Depression by cmsix

Chapter 26

At least she'd pulled on some jeans and a blouse before she made her discovery. The others came out of Jaycee's bathroom to see what the excitement was all about, and then we had to go look at Meka's new shitter.

Cécile, Adèle, and Delphine weren't as amazed as Jaycee and Meka because they were still shell shocked about our abundance of indoor plumbing. One toilet, more or less just wasn't that impressive I guess.

Meka finally remembered that Tutsie was still holding it, and she and I headed for the front door to let him get some relief. Jaycee stayed with the others to try and find them something they could wear to breakfast. I'm sure they wondered what the big deal was but they'd find out soon enough.

I pulled on some drawers, jeans, and a work shirt - I even remembered to put my cell phone in my pocket in case I got a call from Ethel or George - then Meka, Tutsie, and I went out the front door. I picked up the Marlin as we left.

Tutsie looked like he wanted to sniff around and get his bearings, but he just couldn't spare the time. He squatted to water almost right away and then he was humped up again and delivering his real load for the benefit of the lawn. He made up for the haste with a lot of stiff legged scratching and strutting afterward though, and Meka and I made sure to tell him what a good job he'd done.

Ethel called just as we headed back inside.

"How was the trip," she asked, right away.

"Better than you can imagine. We'll be up there in about half an hour," I said.

"What's the hold up?" she asked.

"Jaycee is trying to find something for three naked French girls to wear to breakfast," I said, and got silence in return.

"I hope you don't mind some new faces this morning. If it's a problem, just tell me and we can eat down here," I said, wondering why she was so quiet.

"What? No, it's not a problem. I'll ring your neck if you don't bring them with you, and fast. I was just so surprised is all," she said.

"Ok, let me go and I'll finish dressing. We had to hurry to get Tutsie outside in time," I said.

"Bye."

We were ready to go in only a few more minutes. Jaycee had found dresses for Cécile, Adèle, and Delphine, and the fit was at least adequate, considering the circumstances. Even the shoes didn't seem to be a problem, though I could tell that they were too tight for one and too loose for the other two. I figured that Ethel could do something about their skimpy wardrobes today.

Forgetting that the girls would know something was very different as soon as we got outside was one thing, but I hadn't even considered how they would react to the garage. We went through the basements to get there and they barely knew which way to look when we entered.

They tried to maintain but looked around almost as if they wanted to bolt when they saw all the vehicles. They had nothing to compare them to. Hell, they didn't even know what the big Red Cross was on the ambulance.

It didn't take much convincing to get them into the Hum-V pickup though. They were docile and probably so frightened that they didn't want to cause any trouble at all. Even the door rolling up after we were in the pickup scared them.

It was worse when we got outside but I only knew because it got even quieter in the back seat. They were stupefied when they realized they were no longer in a forest. Even the paved driveway was completely foreign.

When we pulled up behind George's house, Ethel was out the door with Wanda hot on her heels. I had to get out quickly and warn them that the girls were frightened.

"What are they scared of?" Wanda asked.

"Mostly it's everything they see. Remember, they've never seen a vehicle that didn't need a horse or mule to pull it, never even imagined one probably. Indoor plumbing was hard enough for them to get over. We'll have to take it slow," I said.

I opened the back door then and let Jaycee out first and she helped Delphine, trying to reassure her the whole time. They were more skittish than new colts for a few minutes, but when they sensed that everyone was trying to be friendly it helped tremendously.

It was apparent right away that Ethel was going to mother hen Cécile and Adèle, at the least, and probably Delphine too. I didn't mind as long as she didn't warn them about lecherous men with hard dicks, and I was pretty sure the topic wouldn't come up.

Though they hadn't complained about it to me before, apparently the girls had been on short rations, or reduced rations, or else were required to eat things they didn't think they should have to eat during their months as explorers.

The timidity dropped off them soon after they were seated at the table with everyone else, and the eggs, biscuits, sausage, hotcakes, waffles, and syrup started making the rounds. They were thrilled to have coffee and delighted with a big glass of cold milk.

Meka said something to Doctor Jorge in her lingo, after Cécile raved about the coffee, and Doctor Jorge laughed, quite a feat for a man who was eating shredded wheat without sugar and in skim milk, while all around him were pigging out.

"What was that, Doc?" George asked him.

"Meka just said if they liked coffee she wanted to see them begging for their second Coke, after they've had their first one," Doctor Jorge said.

