JC: Ed Biggers
Part 2: Equilibrant
Chapter 19
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004

The log cabin stood alone on the shore of a small lake. A dirt road, 
wide enough for a single vehicle, wound its way through the 
woods connecting the cabin to a highway almost three miles away. 
From the porch of the cabin, the surface of the calm lake reflected 
the trees surrounding it, making the lake look even smaller.

In the morning and evening, the fish would break the surface 
eating insects that skimmed across the lake. Occasionally, a deer 
would come out to the lake's edge to drink of the water. Waterfowl 
swam in the lake, leaving v-shaped wakes behind them. At night, 
raccoons and other animals would come to the edge of the water.

The trees were home to squirrels in addition to birds of all kinds. 
Robins, bluebirds, woodpeckers, and blue jays flew around the 
cabin as though it wasn't there. Mornings were the loudest time of 
the day as every bird seemed to raise its voice to welcome the sun. 
Nights were not much quieter as owls, raccoons, and other 
nocturnal animals moved about. The quietest time of day was at 
sunset and that was the time that Ed always made sure to take a 
break from his work.

The afternoon quiet was disturbed by small splashes of water and 
thumps that carried a long distance. Ed took a drink of his iced tea 
and listened to the noise trying to place it. It took an incredibly 
long time to realize that it was the sound of someone paddling a 
canoe. It wasn't strange that he would have such a hard time 
placing the noise. It was one sound that he would never hear in the 
desert.

As the night insects came out, the bug-zapper started making the 
zit sound that signaled the death of another flying bug. Ed looked 
up when the front of the canoe came into sight. Going into the 
house, he put on his pants and shirt before returning to porch to 
watch them. 

Leaning against a post holding up the porch roof, he examined the 
occupants of the canoe. It was a young couple, a man and woman, 
just into their early twenties. It was his guess that they were 
college students, probably juniors becoming seniors. The woman 
knelt at the front of the canoe, paddling with a smooth easy stroke. 
She was muscular with her hair tied back with a ribbon and wore a 
sports shirt. The man, now steering the canoe to the shore, was 
equally muscular and wore a loose knit shirt that seemed popular 
with young men.

Taking his time, Ed walked to the shore to greet the couple. The 
couple seeing him up close for the first time, decided that he wasn't 
the person they were seeking. Rather than be rude and turn around 
to leave, they paddled up to the shore. Ed reached down and helped 
pull the canoe on the bank. His strength surprised the young 
couple. Ed said, "Hello."

"Hello," answered the young man as the woman climbed out of the 
canoe. She was followed by the man. They shifted uneasily, not 
knowing what to say. They had been expecting a person their age 
and were hoping to party. Finally, the man said, "We heard there 
was a college student up here and thought we'd come by to hang 
out with him."

"You heard correctly and I know that he would enjoy the 
company," said Ed as he smiled at the pair. 

The young couple brightened considerably at hearing his answer. 
They were sure that his son would be more than happy to leave and 
spend some time with them. The woman said, "Oh, that's good 
news. We were worried that we had gotten the wrong 
information."

Shaking his head, Ed said, "No. I would say that the information 
was correct, but that it probably didn't mean what you thought it 
did. Would you care to join me for an iced tea?"

The girl answered, "Hey, we are twenty one and can have beer."

Ed shook his head and answered, "Sorry, but I don't have any 
beer."

The guy said, "When we go to the store the next time, we'll pick up 
some."

Smiling at the well intentioned offer, Ed said, "Thanks for the 
offer, but I don't drink. By the way, I'm Ed Biggers."

The young man said, "I'm Greg Dow and she is Diana Dilborne. 
We're students up at the University of Wisconsin."

Ed led them up to the cabin. The couple sat down on the edge of 
the porch while Ed fixed some iced tea for them. Returning to 
porch, Ed sat down next to them and said, "So what are your 
majors?"

Greg said, "I'm a Business major."

Diana answered, "I'm majoring in Psychology."

Not sure if he was impressed by an undergraduate major in 
business, he was impressed by the psychology major. He said, "I'm 
finishing my degree in Mineralogy. I'm staying up here to write my 
dissertation."

In a gesture of embarrassment, Diana covered her mouth with a 
hand and said, "Oh, I didn't realize that you're the college student 
we heard about. I'm sorry, we were just expecting someone 
younger."

Laughing Ed replied, "That's okay. I get that all of the time at the 
University. Half of the students there think I'm on the faculty. I'm 
afraid that most of my classmates wish I was. They keep 
complaining about me blowing the curve."

