DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. If you are offended by 
sexually explicit material or are under the age of 18, stop reading 
now. This material cannot be reproduced for commercial purposes 
without the consent of the author.

JC: Ed Biggers
Part 1: Epiphany
Chapter 19
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004

Laying awake in bed as the sun rose, Ed considered the activities 
of the previous evening and night. He closed his eyes, cutting out 
all external visual stimuli and thought about what he had done. The 
actual act of having sex with John was not as bad as he had feared 
that it would be. He had wondered how he would feel afterwards 
and now that he had done it, much to his surprise, he didn't feel 
any different about himself. 

He heard John come out of the bathroom and get back into bed. It 
was still early, but Ed knew that it was time to get moving. Half of 
what drove him to start the day was his hunger. Dinner the 
previous night had been so bad, that he hadn't been able to eat the 
French Fries and that was probably half the food on his plate. 

From his bed, John looked over at Ed knowing that Ed wouldn't 
wake for another half an hour. He wondered what his reaction 
would be this morning to the activities of last night. His thoughts 
were interrupted by Ed calling out, "Hey, sleepy head. Wake up."

John looked over at Ed in surprise. He said, "You're up early this 
morning."

"I'm hungry. Dinner was kind of small and all that exercise last 
night burned up the little bit that I ate."

John laughed at the memory of dinner last night. Relief swept 
through him that Ed made light reference to last nights activities. 
He replied, "It did at that."

"Why don't I shower first and then while I'm shaving you can 
shower. We can probably be done in time to get to the breakfast 
buffet before it gets cold and dried out," suggested Ed as he rolled 
out of bed. Looking down at Rover, he watched the cat yawn 
indifferent to the events of the past twelve hours.

John nodded as he said, "Yeah, I don't really need to shave."

"I know, you only do it once in a lifetime." Both men laughed at 
that.

After breakfast, Ed and John split up to go their separate ways. 
John went with Rover to get debriefed about the arrest. Ed decided 
to head out and shop for some presents for the women. The first 
stop would be a lingerie shop. He would then head over to a store 
that sold adult novelties. Finally, he thought he might look at some 
jewelry to give Beth and Kelly. 

Retrieving the car from the parking garage, Ed drove around 
looking for a likely place to shop. After driving around for a while, 
he found a little shop along the road that advertised lingerie. 
Parking the car in the lot, he looked in the display window. He 
smiled as he saw the baby doll nightgowns, garters, and various 
gowns on display. Entering the shop, he was overwhelmed by the 
wide range of goods on sale. Much to his surprise, the back wall 
was stocked with adult toys. Scratch one stop off the list.

Ed moved around the shop looking at various outfits. One of the 
clerks came over to help him. It didn't take long to select two long 
nightgowns that were lacy around the top and slit nicely up the 
side. He chose a black one for Beth and a white one for Kelly. He 
decided to look at a few other outfits, just in case there was 
something else that he would like.

While his attention was on the corsets, two women came into the 
shop. One woman was in her late twenties and the other looked to 
be about sixteen. He glanced at them and was surprised when he 
caught the younger woman looking at him. Her face blushed a 
bright red and then she turned to the older woman. In a voice that 
carried through the whole store, the young woman said, "Aunt 
Molly, there's a man here."

The older woman looked at Ed and shrugged her shoulders as she 
smiled at him. She replied, "Laura, don't worry about him. Now 
come with me."

Molly went to the back wall and waited for the younger woman to 
follow her. Glancing frequently at Ed, Laura slowly made her way 
to stand beside her aunt. Ed returned to looking through the items 
of clothing. When he reached the last rack of clothes it was very 
difficult not to hear what Molly was telling Laura. Despite his best 
intentions, Ed found himself captivated by the discussion.

Taking down a vibrator, Molly said, "This is a vibrator. This 
particular model uses a battery. The one over there plugs into the 
wall and gives a much stronger vibration."

Staring wide eyed at the device, Laura asked, "Is that better?"

Smiling at the question, Molly answered, "It depends. I don't like 
the vibrations too strong, but that is just my preference. You might 
like it stronger. Now you can use this on yourself or have your 
boyfriend use it on you. You can even use it on your boyfriend. If 
you're going to let your boyfriend use it on you, I suggest that you 
use it on yourself first so that you know what feels best and can 
guide him."