Laughing myself, I knew what she meant. Even without the cocaine that had been removed from Coca-Cola decades ago, it was still as good as addicting, even to people that knew it wasn't good for them. The thought made me wonder what Coca-Cola had been like when the cocaine was still there.

Delphine and the others packed it away, almost eating as much as I did. Well, let's say the three of them together almost ate as much as me. They were stuffed though and it was apparent that they felt fully safe and content for the first time in a long time.

Doctor Jorge took off for another walk as soon as he was finished. Those of us without a real job sat around the table gabbing and drinking coffee.

"Jaycee, where are their real clothes? The ones that they were wearing," Ethel asked.

"John made them take them off to save them. He said something about making up to Doctor Jorge for him not getting to go along," Jaycee said.

"Making up to Doctor Jorge? He was glad he didn't need to go, he's still working on his diet and exercise, he doesn't think he's ready yet," Wanda said.

"In that case he'd better get ready. I've already had word that he's coming next time," I said.

"Well don't spoil it for him. I can't believe how good his diet is going. Do you realize that he feels great and is losing about ten pounds a week?" Ethel asked.

"He's getting some help then, you know that can't happen normally," I said.

"Well he thinks he's doing it and don't tell him any different," Ethel said.

"Damn, Ethel, don't be so bossy," George said, but smiled at her.

"I'm sorry, John, I didn't mean to be," she said.

"Don't worry about it, if you get too uppity I'll just hold you down and get George to spank you. Otherwise, keep it up. I need a little direction in my life now and then," I said, laughing.

"Well I don't know where you're going to get it today. Jaycee, Wanda, and I need to take these girls shopping, Meka too. They need some clothes and they don't look exactly like Wal-Mart shoppers. Meka has some wild idea about some thong panties too. I wonder where she got that into her head?" she asked.

"I know where but I didn't have anything to do with it and I don't want to think about it," I said.

"That's ok, you and George just go on outside and see if you can't get your heads down in the sand," Ethel said.

"Take Bob with you, don't leave him out," Wanda added.

"Speaking of sand, you might want to think about coming down to take a look at the beach," I said.

"What beach?" Ethel asked.

"While we were away, our swimming pool appeared, and you really do need to see it," Jaycee said.

"And that's another thing, where did Meka's cast get off to," Ethel asked.

"It didn't last very long after her first swim. Jaycee X-rayed her arm and the bone is completely healed," I said.

"I couldn't even tell that it had ever been broken," Jaycee said.

"Hm, I guess that makes sense," George said, "I took the quick way off a horse last year and didn't get a single bruise. I wasn't even sore the next day."

"In fact, Ethel, I think you should make sure you get the girls a few things early and then come on down to the house. You and Wanda are going to want to see the changes that were made this trip," I said.

"What kind of changes besides the pool?" she asked.

"Some to my bedroom and some to Meka's bathroom," I said.

"I'm not even going to ask. We'll be back by three. Carolyn and Geneva can handle lunch and we'll just get a burger somewhere and shop straight through," she said.

The girls would probably have been more excited if shopping had meant the same thing in their time. Hell, I wasn't even sure it was a concept back then. No doubt Ethel would let them see what it was all about.

I stayed at the table sipping coffee while Ethel and Wanda had George take Bob down to get the limo. Bob had been elected to do the driving today, and when he asked about it they told him that no, his vote did not count.

I was relaxing and concentrating on being happy I didn't have to do it. Meka and Tutsie sat with me in companionable silence, mostly. Tutsie did want to fight with my fingers a little and I gave him a workout.

Soon enough George and then Bob were back and the women headed for the car. Of course Bob had to go and George went outside to act like he was ranchin' I guess.

"We've got a fresh coffee cake coming out of the oven if you want a piece," Geneva said, after George was gone, and she gave me a wink.

I thanked her for the mention and went back to the table. I noticed that she made sure to brush against me when she brought the cake and then Carolyn did too when she refilled my coffee cup. I made sure to mention the new pool to them again and invited them to come on down any time they had a chance.

This was a little out of character for the two of them. I didn't know if it was my "powerful man" status the Big Boy had gone on about or if Carolyn and Geneva had been "adjusted" to find me more attractive. At the moment I didn't care.

Carolyn and Geneva were in their mid twenties and good looking. If they didn't complain early and often I was going to fuck them both, first chance I got.

When Carolyn refilled me again, as casually as I could I gave her firm bottom a little squeeze. Geneva got some of the same when she brought me just one more mouthful of coffee cake. Neither mentioned it but neither shied away either so things were looking up as far as I could tell.