Greg was about to make a comment when the telephone rang, 
surprising everyone. Ed went over to the table by the chair he had 
been in before they arrived. He touched the speakerphone and said, 
"Hello."

John said, "Hey, Ed. How's it going?"

"Pretty good. I'm working on the first draft of the conclusion," 
answered Ed. He winked at the young couple.

"That's great. Let me get to the reason I called you. I've tracked 
down another pair of monsters and they are in your area."

He thought about what John had just said, knowing that it would 
take a couple of days to track them down. Even though he would 
definitely go, he had to know what was involved and asked, "What 
are the details?"

In a business like voice, John answered, "It's a young couple, early 
to mid twenties, and quite attractive. They lure college students off 
to an isolated location and then torture them to death. I expect 
them to strike in a week's time."

Ed happened to glance at the young couple and could see their 
faces pale. Ed answered, "Okay. Where do you want to meet?"

"I'll come to you in two days. I'm leaving this afternoon, but I have 
some business at the FBI office there," answered John.

Ed nodded and said, "Great. Give my regards to the wives."

John replied, "They can't wait for you to get back. They keep 
talking about getting even for the prison babes incident. They are 
planning a night of decadence that makes me blush."

Laughing at the inside joke, Ed said, "Just tell them that I'll sleep 
with every coed between here and home. I'll get there too tired for 
any decadence."

A pair of voices came out of the speaker, as Beth and Kelly 
shouted, "Don't you dare do that Ed Biggers!"

Ed laughed and said, "I'll see to you both later."

John shouted, "Help me, they are planning on practicing on me!"

"Don't let me stop them."

The call ended shortly after that with lots of giggling in the 
background. Ed turned with a smile on his face and said, "Sorry, 
that was my husband and wives."

"Cool," said Diana, surprised that this old guy was in a group 
marriage. 

In a joking voice, he asked, "You guys aren't the kind that would 
lure a poor little college kid out to the boonies and torture them to 
death, are you?"

Gary answered, "No, but that sure did sound like the couple we 
met in town. They want to get together with us in a couple of 
days."

The truth in his statement was clear enough for Ed. He turned back 
to the phone and hit the speakerphone. Dialing the number to the 
house, he reached Cathy. He was still surprised when he reached 
Cathy on the phone. She had replaced Bill who had moved to 
Florida to take care of his dying mother and his father who 
suffered from Alzheimer's Disease. Cathy answered, "The Carter 
residence."

"Cathy, this is Ed. Get John and get him now. I know he's probably 
fooling around with the wives, but I need to talk to him right now."

Cathy replied, "Okay, Ed. Hold on."

Ed said, "No. Have him call me."

Hanging up the phone, Ed said, "I would like to recommend that 
you kids stay here for the next couple of days."

Diana asked, "Do you think we are the killers or something?"

Shaking his head, Ed said, "No. I think you are the targeted 
victims."

Gary looked at Ed with narrowed eyes and asked, "Why do you 
think that?"

"You said it yourself. They sounded like the couple that you met. 
They want to get together with you in a couple of days. John says 
the couple is going to strike in a couple of days. Do the arithmetic 
yourselves," answered Ed.

The young couple looked at each other, trying hard to 
communicate with their eyes. They wondered what they had gotten 
themselves into. Was this guy playing with a full deck? Was this 
some sort of con to get them to stay? Gary looked back at the 
canoe wondering if they could reach it before this guy went crazy 
on them.

The telephone rang. Stabbing it with a finger, Ed said, "Hello, 
John."

Somewhat irritated, John said, "What is it that couldn't wait?"

Ed said, "I believe that I have the next targeted victims here. 
They're afraid that I'm crazy. Why don't you describe the man to 
the best of your ability? I'll ask them to describe the woman."

There was a long moment of silence at the other end of the line. 
The young couple looked at Ed and listened to the discussion. 
Finally, John said, "We believe that the man is about 5'8" and 
weighs an athletic 175. Reports say that he is handsome with well 
groomed brown hair and clean shaven. He usually wears blue jeans 
and tee-shirts from whatever university is local. I can't tell you 
much more than that."

Diana was pale by the time that John had finished. She said, "The 
woman is a couple of inches shorter than the guy. She has large 
breasts that she shows off by wearing a shirt that is too tight. She is 
tanned with her hair in a long ponytail. The first impression is that 
she is cheerleader or something."