Ed could barely believe his ears as the woman went on to explain 
how to use the vibrator. She was very factual and explicit about 
how it could be used on a woman or a man. Ed was shocked as he 
didn't know half of the stuff the woman was saying. After hearing 
the talk about the vibrator, he decided that he would buy two of 
them. 

Molly went through every item on the wall. She described the uses 
of butt plugs, strap-ons, and various other masturbation devices. 
Much to Ed's delight, Laura asked questions as her aunt explained 
the various devices. The questions reflected exactly what Ed had 
wanted to ask. The bondage equipment was not as interesting to 
Ed, but he listened trying to understand the attraction that it might 
have for others. 

Finally finishing with her presentation, Molly stepped back to 
where she stood next to Ed and said, "Now, why don't you pick out 
what you would like."

Half tempted to go to the wall and start picking up items, Ed 
waited for Laura to finish shopping. She kept staring at him and 
blushing rather than selecting items from the wall. Looking over at 
Molly, Ed said, "This is a very nice thing you are doing for her. I 
wish someone had done that for me when I was her age."

Looking at Ed with a smile, Molly answered, "I take sex education 
very seriously. She should know what she uses and how to use it 
safely. Would you like to serve as a model so that I can explain the 
male sex organs?"

Blushing a bright red, Ed said, "I think her boyfriend might be 
much better than this old cowboy."

Molly laughed at the suggestion and answered, "She doesn't have a 
boyfriend yet. Her first date is this weekend."

Surprised at the information, Ed asked, "So why are you doing this 
now?"

In a very serious tone of voice, Molly answered, "The time to learn 
about this stuff is before you have experience with it, not after. If 
you wait until after, you could end up with a pregnant teenage girl 
on your hands."

"I didn't think of that," replied Ed.

"So will you model for her?"

One glimpse at the young women convinced him that he had no 
right exposing himself to her. She reminded him too much of one 
of the girls from the day before. He added, "No, I'm sure that you 
can find a better model."

With an intensity that was rather scary, Molly looked at him very 
carefully as though sizing him up. He knew that she was 
considering an argument to convince him to model. The look on 
her face changed suddenly and a hand came up to her mouth. She 
squealed with excitement, "I know who you are. You were one of 
the guys that caught the serial killer yesterday."

Surprised at being recognized, Ed mutely nodded. He looked away 
for a second and then back at her. Feeling that he was supposed to 
say something, he had no idea what was appropriate. Finally he 
mumbled, "I was there, but I didn't do much."

Laura finished selecting the items she wanted. After handing them 
to Molly, she stood by Ed, looking at him carefully. Looking at the 
lingerie in his hands, he felt very embarrassed at her direct 
appraisal of him. He was carrying two nightgowns, two corsets, 
and two tops. She asked, "Why did you buy two of everything?"

Laura, Molly, and the clerk all looked at Ed waiting for an answer. 
Ed looked away for a second and then answered, "It is for my 
fiancées."

Molly looked at him with amusement and asked, "Two?"

"Two women and a man," replied Ed rather self-consciously. It 
was the first time that he had made that admission in public. He 
looked around to see what the others would say to that.

The reaction of the clerk was a negligent shrug of her shoulders. 
She had seen everything while working in the store. After seeing 
men come into the store and buy lingerie for themselves, hearing 
about a group marriage was nothing. She just continued to ring up 
the sale.

The reaction from Laura was simple. She merely said, "Cool."

Molly said, "Interesting. How did that come about?"

Shrugging, Ed answered, "My girlfriend wanted a wife and two 
husbands. I love her, the woman we want as a wife, and the other 
man. That's all it is, a matter of love."

The two women were looking at each other with amazement. It 
was hard to say if it was because the idea was a woman's or that Ed 
was so honest about his love. Molly said, "I'd like to met her."

"She's a very special woman that knows exactly what she wants," 
replied Ed. He added, "With time, I've come to really like the 
idea."

With Molly and Laura still watching him and whispering to each 
other, Ed went to the wall of adult toys. Very conscious of his 
audience, he selected two vibrators and two strap-ons. He wasn't 
sure the women would enjoy the strap-ons, but he thought they 
might. The opinion was based solely on Molly's description of how 
to use them. Molly had been rather explicit about how both men 
and women could receive pleasure from that particular item. The 
two women could use them on each other, John, or him.

