastatingly handsome."

"I will certainly agree with you there," Alice added, giving her son a thorough once-over. "Just how much weight have you lost, sweetie. Must be at least fifteen kilos. You look better than you have in as long as I can remember. Did you finally start using that elliptical you bought?"

"No," he replied evenly. "Is anyone hungry for lunch?"

Heidi said, "I could eat. But I can't imagine those weak ass evasions work any better with your mother than they do with me."

"They certainly do not. Now, out with it. What's the magical secret to the new you?"

"It is nothing special. I have just been eating better and exercising more. I must do all I can to fool my beautiful companion she has not erred grievously."

"He really does go out of his way to take care of himself," Heidi agreed. "He cooks for me all the time and it's almost always super healthy. I think he really turned over a new rock after those assholes finally admitted they'd made a huge mistake and let him out of prison."

"Prison?!?" Alice shouted.

Heidi whirled to face Colwyn, a crestfallen look on her face, and said, "You didn't tell her?"

He shook his head woefully and said, "There seemed little value in worrying her. It was all over before I could have told her in any case."

Alice took Heidi by the arm and sped up her pace. Colwyn heard her mutter something about not wanting to make a scene as he hurried to catch up to the rapidly disappearing pair. He caught them as they reached their rental house and just barely missed getting locked out.

As he closed the door behind him, Alice repeated, "Prison?!?"

"It was all a misunderstanding," he replied weakly.

"Was this at the beginning of the year?" Alice asked shakily. He nodded and opened his mouth to respond, but the look on her face caused him to rethink that strategy. She continued, "During the six weeks when you didn't return my calls or texts and I convinced myself that you were just busy." She sank onto the couch, not even trying to stop the tears that streamed down her face. "I knew something was wrong. But I ignored my instincts and frittered my time away on meaningless nonsense like golf rather than finding out for sure. I'm such a horrible mother."

"No," Colwyn said forcefully. "There was nothing you could have done, Mother. I feel terrible about not telling you. I just wanted to save you this heartache. My former employer conspired with a crooked district attorney to lock me up in the hopes that I would give them my formula. But they just wanted to bury it, so I held out until they came to their senses."

"You did it?" Alice asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Indeed. We found a new company that's putting it through trials now with the hopes of bringing it to market early next year at a price which will ensure it's available to anyone who needs it."

"I can't believe you did it. I mean, I never doubted you. But it just seemed so... big. Even with all your genius, I wasn't sure anyone could do it. Your father would be so proud of you, sweetie."

"Thank you," Colwyn murmured as she pulled him into her embrace.

"He'd also be furious with you for not telling me you were in jail," Alice continued with the same tone. "Did they not give you your constitutionally guaranteed phone call?"

"They did. I called my lawyer. I assumed it was all a big misunderstanding and I would be released quickly. Especially considering I had not done anything wrong. But it turns out I was quite naïve. In the end, my incarceration was the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"How on earth could that be possible?"

"Had I not been wrongfully imprisoned, I never would have met Heidi."

Alice sighed in frustration and said still for a moment, her face impassive. At length, she said, "What's done is done. You're a grown man, Colwyn, and I can't expect you to ask me to fight your battles. That being said, you should have found a way to let me know. If nothing else, I could have come to visit you and brought you something to eat other than the horrid prison food."

"I won't let it happen again," Colwyn promised, all the while hoping very much the subject never came up again.

Alice turned to Heidi and said, "Tell me everything about yourself."

***

Late the next afternoon, Colwyn had grown quite convinced that he was in hell. He was unsure when he had died, or what particular sin he might have committed to deserve this endless torment, but the facts were undeniable. Heidi and his mother had, in the course of less than a day, gone from distant acquaintances to the best of friends. This, in and of itself, would not have been cause for dismay. In fact, it had been Colwyn's greatest hope as they had approached their rendezvous. But as the two most important women in his life grew ever closer, he had started to notice an unsettling trend. They seemed incapable of self-censor when speaking with each other, and they showed no willingness to correct their wayward ways on his account.

Alice had doted on Heidi all afternoon after his untimely revelation regarding his incarceration, asking endless questions. Colwyn had seriously considered self-immolation as a distraction technique when it came out that Heidi was involved in his imprisonment. But, as he neared completion of his preparation for martyrdom, he realized his mother had grown immune to thinking of Heidi in a negative light. Alice had continued chipping away at Heidi's defenses until the entire truth came out. This had led eventually to Alice and Larry having an extended, and private, video conversation. Colwyn had not asked what was discussed. He merely thanked the gods for his reprieve and spent the time sitting on the porch in gloriously silent companionship with Heidi.

At the conclusion of the video call, Alice had rejoined them with an, impossibly, increased level of jubilation. She floated into the room, her feet seeming to glide above the terrazzo tile.

She delivered a glass of wine to Heidi and a beer to Colwyn, before taking her seat and saying, "Where were we?"

"I think you were going to tell me about the cute golf pro at your club," Heidi said with a wink.

"Merely a dalliance," Alice answered dismissively. "Two ships passing in the night, and all that. But it was a most entertaining night. Are you ok, sweetie?"

Colwyn took a deep breath and kept his eyes on the horizon as he tried to keep his lunch in place. "I'm fine," he grunted through clenched teeth.

"Really, Colwyn. Certainly you did not expect me to never date again."

"Your business."

"If you expect me to act like a grandmother, then you've got some work to do, young man."

Heidi snickered into her hand and rubbed Colwyn's back reassuringly.

Alice said, "What are your thoughts on children my dear?"

"I definitely hope we'll have children some day. But I'm on the pill, so don't expect anything in the near future, despite your son's best efforts."

"I think I should go," Colwyn murmured as he tried to stand.

Heidi pulled him back down onto the couch and said, "What's wrong, babe? You look pale."

"That's because I died and was sent directly to hell."

"Babe!" Heidi whined. "You didn't tell Alice that we have a deeply fulfilling intimate relationship? Why not? I told Dad."

"God dammit," he grunted.

"Colwyn!" Alice snapped. "Watch your language!"

Colwyn drained the rest of his beer and lurched to his feet, this time evading Heidi's grasp. He said, "I need another drink," as he scurried toward the kitchen. "Another twenty drinks," he muttered to himself as he effected his escape.

***

"You all right, babe?" Heidi asked that evening as they got ready for bed. "You looked pretty pale earlier today."

"Was it when you told my mother I was infatuated with your breasts? Or perhaps when you said I excelled at cunnilingus? Oh, no. I remember. It was when you told her five minutes ago that you were coming to bed so we could have sex."

"What?" she asked innocently. "All those things are true."

"Perhaps. But that does not make it my mother's business. What would you have done had I had the mirror conversation with Larry?"

"Well, somehow I'm not sure the patriarchy would allow you to tell my dad I was great at sucking cock and still leave the room breathing."

"My point exactly."

"I wasn't trying to embarrass you, babe. Alice and I were just having a real girl's conversation. Sometimes those can get a little blue. I don't think she was weirded out hearing about what a truly talented lover you are. I think she was actually genuinely delighted to know you're really, truly happy."

"Maybe. But please make sure I'm on another planet the next time you two decide to start discussing technique. I had no idea she was so... active."

Heidi swatted his arm and said, "Good for her. Like she said, you can't expect her to carry a torch for your dad forever. I try to get Dad to date every time I talk to him, and he's only been a widower for a fifth the time your mom's been a widow."

"I know, and I'm happy for her. I'd just prefer to be spared the details. Her gleeful declaration of how menopause set her free will haunt me."

"As I said, good for her. Maybe if she dates enough, she'll find love again. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"Yes. I truly want nothing but happiness for her. She deserves so much more than I've given her in recent years."

Heidi took his hand and said, "She wasn't kidding about moving closer to you. She's only in Florida for the weather. She'd much rather see you more often."

"And you," he murmured before leaning in for a kiss. "Disturbing sex talk aside, it makes me exceedingly happy how well you two get along."

"Same for you and Dad. I wonder what Alice and Dad talked about on their call."

"Who knows? But, after this day, I can't imagine it was good."

101101

Colwyn the Grey stood upon a bluff overlooking the scene of the upcoming battle. His forces were spread across a front which spanned several hundred meters. Humans, elves, dwarves and halflings stood shoulder to shoulder, grim looks of determination on their faces as they stared down the assembled might of One-Eyed Tanis, who had stolen the orb which had granted a millennia of peace to Colwyn's people.

A mighty war cry sprang from the throat of Colwyn's Warmaster, Sretaw the Red. The towering warrior raised his sword in challenge and his troops took up his call and surged forward in an all-out charge. Weapons of every imaginable variety were brandished, from the mightiest war hammer to a simple dagger. The mages held their spell components lightly, their lips barely moving as they began chanting their death-dealing magic.

Colwyn watched with a critical eye as his forces streaked across the formerly placid meadow. The plan he had outlined to his captains depended on them maintaining their line of attack during the charge with the goal of surrounding the more densely packed enemy and cutting them off from their reinforcements and their supply lines.

When the two opposing forces met, he watched in satisfaction as the line of his troops encircled their foes. The outer edges met on the far side of the enemy and quickly engaged the rear guard and fired their supply wagons. Tanis's forces howled in rage at the action and the intensity of the fighting ramped up.

As the battle progressed, Colwyn's troops began to fall in increasing numbers against the phalanx of dug in troops who were utilizing the Roman tactic of using the front line as shield-bearers while their mates fought over their shoulders. Fifteen minutes after the battle commenced, a small group of enemy soldiers broke through and, after noticing Colwyn standing alone on the high bluff, rushed toward him.

Once breached, Colwyn's lines began to falter. With agonizing quickness, the battle turned into a rout with his forces either being struck down in one versus many combat or felled by arrows as they chaotically retreated.

Colwyn prepared himself as best he could, preparing a few spells and ensuring he had the necessary ingredients at hand to ensure that his honor guard in hell would be well populated. As the first enemy drew within ten meters, Colwyn began flinging spells as quickly as he could speak. He felled eleven enemy warriors before his spells failed him and the first enemy came within sword range. Colwyn dispatched him with a swipe of his staff, but not before his companion snuck beneath Colwyn's guard with a well-placed dagger thrust.

As Colwyn fell, he spotted a handful of his troops sneaking from the far tree line, a small orb held reverently in the hands of a beautiful elven princess. He closed his eyes, secure in the knowledge that, while he had fallen, the victory had been secured.

***

"That was your plan?" Vincent boomed as they gathered around the campfire that evening. "Serving us all up as cannon fodder while a measly ten troops snuck around the rear and stole the orb?"

Colwyn shrugged and said, "We achieved our objective. We won the game."

"I mean, I guess so. But we lost ninety percent of our numbers doing it. Yourself included."

"Had the objective included the requirement that more of our troops survived the battle than our opponents, I would have crafted a different strategy."

"Still feels like cheating," Vincent grumbled. "I suspect they'll change the rules for tomorrow."

"Perhaps."

"Lighten up, babe," Zoe interjected. "It was a blast, and you know it. These things always tend to be sneaking around in the woods until you get nailed in the small of the back with a hacky sack. Haven't you always been jonesing for an all-out battle?"

"Sure. But not as a sacrificial lamb so Heidi could get all the glory."

"You got plenty of glory, babe," Zoe offered. "You took out like twenty guys. You were like that dude at the beginning of Gladiator. Very manly. And I suspect tonight you'll receive a hero's reward as you journey to Valhalla."

He pulled her close and announced, "On that note, I think this little half-elf ranger and I are bushed. We're going to turn in. See you losers in the morning."

"These tents have no sound-proofing," Gil called out.

Ross added, "We can hear everything."

"Want some earplugs?" Zoe asked with a coquettish grin at her towering partner.