When I didn't think I could sit around on my ass any longer I went out to my Hum-V and drove back home.

Deciding to empty the camera, I took it to my study and plugged it into the computer. It did its thing and this time a box popped up and asked if I wanted to send copies to Bob. I'll swear that's what it asked.

"Would you like to send copies of these images to Bob?"

It had a button below it for yes and one for no. I clicked on yes and watched the little progress bar crawl across the box. It all went away when it was done. It left me wondering if I could print them out from down here but I didn't poke around to try finding a way. I'd ask Bob sometime if I remembered.

Now that I was done with the pictures I had time on my hands. There were probably dozens of things I should have been doing but I didn't do any of them, I didn't even try to think of what they might be.

I made my way out to the barn and started feeding my increased bunch of stock. They all made little noises of approval when they heard me scooping up the first of the oats.

Simon had settled right into life down here at the funny farm and that was a good thing. No one had mentioned it yet, but I knew that we'd have to find three more rides for my newest girls.

Since Id' finished feeding I went to poke around in the armory some more. I didn't find anything new, but it let me have a little time to take stock of everything I did have. I managed to kill the time til lunch without it seeming to drag.

I hadn't expected Ethel and her group to be back for lunch, but the limo was there and so were they. Lunch was ready and we went to the table almost as soon as I got inside.

"You surprised me with such a short trip, Ethel," I said, putting my foot in my mouth before I could get any food in it.

"Bob and George surprised us with such a creative excuse to get Bob out of his driving chore," Wanda said.

I must have looked a little surprised. I guess that's understandable since I was.

"Don't look so worried, Wanda and I can drive when we need to and we're not going to make you take Bob's place. In fact I'm glad that George thought up such a good lie. Watching Bob mope around all morning was putting a damper on the shopping," Ethel said.

"It wasn't a lie, Ethel, even though I'm sure it looks like I could have done it. The bank really did call saying that someone wanted to look over the land we'd just made a deal for," George said.

"Well what did you need Bob for?" Ethel asked.

"I thought I should at least talk the offer over with him," George said, and it even sounded lame to me.

"You and Bob go right ahead and talk about it all you want to, but you do remember who had to sign her name on the dotted line with you, don't you? I don't remember Bob's name on any of those papers," Ethel said, and she didn't sound a bit lame when she did.

"Of course I do. I wouldn't dare try to put anything past you," George said.

"That's good, because you and the bankers could all end up in jail if you did. This is Texas and you can't sell a damned acre without me signing too. In case you're wondering, we won't be selling anything. Now that you've got me into the swing of things, I think you should buy a few thousand more acres," Ethel said.

"What? I thought you didn't want the land we just bought," George said.

"I didn't but I've changed my mind. All I want is what we've got now and everything that adjoins it," Ethel said.

"Oh," George said, but I think he was afraid to ask anything else.

"What did the bank have in mind?" Ethel asked.

"They said that they had a buyer who'd pay me twenty thousand to just let the bank take the land back so they could sell it to him," George said.

"Twenty thousand. Call that new bank president back and tell him that if he is going to try stunts like this he'll be in jail with the last one in a heartbeat. I know how to work a telephone just fine and I'm pretty sure I can get hold of the FDIC by myself.

"He'd better be concentrating on finding good deals for us instead of any asshole he meets on the street. We're the ones that bailed his ass out when he needed it," Ethel said.

"I'll tell him, honey," George said.

To me it seemed like George had never been serious about considering selling the land in the first place. Probably it was just what Ethel and Wanda had thought, George was trying to help Bob get out of driving the women around. No doubt Ethel knew it too and was taking this way to let George know he'd fucked up.

Bob had probably fucked up too. He was richer than sin from the fact that Ethel and George were his parents, not from his masterful management of the ranch. He probably did a good enough job with that, but his heart wasn't really in it and he hadn't been the one to make it such a success in the first place.

Letting Ethel get the idea that he was too important to be driving she and Wanda around while they shopped had been a mistake on his part. I knew it even if he didn't. For his sake I hoped that she didn't let it bother her much longer. Then again, for my selfish purposes, it didn't hurt a thing.

That didn't mean I wanted to drive them around either. If they'd have asked I would have and done my best to make them think I was proud to. They didn't ask though and I was glad. In reality there was nothing else I needed to be doing, I just didn't want to drive them around.