Smiling, Molly said, "Very good choices. I'm sure that your ladies 
will enjoy them."

Red faced, Ed went over to the counter and paid for his purchases. 
As the clerk rang up the strap-ons, she said, "You'll need some 
lube to go with these."

Returning to the wall, Ed took two tubes of lube. At the register, 
the bored clerk rang up the rest of the purchases. Ed paid for the 
purchases, asking that the goods be put in two separate bags. The 
clerk looked at him and put everything in a single bag, able to tell 
that Ed was from out of town and there was no chance of repeat 
business.

Dissatisfied with the service, Ed was tempted to ask for his money 
back. Looking at the bored clerk and his audience, Ed decided a 
more appropriate parting shot was required. In a droll voice, he 
asked, "Where did you learn to count?"

The clerk looked up at him in surprise and said, "Why?"

Ed answered, "Because most people can count to ten because they 
have ten fingers. I guess you've been given the finger by your 
customers so many times that you can only count to one."

Picking up his bag, Ed left followed by Molly and Laura. The clerk 
reacted by giving him the finger. Molly called out, "That's one, do 
you remember two?"

Putting the bags in the car, Ed realized that Molly and Laura were 
standing behind him. He turned to see what they wanted. Molly 
asked, "Would you talk to us for a moment?"

Puzzled, Ed answered, "What do you want to know?"

Molly, displaying the first bit of awkwardness since he had 
encountered her, asked, "How can I get that kind of marriage?"

"I think the better question is how do I get the kind of marriage 
that is perfect for me?" Ed replied as he watched Molly fidget. 

While he expected Molly to answer, it was Laura that said, "Yes. 
That is the question."

Smiling at Laura, Ed answered, "First you have to decide what 
kind of marriage you want. Then you pursue it by telling your 
prospective partners what your expectations are. There's only one 
thing to keep in mind. That's to keep the communications open and 
honest. You have to listen to the other person."

Skeptical, Molly said, "You make it sound so easy."

"Nothing in life is easy. You have to work to get what you want. 
Kelly was about at her wits end looking for the kind of marriage 
she wanted. Then one day, we met and we found love." Smiling to 
himself, Ed knew that he had found love and not from just one 
person, but three. He was a very rich man and knew it.

Molly said, "You sound like you really believe in love."

"Believe in love? I found love. It isn't an obsessive all consuming 
emotion or a great lust. Jealously and possessiveness have nothing 
to do with love. Love is a desire to help another person become all 
that they can be.  I can tell that you love Laura. You are spending a 
tremendous amount of time to make sure that she has all of the 
tools and knowledge needed to have a good life. That is love." 
Knowing that Laura would have a question about that, he turned to 
face her.

Much as he predicted, Laura asked, "What about sex?"

"I love sex, even if I'm not very good at it. Sex without love can be 
good. Sex with love is great. It is wanting to please your partner 
and getting pleasure out of their pleasure. Sometimes that means 
you do your best to make sure that they orgasm. Sometimes that 
means allowing your partner to please you. Sometimes, it just 
works out that you both click and please each other."

A silence descended upon the three people. Finally, Laura asked, 
"What about happiness?"

The question really gave Ed pause. It was a tough question and one 
he didn't know how to answer. For so many years, he had not 
really thought about his happiness and now he did. Finally, he said, 
"You are responsible for your own happiness."

Realizing that they were just standing around a parking lot, Molly 
thanked Ed for his time and took Laura to their next destination. 
Ed went in his car and sat there for a moment. The quiet and 
isolation in the car, gave him a chance to think about the last 
question that he had been asked. What about happiness? Pursuing 
his passion for rocks had helped him to become a happier person, 
but was that the real secret to happiness? He felt that there was 
something more to it than that. The first time that he had really felt 
happiness was the day that he had thrown the party for John and 
Betsy. Did that mean that happiness came from doing things for 
other people? He didn't think so. 

He started the car and went in search of a jewelry store. It was his 
intention to buy Kelly and Beth a pendant. Driving around town, 
he came across a little store that looked interesting. He pulled into 
the parking lot and entered the store. 