There was a moment of silence and then John said, "Okay. I'll call 
the FBI office and get them to dispatch a couple of agents to your 
place. They should be there in one hour. I'll arrive tomorrow 
morning. Keep them safe, Ed."

Ed looked at the young couple and could see that they were 
terrified. He said, "Hold on John."

Turning to Diana, he asked, "Where are your parents?"

"They're in Detroit," she replied. 

Ed nodded and said, "John, I'm going to suggest that we fly her 
father or mother here so that they can provide moral support."

John replied, "Good idea."

Ed said, "Thanks. We'll be waiting."

Ed hung up and turned to Diana. He said, "I should have asked you 
before making the suggestion. Would you like your mother or 
father here? Or would you prefer his mother or father?"

The young couple looked at each other. Finally, she said, "I think I 
would rather have his father. He's a cop."

Animated, Ed gestured to the phone. He said, "Give him a call."

Gary dialed the number to his father. Watching Ed, he waited for 
his father to answer. It took a few minutes before his call was 
transferred to his father. His father sounded irritated at being 
disturbed at work by his son and answered the phone in a gruff 
voice, "Hello, Gary. What do you need?"

Gary flinched at the tone of his father's voice. "Dad, there's some 
guy here that says he believes that we are the next victims of a 
serial killer." 

"I don't have time for this son. Do you need more money?"

Ed spoke, "Officer Dow, I'm Ed Biggers. I'm a special agent for 
the IRS. I work with John Carter, a special agent for the FBI. I 
suggest that you get in touch with the local FBI office and verify 
our identity. You will only need to mention our names. I will hold 
until after you have done that."

"What were those names again?"

"Ed Biggers and John Carter," answered Ed. He looked at Gary 
with a wink and pressed the mute button. Looking at Gary, he said, 
"Have you ever heard your father impressed before?"

"Not really," replied Gary.

After about five minutes, a much more respectful Officer Dow 
said, "Mr. Biggers. Please forgive me for my rudeness. I had no 
idea."

Ed said, "I'm going to give you my home number. I want you to 
ask for Cathy. She will make arrangements for a charter jet to get 
you here. Your son and his girlfriend need your presence."

"Yes, sir."

"Good, I'll see you when you get here," replied Ed. He winked at 
Gary and asked, "Do you have anything you want to say to Gary or 
Diana?"

Officer Dow replied, "Son, you listen Mr. Biggers and do exactly 
what he says. Do you understand me?"

Gary answered, "Yes, Dad."

Ed gave him the information required to get in touch with Cathy. 
After they disconnected, Ed turned to Gary and Diana. He asked, 
"Feeling a little safer?"

Gary shook his head in wonder. After living a whole lifetime with 
his father, he had never heard him call anyone sir with the kind of 
respect that he had heard today. He said, "I thought you said that 
you are a college student."

"I am," answered Ed. He smiled and said, "I do other things too."

With fake relief, Gary said, "Thank God we didn't bring any pot."

Hearing the lie, Ed laughed and said, "I would make sure to dump 
the pot that you didn't bring with you before the FBI agents get 
here. They are a little more likely to enforce certain laws that I am. 
Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

Gary went to the canoe and fished around in his pack. With a flip 
of his hand, a couple of joints flew into the lake. Curious, Diana 
watched Ed and asked, "How did you know?"

"I'm a human lie detector," answered Ed. He picked up the phone 
and called the house. 

Cathy answered the phone with her standard, "Carter Residence."

"Cathy, this is Ed."

"Please don't make me get John again," said Cathy. She was still 
new to the job and didn't like to interrupt her employers. 

Laughing, Ed said, "Don't worry. An officer Dow will be calling 
soon. Make arrangements for a charter jet to bring him here. Use 
my transportation account to pay for it."

Cathy answered, "Okay. Anything else?"

Winking at Diana, Ed said, "Oh, why don't you go interrupt John 
after I hang up."

"No thanks," replied Cathy as she hung up.

Diana was giggling at the exchange. Gary came over to her and put 
an arm around her protectively. Ed said, "Good help is so hard to 
find."

Gary asked, "Who are you, really?"

The answer was cut off as a small pontoon plane landed on the 
lake. After slowing down, it taxied to the shore by Ed's cabin. Ed 
walked over to the plane followed by the young couple. The pilot 
got of the plane as it coasted towards him. Grabbing a rope, he 
thew it to Ed. He grabbed the tie rope and tied the end to one of the 
trees by the edge of the lake. The plane came to rest on the shore. 

The pilot came over to Ed and asked, "Are you Ed Biggers?"

