JC: Ed Biggers
Part 6: Doyen
Chapter 12
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004

"You want me to do what?" asked Nathan with a hint of dismay in 
his voice.

"You heard me," replied Ed without looking up from his work.

"I'm not a baby sitter," said the soldier, indignant that he should be 
asked to watch Beth on her field trip. The crazy jobs that Ed was 
giving him to perform were about to drive the soldier crazy. 

Ed looked up and said, "I don't expect you to baby-sit. I expect you 
to be a body guard."

"Body guard?"

Folding his hands together, Ed said, "Maybe you aren't aware that 
she has five parents and that together we control almost three 
billion dollars. That makes our children targets of people that have 
less than good intentions in this world."

"Did you say billion, with a b?"

"Yes, I did," replied Ed as he looked over at the soldier. He 
watched as a strange expression settled onto the young man's face. 
He was hard pressed to describe what the expression conveyed.

Nathan couldn't believe what he was hearing. For the past month, 
he had been around the family without even guessing how much 
they were worth. He had known that they had some money, but 
hadn't thought about just how much money they had. He had 
thought that the wealthy were lazy, but the Carter Clan was 
anything except lazy. Even the children worked hard, pushing 
themselves to learn all that they could of the world around them. 
Ling was a perfectionist when it came to the martial arts, 
emphasizing mastery at each step of training. Kelly traveled 
extensively working for the nursing profession. Last month she had 
testified at a congressional committee addressing the working 
conditions and hours that nurses often worked within ill-managed 
hospitals. Linda was overseeing the production of another movie 
based on her children stories. Ed worked tirelessly for the school, 
his family, and his businesses. 

"I'll watch over her," Nathan replied realizing that he was being 
asked to protect the daughter with his life if necessary. 

"Thank you. I may be a religious figure, but that doesn't mean I 
believe in an innate goodness in people. I've seen too many who 
are totally evil to believe that."

"Yes, I can see that you have," replied the soldier. In war, he had 
seen the best and worst of man. More than one person with whom 
he had served had discovered in the heat of battle that they 
possessed a greater cruelty within them than they had ever guessed 
while others had discovered a greater empathy for their fellow man 
than they wanted to admit. 

"Spoken like a person that has seen too much," commented Ed.

The comment struck a nerve in the soldier and his stomach twisted 
as he recognized the truth of the statement. Wanting to change 
subjects, Nathan asked, "Where are they going?"

"To a number of government agencies, including the CIA. They 
are taking a tour of the facilities," answered Ed as he watched 
Nathan to gauge his reaction. He had learned that the CIA was 
very interested in hiring graduates from the school as intelligence 
analysts. Beth was going because she was interested in the 
architecture of the building. 

Nathan sat back in his chair struggling to come to grips with going 
to the place where they had planned the mission that cost him a 
leg. Frowning, he asked, "You can't find anyone else to take her 
there?"

"Consider it part of your therapy," replied Ed. Sitting back in his 
chair, he looked over Captain Jones with a critical eye. He added, 
"You'll have to train up to Ling's standard before you leave, 
though."

There was no way that Nathan was going to argue with Ed. Even 
though he hadn't been at the Druid College for very long, he was 
far more advanced in his recovery than if he had remained at 
Bethesda. He asked, "Can you give me any good news?"

Ed smiled as he answered, "You get to wear your uniform for two 
days."

"Really?"

"I doubt they would let you walk around there naked," countered 
Ed with a grin as he imagined the Captain trying to get into the 
building naked. With a chuckle, he said, "Although I suppose that I 
could make some a call to General Grey so that you could go there 
naked."

Believing the Druid would actually carry out his threat, Nathan 
stood up and replied, "No thank you. I'll wear my uniform."

Ed watched as the captain walked away. His movements had 
become more graceful as a result of Ling's training. Dressed, most 
people would be hard pressed to recognize that he didn't have his 
leg. It would be better after Catherine finished the new artificial leg 
that she was developing.

When the soldier had reached the door, Ed said, "Go visit 
Catherine. She may require your help with a project of hers."

"Okay," replied the man with a shake of his head at the prospect of 
another project. He was trying hard to keep up with the little 
projects that Ed kept giving him, but half of the time he was out of 
his league. With a gruff snort, he realized that he had left his 
comfort zone the day he entered the college. He left the study 
before he could be given another assignment that he wouldn't 
know how to do.