It was an older jewelry store. The glass counters were scratched, 
the lights in the cabinets were not very bright, and the styles were 
out of date. The elderly man behind the counter was drinking a cup 
of coffee out of an old mug. His gray hair, wrinkled face, white 
mustache, short goatee, and half frame reading glasses gave him a 
kindly appearance. In a soft deep voice, he said, "Welcome to my 
store, young man. I'm Doug Marshall. Is there something that I can 
help you find?'

"Nice to meet you Mr. Marshall. I'm Ed Biggers." Smiling at the 
owner, Ed said, "I'm looking for some presents."

The old man asked, "May I learn a little about the recipients of 
these presents?"

"Well, I have two female friends that I would like to give a gift." 
Ed was silent for a minute and added, "There's also another guy 
that is part of our group. All four of us are very close and I would 
like something that represents that closeness."

Doug was quiet for several minutes while thinking, before he said, 
"Well, until you added the guy, I was going to suggest something 
like a friendship pendants. Instead, I would like to show you the 
puzzle rings. I think you would like that better."

Surprised, Ed asked, "Puzzle rings? What are those?"

Doug smiled at the question and answered, "They are rings that 
come apart into several pieces and putting them together is a 
puzzle. I think it represents friendship very well. Together, the 
pieces interlock and form a whole, but apart they are just funny 
looking bands."

He led Ed over to a glass case and removed several rings. Laying 
them out on a small piece of black velvet, he said, "These are 
puzzle rings with two, four, five, and six bands. Each of them is 
made of white gold."

Ed picked up the four band puzzle ring and examined it. It would 
be perfect, one band representing each one of them. Looking up at 
the proprietor, he asked, "How much is this?"

The old man answered, "Two-fifty."

That was a bit more than Ed had wanted to spend as presents. 
Looking at the simpler two band rings, he asked, "How much is 
this?"

"One-fifty."

It was a thousand dollars versus six hundred dollars, though even 
six hundred was more than he had intended to spend. He really 
liked them though. Throwing his budget to the wind, he asked, "Do 
you have four of these?"

The elderly man bent down and looked in the shelves under the 
display case for a minute. It took him quite a while to locate three 
of them. Standing up, he said, "I have these three and that one."

Relieved at having four of them alike, Ed said, "I'll take them."

Doug Marshall retrieved a ring case and put the fourth ring in it. 
As he worked, he said, "These are very nice rings. I'm glad 
someone purchased them as a friendship rings, although I had 
always envisioned them as wedding rings."

The idea of using them as wedding rings intrigued Ed. Now that he 
had had sex with John, it was a reasonable time for them to 
propose. The rings could be used as wedding rings. He said, "You 
know, that's not a bad idea. Maybe I will use them for that 
purpose."

The proprietor returned to his chair and took another sip of his 
coffee. Looking over at Ed, he said, "Do you want to explain that?"

Licking his lips,  Ed answered, "As I said, we are very close. We 
want to make it closer."

The elderly man shook his head and said, "Things are sure 
different today."

"Do you mean that in a good way?" asked Ed.

"No, I don't," replied the proprietor. He frowned and said, "There 
are just some things that are wrong. Marriage is between a man 
and a woman."

Ed leaned against one of the display cases, getting a rather dirty 
look from the old man. Pretending that he didn't notice, Ed said, 
"You know, a year ago I agreed with you. Hell, I would have beat 
the hell out of someone who suggested such a thing to me."

Raising his eyebrows, Doug asked, "So what happened?"

"One day I picked a fight with a guy that looked and acted like a 
wimp. Long hair and beard, he looked like a hippie. He beat me, 
fair and square." Ed thought back to that night and how John had 
taken him down. Laughing he added, "I didn't know it at the time, 
but that guy is the greatest hero in this country. He even died once 
to take a bullet that was meant for someone else. He's run into 
burning buildings to rescue children, through gunfights to pull 
injured bystanders out of the battle zone, and through collapsing 
buildings to rescue earthquake victims. He even took down a serial 
killer."

"Sounds like a very brave man," replied Doug wondering where 
this discussion was headed.

"I watched him walk through a hundred rattlesnakes to rescue a 
child," said Ed. "He told me something that I had never thought 
about. We were talking about right and wrong when he told me 
that he lived by two very simple rules. If it harm none, then do it. 
One must protect the weak from the strong."