The two disappeared into their tent which, to Colwyn's eye seemed too small for Vincent alone, much less for the pair. But, he reasoned, they seemed content to let the close confines serve as an excuse for even further closeness. He glanced at Heidi, who gave him a suggestive wink.

He stood and said, "I think we're going to turn in as well. Have a good evening, gentleman."

He offered his hand to Heidi as Gil muttered, "Everyone's getting laid but us."

Heidi said, "I heard some of the drows in the ladies room complaining about their lack of companionship for the evening. They're two fires to the west, if you wanted to go offer to keep them company."

"Certainly beats the hell out of hanging around here and listening to you guys fuck each other into unconsciousness," Ross muttered. "No offense."

"Oh, none taken," Heidi replied with a snicker. "I mean, you're not wrong."

Gil stood and said, "Come on Ross. Let's go live on the dark elf side. Maybe they've got a fetish for late-thirties divorcees."

"But I'm not divorced," Ross muttered. This, apparently, was not enough to dissuade him from their quest and he followed Gil out of the firelight and into the inky darkness beyond.

"Milady?" Colwyn said with a bow as he offered Heidi his hand.

She stood, offering a kiss by way of thanks, and molded her body to his as they made their way to their tent. As they passed the tent into which Vincent and Zoe had disappeared, they heard a baritone voice moan in pleasure.

"Don't forget the balls, Zoe," Heidi stage whispered in the direction of the tent.

Snickers emanated from the tent before they heard Zoe whisper, "Oh, don't you worry."

Colwyn held open the flap of the tent as Heidi proceeded inside. She turned on the electric lantern attached to the peak of the tent, setting the brightness to just enough for them to see each other.

"I've been waiting for this all day, my princess," Colwyn groaned as he crawled toward her."

"Oh, you like my costume, do you?" Heidi whispered coquettishly as she twirled her braid around her finger. She was wearing thigh high leather boots and a leather skirt which left plenty of her creamy thighs on display. Her leather tunic was jaw-droppingly tight and was cut low enough to display a breathtaking amount of her spectacular cleavage. Her hair was worn up in a long braid and she wore a crown fashioned from wildflowers. She had discarded her prosthetic ears after the battle, but she retained the otherworldly beauty she had had as the elvish princess for whom Colwyn's Merlyn analogue had crafted the ultimately successful battle plan.

"Very much," he whispered hoarsely. "I told you how difficult it was to let you leave the house dressed like that without having my way with you first."

"Well..." she began playfully. "We were in a hurry. Besides, the anticipation will make tonight all the more glorious."

He bowed at the waist and said, "I am yours to command, milady."

"Oh really? Well, then. I think you should help me solve a mystery."

"What's that?" he asked as he began to crawl in her direction.

She pulled up her skirt to reveal her achingly beautiful pussy and said, "I can't seem to figure out where I put my bloomers. I think the problem will positively overwhelm me unless you can think of a way to distract me."

"As you wish," he whispered just before his tongue teased along her glistening seam.

Her essence filled his senses as he tasted her. She leaned back languidly, her eyes never leaving his as his tongue delved deeper into her core.

"Just like that," she murmured.

Her fingers toyed lightly with his hair as he pleasured her. In spite of a full day's worth of foreplay, neither partner was in a hurry. He settled in to slowly bring about her release and she basked in the warmth of his dedication to her pleasure. A light flick upon her clit; a firm lick along the length of her lips; a well-timed thrust into her core. Each motion designed to help her build consistently toward release.

"My goodness, that feels so fucking good, babe."

"That's because you taste so fucking good. You're like a drug I can't get enough of."

Colwyn lifted her legs, placing her thighs on his shoulders, and drank deep of the sweet nectar from her velvety smooth pussy. Heidi rested on her elbows and watched him intently through hooded eyes. Each stroke of his tongue teased a different sound from her lips. But each gasp, each whispered curse, each moan of pleasure only encouraged him further.

"Right there, babe. Just like that."

Colwyn smiled and happily followed her instructions, lavishing praise on her swollen bud with the lightest possible flicks of his tongue. His fingers found her soaked entrance. Questing further, the pad of his middle finger slicked upon her G-spot.

"So close," she whimpered. "Don't stop."

Moments later, a muffled moan escaped around the hand she had clapped over her mouth. Moisture surged from her core, bathing his face as she was swept up in bliss. He slowed the movements of his tongue and fingers to a barely perceptible pace, just enough to prolong her orgasm without causing her distress. She writhed beneath him bonelessly, savoring the pleasure he had given her.

"Too much," she panted at last as her pleasure began to recede.

He took a moment to kick what remained of his clothes off before crawling between her thighs and kissing her deeply.

When their lips parted, she smiled happily at him and whispered, "Thank you, my love. That was magnificent."

He bowed his head slightly before saying, "It was my pleasure. How else may I be of service, milady?"

"I want you to f..." Her words were cut off as he entered her in a single energetic thrust. She groaned, "Fuck, that's good."

"You have no idea how good you feel, milady."

"I think you can... oh fuck... drop the honorifics... god damn... when you're balls deep... Jesus... inside me."

"On the contrary. That is when it is the most important. And the most sincere."

"Don't you want to see my tits?" she sighed as he sped up his thrusts.

"I have them memorized. I see them whenever I close my eyes. Along with your angelic face. But, since you're asking, I cannot deny that my preference is, and always will be, to cast my gaze upon their magnificence."

Heidi reached back and undid the clasp behind her neck before pulling her top down to reveal her incomparable breasts. Colwyn immediately took one of her nipples between his lips, like a castaway finally coming upon an island with fresh water. Her legs wrapped around him, pulling him deeper into her molten core. Each thrust of his hips caused her tits to jiggle alluringly.

"You're so fucking beautiful," he panted. "You're my goddess."

"All yours," she whispered reverently. "Forever."

"I love you so fucking much, Heidi."

"Love... you... too," she gasped in time with his thrusts.

"I want you to cum for me."

"Babe," was all she could answer before her orgasm took her breath away.

He slowed his thrusts to a more languid pace, lovingly prolonging her orgasm as he felt her love surround him. Each movement of his manhood within her caused a spasm of pleasure to radiate out from her core. The sensation of her inner walls rippling along his length brought him nearly to the brink of joining her in ecstasy, but his focus on her pleasure was absolute.

He bent to kiss her. She wrapped her arms desperately around his neck the moment their lips met. Her mouth opened hungrily for him, their tongues slicking together. He swallowed her sigh of pleasure as her orgasm faded and began thrusting into her femininity once more. She fisted her hands in his hair and pushed his face back to gaze into his eyes.

She smiled up at him and whispered, "You're amazing. That was amazing."

"So are you, honey."

"I want you to cum for me, babe."

"I'm close."

"Then lay down. I want to taste you."

He complied, gasping at the change in temperature when he extracted his manhood from her warm embrace.

She knelt beside him and breathed, "So beautiful," as she took his cock in both hands. She bathed the tip with her tongue before lathing the flesh along his length with the flat of her tongue.

"It's so fucking sexy when you taste like me. Reminds me of what an amazing lover you are."

She engulfed his member with her mouth, taking him to the root before beginning to slowly bob her head. He reached out to cup her breast, cherishing its softness as he tweaked her nipple. A spasm of pleasure caused his breath to catch as she gently slid her nails along his inner thigh. When her hand reached the junction of his thighs, she lightly caressed his balls.

"Fuck, that feels good."

"I want you to cum in my mouth, babe."

"I'm so close, honey. So fucking close."

She sighed "Please, Colwyn. Please cum in my mouth."

She took his cock into her mouth once more. The sounds of the pleasure she was giving him filled the tent, as did her pleading sighs and his shuddering gasps. He cradled her angelic face in his hand. The love in her eyes was unmistakable, as was the sincere pleading for what she so genuinely wanted: their shared pleasure from his release. He sensed, more than saw, her fingers moving deep within her folds and knew that she would join him in release.

Colwyn felt himself pass the point of no return. He looked down, intent on warning his one true love, but his eyes told him she was in perfect sync with him. She eagerly awaited his release. She was desperate to taste him; to savor his seed until it became one with her.

"I love you," he gasped before he was swept up in the pleasure she was providing and erupted into her waiting mouth. She moaned in satisfaction as his seed filled her mouth, joining him in sweet release. His body spasmed uncontrollably as she massaged the spurting head of his cock with her tongue. He felt the sighs of contentment flowing from her as they vibrated along the length of his manhood, both in happiness at the pleasure she had given her lover and from her own orgasm.

She took him even deeper in her mouth just as his pleasure began to recede and he felt the entrance of her throat surround the head of his cock.

"Too much," he panted, barely able to maintain consciousness under her ministrations but unwilling to push her back.

She pulled back with a wicked grin and licked her lips theatrically. "Yummy."

He pulled her close, claiming her lips for a scorching kiss.

When their lips parted, she winked at him and said, "Too much?"

"A slip of the tongue, my love. I could never get too much of you."

"Ditto. I love you, Colwyn Smalley."

"And I love you, Heidi Boyd."

"We get it," Ross's voice rang out from beyond the walls of the tent. "You love each other."

"Now that you're done," Gil added. "Will you shut the fuck up so we can get some sleep?"

"Yeah," Vincent's voice called out.

"You shut the fuck up, too," Ross huffed.

Gil said, "Yeah. You two are just as bad."

It was quite a while before the giggling coming from each of the couples' tents subsided to the point where anyone could get any sleep.

101110

They awoke with the sun the next morning and quickly broke camp. The next event was scheduled to start at ten and would last until sundown, whereupon everyone would return home prepared to do battle of a different sort on Monday morning at their places of employment. Colwyn noticed an increased familiarity between Heidi and Zoe, as if their shared experience the night before made them sisters in the overwhelmingly male world of live-action role-playing. Colwyn noticed that Vincent looked particularly happy that morning and he enquired as to the reason when they had a moment alone after breakfast.

"It sounds cheesy," the mountain of a man murmured as they cleaned their dishes. "But it just came to me last night after everyone quieted down. I love her. I have for a while now, but it just sort of hit me last night. And, I know what you're thinking, but it wasn't the sex. That's always great. I just realized as we were laying there laughing that she makes me happy all the time, not just when we're making love. Maybe it was how sincere you sounded when you told Heidi you loved her that got me thinking. But, before I knew it, I'd gone from 'maybe I love her' to 'I've never been more certain of anything.' When you first told Heidi, were you scared?"

"It is difficult to say. This will likely sound nonsensical, but I had not actually intended to tell her. We were walking on the beach and she told me her mother would have loved me. I told her I hoped that were the case considering I was in love with her daughter. It sounds flippant, but it was the honest truth. It did not occur to me that there should have been planning or ceremony involved with the first time I professed my love until the moment had passed. Why, were you concerned?"

Vincent shrugged and said, "Not that I was mistaken. Only that it might scare her off. But it went great. Really, really great."

"I am very happy for you," Colwyn replied sincerely. "But I suggest not mentioning anything to Ross or Gil. They seem... ornery this morning."

"Imagine that," Vincent guffawed. "Considering they were just a few meters from two different tents filled with eager lovers. I'm surprised they didn't relocate to the enemy camp."

"Heidi suggested they take solace in each other's arms. I do not believe they took her wish for their happiness in the spirit in which it was intended."

"That certainly would make things a lot simpler. It's not like they're ever apart. I pity the girl that tries to get between them."

"Unless she favors them both and prefers it there," Colwyn offered with a wink.

"Indeed," Vincent agreed mightily.

The hour for the next event soon grew near and the combatants assembled to receive the rules for their next challenge. They were made to draw numbers from a cauldron to shuffle the teams and Colwyn found himself and Ross on one team while the rest of their group was on the other. Colwyn gave Heidi a passionate, but brief, kiss before they went their separate ways. He noticed that Ross and Gil gave each other not a few mournful looks as they were made to part. He thought to comfort his friend, but then remembered the spiteful looks he and Heidi had been on the receiving end of at breakfast and thought better of it.