"Yes, I am," answered Ed.

The pilot waved to his passengers. Two men came out of the plane 
and approached Ed. One of them said, "I'm Special Agent Kip 
Caler and this is my partner, Special Agent Wayne Widdis. It's an 
honor to work with you Mr. Biggers."

Nodding, Ed said, "Nice to meet you, but please call me Ed. These 
two young folks are Gary Dow and Diana Dilborne. I'd appreciate 
it if you'd show them your ID."

Both agents flipped out their badges for the young couple to 
examine. The couple was suitably impressed, never having 
encountered a real FBI agent. Kip said, "We have six more agents 
on their way here."

Frowning, Ed said, "That's too many. Send them back. John will be 
here tomorrow and he'll decide what kind of operation is required. 
Gary's father is going to be here to take care of them. He's a cop, so 
I don't expect he'll get in the way. I would like to make sure that 
they aren't disturbed until the father arrives."

"Yes, sir," replied Agent Caler. He fished out a cell phone and 
swore when he couldn't get a signal. 

Ed said, "There's a phone on the porch. There wasn't a handset, so 
you'll have to use the speakerphone."

While Kip was on the phone, the pilot unloaded the plane and then 
took off after making sure that there wasn't any further need for his 
services. Wayne stood there and asked, "So John Carter is coming 
too. Wow, I never thought I would get a chance to work with both 
of you."

Embarrassed at the attention, Ed said, "I'll start a fire so that we 
can have dinner. I have steaks and fresh fish. I have a couple of 
fishing poles if anyone wants to drop a line in the water."

Gary looked over at Diana and said, "Would you like to fish?"

She shook her head and said, "No, I'll help him cook dinner. Why 
don't you go ahead and fish?"

Relieved, Gary said, "Great."

Wayne said, "I'm not sure that this is proper procedure."

Smiling at the agent, Ed said, "Until John comes, I believe that I'm 
the agent in charge."

"Yes, sir," replied Wayne.

"So go fishing with the guy. I figure you can stand guard with a 
hand on your gun or on a fishing pole. The later sounds a bit more 
fun," said Ed. Giggling, Diana watched the agent as he listened to 
Ed.

"You're right."

While Gary and Wayne were getting fishing poles, Kip was 
finishing his calls on the phone. Following Ed, Diana went into the 
kitchen and looked around. Ed opened up the freezer and pulled 
out four steaks and four fish filets. None of them were completely 
frozen yet since he had stocked it only that afternoon. 

Diana searched the refrigerator finding the makings for a salad. As 
she looked through the shelves, Ed said, "I'll go out and start a fire 
in the grill."

Intent on finding the makings for side dishes for five people, she 
didn't answer. Knowing how people who were entirely focused on 
a task behaved, Ed went on out to start a fire. Disturbed by the 
normal at home atmosphere that Ed was generating, Kip joined 
him by the grill and said, "I don't know what to say. You ordered 
Wayne to go fishing?"

"Seemed like the best way to let him do what he wanted."

Shaking his head, Kip said, "I heard that working with you guys 
could drive someone crazy, but that you get results."

Ed laughed and lit the fire. At the sound of some excitement by the 
shore, Ed went over to investigate. Gary held up a nice four pound 
largemouth bass and said, "That's a real beauty."

Ed looked at the fish for a second. While here, he had caught 
several that looked like it, but he hadn't known what kind of fish it 
was. He asked, "What kind of fish is that?"

Wayne and Gary looked at Ed in shock. Finally Gary said, "It's a 
largemouth bass."

"A largemouth bass," repeated Ed as he tried to memorize the 
name with the kind of fish. With a frown, he asked, "Is it edible?"

"Yes, it is. Don't tell me that you've never fished before," said 
Wayne.

Scratching the side of his face, Ed said, "Well, I've caught one of 
those just about everyday that I've been here. I had no idea what it 
was or if it was edible. Fishing isn't much of an activity out in the 
desert. The only fish you'll find there are fossils."

Gary said, "You're kidding."

Shrugging off the disbelief, Ed said, "There are some rivers and 
even lakes, but I've never gone fishing there. I tend to spend all of 
my time in the desert areas on horseback, so I don't carry a fishing 
pole."

Ed returned to the cabin after watching the men filet the fish. 
Carrying the filets back to the kitchen, he realized that they had 
enough fish for everyone to have fish. He put the steaks back in the 
freezer. Diana carefully wrapped individual portions of fish in 
aluminum foil with a dab of butter, salt, pepper, and a slice of 
lemon. He carried the packets out to the grill and started cooking 
them.