Lunch was a little subdued after that, but the food was as good as it had ever been and I got plenty. Meka didn't let the little exchange between Ethel and George bother her and Tutsie didn't even pay attention to it. Jaycee, Delphine, Cécile, and Adèle paid attention but they wisely didn't try to help. In fact they tried not to let on they were paying attention.

Wanda, Ethel, Jaycee, Meka, Tutsie, Delphine, Adèle, and Cécile left again right after the meal was over. Wanda did the driving and it seemed Bob was satisfied with the outcome. I wondered if he was slow in the head about things like this.

George was not at all satisfied with the outcome and his demeanor showed it plainly. When Bob disappeared into his office, George and I were left at the table together. I was thinking of begging Carolyn or Geneva for more dessert but I didn't really need any.

"Would it be all right if I went down to see the new pool?" George asked.

"Why hell yes it would be. If you don't mind I'll go with you and show it off," I said.

As I'd expected, the pool wasn't what George was after. He wanted to talk, and as we got into his fifty-six he got started.

"I don't know why I let Bob talk me into doing that. I knew all along that it wasn't going to fool Ethel, but he pissed and moaned until I agreed to try it," George said, right off the bat.

"He's your son, George, and Daddy's are good for fixing things. I don't want to butt in, but don't you think he's old enough to take care of himself by now?" I asked.

"He is for a fact, and I should have known better, like I said," George said.

"It didn't do him any favors you know. Ethel is not pleased, and neither is Wanda for that matter. He got what he wanted, but do you think he realizes what it cost, even now?" I asked.

"No, he doesn't. Ethel is gonna make sure he does sooner or later though. Unless I'm mistaken, Wanda is gonna let him know too," George said.

"I think you're right, and just between you and me, I think you should try to keep from getting in the line of fire. I have a hint that Ethel's is planning on showing Bob it's time he grew up," I said.

George looked at me funny then, and for a minute I was afraid I'd said more than I should have. I hadn't though.

"I'm afraid you're right, and the more I think of it the less afraid I am. It's time Bob caught on to the fact of life, and I ain't talking 'bout the birds and bees. I'm talking 'bout where money comes from and who signs the checks," he said.

"Now that we have that straight, what did the banker want? He did actually call you didn't he?" I asked.

"Yes, but it wasn't even as good a deal as I tried to make it sound. The ones that want the land need the timber. They need that particular timber, or some that's just as good.

"They specialize in high dollar flooring, paneling, and siding. They need old timber to cut it, logs with size. They'd have cherry picked what they wanted for themselves and then sold the rest to normal mills," George said.

"Why don't you cut out the middleman, the banker, and offer them some timber that's out of this world?" I asked.

"What do you mean?" George said.

"I mean why don't I bring back some real timber for them? Hell, George, two or three trees from back then would make three or four truckloads," I said, just as we pulled up to my garage.

George was probably wondering how in the hell I was going to bring back trees after my visits. Let him wonder, I wasn't going to tell him. It didn't matter right at this second though, because George caught sight of the "diving tree."

We walked around to the "pool" for a closer look and George was amazed.

"This ain't a swimming pool, it's a lake. How in the hell did they get that tree done like that?" he asked.

"How don't really matter, George, it's done. I know it looks like a lake, but fish, snakes, turtles, and such can't live in it. The water stays warm all the time and the sand on that little beach doesn't even stick to ya," I said, bragging.

We walked over to the nearest bank and he looked into the water. He was impressed with how clean and clear it looked. It was no wonder because I'd been impressed with it too.

"Wanna go for a swim?" I asked.

"Naw, I don't much care for swimmin', but I'll bet Ethel is gonna love it. What about Meka, did she like it?" he asked.

"Loves it. Tutsie doesn't care for it much though."

"I'll bet that didn't save him a dunking though, did it?" he asked.

"Nope, Meka made sure he got to try it out first thing," I said, and we both laughed.

I didn't bother to mention that I'd already tried out the beach. It was something I didn't want to bring to George's attention.

"You know, John, if they can do something like that with a tree, they can do anything they want to with them. Are you thinking they'll help you with a few to sell?" he asked.

"I'm sure they will. It's no bother for them. It couldn't be," I said, sure I was right.

"Maybe I will see about gettin' hold of those folks without the banker's nose in the pie," George said.

We looked around at the pool a little longer and then headed back to George's house. I didn't even go inside when we got there; just got in my Hum-V pickup and went back home. Inside my house I sat in the living room on a big comfortable couch. I needed to discuss things with someone that wasn't exactly here.