Ed returned to his work on his book wondering if anyone would 
really be interested in reading it when he was finished writing it. 
More than a dozen requests had arrived asking him to publish a 
reference book detailing the geology and mineralogy of the 
American Southwest. He didn't feel as if his knowledge of the area 
was anything outstanding, but others disagreed with him. His 
problem now was trying to organize the material in a cogent 
fashion.

The cell phone in his pocket sounded, disrupting his concentration. 
He answered it, "Hello?"

From behind him, he heard Betsy giggle as she said, "Hi, Daddy 
Ed. It's time to eat."

Spinning around to catch her, she jumped back staying out of his 
grasp. With a giggle, she said, "You're so slow. You're going to 
have to be faster than that to catch me."

Ed chuckled as he replied, "You make it so hard to give you a 
hug."

Betsy jumped into his open arms. Almost as soon as he closed 
arms around her, she was wiggling to get away. She loved hugs, 
but could hardly stay still long enough to receive a proper one. 
Rather than try to force her way out of his arms, she said, "We 
better get to lunch."

Ed released his daughter and watched as she sped out of the room 
with a backward wave. Giving her the cell phone had not improved 
their ability to track her, but they could at least communicate with 
her. She still tended to track people down when she wanted to talk 
to them. Ed was sure that a social worker would be shocked that so 
many parents were unable to physically watch over a child, but 
they had never babysat a tornado. 

Realizing that he should join the others for lunch, he straightened 
the papers on his desk so that he could work on which ever project 
required his attention. He looked at the stack of work projects on 
his desk with a sigh. Papers concerning taxes, businesses, his 
geology trip for the school, his book, and other legal matters were 
neatly filed and waiting his attention. He wondered if that 
represented the rest of his life. Every day he had to spend three 
hours dealing with items that couldn't wait. Disheartened by the 
thought of the work ahead of him, he left his study and made his 
way to the first year dining room. 

Little John was talking on a cell phone and greeted his father with 
a grin when Ed showed up at the dining room. The young man 
winked at his father before turning his back and dropping his voice 
so that he couldn't be overheard. Ed didn't need to ask with whom 
Little John was talking. There was only one person who he called 
and she was Susan Grundy. 

Greeting the rest of the family, Ed took his place at the table. As he 
reached for the menu, Betsy announced, "Little John has a girl 
friend."

Nodding his head, Ed said, "I know. I was there when he met her."

In most families, a little sister making a comment about an older 
brother having a girlfriend would have resulted in a scene. Around 
the table, this particular family nodded their agreement with her 
assessment. Little John reacted by making an Okay gesture, thumb 
and forefinger in a circle with the remaining fingers straight. 

Betsy asked, "Is she nice?"

Beth answered, "Of course she's nice. Little John wouldn't like her 
if she weren't nice. The real question is if she is pretty."

"She's pretty," replied Ed knowing that Betsy was going to express 
the question in a second. 

Turning back to face his father, Little John asked, "Could I use the 
house for guests?"

"What house?" 

"The one across the street. Dr. Grundy is willing to come up for a 
visit with Susan and it would be great to have them stay there," 
answered Little John in a voice that conveyed hopeful pleading. 

"Why not have them stay on campus?" asked Kelly without 
thinking through her question.

"Ah, that might be a problem. I'm not sure how they'll react to the 
nudity on campus," answered Little John. He didn't want Susan's 
father thinking that he had invited them just to see his daughter 
naked.

"Okay, invite them to use the house," replied Ed. He could 
understand how difficult it would be to invite the young girl to the 
campus. The idea of Mrs. Grundy surrounded by naked people 
brought a grin to his face. He wondered if she was at all like the 
famous woman of literature. 

The young man turned away and resumed his conversation on the 
cell phone. William watched his brother with a sad expression. 
Beth had her friend, John, and now Little John had Susan. Despite 
her overactive nature, Betsy was going to grow up normally with 
lots of friends her own age. He was happy for his siblings, but was 
sad that it would be many more years before he would find 
someone for himself.

Linda watched her son and asked, "What's the matter William?"

"I have so much to do before I find a companion," answered 
William with a sigh. Noticing the attention being given to him, he 
changed the subject. "I think I would like the fried shrimp for 
lunch."

The abrupt change in subject threw Linda for a minute, but she 
recovered. Even though she was wondering what he had to do 
before finding a companion, she said, "The fried shrimp would be 
good."

