Chapter 3
792 Words
Chapter 3
Maggie Valley, NC
the next evening
QUENTIN AND NATE were in their favorite position, the one that was universally known by the number sixty-nine. They’d been in total rapport for what seemed like hours, and were indulging themselves in their favorite pastime—seeing how long they could keep each other on the edge. And when two telepaths go into rapport to make love, they can keep each other on the edge for a very long time.
{We’re going to have to wrap this up pretty soon, Nate.}
{Why?}
{Because nature calls, that’s why.}
{What’s the matter, old man? Can’t hold your water?}
{Oh, I am so going to get you for that remark.}
With that jibe, Quentin abandoned all efforts to keep Nate on the edge and finished him off. Nate, of course, followed his lead, and they were soon spent.
“Okay, Nate, time to roll over and let me get up,” Quentin said.
“Spoilsport,” Nate said, rolling out of Quentin’s way.
Quentin ignored Nate’s jibe and headed for the bathroom. They were in the master suite of their vacation home in Maggie Valley, and it was their last day in the valley.
Quentin returned from his trip to the bathroom. “That was amazing, as always, babe, but we have to get up in the morning and head for home.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“It’s been fun, hasn’t it?”
“You bet it has,” Nate said. “I just wish we could live up here full time.”
“One of these days.”
“Why is it always ‘one of these days?’ We could do it now, if we wanted to.”
“Perhaps we could,” Quentin said. “But we’d find it a bit boring, being gentlemen of leisure. This place will still be here when we decide to retire. That being said, I’m not ready to settle down into the vegetative phase of my life.”
“I suppose you’re right. Darn. It’s not as though we have to work—not anymore.”
“You might not have to work, Nate, but I certainly do.”
“Why? Thanks to the trust fund my grandfather set up, I have more than enough money for both of us.”
“Babe, I’m not the sort of person who could ever be a kept man, and I’m too old to be a ‘boy toy’.”
“You know I think of it as our money, not just my money.”
“Nevertheless—”
“Besides, if it wasn’t for you, I’d never have found out about that trust. God knows, my mother never told me about it.”
“Of course not. She and your stepfather were too busy stealing and spending it. At least, you’ve managed to recover most of your assets. They didn’t exactly squander the money, they just kept on buying real estate.”
“Not anymore,” Nate said. “At least, not since you and my lawyer began helping me recover it.”
“Which, my love, has been a long, slow, and tedious process.”
“And it’s finally over,” Nate said. “And none too soon, because I was getting mortally weary of having to deal with all that stuff.”
“Look at the bright side, Nate: Your mother and stepfather are in prison, and likely to remain there for many years; you’ve finally gotten an accounting of all the money spent out of your trust account; and you’ve recovered very nearly everything they stole from you over the years. Isn’t that enough?”
“Yeah, I guess so. I just keep thinking that somehow, they weren’t punished enough.”
“I think you’ve got more important things to worry about—your teaching job, for example.”
“You’re right, of course.”
“I know, babe, it’s going to take a long time for you to put the past behind you. You lived it for too many years for things to be otherwise.”
Nate grabbed Quentin and hugged him fiercely. “I don’t know what would have happened to me, if you hadn’t rescued me from those cult members.”
“That was quite a while back,” Quentin said.
“Yeah, but I still dwell on it from time to time.”
“If it makes you feel better, they’re probably not doing that sort of thing anymore.”
“Don’t be too sure about that, Quentin. There are more crazies out there than you might think. And they seem to attract each other like flies on honey. Don’t forget, the leader of the cult jumped bail, and nobody seems to know where he and his wife are.”
“Crazies uniting,” Quentin said. “Now that’s a cheerful thought.”
“Be serious.”
“Why? Isn’t it better to laugh about crap like that? As long as it’s not happening to you, anyhow.”
“I’ll never laugh about those things, Q. They happened to me, and they happened to a lot of kids I knew. When you’re a kid and your parents are caught up in those crazy cults, there’s no place to go, and nothing you can do. That’s a terrible way to have to live.”
“Yeah, I guess it would be just that.”
“Are you ready to call it a night? We need to be on the road by seven tomorrow morning.”
“Sure.”
- Writer