"What about the Ten Commandments?" asked Doug.

"Oh, I asked him about that. He said that his two rules were much 
more restrictive than the Ten Commandments," replied Ed. 
Observing the disbelief on the man's face, he added, "Take killing, 
for example. According to those two rules, one can only kill if that 
is the only way to protect the weak from the strong. Now the bible 
has the Commandment, 'Thou Shalt Not Kill,' but then is full of 
episodes in which one person kills another. David slays Goliath. 
Those two rules provide a context that explains that paradox. 
David slew Goliath to save his weaker comrades in arms from a 
greater strength."

Doug nodded and said, "I'll accept that."

Ed went on by saying, "The Bible doesn't say anything about 
tearing someone up psychologically or even physically. In other 
words, according to the Bible it is okay to torture someone. So 
long as you don't kill them, then you haven't broken any of the 
commandments."

Taken aback by the example, Doug tried to remember some 
Biblical quote about that subject. The best counter example was 
the whipping of Jesus, but even that wasn't condemned. Doug said, 
"I'm not sure that buy that, but I can't come up with a counter 
example off the top of my head."

"His rule says that is not allowed because the only things that you 
are allowed to do must harm no one or protect a weaker person 
from a stronger person," explained Ed. Rather than explain any 
more, he waited for Doug to ask the right question. 

"And that changed your opinion?"

Ed said, "In a way. You see, I now ask myself if something 
someone is doing actually harms anyone. When it came to the 
issue of group marriages, I found that I couldn't identify anyone 
that was harmed by it."

"I can help you with that. It offends me," replied Doug.

Smiling, Ed replied, "It offends you, but how does it harm you?"

Frowning, Doug thought about it. It was a simple question, but he 
couldn't answer it. He stared at Ed for a full minute without saying 
a word. Did the harm come from being offended? If so, then where 
was the source of the harm. Was it within him? Finally, he 
answered, "I'll reserve judgement on you."

Laughing Ed answered, "I'm not offended if you judge me harshly. 
You can think what you want about me. I only ask that you do not 
harm me as a result of your judgement. The real question that I 
have to live with is how I feel about myself and how I feel about 
others. I think you are a good man with a strong moral sense about 
an issue that is important to many people. The fact that you think I 
am wrong in my actions is cause for me to reconsider my actions. I 
will change my position as soon as you can tell me where I've 
harmed someone."

"Why do you say that?" That Ed would allow him to judge him 
harshly was not an offence was foreign to him. 

Ed replied, "Have you ever done something right knowing that 
others ridiculed you the entire time?"

"I think that has happened to everyone," replied Doug.

"Yes, but you continue to do it because you know it is right. It 
doesn't matter to you if others think it is wrong," said Ed. He 
looked at Doug and could see the old man agreed with him. He 
added, "Yet, if someone were to convince you that you were doing 
wrong with a real argument, then you would stop in a second."

"Sure."

"That's my position. If someone can give me an argument that 
what I am doing is wrong, then I will stop it," replied Ed. Even as 
he said it, he felt that it was the right thing to say. It explained his 
position very accurately. 

Doug was silent for a long time and then with a smile answered, "I 
guess things are different today."

A teenage girl came into the jewelry store. She was short with 
black hair trimmed in a pageboy. The lipstick was black and 
matched her dress. She wore black boots with high heels. There 
were a half dozen rings on her fingers and each wrist sported silver 
bracelets. She had a number of earrings in each ear and piercings 
over the eye, in her nose, and through her cheek. When she walked 
past, he could see the tattoo of some sort of Celtic design on her 
back, just above her butt. She strode over to the counter and asked, 
"Can you give me a some money? They have a sale and I want to 
get a new dress."

The old man went to the cash register and pulled out fifty dollars. 
The look on his face as he handed it to her conveyed 
disappointment and a lack of understanding of what made his 
granddaughter act and dress they way she did.. In a voice that 
suggested this was not the first time such a request had been made, 
he asked, "Is that enough?"

"Yeah, thanks gramps." She turned to leave the store with hardly a 
glance at her grandfather.

The difference between this young lady and Laura was striking. Ed 
watched her as she started to leave. Before she was able to get to 
the door, he asked, "Tell me, Doug. Did you ever think of stocking 
those piercing things?"