Linda looked over at Ed with a pleading look on her face. Ed 
noticed, but wondered what she wanted him to do. After a minute 
of thought, he finally said, "William, in two weeks I'm going back 
to Arizona. Would you like to come with me for a week?"

"Yes, that would be good," replied the boy. Most of his life had 
been spent away from the desert, but he enjoyed his visits there 
tremendously. The dry desert seemed to resonate with his spirit in 
a manner that was very different from the campus environment. 

"Yes, I think we'll go rock hunting," commented Ed as he looked at 
William. It would be nice to show his son the ways of the desert. 
He added, "A week in the desert will do us both some good."

Little John ended his conversation on the cell phone and 
announced, "Susan and her parents will be arriving Friday 
afternoon."

Smiling at her son, Kelly said, "So we finally get to meet the 
mystery girl."

"Mystery girl?" asked Little John confused by the label. He had 
done nothing except talk about her and wondered how she could 
possibly be a mystery to anyone in the family.

As the others discussed Susan with Little John, Ed pulled out his 
cell phone and called the house. Mary Gold answered the phone. 
As always, the sound of her voice was a surprise. He recovered and 
made the arrangements for his trip to Arizona. He included Nathan 
in his plans for the trip. The soldier would probably enjoy a week 
away from the confines of the college. 

Once he had finished his arrangements, the waitress asked him, 
"What are you having today, Ed?"

"Caesar Salad with Shrimp," answered Ed wanting to have a 
lighter lunch than normal.  He looked over the waitress and added, 
"You've lost a little weight."

"Yeah. I've been working out a little and started a diet," replied the 
waitress. She had started on a diet designed for her by one of the 
Druids and it was working. A number of other employees on 
campus had started practicing Tai Chi before their shift and she 
had joined the group. The results weren't immediately observable, 
but over the past week she had noticed that her clothes were a little 
looser and some of the patches of cellulite had disappeared. 

"We'll you're looking good. I hope your husband noticed it," 
commented Ed. It amazed him how the employees on campus were 
changing. 

The comment about hoping that her husband noticed that she had 
lost weight surprised the woman. She still wasn't used to people 
making such personal comments even though it was much more 
common on the campus. She looked at him and said, "A couple of 
months ago you had asked me if the town was changing. I hadn't 
noticed it at the time, but the town seems a lot calmer over the past 
two or three years."

"Calmer?"

"Yes, much calmer. It's like people don't argue any more. My 
husband had a flat tire the other day and two people stopped to 
help him fix it. Lots of little things like that happen now," 
explained the waitress. 

The fifth and sixth years were allowed trips into town on the 
weekends. The first time the students had shown up in town there 
were a couple of incidents in which the locals treated them with 
more than a little hostility. For the last six months, there hadn't 
been a single incident of that nature. He asked, "What do the 
town's folk think of the students here?"

"At first, a lot of people were afraid that they were going to try to 
change people's religion. You don't mess around with people's 
religion in these parts. Of course, the kids didn't do anything like 
that. When a couple of them even helped repair one of the local 
churches, that really set people to talking. Since then, I guess the 
town has just kind of accepted them," answered the woman. 

"What had happened to the church?" asked Ed curious about what 
had happened and wondering why he hadn't been given the 
opportunity to contribute a little money to its repair.

"Oh, it was damaged a bit in one of the storms. The wind had 
blown off part of the roof."

Ed had not been aware that any of the students had helped repair 
any churches in the area. He was pleased to learn that they were 
contributing in some fashion, however little, to the community. 
Talking to himself, he mused, "Interesting."

The waitress frowned at his muttering and then asked, "They won't 
get into trouble for doing that, will they?"

"Of course not. Why should they get into trouble for helping?"

"It was a Christian Church," she answered worried that she had 
talked out of turn. She'd never seen a Druid get upset, but there 
was always a first time.

"I'm a strong supporter of the Churches back home," countered Ed 
trying to put her at ease.

"But, you're a Druid. I thought that meant you couldn't be 
Christian."

Chuckling at her misunderstanding of the nature of Druids, Ed 
explained, "A good church helps its people. Why should I stand in 
the way of that even if I'm not Christian? That wouldn't be right. 
I'd rather help a church do good deeds."

"You guys sure are strange," commented the waitress shaking her 
head. It wasn't the first time that she said that and it wouldn't be the 
last. She glanced down at her order pad and said, "I better get your 
order in."