The game progressed throughout the late morning and early afternoon with each side making modest gains but neither gaining a lasting advantage. Unlike the previous day's campaign, this battle was not about securing an item of power but rather about attrition. It was open warfare spanning across nearly thirty square kilometers of wooded, hilly terrain with the only objective being to do onto the enemy before they did onto you. This removed Colwyn from the role of brigadier and left him as a foot soldier. Ross stayed with him and, along with two other fighters, they formed a small squad. They stayed out of trouble until mid-afternoon when they were ambushed by a dozen enemy combatants and quickly dispatched.

They returned to the assembly area to find most of their friends already there. Only Zoe and Heidi were absent. Vincent explained that they too had been ambushed and he and Gil had held their assailants at bay for long enough for the women to escape. They were headed north for high ground, the last he had seen of them. The group enjoyed a boxed lunch while they waited for the game to end. At sixteen hundred hours, a piercing horn, not unlike a tornado siren, sounded for ten seconds signaling the end of the game. Surviving combatants from both sides slowly trickled in to be counted. Zoe took twenty minutes to arrive to a fanfare, both from her friends and from her team as a whole since her survival had clinched the victory.

Colwyn waited until Zoe and Vincent had reunited before he said, "Where's Heidi?"

"I'm not sure. We were running away from that ambush and I slipped and slid into a ravine. Don't worry, babe," she said to Vincent. "I'm fine. But there was no sight of her after I came to a stop. I figured she didn't hear me fall and, by the time she realized I wasn't behind her, couldn't figure out where I'd gone."

Colwyn could not help the harbingers of dread that began trickling into his consciousness. Players continued to return in ones and twos. Surely, he reasoned, her arrival was imminent. But, as the flow lessened, he was having an increasing amount of trouble forestalling genuine panic.

Vincent noticed the look in Colwyn's eyes and said, "I'm sure she's fine."

"I'm not," Colwyn muttered before going to find one of the judges. He interrupted a conversation she was having with a rather convincing looking goblin by grabbing her shoulder and said, "How many more players have yet to check in?"

She shrugged off his hand and said, "What's your problem?"

"My girlfriend hasn't come back yet," Colwyn insisted.

"Maybe she left you," the judge observed snippily, adding, "Asshole," under her breath.

Colwyn took a quick second to confirm her aura before declaring, "You will tell me how many players have yet to check in."

The judge sneered at him, but quickly perused her clipboard and said, "All but eleven have checked in."

"Could they have checked in somewhere else?"

"It doesn't count if they don't check in here. Now, are we done?"

"No!" Colwyn thundered. "Only speak to answer my questions. How much longer do you expect it to take for everyone to check in?"

"I was just getting ready to leave. After all, the game's over."

"You may go," Colwyn said dismissively.

"Um," Ross said from over Colwyn's shoulder. "What was that?"

Gil stage whispered, "It's just like in the bar."

"What's going on Colwyn?" Vincent asked worriedly.

"I don't know. But I fear something terrible has happened."

Before anyone could ask another question, Colwyn's phone vibrated in his pocket. He frantically pulled his costume out of the way to extract his phone before it went to voicemail, but he was dismayed to see the call came from an unknown number. But his subconscious immediately pointed out that it could still be Heidi if she had been forced to borrow someone's phone. He clicked 'Answer' and desperately said, "Heidi?" into the microphone.

"Close," a gravelly voice responded. "But no cigar."

"Who is this?"

"Aw, buddy... don't you remember me?"

"Where is Heidi?" Colwyn responded in a clipped voice which he hoped hid the desperation he felt at recognizing the voice of the bully from what now felt like a lifetime ago.

"We'll get to that, buddy."

"Tell me where she is, Jack," Colwyn growled. "Or I swear I'll..."

"Let's not say anything we can't take back, buddy. I'm just keeping your lady friend company while we wait for you."

"If you hurt her, I will..."

"You'll shut the fuck up if you ever want to see her again, is what you'll do," Jack drawled. "We tried to do this the easy way, but you had to be such a little shit. Just like when we were in high school. Why can't you ever do things the easy way?"

"What do you want?"

"You know what we want, buddy. The formula, and all your silly little programs."

"Who are you working with, Jack Decker? Why are you doing this?"

"You can give it a rest, Cole. I know you're not recording me. You didn't have time after you had to work so hard to get all your blubber and your stupid costume out of the way when I called."

Colwyn looked around frantically, searching for spots from which he could be observed.

Jack chuckled and said, "You'll never find me, either. I know better than to get anywhere close to you. Do you think I've forgotten the dick punching incident? Took me two weeks before that stopped hurting, you fat piece of shit."

"Then how am I supposed to give you your ransom?"

"I've got that all worked out. You get what we want and then call me back. Maybe you'll move quick enough that your lady friend won't realize what a spineless weakling you are."

A click indicated the call had disconnected. Colwyn growled in frustration before whirling around to find his friends standing behind him with uniform concerned looks on their faces.

"Heidi?" Zoe asked woefully.

"He took her," Colwyn admitted woefully. A cacophony of questions assaulted him, but he waved them all away. "I have to go find her."

He sensed they were following him, but he was no more capable of paying them any mind than he was of developing the ability to fly. He caught up with the judge from the game in the parking lot and bellowed, "Stop!"

The judge, along with three other people in the parking lot, ground to a halt.

"Come here," Colwyn instructed. As they arrived, he began barking out instructions. "You, go find the park ranger and bring them here. Tell them it's a matter of life and death.

"You and you, drive to each of the park entrances. Stop each car as it attempts to leave and search it. Lay down in front of it if necessary, but you will search each car including the trunk. You're searching for a woman in her early thirties who is there against her will. If you find her, call me at this number which you will memorize," he barked out his cell phone number and made them each repeat it before sending them on their way.

"You," he concluded to the judge. "Take this," he handed over a card he plucked from his wallet, "and go to a computer lab at the nearest community college. Once you arrive, you will attempt to torrent the latest superhero movie. Remain there until two hours have passed or until you are forcibly removed. Go!"

He turned at the feeling of a large hand upon his shoulder, quite ready for mortal combat. He had even raised the staff he somehow still held in preparation to dispense whatever measure of damage he was capable of should he find his nemesis standing there.

"Whoa," Vincent said loudly, gripping Colwyn's staff in his other hand. "It's just me."

Colwyn stared menacingly at him as his mind raced for a solution. His thoughts were interrupted by the combined voices of his friends finally reaching sufficient volume to break his concentration.

"Where's Heidi?" "What did you do to them?" "What does torrent mean?" "What did you give her?"

Colwyn sighed and said, "Heidi's been kidnapped. The man responsible is someone from my past who is apparently in the employ of my former boss. They expect me to hand over my life's work in exchange for her."

"What did you do to those people?" Zoe demanded.

"I'm trying to find her. I sent the first to find the park ranger so I can find out the most likely places she could be hidden. The second two are going to try to keep him from taking her from the park. The last one is intended to appear to be downloading my work from the cloud, although she'll likely just get thrown out for downloading pirated movies. I gave her my punch card to a frozen yogurt shop, more for the appearance of giving her a 'key' than anything else. Any other questions?"

"Yeah," Zoe responded. "Everything makes perfect sense except for the small matter of you not giving us the slightest hint as to how in the fuck you did it."

"He's telekinetic," Ross offered.

"Telepathic, numb nuts," Gil corrected. "Telekinetics move stuff with their minds."

"He's what?" Zoe asked angrily.

"He can make people do whatever he wants," Gil responded dismissively. "Duh."

Ross said, "I thought we already told you about how he saved that chick in the bar from her abusive boyfriend. Obviously, he used some kind of magic. No offense, Colwyn, but that guy should have knocked your dick in the dirt."

"Ergo ipso facto," Gil concluded triumphantly. "He's got superpowers."

Vincent muttered, "It's 'ergo' or 'ipso facto', not both."

"I think the Latin lessons can wait," Zoe snapped. "We've got to figure out how to find Heidi."

"I can't ask you guys to get involved," Colwyn began.

"Ok," Zoe interrupted, "First off... fuck you. She's our friend too. Second off... you need us. This place is enormous. I take it by your lack of denial that Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are right on the money about this superpower of yours?"

"Near enough," Colwyn admitted.

"I'm guessing it doesn't work on everyone," Vincent ventured. "Based on only four people in the parking lot stopping when you shouted. Also, none of us stopped moving. Ergo, it's limited in scope. How'd you know they'd help you?"

Colwyn grimaced in frustration and said, "I can see people's auras. More red means they'll do what I say, more green means they won't."

"What's that mean? More red... more green."

"It's just what I see. No two people are exactly the same. You guys range from sublime to olive. Then their auras break into... you know what? None of this matters right now. We've got to find Heidi."

"I don't disagree, Colwyn," Vincent said helplessly. "But how?"

101111

As dusk fell, Colwyn had nearly lost his tenuous grip on sanity with worry over Heidi. He had been determined to gallop off in every direction at once in hopes of coming across her by chance. His friends were his only saving grace. Vincent had come up with the idea of collecting people to help with their eventual search, separating them into greens who volunteered to help out of the goodness of their hearts and reds who Colwyn compelled to participate. In hopes of not garnering Jack's attention, they had kept the volunteers in their cars driving around the park and surrounding wilderness looking for anything suspicious. The search had yielded nothing of consequence other than a group of teenagers running a live fire exercise on the birds and the bees in a small cave.

Vincent found Colwyn pouring over a collection of maps provided by the park ranger, desperately searching for something he might have missed in the prior thirty-seven times he had studied the maps.

Vincent took a seat and said, "I need to get something off my chest, and I need you to listen."

"Now isn't the time for confessions," Colwyn snapped irritably. "We're trying to find Heidi. Nothing else matters."

"But that's just it. You're not trying to find her."

"What did you say?" Colwyn growled.

"You're not! You're just staring at those stupid maps while you let the panic overwhelm you. I know it's a hell of a lot to ask, but you've got to settle the fuck down and look at this dispassionately."

"How in the hell am I supposed to do that?"

"I don't fucking know. I just know that you've been staring at the same spot on the map for nearly an hour. I'm certain you've memorized the damn thing at this point. You've got to change your perspective. I know you can outsmart this sack of shit. You've just got to stop killing yourself worrying about her. We're worried too, brother. But worry won't bring her back."

"I can't," Colwyn replied almost inaudibly. "I can't lose her."

"You've got to stop thinking about losing her and start thinking about saving her."

"I don't know how."

"Have you tried turning this around in your head and asking yourself how you'd do it? Instead of just repeating 'I can't lose her' in your head, try reverse engineering this shithead's plan. I know you, Colwyn. Any plan you built would have triple redundancy, with an entirely different escape plan in case things went to shit. Figure out how you'd do it and then we can use that as the blueprint for our search."

"I'll try," Colwyn whispered despondently.

"You know better than that, and Heidi certainly deserves better. Don't try, just fucking get it done."

"I'm not sure that's how the quote goes."

Vincent smiled crookedly and said, "Try not... fucking do. Better?"

Colwyn did not answer, his attention already drawn to the map he had been staring at helplessly for hours. After a few moments, he snapped, "God dammit, how could I have been so stupid? I need the ranger, Vincent. And we need a cell system for all our volunteers. Use an eight to one ratio and split them up into groups of nine. Once we identify likely areas of interest, we'll send them in to do a visual search. Nine people could effectively search ten thousand square meters in less than a half hour. Also, make sure the volunteers all have at least decent night vision. We won't be using flashlights lest they see us coming. Please emphasize that they should pull back if they see or, more importantly, hear anything. These areas should be uninhabited so if they hear anything larger than a raccoon, that's probably a bullseye."

Vincent grinned and said, "I'll be right back."