The young woman turned and looked at Ed like he was an idiot. 
She said, "They are called studs."

Doug shook his head and replied, "No. The kids don't come in 
here."

Looking over at the granddaughter, Ed smiled and suggested, "Oh, 
they would if she were working here. I bet she could pay back that 
fifty dollars in a weeks time if she had a little counter for studs."

Doug looked at Ed in shock. Intrigued with the idea, the girl 
looked at Ed and then at her grandfather. She knew to the dollar 
how much she was spending getting various parts of her body 
pierced and to pay for the studs. She said, "That's not a bad idea."

Waiting a moment, Ed said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Marshall. I didn't mean 
to interfere in what are clearly family matters. I know that it's none 
of my business, but I just couldn't hold back the suggestion when I 
saw the two of you harming each other."

The girl turned in a fury and glared at Ed as she asked, "How was I 
harming him?"

Ed answered, "You have just taken some money from him that was 
for his dream vacation. It's gone as is all of the other money you've 
taken from him. You're using your family relationship to 
emotionally blackmail him into giving you that money. That harms 
him."

Doug was about to say that it was okay, but then he realized that 
Ed had also accused him of harming his granddaughter. He was 
doing right by the family and to hear otherwise, particularly from 
some strange guy in a group marriage, bothered him. Angrily, he 
asked, "And just how am I harming her?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Ed answered, "Oh, you were just robbing 
her of a chance to learn about money, responsibility, patience, and 
the value of her possessions. One day she is going to need to know 
those things and will have to learn them in much more painful 
circumstances. I just hope that the circumstances aren't so bad that 
they kill her."

Neither of the two spoke for a long time. In the meantime, Ed 
reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet to get the credit 
card to pay for the rings. As he did so, he glanced from the man to 
the woman wondering which one would break the silence first. 
Much to his surprise, it was the grandfather that spoke first by 
saying, "Why did you make the particular suggestion that you 
made?"

"Simple, it is a win-win solution. You get an expanded customer 
base and get more money. She gets the experience of running a 
business, making more money herself than she is begging off you, 
and learns about money, responsibility, and patience. In addition, I 
think it would help bring the two of you closer together." Looking 
at the two of them together, he could see that each was considering 
what he said from their own perspective.

The young woman said, "Grandpa, the sale can wait. I think we 
need to talk about this idea."

Doug stared in disbelief at his granddaughter. It was hard to 
believe that she was actually considering working and earning a 
living rather than leeching off of him. He replied, "I think that 
would be a good idea. Let me ring this man up and we'll sit down 
to talk about it."

The purchase was quickly rung up and the credit card processed. 
With his four rings in a nice little bag, Ed went to leave. Doug 
called out, "If it harms none, then do it."

Ed turned back and winked. He replied, "Exactly."

At the car, he realized that he had the small ice chest with the soft 
drinks from the previous day in the back of the car. He opened the 
back and removed a can. Entering the store, he went to the young 
lady and said, "Here's something for you to drink while you two 
are talking."

She smiled at him and replied, "Thanks for everything."

"No problem."

On the way to the hotel, Ed stopped and bought some meat for 
Rover. When Ed returned to the hotel, he carried his purchases up 
to the room. It was only then that he discovered that he had only 
been charged five hundred for the rings instead of the six hundred 
that had been quoted to him. He picked up the phone and called the 
jeweler only to find that the man had discounted the price because 
of his suggestion. It was a pleasant surprise and he thanked the 
jeweler for the consideration. 

John arrived almost as soon as Ed hung up the phone. After John 
fed the cat the hamburger, Ed said, "Come here. I have something 
to show you."

Curious, John came over to see what Ed had in his hand. He asked, 
"What's that?"

"It's puzzle rings made out of white gold," answered Ed.

John looked at the rings, took them apart and then put them 
together again. Looking up at Ed, he asked, "How many did you 
get?"

"Four," replied Ed. With a very large grin, he said, "I was thinking 
that they would make very interesting wedding rings."

Laughing at the cleverness of the idea, John looked up and said, 
"We could each propose to everyone else and then give half a ring 
to them when they say yes. The two halves go together to form a 
single ring. I love it. That's a great idea!"

After returning home the next day, that is exactly what they did.