Once the waitress had left the table, William commented, "She 
works here and still doesn't understand."

"Whether she understands or not isn't important," commented Ed 
as he turned his attention back to the boy. 

"It isn't?" asked William surprised. 

Ed smiled at his son amazed that he had actually surprised the boy. 
William often seemed all knowing so that a gap in his knowledge 
really stood out. That was such a rare occasion that everyone at the 
table noticed it. As the others watched and listened, Ed answered, 
"The important thing is that she's trying to understand. Half the 
time, I don’t understand us."

Little John frowned as he thought about the answer. His father 
wouldn't lie about not always understanding, but he was very 
important within the Druid leadership and should be in a position 
to understand the best. Confused, he asked, "What don't you 
understand?"

"Well, there are the Druids. We have been chosen to serve the 
Gods and Goddesses. How we get selected is a mystery to me. 
Then we have the others who honor the Gods and Goddesses, but 
aren't selected to serve. They are pagans, but they don't receive any 
instruction from Druids on how to honor the Gods and Goddesses. 
The Druids lead by example, not by words. We don't go out and 
actively recruit members. It's a very strange way to go about 
establishing a religion," observed Ed. 

The group was silent as they considered his words. Little John 
said, "There are the stories about what you do. Don't they serve as 
lessons for others? What about the college? Isn't that a way to 
recruit members?"

Thoughtful, Ed answered, "Yes, stories about us serve as lessons 
for others. I'm not sure that all of the stories have much to do with 
being a Druid, though. It seems to me that they are more about 
taking a moment out of the day to help someone else. The college 
provides a chance for others to offer themselves for service after 
getting an education. We haven't actively recruited people to 
attend, though."

The food arrived and all conversation at the table ended while Ed 
examined his salad with the kind of intensity for which he was 
famous. The lettuce had been tossed with the dressing so each leaf 
had picked up some of the flavor. The shrimp were grilled with 
nice brown stripes where meat contacted grill. The croutons were 
made from bread baked on campus the previous day. The family 
watched as if the quality of the whole meal was determined by his 
appreciation of the food. He took a bite of lettuce and nodded his 
appreciation for it. At that gesture, everyone else started to eat.

After he had finished his meal, a satisfied Ed announced, "I'm 
going into town. Would anyone like to go with me?"

"What are you going to do there?" asked Linda curious about the 
sudden announcement.  

"I'm going to take a look around and see how things are going 
there. I've had a couple of conversations that have made me 
curious how the town has changed as a result of having the college 
here," replied Ed. He thought about how his town had changed 
after John Carter had come to live there and wondered if 
something similar had happened locally.

No one said anything for a minute. Finally, William said, "I'll go 
with you."

Side by side, Ed and William walked down the main street of town 
looking at the buildings and watching people go about their daily 
lives. Their passage went without obvious attention. When they 
reached the police station, they both stopped in front of the 
building. It was new and the local police were still moving into it. 
Ed examined the building, observing its relatively large size, along 
with the new police cars that were parked to the side. 

A sign identified the building as 'The John Carter Police Station.' 
Noticing it, William commented, "Everything looks new."

The building was larger than the old police station had been. The 
observation made Ed wonder if the local crime rate was increasing 
and there was a real need for more modern facilities. Frowning at 
the idea that the college had lead to an increase in crime, he said, 
"Let's go inside and talk to the police chief."

Entering the building, he was immediately faced with a female 
dispatcher seated behind a raised front desk. She was a rather large 
black woman with her hair worn in a short afro. Black thick-
framed glasses perched on her nose. Her uniform looked as if it 
had shrunk the last time she had washed it. The shirt gapped 
between the buttons giving glimpses of the cast-iron white bra 
worn underneath. Her jacket was unbuttoned and hung off her 
shoulders. He greeted her, "Hello."

She looked up from the book that she was reading to look at the 
Druid. Her indifference to his presence was obvious. She said, 
"Ah, one of you. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to see the Chief of Police," answered Ed surprised by her 
reaction. 

William stepped back so that he could see the woman behind the 
desk. She looked intriguing to the young boy. Her large size and 
total lack of concern about the fact that she was talking to a black 
robe Druid was surprising. He decided that he wanted to know her 
better.

"Go down the hall. He's in the third office on the left," replied the 
woman as she went back to reading. 