He returned with the worried looking ranger moments later. Colwyn had already covered the map with what appeared to be strategically placed rocks. He began firing questions at the ranger ceaselessly, sometimes barely waiting for an answer before cutting him off. In short order, he summoned Vincent over.

He said, "Here are our first four possibilities. They're all near logging trails which are passable this time of year yet at least one hundred meters from the paved, or even gravel, roads. Assuming he's even still here, he wouldn't want to put himself in a position where he couldn't escape with reasonable quickness. These areas also abut the game grid so he could have transited between them with relative ease. Remember, no flashlights. I know it'll be dark soon, but we can't risk it. They'll also, obviously, need to be as silent as possible. If anyone sees anything, they're to notify their grid leader who will then pull the rest of the team back before phoning it in."

Vincent said, "Zoe, Ross, Gil and I are the grid leaders. We won't let you down."

Colwyn huffed, barely able to control his emotions. He shook his head and said, "Thank you."

"Don't worry about that now. Just figure out what's next. We'll report back as soon as we've got anything."

The next seventy-two minutes were the longest of Colwyn's life. The ranger had managed to round up eight more volunteers and had led them to the next most likely grid, but nothing had happened since their departure. Colwyn tried to force himself to consider what he would do if they were fortunate enough to locate Jack and Heidi was unharmed, but his mind refused to cooperate and kept presenting him with images of her being hurt or killed. He never gave serious consideration to turning over his formula, not because he valued it more than Heidi's life but because he had no faith in Jack keeping up his end of the bargain.

When his phone rang and Zoe's face appeared on the screen, he was barely able to force himself to answer it for fear of the news he would receive. Ultimately, his concern for Heidi won out and he tapped 'Answer.'

"We found something... weird," Zoe said without preamble. "There shouldn't be campers in the area, but one of my people heard something. Something unnatural."

"I'm headed to you," Colwyn snapped. He checked the map and said, "I'll be there in ten minutes."

He rushed out to the truck he had compelled someone to make available for his use, the owner currently stopping vehicles as they tried to exit the park. Colwyn rushed toward Zoe's marked position, heedless of his own safety. Tires squealed as he took the hairpin turns of the heavily switch-backed roads. He almost missed the turn-off onto the logging trail as he crested the hill. He left the truck parked blocking the logging road and continued on foot.

He ran up the road, heedless of his pounding heart or the burning in his lungs. Nearly a half kilometer later, he reached the bend in the road which marked the southeast corner of the grid square. He pulled out his phone and texted Zoe to announce his arrival as he swallowed lungfuls of air in hopes of catching his breath. As his breathing normalized and his heartbeat dropped below positively deafening, he caught a strange sound on the wind. He held his breath and willed his heart to shut up for a moment as he focused. Moments later, he heard approaching footsteps and looked up to see Zoe emerge from the gloom.

"Can you hear it?" she whispered.

"It's a drone. That's how he was able to see me. Have all of your people load a decibel meter on their phones and send you the readings."

Moments later, the numbers were in. Colwyn dropped to one knee and began scratching the number into the dirt at his feet. When the last number was in, he glanced over his work and said, "The drone is in the northwest-most square of your grid. He's likely got it near him so he can attempt to spot anyone approaching. Tell me about your people."

She shook her head and said, "Six software developers, two nurses and a mortician. None with any law enforcement or military training, but several have taken martial arts. At least they claim they did."

"Not ideal. We need to figure out his exact location. Have your people spread out and move north and west from the northeast and southwest corners of your grid. Have them keep the decibel meters open and curl around toward the sound if it diminishes. The goal isn't to find him, its to define a circle in which he likely resides."

She nodded grimly and said, "Got it," before stepping away to redeploy her people. He texted the other team leads, but none had heard anything. He was wary about bringing more people in this direction lest Jack detect their presence and do something stupid. As difficult as it was, he forced himself to remain calm and simply moved slowly in the direction of the northwest square of the search grid.

He began receiving text messages with dropped pins which soon formed into a rough circle approximately two hundred meters wide. He thought back and remembered there was some steep terrain ahead of him, dropping sharply to what would become the valley floor in which the day's game had taken place.

It was nearly fully dark at this point and the moon was only a quarter full. Fortunately, however, the sky was cloudless so his night-adjusted eyes had little difficulty seeing the terrain. He found the beginning of the drop-off, which a fair-minded person might also call a cliff. He got down on his belly and scooted up to the edge. The sound of the drone overhead was unmistakable now, which seemed baffling in the low light. It then occurred to him that it was conceivable that the drone could have an infrared camera which would likely make him stick out like a sore thumb in the cool air of the spring evening. He immediately rolled around in the leaf-strewn ground until he was covered in filth and quite chilly.

Peering over the edge, he peered around hopefully but saw nothing. However, as he went to look away, he had the sensation of having missed something. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes tight for a long ten-count. He then opened his eyes painfully wide and let them drift out of focus as he stared in the direction of the ground. Forty-one seconds later, just as the tearing of his eyes grew unbearable, he spotted something. He pointed with his finger for reference before blinking to assuage his tired eyes. The thing that had captured his attention was an incredibly faint light, hardly more than a speck against the moonbeams piercing through the trees. He consulted the stars for reference before retreating from the cliff's edge and beneath the cover of trees.

He fired off a text to Zoe.

I saw something about forty meters north by northwest of my current position.

there is a cliff about ten meters tall and the light was up against the base of the cliff.

have your people focus in that direction and report if they see or hear anything.

Her confirmation came through moments later. Colwyn moved along the top of the cliff, hoping to approach the brief light he had spotted in silence. He had the idea that perhaps he could get close enough to use his ability, even at the top of the cliff, since all that mattered was distance and not which axis upon which he was separated from a person.

As he neared the spot where he estimated the light to have originated, he sent an instruction out into the ether with all of his will, commanding the person at the base of the cliff to cough. He groaned inwardly when nothing happened. Moments later, however, he was treated to a repeat of the flare of light. From his closer position, he could see what he believed to be the outline of Jack's face, lit briefly by the flare of his cigarette.

Colwyn repeated his silent instruction, adding in the personalization that Jack should announce himself loudly. Again, Colwyn was rewarded with agonizing silence. He thought of perhaps calling in the calvary, but he had yet to think of a strategy in which a group of unskilled volunteers could move in on a hardened criminal without endangering his beloved.

He crawled closer to the edge of the cliff, allowing him to look straight down. He felt sure he could spot the outline of a vehicle below. As he scanned the area, he also saw a ledge just a few meters below his current position and right above the vehicle. He felt certain that if he were able to make his way down to the ledge, he would be close enough to gain control over Jack. Once that was accomplished, he could safely call in the calvary. Unfortunately, a quick search of the area revealed nothing he could use to help himself down.

The thought of returning to the vehicle for more supplies never entered his head. Within moments, his legs were dangling off the cliff as he tried to carefully move his body out over the void while still retaining his grip on a tree root. The further he slid, the more tenuous his position felt. By the time his waist was over the void, he suspected he had erred in judgement. When his hand slipped off the vine, his suspicion was confirmed.

The fall to the ledge took longer than he was expecting. The cliff was steep enough that he thankfully plummeted, rather than slid, down to the ledge. He landed with a deafening crack. He knew at once that he had vaulted right past hurt to arrive firmly in the realm of injured. He would say later he felt no pain at this moment. The doctors would insist it was due to shock, but until the day he died he would insist it was his all-consuming devotion to his one true love.

Just as he heard Jack's voice grumble, "Who's there?", Colwyn reached out with every ounce of will he possessed and shouted, "Get on your knees, you miserable piece of shit."

A whispered, "Fuck," was the only response he heard, other than the dual thud of Jack dropping to his knees.

110000

Colwyn's repeated calls of Heidi's name went unanswered. He briefly considered attempting to make his way down the remainder of the slope, but it only took the tiniest of movements of his ankle to convince him that was infeasible. He ultimately settled on reaching out to Zoe to call in some reinforcements. Within moments he heard people approaching, both from the top of the cliff and from the forest below. He was trying to decide how best to coordinate everyone when he heard Zoe's voice ring out, calling his name.

Rather than shouting in reply, he opted to call her mobile. "Where are you?"

She said, "I'm approaching the base of the cliff. Where are you?"

"On a ledge a few meters from the top. I'm close enough to have some influence over the kidnapper, but I can't get any closer because I'm pretty sure I broke my ankle. I need someone to get to him as quickly as possible, the fewer people the better honestly. I'd rather not broadcast this ability any further than necessary."

"Way ahead of you. Did you say you broke your ankle?"

He huffed, "Yeah. I needed to get closer."

"Ok. I'll send a couple of my bigger guys to the cliff top to figure out how to get you down."

"Thanks. Let me know when you're close."

"I'm there now."

"Ok, one second." He took the phone from his mouth and yelled, "Jack, you will remain completely motionless. Do you understand?"

"Yes," a gruff voice responded reluctantly.

"Where's Heidi?" Zoe's voice asked from what sounded like right next to Jack.

Jack spat, "I ain't telling you shit."

"Answer her fucking questions," Colwyn called out.

"She's in the car."

"Are there any booby traps?" Zoe continued.

"No. She's fine. I don't know what all the fuss is about. I'm just trying to conduct some business..."

"Shut up!" Zoe and Colwyn shouted in unison.

Moments later, Colwyn's phone rang. A quick glance at the screen showed Zoe's face and he quickly answered. He then heard the most beautiful sound in the universe.

"I'm ok, babe," Heidi said softly.

Thereafter followed a lengthy period of chaos as Zoe and Heidi went radio silent and a trio of men on the cliff's edge worked to retrieve Colwyn. They were busy building a large tripod which they hoped to use to gain enough mechanical advantage to hoist Colwyn back up the slope when the ranger arrived and took over the operation. Fortunately, the ranger arrived on a four-wheeler laden with rescue equipment and Colwyn soon found himself putting his arms through a harness which would be used to lower him the rest of the way down the cliff with the help of the vehicle's winch.

He screamed in pain when his mangled foot touched the ground at the base of the cliff. Zoe and Heidi rushed to him. He pulled Heidi into his arms, heedless of the harness which encircled him.

"Are you ok?" he asked between gasping breaths.

"I'll be fine, babe. I'm more worried about you."

"Tis but a flesh wound."

"He'll be ok," Heidi announced with relief.

They helped to free him from the harness. It took a few moments for Colwyn's pain to subside enough for him to take stock of his surroundings.

He gaped at Heidi and stammered, "Why are you?" His eyes then swung to Zoe, who was dressed only in a sports bra and shorts. Suddenly the much-too-small t-shirt Heidi was wearing began to make sense. "Where are your clothes?" he asked evenly.

"He took them," Heidi responded calmly. "He claimed it was to make sure I didn't have a cell phone, or any weapons, hidden anywhere."

"Jack!" Colwyn shouted. "Get the fuck over here. And I want you to fucking crawl like the filthy animal you are."

Heidi took his hand and said, "He didn't touch me, babe. I swear."

He sighed in relief and said, "I'm so grateful it wasn't worse, honey. Even so, he deserves to die for what he did."

Jack arrived moments later, crawling on all fours with a murderous expression on his face.

Colwyn began, "Zoe, can you go turn on the vehicle lights so we can see?"

Zoe nodded and carefully made her way over to the vehicle. Soon, a soft red glow from the vehicle's rear lights lit up the road where Colwyn lay.

"Strip," Colwyn directed Jack.

Jack did not even bother expressing his objection and he was soon kneeling in the dirt naked.

"Would you like any of his clothes, baby," Colwyn asked gently.

"I'd rather be naked in Time Square than wear his clothes."

Colwyn returned his attention to Jack and silently instructed, 'stop breathing'. He turned back to Heidi and said, "I'm so sorry it took me so long to find you babe. Are you sure he didn't hurt you?"