It wasn't long before dinner was ready and they sat at the table. 
Diana had prepared rice and salad as a side dish. It wasn't a great 
meal considering that Ed had gotten used to Marguerite's cooking, 
but it was helped by the fact that they were, more or less, outdoors 
and their appetites were hearty. After the meal was over, Ed said, 
"You did a great job on throwing together a meal at the last 
minute, Diana. You're going to make some young man very 
happy."

The young woman positively glowed at the comment and Gary's 
chest puffed out in pride for his girlfriend. Kip and Wayne both 
made appreciative comments, further reinforcing the compliment. 
Ed cleared the table, insisting that Diana get out of the kitchen 
since she had done all of the work preparing the meal. While in the 
kitchen, he worked out the sleeping arrangements in his head. He 
would put the couple in the master bedroom, the two agents in the 
room with the room with the twin beds and he would take the 
couch in the living room.

Returning to the living room, Ed sat on one of the chairs and 
listened to the discussion that was going on around the room. The 
agents were telling about their days in college giving everyone a 
common topic of conversation. 

When the telephone rang, Ed answered it. From the far end, Kim's 
voice rang clear, "This is the rock police. It has come to our 
attention that you have been molesting rocks. We must ask that 
you cease and desist."

Smiling, Ed replied, "No I haven't. I'll admit to having fondled 
some underage dirt."

Kim laughed and said, "Your wives called me a little earlier and 
said that you and John were going monster hunting again"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. We've got a line on two of them," answered 
Ed. 

In a sultry voice, Kim said, "Take care of yourself, I'm looking 
forward to an expedition with you when you're done with your 
dissertation."

Glancing at the others in the room, Ed said, "What have you got in 
mind?"

With more animation and excitement in her voice, Kim said, "I 
was talking to some of the local mine owners. They offered to let 
us into their mines without charging us. At first, they were going to 
charge me five hundred, but I talked them into doing it for free."

Ed asked, "Did you tell them that I would be there?"

"Sure, I hope that wasn't a problem," replied Kim. It had been 
strange, but they had required payment until they found out that Ed 
was going to be with her. Almost immediately they stopped 
demanding and it had become much easier to strike a good deal.

Laughing, Ed said, "I usually charge them a five thousand a day 
consulting fee to go into their mines. I bet they were very happy to 
know we'd be there for free."

Embarrassed, Kim said, "Oh, I didn't know."

"Don't worry about it. It'll be great fun," replied Ed. It also gave 
him an idea. He added, "Who knows, maybe we can call this a 
training session for you and we can do some consulting together in 
the future. Might help bring in a little extra money for you."

The offer was incredible and she knew it. Rather than respond to 
the financial side of the offer, she asked, "Does that mean that I'll 
get more time alone with your cock?"

"Yes," answered Ed, blushing slightly as he noticed the glances in 
his direction from the others in the room. He added, "But, you'll 
have to put up with the rest of me as well."

"Darn, just when I thought everything was going my way you have 
to give me bad news," retorted Kim. She giggled and said, "Well, I 
just wanted to say hello and to ask you to take care of yourself."

The call ended shortly after that. Diana had listened with a sour 
look on her face after the sexual suggestions. When the call was 
finished, she asked, "Who was that?"

Smiling, Ed answered, "That is my rock hunting companion."

"She sounded a little friendly, too friendly if you ask me."

Ed said, "Yes, she is friendly. She was also hand picked by my 
wives to be a companion for me on my rock hunts."

Sounding like a Spanish Inquisitor, Diana asked, "Do your wives 
know that you sleep with her?"

"Of course, they set it up knowing that would happen," replied Ed.  

All of the other men sat in the room thinking about the kind of 
freedom that Ed was given in his marriage. Each of them was 
envious, although they tried to look just as offended as Diana. 
Diana replied, "And why would they do that?"

The answer that Diana could understand wasn't the full story, but it 
was close enough to the truth. Ed said, "So that they would know 
that I wasn't out in the desert alone. To know that there was 
someone with me that cared enough to make sure that I would 
return alive in case I was injured."

The discussion went on for several hours. Ed did not expect to 
convince Diana that his relationship with Kim was anything other 
than horrible. His expectations were fully met and she went to bed 
convinced that he was not good husband material.

The agents went to bed shortly after that leaving Ed alone in the 
living room. He looked around the cabin happy that he had rented 
it fully furnished. Stripping, he went to bed covering himself with 
a single blanket.