"I'm fine," she said. "He just made me strip and leered at me in between smoke breaks and taking phone calls. What about your ankle? I don't think it's supposed to look like that."

"Did he touch you?"

"No!" she said forcefully. "What about your ankle."

"It can wait," Colwyn snapped.

"No, it can't. You're filthy. If that's a compound fracture, you could get sepsis and fucking die. Let me look at it."

Colwyn heard a rustle from Jack's direction as Heidi knelt to examine his ankle and turned to see her erstwhile captor frantically waving his arms. His face was beet red, and tears were streaming down his cheeks. Colwyn smiled at him wickedly, a visage made all the more evil by the soft red light highlighting his features.

Colwyn silently gave him permission to resume breathing and said, "Who told you to do this?"

Jack gulped in several breaths of air before gasping, "Kurt. Kurt Renfro."

"How did you two find each other?"

"I don't fucking know. I got a call out of the blue one day asking for dirt on you. Apparently, he figured out we went to school together. I told him what he wanted to know and figured that was the end of it. Then, a few months ago, he called again and asked if I'd retrieve something you'd stolen. He paid good, so I kept taking his gigs."

"Did he tell you why he wanted my formula?"

"Something about some miracle drug you stole. He said he'd give me a million bucks if I recovered it."

"Where is he?"

"I don't fucking know," Jack scoffed.

"So how were you going to collect your money?"

"He sends me a check," Jack replied derisively. "What the fuck to you think? We meet up after the job's done and he gives me the cash. Fucking moron."

Colwyn scooted over, much to Heidi's chagrin, and fished Jack's phone from the pocket of his discarded jeans.

"Passcode?"

"All sevens," Jack replied sullenly.

Colwyn found Kurt's contact easily, considering it included his full name. The call history was filled with brief calls throughout the day and a long string of text messages asking for updates. Colwyn returned the phone to the pile of clothing and issued silent instructions to Jack to once again discontinue breathing.

He winced in pain as Heidi's probing fingers touched the side of his ankle.

"Sorry," she muttered. "It's definitely broken, but I don't think it's a compound. But you've got to keep still in case I missed something. Has anyone called an ambulance? Or, I don't know, the cops?"

"I was wary of contacting them, considering that it has been well established that Kurt is in league with the DA. I'm not sure about the ambulance. It's possible..."

"Just rest for a bit, babe," she offered reassuringly. Her voice then rose several octaves and she gasped, "Babe! What's wrong with him?"

"With who?" Colwyn asked with mock confusion.

"Jack. I think he stopped breathing."

"Perhaps. So?"

"Colwyn! Don't do this."

"Why not? He deserves to die for what he did."

"Maybe," she allowed. "But not by your hand. You're not like him, babe. You're not a killer. Don't stoop to his level."

"I won't..."

"Please Colwyn," she pleaded, taking his hands. "Please don't do this. I'm begging you. Don't do this."

Colwyn silently rescinded his instruction and Jack gasped for air. He stared into her eyes and whispered, "I think this is a mistake, honey. I think we'll always worry about our future as long as he's out there. But I meant what I said. I would do anything for you. Anything."

"I know, babe. And I love you so, so much. We don't have to worry about him. He was just a pawn. Kurt's the true villain."

"Indeed."

Further conversation was interrupted as the logging trail they were on began filling with people. First, it was the volunteers. The one's there by choice hung around to keep an eye on Jack while those there against their will were released from servitude after Colwyn took a moment to implant the belief that they had acted magnanimously. The ranger had called an ambulance, but it was having difficulty making its way up the logging trail and they were waiting for a four-wheel-drive first responder vehicle to arrive. The police were more efficient as they were able to simply walk to their location. Heidi's statement was more than sufficient for them to arrest Jack. Their zeal to put him behind bars only increased when Jack, after a silent command from Colwyn, offered an unredacted account of his illegal activities since the whole ordeal had begun. Their statements, along with Jack's cell phone, provided more than enough probable cause for an arrest warrant to be sworn out for Kurt and the officers suggested he would be in custody shortly.

Colwyn begged for a moment's indulgence before Jack was led away. He was unsure if he should be horrified or grateful when the older officer said, "Want to borrow my nightstick?"

Colwyn shook his head and the officer responded that he had two minutes. A good Samaritan had offered up some extra clothing they had in their bag and Heidi was busy changing behind a human modesty screen made up of several grim-faced female volunteers.

Colwyn looked at Jack and said, "I really should kill you."

"But you won't because you're a limp dicked pussy."

"Perhaps?" Colwyn allowed. "Or perhaps I'm simply more evolved than you."

"Fucking pussy," Jack muttered dismissively.

"Before you go, I wanted to give you something."

"I don't need anything from you."

"A piece of advice, from someone who was recently an unwilling guest of the state."

"What?" Jack sneered. "Don't drop the soap? I been in the joint before. I ain't scared."

"My advice is to attack someone on the first day in the hopes that they take you out. Otherwise, prison will be the worst kind of hell for you."

"Why's that, tubby? I'm not a little bitch. Them sodomites know not to mess with me."

"That's between you and them, Jack. What I meant was that every day that passes, you'll increasingly pray for death. Might as well get it out of the way sooner rather than later."

"And why is that? You gonna convince your boyfriend to come after me?"

"No," Colwyn replied simply. "Your life will be hell from this moment on because..." Colwyn looked around furtively to ensure no one could hear him before he focused the entirety of his will, all of his loathing, all of the fear which threatened to consume him when he thought he had lost Heidi, into his next five words.

"You... will... never... sleep... again..."

The police returned and, after questioning glances in Colwyn's direction, led Jack away. The look on Jack's face after Colwyn's pronouncement had been one of derision. But Colwyn felt that made his victory all the more satisfying. It would be weeks before Jack truly understood the depths of his penance as he slowly went irrevocably insane. Colwyn absently wondered if madness or suicide would claim Jack first, but he realized he did not actually care. He still considered it a paltry punishment for Jack's sins against Heidi, but as he did not have the equipment on hand to drown Jack in scorpions, he decided it would have to be sufficient.

110001

"I don't understand why I can't just get a cast," Colwyn grumbled to his haggard looking doctor.

"You will get a cast. But that alone is insufficient. You must have surgery."

"Why?"

"Had you suffered a simple fracture, where a portion of the bone remained intact, a cast alone would help you heal just fine. But, Mr. Smalley, you did not break your ankle so much as shatter it. We're not even sure yet how many fragments of bone we're dealing with. It's honestly incredible that you're even conscious, much less lucid."

"Fine. You may operate. But I want to ensure that Heidi is deputized to make decisions on my behalf."

"Is she your wife?" the doctor asked with a suspicious glance in Heidi's direction. The suspicion was not altogether unwarranted considering Heidi was dressed in a wizard's robe worn over an impossibly tight t-shirt, sans bra, and a baggy pair of jeans held in place by a belt featuring a buckle the size of a saucer.

"Not yet," Colwyn grimaced. "But I trust her with my life. I also have no blood relatives within a thousand kilometers, so you have little choice in the matter. If you're going to knock me out, you must agree to accept her judgement with respect to decisions about my care."

"Very well, a nurse will be in shortly with the necessary paperwork."

The doctor left quickly, leaving Colwyn alone with Heidi. He looked at her warily, the possibility that she would be uncomfortable with his presumption suddenly springing to the forefront of his mind.

"Yet?" she asked with a quirked eyebrow. "Is that how you intend to propose to me?"

"Of course not," he scoffed. "My proposal will be more thoroughly planned than the first moon landing."

"But you do intend to propose?"

"You are my life, beloved," he replied softly. "Loving you is my reason for being. I will love you until the stars grow cold. I am yours, forever. However you'll have me."

Tears flowed down her cheeks as she pulled him close. Their lips met with fevered intensity. All of the emotions of the day mingled together as their kiss deepened. They wordlessly shared all the fear they had experienced and, in so doing, healed each other of the trauma they had endured. She eventually moved onto the bed with him, carefully straddling him so as to not disturb his ankle. They heard a knock at the door but continued their kiss.

A moment later, a grandmotherly voice chuckled and said, "Ya'll can't do that in here. More's the pity. Folks would get better a lot sooner if they felt a little more love. Come on, honey. I'll help you down so you don't hurt your boyfriend any worse."

"Fiancé," Heidi responded with a smile.

The nurse said, "Excuse me? The doc just told me you was his girlfriend."

"I was. Now we're engaged."

"No, we're not," Colwyn huffed.

"Do y'all need a minute?" the nurse interjected as she backed toward the door.

"No," Heidi replied simultaneous to Colwyn declaring, "Yes."

Colwyn continued, "I told you I was making plans, honey. You deserve far better than a fumbled, half-coherent not-even proposal while I'm hopped up on pain killers."

"You do whatever you like, babe," Heidi replied gleefully. "But, as far as I'm concerned, you said you wanted to marry me and I responded with an emphatic 'Yes.' Face it, babe. We're engaged. There's no backing out now, you have to marry me. It's, like, the law or something."

"You best quit while you're ahead, son," the nurse whispered conspiratorially. "Unless you broke your head along with your ankle and you don't actually want to marry her."

"I've never wanted anything more," Colwyn replied quietly, his eyes locked on his fiancé.

The nurse said, "Great. Now, if you will just sign here to give your future wife the right to let us chop your foot off, or whatever else she might think of, we can get on with things. I'll be back in a minute to collect everything."

She left and Colwyn picked up the clipboard and started initialing and signing.

Heidi said, "You don't actually have to do all this, babe. Your mother will be here in a few hours."

"What? How?"

"I called her when they were loading you into the ambulance. She's taking the first flight out of Orlando this morning. She'll be here by noon. You're welcome, by the way, for keeping you out of the doghouse with her. She'd have gone non-linear if you'd forgotten to call her again."

"Thank you, honey. And, regardless of my mother's location, I'd like to do this anyway. If you're ok with it."

"I'm fine with it, babe. Don't sweat it."

"Are you going to tell her about my horrible proposal? She'll disown me for not giving you a ring."

"No," Heidi replied warmly. "That can remain between us for now. Besides, I don't need a ring, or any of the other vestiges of a time when women were property. I just need you."

"Ditto," he whispered before kissing her unhurriedly.

"Can I ask you something, future husband?"

"Anything. Always and forever. I will never lie to you."

"Ditto," she repeated. "Why did you jump off the cliff?"

"Fell, not jumped. I was trying to lower myself down to the ledge, but my hands slipped and I fell. Because I'm apparently a baby giraffe on the gracefulness scale."

"I won't concede that, but I saw that cliff once all those cars arrived. It was massive. Why would you risk it?"

"I'd have gladly risked far more had I believed that would make your rescue more likely."

"But why?"

"I would die for you, Heidi. Had I trusted him in the least, I would have unhesitatingly exchanged my formula and programs for you. I would have offered myself in exchange for your freedom. The only reason I didn't is because I had no belief that they would fulfill their end of the bargain."

"Don't talk like that, babe."

"It is the truth."

She climbed back onto his bed and took his face in her hands before saying, "But you mean just as much to me. Promise me you won't do anything rash, because I know this isn't over yet. We've got to deal with Kurt, and I don't want you to do anything reckless. The whole time I was sitting naked in Jack's shitty truck, the only thing I could think of was how I would endure anything to keep them from getting their hands on you. He didn't rape me, but I would have gladly allowed that and more to keep you safe. You're the one I've been waiting my whole life for, babe. I just found you. I have no intention of losing you."

"I'm not going anywhere, my love," he whispered before she lowered her lips to his.

***

"Colwyn?" an angelic voice called from a great distance. "Can you hear me?"

"Blert," he retorted reasonably.

"I'm right here, babe. It's time to wake up."

Colwyn found it necessary to repeat his response. He then realized that he must have been launched into space without so much as a pressure suit as his entire body, most especially his mouth, was completely devoid of any moisture. He slowly opened his eyes to find a formless void with rapidly moving shapes of all colors and sizes drifting about in his field of vision. He felt pressure on his lips which he belatedly realized was a cylinder whose chemical composition consisted primarily of fossil fuels.

"Take a drink, babe," the angel implored.

Colwyn sealed his lips around the cylinder and felt the life-giving moisture flow into his mouth. He drank greedily until he coughed upon failure to successfully execute a swallowing maneuver. The cylinder was removed, and a soft cloth brushed against his lips. This was shortly replaced by the softest, warmest, most comforting and sensual thing he could ever remember feeling. The sensation was brief, but it invigorated him. His eyes came into focus, and he beheld the face of an angel.

She smiled down at him and whispered, "Welcome back, babe. How do you feel?"

He whispered, "That depends on whether or not I dreamt you agreeing to marry me."

"Marry?!?" his mother's voice rang out.

"So much for keeping it on the downlow, my gallant hero," she whispered in his ear. "But, to answer your question, I totally agreed to marry you and have your babies and grow old with you and suck your... whoa. Down boy. Here, I think you could use a blanket or five."

She heaped two blankets and a pillow over Colwyn's midsection, although he doubted his mother was ignorant of their import considering she was busily concentrating on a house flipping program about mobile homes on the screen.

"Sorry, Alice," Heidi murmured. "But I think he's awake now."

"I should say so," Alice replied with a twinkle in her eye. "How do you feel, sweetie?"

"Like I fell off a mountain," he rasped. "But better seeing you two."

"So... marriage?"

"I accept your judgement for my terrible sense of timing and poor prior planning, Mother. It just sort of came out and Heidi accepted before I could insist that she wait until I could do it properly."

"It was so romantic, Alice," Heidi gushed. "It was perfect."

"It wasn't perfect," Colwyn complained. "I didn't even have a ring for her."

"Oh, well then take this one." Alice pulled the engagement ring from her hand with considerable effort and held it out to Colwyn.

"No!" Heidi and Colwyn shouted in unison.

"Oh, hogwash," Alice deflected. "This ring has been destined to go to the woman who captured your heart ever since we lost your father. I'll never stop loving him, sweetie. You know that better than anyone. But he wanted this ring to be your bride's. Never doubt that. This ring is hers now. You've just got to give it to her."

Colwyn glanced at Heidi, who said, "Alice, are you sure?"

"I tell you three times. This was one of his final wishes."

"One of?" Colwyn inquired.

"He also wanted you to live your life, sweetie. Even back then, it was as if he could see your future. You were already so brilliant, and you threw yourself into finding a cure for him with such vigor that he had no doubt you would keep working until you succeeded. He worried that you would neglect your own happiness, with good reason as it turned out. But now you've found our Heidi, and everything has fallen into place. Take this, please. From both of us, to both of you."

"Any other final wishes I should know about?"

"The rest were just for me, sweetie. Will you take it?"

Heidi leaned across Colwyn's bed and hugged Alice tightly. Tears were shed by all before Heidi ultimately whispered, "I love you both so much."

"We love you too, sweetie," Alice replied softly. "Will you take it?"

"I'd be honored."

Colwyn took the ring from his mother and turned to Heidi. "Will you..."

"Yes!" she gushed before bending to kiss him. He slid the ring onto Heidi's finger. She admired it lovingly and sighed, "It fits perfectly. Oh, my goodness. I can't wait to tell my dad."

"He should be here in about twenty minutes," Alice said, checking her watch. "I called him from the Orlando airport. He offered to pick me up when I landed, but I was anxious to get here."

"You called my dad?" Heidi asked haltingly.

"Oh, honey. We talk all the time. In any case, he'll be here any minute. And don't worry about him bursting a gasket when he hears about the engagement. He's nuts about you, sweetie. Constantly talking about how he wishes his current son-in-law was more like you."

Moments later, Alice's prediction came true and Larry burst into his room like a raiding SWAT team.

Heidi rushed to him and hugged him tightly, whispering, "Thanks for coming."

"Anything for my favorite daughter," he replied warmly. He turned to Colwyn and said, "I see the reports of your death were greatly exaggerated."

"Dad," Heidi complained. "That's my fiancé you're talking about."

"Oh really," Larry asked with a raised eyebrow. "Not even pretending to ask my permission, are you, young fella?"

"With respect, it is not up to you. But I would appreciate your blessing nonetheless, as, I suspect, would your daughter."

"Are you kidding?" Larry chuckled. "I've got half a mind to tell whatshisname in Atlanta that he's fired as my son-in-law as I've found a far superior alternative." He crossed to Colwyn and offered his hand before warmly saying, "Welcome to the family, son."

110010

"Hey," Larry called out as he hurried down the steps of Colwyn's house. "Turn on channel six!"

Colwyn made to get up from the couch, but Heidi rushed in and shouted, "No! He's supposed to stay off that ankle."

"I'll get it," Alice announced as she rose from the recliner. She fetched the remote from the coffee table and keyed in the correct sequence to cause the program to appear on the screen above the fireplace.

The bubbly blonde on screen was saying, "... and today, as I'm sure you are all aware, is the fourth of May."

"That's right Jeanette," the man four decades her senior on the opposite couch announced. "You know what they say? May the... fourth... be with you."

Larry interrupted, "They've been trying to make this funny all morning. Just give it a minute and they'll get back to some actual news."

After a series of commercial breaks, the newscast returned to the familiar motif of a serious looking news reader staring down the barrel of the camera while a window appeared above their shoulder.

"Repeating our main story this hour: Kurt Renfro, son of pharmaceutical magnate, Marion Renfro, was arrested this morning at a local municipal airport. He has been charged with crimes ranging from possession of narcotics to extortion to kidnapping. He is expected to be arraigned this afternoon. The district attorney promises justice will be served and has expressed shock and dismay that this prominent local family could be embroiled in such disturbing behavior."

"We've got to get down there!" Colwyn shouted before trying to stand. "Fuck, that hurts."

"Colwyn!" Heidi and Alice shouted at once.

"Language," Alice added at once with Heidi's addendum of, "Your ankle."

"Mother, you've got to lighten up," Colwyn began.

"Sorry, old habits die hard. 'Fuck' until your hearts content."

"That's my little girl you're talking about," Larry added good naturedly.

"Oh," Alice muttered with a brightening blush. "Sorry."

"Anyway," Colwyn interjected. "We've got to get down there. You heard what they said about the DA. If that isn't double-speak for 'I'm going to recommend bail and pretend to be shocked when Kurt ends up in Montenegro', I don't know what is. If I don't get to Kurt, and the DA for that matter, now, we'll miss our chance."

"What exactly do you intend to do?" Larry asked. "It's up to the judge what happens."

"We'll explain later," Heidi declared, hoping to forestall any additional debate. "Colwyn's right. We have to get down there. When's the arraignment?"

Larry shrugged and said, "They didn't say, except to say today."

"Then there's no time to waste," Alice declared regally. "How can we help?"

The moments that followed were barely controlled mayhem, with Alice acting as ringleader. But, within twenty minutes, Colwyn's van was pulling out of the driveway with Larry at the helm, Alice acting as navigator and two more or less dressed and ready to face the world passengers strapped into the couches in the rear. Larry's reasoning for driving was that he had six decades experience talking himself out of speeding tickets.

That skill ultimately turned out to be unnecessary, either because they passed no interested cops or because no self-respecting police officer would believe that a camper van could travel at nearly two-hundred kilometers per hour.

The van screeched to a halt in front of the courthouse and disgorged Heidi and Colwyn, the latter's top-speed limited significantly due to his reliance on crutches. They hurried inside and spent an agonizingly long time clearing security as they waited for it to be determined that the crutches did not conceal any sort of firearm or chemical weapon.

As they neared the courtroom, Heidi attempted to ask the bailiff if they'd missed Kurt's arraignment, but he cut her off saying, "The district attorney and the judge set the schedule, lady."

"Never mind," Colwyn muttered. "Just please let us in."

"No can do. Court is in session. No one goes in or out without the judge's permission. Now, if you'll stand aside?"

Heidi led Colwyn over to a bench and helped him sit down. "Now what?"

"I'm not sure. I just wish I knew if we were too late."

They sat helplessly for several minutes until Alice and Larry arrived. When they explained their conundrum to their parents, Alice snickered and said, "Kids these days. If it isn't on their phone, it's like it's not happening."

Colwyn looked at her questioningly, and she pointed at the ancient CCTV mounted to the ceiling. On it was a live feed from inside the courtroom. Colwyn peered at it closely and said, "We're not too late. Look, there's dear old dad in the second row."

"Great," Heidi grumbled in exasperation. "But we might as well be on the moon for all the good it'll do us."

"Mother, what are the odds that coverage is delayed?"

"I have no idea, sweetie. But there seems little use in televising that which happened more than a few seconds ago. Kind of defeats the purpose."

Colwyn tried to remember back to the dark day when he had been arraigned in this very courtroom, specifically as to the layout. He felt as though he remembered the windows being on his left as he faced the judge. Based on what he could ascertain of the building's layout, that would mean the judge would be facing the bailiff who had brushed them off. Colwyn looked around and spotted a bench which would be closer to where he felt the judge's roost, or whatever the lords of municipal building design called it, would be located.

He stood and relocated, much to the chagrin of his loved ones. He then concentrated for a few moments before they heard the bailiff call out, "Ten-minute recess."

"Excellent," Colwyn whispered conspiratorially. "Let's go."

"What'd you do?" Heidi murmured in his ear as she helped him to his feet.

"Convinced the judge that he was in grave danger of soiling himself if she did not visit the little girl's room immediately."

"Remind me to never anger you," she muttered with mock seriousness.

They moved with some effort into the courtroom and found seating midway back in the gallery. As they took their seats, Colwyn felt his phone buzz. He pulled it out and raised his eyebrow at the message on the screen before replacing the device.

"What is it?" Heidi whispered.

"I'll tell you later. You realize it's entirely possible he'll recognize us and say something before he gets close enough for me to shut him up."

"I'm not scared of him. There's nothing he could accuse us of that wouldn't be more damning for him. That being said, perhaps you could convince dear-old-dad, as you say, to do something which could distract Kurt from making a scene. Preemptive strike, as it were."

Colwyn focused on the Renfro patriarch for a few moments before saying, "Well, I'll be damned?"

"What?"

"He's a green. Who would have figured?"

"Lawful or chaotic?"

"Huh?"

Heidi huffed and whispered, "Is he lawful good or chaotic good? Isn't that what the left triangle means?" Colwyn could only stare at her in response, his lips barely moving as he tried to process her words. She blinked in confusion before saying, "I thought you were the one who told me."

"No," Colwyn stammered. "I had no idea. But... it's so obvious. How is it possible I never realized it?"

"I guess the idea just popped into my head when you were explaining rolling a character, and it never occurred to me that you hadn't told me. Do you think it's accurate?"

"Of course it is, baby. It makes so much sense. All the greens who helped us find you were brighter rather than duller, so they must have leaned toward lawful good."

"So... what's Kurt's father?"

"Oh, I guess he's chaotic good with a twinge of pink."

"Meaning perhaps a dusting of evil in his character?" Heidi added.

"One would assume. Hard to be a billionaire without some skeletons in your closet. I wonder how he's going to react when he finds out his darling boy is a serial felon. I can't decide if he looks devastated or angry."

"Oh, shit. There he is."

Kurt was led into the courtroom wearing an expertly tailored suit, a look of supreme confidence on his face. The district attorney entered from the back of the room, displacing his lieutenant at the desk before the judge. The clerk began reading the charges against Kurt. Colwyn actually managed to be surprised, despite his expectations, when Kurt was only charged with conspiracy and a misdemeanor drug charge. Kurt grinned triumphantly at his father, likely due in large part to the fact that the DA had unilaterally dropped every charge stemming from Jack's confession except for the paltry conspiracy accusation.

The DA stood when the clerk finished and, with a quick wink in Kurt's direction, took a breath to speak. Colwyn was caught off guard, being unfamiliar with court protocol, and fired out a silent instruction for the DA to have a coughing fit. The clerk approached him with a glass of water, which he took without a word of thanks. Colwyn took a moment to collect his thoughts before issuing a pair of instructions.

The judge asked Kurt for his plea without even looking up, clearly having been notified in advance of the agreed upon sequence of events.

"I object!" Kurt declared, a look of confusion crossing his features.

His lawyer hissed at him as the judge said, "Just say guilty or not guilty."

"But I object to these charges," Kurt wailed.

"Then say not guilty," the judge answered wearily.

"I can't. I'm totally guilty. But what about the kidnapping I directed?"

Colwyn heard a commotion behind him and turned to see the members of the local press scurrying to get their cameras turned on.

"And the hundred kilos of heroin I've got stashed in the attic of my father's pool house."

"Kurt!" his father whispered fiercely.

"And that's to say nothing of the fact that I contributed a million dollars to this sad sack's reelection campaign," he hooked a thumb at the DA, causing the latter to thunder, "I object!"

"You're also not allowed to object," the judge pointed out, an irrepressible smile on her face.

Kurt continued, "And, for what? So he can let that tub of lard, Smalley, out of prison before he turned over the formula?"

"What formula?" the judge asked.

"He cured cancer, or some shit. I don't know. No! It was heart disease. He cured heart disease and refused to give up the formula. Damn fool wanted to give it away for peanuts."

"Your honor?" the DA interrupted. "I won't stand for this slander. I don't know this man."

"Your checkbook sure does," Kurt offered gregariously. "How 'bout it? When do we get to the part where you get me bail so I can hop a flight to Mexico? Which airport did you tell me to use again?"

"Your honor!" the DA gasped.

"I think we've heard enough," the judge declared. "Bail is denied. I'm also adding several counts to the indictment and am removing the district attorney from the case pending a review by the bar association. Next case?"

"What's the meaning of this?" Kurt asked as his cuffs were reaffixed. He turned to the DA and said, "You said I'd get off."

The DA quickly snapped his briefcase closed and rushed out of the courtroom without a word.

Kurt turned to his father and said, "What the fuck am I supposed to do now?"

The senior Renfro stood and said, "That is your own affair, sir. My involvement ends here."

"What the hell, Dad?" Kurt said, reaching out to take his father's arm with both hands.

His father jerked his hand away and said, "My father's company could have given the world the cure for heart disease, and you said no because it wasn't going to make you rich enough? I don't even know you anymore. I'm not sure I ever did."

He walked from the courtroom without another look, despite Kurt's shouts of rage.

Colwyn turned to Heidi and said, "I think our work here is done."

They made their way outside after the court was recessed. As they loaded into the van, which Larry had once again insisted on driving, Alice said, "Where should we go to celebrate?"

"That may be premature," Colwyn pointed out. "After all, he hasn't been convicted of anything yet."

"Are you kidding?" Larry boomed as he pulled into traffic. "Did you see his hands?"

"No," Alice ventured inquisitively.

"That piece of..."

"Shit?" Alice offered.

"I knew I liked you," Larry grinned. "Anyway, that piece of shit has never known a moment of hardship. He might not have figured out what was happening, but I know a disowning when I see one. He's gotten his last hand-out from pops. I give him a week in prison before he's begging to confess in hopes of a shortened sentence. Not that it'll do him much good. If they pin that heroin he mentioned on him, it'll be twenty years minimum. Anyone want to bet that some lackey of his dad's won't make a beeline to that pool house? My guess is he'll be anxious to get those drugs as far away from him as possible, even if it means handing the state a conviction of his son."

Alice said, "I hope you're right."

"Don't worry," Colwyn said sagely. "I suspect Kurt Renfro will be quite old by the time he steps out of prison." He glanced over at Heidi knowingly and said, "I wouldn't be surprised if he comes to feel more comfortable there than he does on the outside."

110011

"What was that thing on your phone?" Heidi asked as they prepared for bed.

"Hmmm?" Colwyn mumbled around his toothbrush.

"It was right before we went in the court room."

"Oh, right," Colwyn replied distractedly. "Take a look. I haven't actually used my phone since then."

"You sure you don't mind?"

Colwyn turned to face her and said, "I have no secrets from you, my love. I would tell you the password happily, except you'd never remember it."

"Why not?"

"Because it's thirteen characters long, and its complete, intentional, gibberish. Hence why I haven't unlocked my phone all afternoon."

She gaped at him and said, "But... why?"

"Just because I have nothing to hide from you doesn't mean I wish for any random government official to be able to unlock my phone. Or, indeed, any of my devices. Why do you think I have a rack mount of servers in the Refuge?"

"I had wondered about that. It seemed like you'd just need some hard drives."

"The Refuge was for more than just pornography. It is also where my formula is stored, in addition to where I run some of the programs I used to make it. To protect them, I make use of a proprietary encryption that requires significant computing power to manage. I recognize it sounds fairly paranoid, but we have seen the lengths to which some individuals will go to steal what I have created. Imagine what a government entity would do if they decided it was in their interest to take possession of my work. Encryption is my only true defense."

"But surely the government could defeat your encryption. I mean, isn't that what the NSA does?"

"They try. And its possible they could break it. But my encryption is significantly more advanced than that which is used by our government's rivals. I calculate it would take them several millennia, using the technology available to them, to break my encryption."

"Well, then I'll stop worrying," she quipped with a playful grin.

She went to retrieve his phone and handed it to him to unlock. He then handed it back with a 'go ahead' gesture. She scrolled through the notifications until she exclaimed, "What?"

"Everything ok, honey?" he asked innocently.

"What did you do, babe?"

"I told you it meant nothing to me anymore."

"But I thought we agreed you wouldn't delete it?"

He took a seat and beckoned her to sit next to him. He said, "That's true. We did agree that I wouldn't delete it the day I told you of my shame. And I didn't. What I did was write a program to recursively, and permanently, delete everything and set it with a ninety-day countdown. I could have suspended at any time using one of three different methods, including replying to that text. But, even after ten different warnings over the past two weeks, I never had the slightest urge to prevent the deletion. That Content was a remnant of my former life. The Colwyn who curated it doesn't exist anymore."

"You didn't need to do this for me, babe. I love you completely. No reservations, no qualifiers, no preconditions."

"I know, honey, and I love you too. Please understand, I didn't do this for you, although I certainly would have done so. I did it for me. I felt like that Content was like a sword of Damocles, always lurking in the background and waiting for me to experience a moment of weakness. It had to be deleted or the old me would never have been gone."

"So what will you use the Refuge for now?"

He shrugged and said, "We could put all of your 'toys' from your second bedroom there when you move in."

"Oh, you think I'm going to move in with you just because we're going to get married?"

"I can move into your apartment if you'd prefer. But I aim to make it so the last night I slept without you is the last night I sleep without you by my side. What's mine is yours Heidi. If you'd prefer we sell the house, just say the word."

"Well... I guess we could stay here. Plenty of room for guests... or kids?"

"I like the way you think," he murmured as he pulled her into his lap and claimed her lips.

"How many kids do you want?" she said playfully as she pulled her nightgown over her head to reveal her spectacular nude body and began working to relieve Colwyn of his clothes.

"It's not up to me, honey. You're the one who has to do all the work. I'm just there for the fun part."

"Oh, you'll do plenty of the work, babe. I see a future where I have to sneak the baby monitor into another room to keep you from taking every shift with young Colwyn."

"Nikolai," Colwyn whispered. "Cole, for short."

She asked, "Your father's name?" Colwyn nodded seriously. "And why you become enraged when someone calls you Cole?"

"I don't get enraged, merely irritated. Our daughter, should we be so fortunate, would be named Faye."

"I think Mom would love that," Heidi whispered.

Colwyn kissed her tears away and said, "I certainly hope so."

"Your father wouldn't mind you being called Cole, babe. He would be honored to meet the man you've become."

It was Colwyn's turn to have a tear wiped away by his one true love. He stared into Heidi's eyes and said, "I truly love you, Heidi."

"I know," she replied with a coquettish grin. "What'd the doctor say about physical activity?"

"That I should stay off that ankle. And, if possible, avoid anything banging into it."

"I find those parameters acceptable. Lay down."

He smiled and did as indicated before watching in appreciation at the way her body moved as she tugged what remained of his clothing from his body. Lifting his injured foot, she helped him slide up the bed until his foot was supported.

A groan escaped from his throat as she sank onto his throbbing hardness. Her quivering inner walls slowly adjusted to his intrusion as they shared a soul uniting kiss. Desperate whimpers mixed with shuddering sighs as their kiss deepened. He wrapped his arms around her, finding the back of her neck and her hip at once to pull her closer.

"You feel amazing, honey."

"So do you, babe. I love how you fill me up. The gods designed your magnificent cock specifically for my pussy."

Heidi rose above him, putting her supple body on full display for his hungry eyes. His eyes slid slowly along her breathtaking curves, savoring the spectacle. Her creamy thighs; her beautifully groomed pussy; her smooth belly; her magnificent breasts; her aristocratic neck. Each square centimeter of her flesh was a work of art and something that never failed to excite his loins. But it all paled in comparison to her angelic face, and her loving eyes. No matter how often he told her she was the most beautiful woman in the world, he still knew she did not believe him. But he would never stop telling her, and he knew that declaration would never stop being true.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered reverently.

"I'm so glad you think so."

"Not think. Know. You have no equal, my love."

"You're pretty fantastic yourself, babe." She murmured as she began to speed up the movement of her hips. "Pretty. Fucking. Perfect." She grunted in time with their joining.

"I want you to cum for me, baby."

"Oh, fuck," she panted before she slammed into him and her moans filled the room.

Colwyn held her hips and thrust up into her, expanding and extending her orgasm. Her breasts quivered titanically with each thrust of his hips until her inner walls tightened like a vice around his manhood as her pleasure peaked.

Pulling her down for a kiss, he felt happiness flood her body. He felt her lips turn up in a smile before she pulled back to regard him playfully.

"Here I was, perfectly content to just get you off. And you had to go and ruin it by turning my legs to jelly with your delicious cock."

"All part of the service."

"You know I'd never let you go to sleep without cumming."

"I know," he whispered before grabbing her by the waist and rolling them over.

"Babe! Your ankle!"

"I'll be fine, honey. Besides, I don't need my ankle to love you."

He lined himself up and sank into her molten core with a sigh of bone-deep contentment.

"Be careful, babe."

He winked and said, "Fear not, milady. I would face far greater foes than a paltry broken ankle to serve you."

"My hero," she sighed without a hint of jest.

He dropped down until their lips met for a brief, but unhurried, kiss. When their lips parted, she took his face in her hands and held him close. Their eyes were locked as he began thrusting into her velvety heaven at a languid pace. As their shared gaze deepened, he saw far more than the most beautiful brown eyes he could imagine. He saw love, and laughter, and companionship, and peace. He saw his future in the angel who held him in a lover's embrace.

"I love you," they whispered in unison before sharing a quick chuckle.

"Colwyn Smalley?" she began serenely.

"Yes, my love."

"You are the man of my dreams. You are the most noble; most honorable; most decent; most good man I've ever known. You're the man I want to give children to and make a family with. You're the man I want to grow old with. I will love you forever, and I swear I will never stop working to be the wife you deserve."

He stammered, "Heidi Boyd?"

She nodded happily, never relinquishing her hold of his face.

"The best day of my life was the day you stomped up my front porch, intent on giving me a piece of your mind. And every day since has been the new 'best day of my life.' You make the lives of everyone fortunate enough to approach your orbit better, merely by your presence. You make me a far, far better man. I do not deserve your love, but I am forever grateful to have it. And I will never stop striving to be the husband you deserve. Not only because I love you more than life itself, but because it would be an affront to the gods to do otherwise."

She pulled him down for a tear-filled kiss.

When their lips parted, she whispered, "I love you, husband. You've made me very happy."

"I love you too, wife. Every moment with you makes me happy. But especially this one."

"Are you going to tell our son that we exchanged vows while you were inside me?"

He picked up the pace at her words and said, "Of course. Will you tell our daughter?"

"Yes," she murmured happily. "God, yes."

"I'm close, my love."

She smiled lovingly at him and said, "I know, babe. Cum for me. Make me yours forever."

His hips thrust a final time before he felt his release consume him. Her pleasure crested moments later and she joined him in bliss. As her molten core coaxed his seed from his loins, he kept his eyes on hers and felt her love surround him along with her body. Their combined shuddering moan filled the room; indeed, it was unlikely their parents sleeping in the guest rooms across the hall failed to hear their shared climax. She wrapped him tightly in a lovers embrace, squeezing him triumphantly as the orgasms crested.

As their pleasure receded, he dropped his forehead onto hers and whispered, "Thank you, angel. That was magnificent."

He rolled over, taking her with him until she was comfortably ensconced against his side. She snickered softly and he looked down at her with a quirked eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Do you think your mother heard us?" He shuddered against her, and she murmured, "Did I kill the moment?"

"Of course, not, my love."

"But you think she might have?"

"That doesn't really bother me one way or another. Especially considering your favorite method of torturing me is to discuss our sex life with my mother when you know I can hear you." A chuckle rumbled in her chest at his admission. He continued, "What does freak me out a bit is the knowledge that your father is sleeping in the room right next to my mother. His apparent approval of me may wain somewhat if our relationship goes from 'dating' to 'I can hear you having sex, so now I want to cut your heart out with a spoon.'"

She giggled and said, "I wouldn't be so sure. I was up early yesterday, and his room was suspiciously vacant. I think perhaps they transitioned from 'maybe we will' to 'we totally did.'"

"Oh."

"Come on babe, be happy for them. Whether they're right for each other or not, they both deserve, more than deserve, to move on and try to be happy again."

"Oh, I am happy. Just a bit surprised. Although, in hindsight, I suppose I shouldn't be with how much they've been talking."

She smiled and murmured, "My thoughts exactly. Now, my love, I think you should get some sleep. Doctor's orders."

"I don't seem to remember that particular instruction. I think perhaps you'll need to unpack your sexy nurse's costume and refresh my memory."

"As you wish," she sighed before capturing his lips. "And, if that doesn't work, there's always the princess costume. Colwyn the Grey is incapable of refusing the command of his princess."

"I am yours to command, milady," he whispered just before they fell into a dreamless sleep.

Epilogue

One year later

"How are you feeling, honey?" Colwyn asked carefully.

"I'm fine," Heidi replied quickly. She then caught a glimpse of Colwyn's face from her position in the passenger seat of the coupe and quickly appended, "Check that. Not fine. I'm wonderful, splendid, couldn't be better. You?"

"Nervous," he mumbled, as if to himself.

She reached out to take his hand and said, "Babe, it's going to be perfect. You'll see."

He toyed with her rings absentmindedly, turning his mother's engagement ring in a lazy circle against her elegant wedding band. It was a frequent habit of his when he was anxious, a habit which oddly soothed both he and his wife.

They were nearing their destination when a notification popped up on Heidi's phone. She pulled it from the cup holder and gasped, "Oh, that poor man."

"What is it?"

"Kurt got ten more years added to his sentence. Apparently, he got into a fight with his cellmate."

"And that makes him pitiful?"

"I was talking about his cellmate," Heidi replied with a smirk. "Doesn't say here what they fought over."

"It tickles me to imagine it was something super bourgie like how he placed his shoes beneath the bed at night. How many years is he up to now?"

"Fifty-nine, I think. Twenty-eight of which aren't subject to parole. And even parole is kind of a longshot at this point seeing as how his father cut him off when he found enough heroin in his pool house to keep an eighties hair band happy for a year."

"Couldn't have happened to a better guy. Who else do you have online alerts set up for?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

Colwyn lapsed into silence, a brief pallor falling over their conversation at the unspoken thought he knew they both shared. News of Jack's demise in prison had hit them differently. Colwyn had merely accepted the news dispassionately, but his bride had been saddened by the details of how Jack had attacked a guard with such wanton disregard for his own wellbeing that it was clear his plan was to die. Heidi had never asked him if he had had a hand in Jack's descent into madness, and he had never broached the subject with her. He could not bring himself to regret his decision, even in light of the end result. The confidence of his conviction that Jack did indeed deserve death for his actions had never wavered. Colwyn suspected Heidi slept easier knowing her tormenter was gone, but carried a measure of guilt over her involvement, however incidental.

"Babe!" Heidi gasped. "You're headed right for the house."

"Shit," Colwyn huffed as he quickly turned down a side street. "I was just on autopilot."

They parked out of sight of the house and sat for a moment in the car as they watched the clock.

"You're sure about the timing?" she asked.

"Quite. They never miss the local news. Ironically, you could set a bomb off in their front yard and they wouldn't be able to pry themselves from the screen."

"Imagine the existential quandary if the local news was covering something which happened in their front yard," Heidi theorized. "Do they go outside in hopes of catching a glimpse of their favorite 'on the scene' reporter, or stay glued to the screen? How will they know what happened if the trusted local news doesn't tell them?"

"Indeed," Colwyn agreed with a smile. "You ready?"

"Let's do it!"

They climbed from the coupe and retrieved their payload from the boot. They walked calmly down the sidewalk, like they had so many times over the past year. When they reached their destination, their anxiety began climbing. A few furtive glances through the open blinds of the cute bungalow showed no signs of movement so they hurried up to the base of the front porch and deposited their payload. Colwyn crept up the steps and, with a final glance back at his wife who had already withdrawn from sight, depressed the button for the doorbell. He then rushed down the steps and hurried to join her, a feat made considerably easier considering he had shed a third of his body mass over the preceding eighteen months.

He joined Heidi in her spot just beyond the hedges and waited for the denizens of the house to emerge. Larry opened the door and peered around suspiciously. His mother then joined him, stepping out on the porch before saying, "Who was it, sweetie?"

"No one," he replied suspiciously. "Just this enormous box. Did you order something?"

"Mmm... I don't think so." Alice walked down the steps and inspected the box. "There's no label."

She started to open the flaps. Larry joined her and said, "Are you sure we should open it?"

"No other way to find out what it is. Unless you want to leave it here until the rain causes the box to disintegrate," she added playfully.

"Fine," Larry said, kneeling to help her with considerable ease now that he had joined a trial for a new diabetes medication that had all but cured his condition. He handed her a large envelope which sat on top before he began removing the remaining packaging. Shortly, he stood with a confused look on his face and said, "It's a baby stroller." He then spotted the look on Alice's face and added, "What's wrong, honey?"

Tears were streaming down her face and her fingers covered her mouth as though to hold in her gasping breaths. She handed Larry the envelope, unable to do anything else. He took it and quickly spotted the inscription which read, 'To Nana and Pop Pop.' He then opened the envelope which contained a small piece of strangely textured paper. He turned it over to reveal the unmistakable ultrasound image of a fetus below a movies style marquee which read 'COMING THIS SUMMER.' Below the marquee was printed 'Nikolai Lawrence Boyd-Smalley.'

Larry pulled the happily sobbing Alice into his arms, but Colwyn and Heidi could still clearly hear her jubilant shout. "I'm going to be a grandmother!"

***

Five years later

"Draw two!" Ross shouted jubilantly, flinging the card down on the table.

"Asshole," Gil grumbled as he added two cards to his already overflowing stack.

"Hey!" Zoe snapped. "Impressionable ears are present."

"Sorry. I meant anus."

"I'm not sure that's an improvement, babe," Ygritte retorted playfully.

It cheered Colwyn that the 'newcomer' to the group was finally comfortable enough to participate in the near-constant good-natured ribbing which defined their weekly get-togethers. He was still unsure of what label to use for Ygritte. Heidi called her Ross and Gil's wife and referred to them as her co-husbands. Colwyn had not been invited to any ceremonies codifying such as status, which he supposed was not that surprising considering that such a relationship was not technically legal. Regardless, he was content to accept her labeling if his friends were.

Their weekly gaming nights had been a constant through the years, only taking a week off for such events as Zoe and Vincent's wedding or the birth of a child. The one concession they made was to expand the locus of games they played. They still played role-playing-games occasionally, but Colwyn's life no longer allowed him the time to plan out the extensive campaigns he had so loved in the past.

A two-year old boy with startlingly bright red hair toddled into the room and yanked on the hem of Zoe's shirt before announcing, "Hungry."

"Come here, little man," Vincent said before lofting his son onto his shoulder and carrying him toward the kitchen. "I thought you and Faye were building a castle with blocks."

"She smells bad," the little boy announced derisively.

"I've got it," Colwyn whispered in Heidi's ear before springing from his chair.

The game resumed moments later once all of the children, including Ygritte's infant daughter, had been attended to and all the adults had returned to the table. No sooner had Heidi claimed victory than chaos once again descended at the ringing of the doorbell. Voices from all over the house took notice and Colwyn looked questioningly at Heidi.

She said, "I was wondering if he'd finally show," before rising regally and heading in the direction of the front door.

She soon returned in the company of two guests, one Colwyn knew very well and the other a young stranger. Colwyn crossed the room and took Quincy's hand, shaking it warmly.

"I'm so glad you made it," he said to his friend and boss.

"Your wife had gotten to the point of threatening me with you quitting to convince me to come. This is my daughter, Idina." The young girl, who Colwyn realized must be in middle school by this point, smiled shyly. Quincy added, "Honey, I'd like you to meet Mr. Smalley. He's the one who made the medicine that made you better."

A shy smile broke across her face, and she said simply, "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure," Colwyn replied huskily.

Quincy said, "My favorite daughter fancies herself something of a burgeoning babysitter. She was hoping y'all would be ok with her keeping an eye on your youngsters while we play cards."

Colwyn cast an eye around the table, seeing nothing but agreement on the occasionally tearful faces he found there. His life's work was no secret from his friends, and they all knew the import of the young woman whose life had been fundamentally altered for the better thanks to his efforts. They also knew of the millions more around the world who no longer faced a death sentence due to heart disease, diabetes or HIV.

He looked down at Idina and nodded. A smile broke across her face, and she rushed into the adjoining room where the children played. He heard her open up immediately as she introduced herself before joining in with one of their games.

He turned to Quincy who said, "I can't ever say it enough, but thank you." Colwyn replied with an embarrassed shrug, so Quincy grinned and said, "I hope you don't expect me to play this kids game. Not when poker exists."

Heidi snickered and murmured, "Oh, you poor, poor fool."

"What?" Quincy asked, taken aback.

Zoe leaned back in her chair and said, "Don't Heidi. Why deny us of one of life's true pleasures?"

Quincy looked around worriedly, so Heidi added, "She just means that it isn't often one gets to watch someone play poker with my husband for the first time. Just promise me you won't play with actual money."

Guffaws broke out from around the table before Colwyn gestured to a chair for Quincy and, with a wicked glint in his eye, said, "Shall we?"

The End

Thanks so much for taking the time to read Colwyn's tale. If you enjoyed it, please take a moment to leave a review.

The Game Master

by Jake Lazarus

Copyright © 2022 Jake Lazarus

All rights reserved.

This book, or any portion thereof, may not be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the author (except for the use of brief quotations in a review).

This is a work of fiction.

Names, characters, business, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner.

Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.