"Aren't you going to check to make sure that he's available to see 
me?" asked Ed surprised by the casual attitude about sending him 
unannounced to see the Chief of Police.

"He told me to send back one of you when ever you showed up," 
answered the woman gesturing towards the hall with her thumb. 
She noticed William for the first time and leaned forward to study 
him for a moment. A frown crossed her face as she took in his blue 
robe. She asked, "Aren't you a little young to be going to that 
school? I thought it was a college."

Head tilted to the side as though he was studying an interesting 
new phenomena, William answered, "It is a college. You might say 
that I'm a little advanced for my age."

"I'd say you were a lot advanced for your age," she said without 
malice. She tried to place his racial heritage. After deciding that he 
wasn't Hispanic, she gave up.

Turning to his father, William said, "I'd like to talk to her while 
you are talking to the police chief."

Ed left the two of them talking and went down the hall to find the 
Chief of Police. Reaching the open door of the office, he knocked 
on the doorframe. The Chief looked up and saw Ed. Gesturing for 
Ed to enter, he said, "Come in. Have a seat." 

"Thanks," replied Ed as he entered and sat down.

"What can I do for you?"

"I noticed the new facilities and thought I'd come in to see how 
things are going," answered Ed.

"Things are fine. Crime is down and the town is growing," replied 
the Chief as he pointed to a map on his wall. The map showed the 
town down to individual buildings. A major area of the map was a 
light blue indicating that it was under development.

Ed looked over at the map and saw that a new housing 
development was drawn in along with a supporting shopping mall. 
It was a major addition to the town. Surprised, he said, "I didn't 
realize the town was growing that much."

"Yep. Schools have improved over the past five years and it seems 
that some folks have heard about that. Some of the professors from 
your school are moving into the new housing development. Things 
are really growing around here," commented the man as he leaned 
back in his chair. He was curious why the Druid was doing in his 
office. He studied Ed for a moment and then asked, "Are you 
surprised?"

"Not really. Well, I guess I am a little," answered Ed. He didn't 
expect the presence of the college to have such an effect on the 
local economy after less than six years.

"To tell the truth, I figured that with the college here that I'd be 
arresting drunken college students Friday and Saturday nights and 
fighting drugs the rest of the time. I'm very pleased that I was 
wrong. You got a bunch of good kids up there," commented the 
Chief looking at Ed.

"Thanks," said Ed. Gesturing to with a sweep of the arm to include 
the whole building, he asked, "So what's with the new building?"

"The increase in tax revenues from the College meant that we had 
a bit more money than in the past. The city council decided that it 
was time to build up the infrastructure of the city before we grew 
too much. They call it urban planning. John Carter came to the 
meeting and pledged matching funds for this building, the new 
firehouse, and the new city office building."

Ed had not been aware that John had done that. He realized John 
must have done it during one of the times when Ed was back in 
Arizona. It felt strange to learn about things that his husband had 
done for others now that he was dead. He said, "I didn't realize 
John had done that."

"Nice fellow, that John Carter. Amazing, really. It's a real shame 
that he's gone," said the Police Chief in a soft voice. The times that 
he met with John Carter were already stories that he told his 
grandchildren. 

Uneasy about hearing someone else talk about his late husband, Ed 
stood and said, "Well, I just stopped by to make sure that there 
weren't any problems."

"Thanks for coming by," said the man realizing that the Druid had 
told the truth about the reason he had stopped by the office. Once 
Ed left his office, he bent his head and went back to work. 

Ed walked down the hallway feeling a little off balanced by the 
visit. Entering the lobby, he was just in time to hear William say, 
"That would be interesting."

"What would be interesting?" asked Ed.

"She's invited me to attend her Church this coming Sunday and to 
have dinner with her family afterwards," answered William.  He 
turned to look at his father and asked, "May I go?"

Ed turned to the woman and asked, "You mean him no harm?"

"What? I wouldn't harm a little boy," replied the woman indignant 
at the accusation. 

Smiling at the truth in her voice, Ed nodded his acceptance of her 
words. He said, "I believe you. William, you should call your 
mother and get her permission. Let her know that if she agrees that 
I'll ask Captain Jones to take you."

The woman watched with surprise as William reached into his robe 
pocket and pulled out a cell phone. A minute later, the 
arrangements had been made. Reaching into his pocket, William 
pulled out one of the family cards and handed it to the woman. He 
said, "If you need to get in touch with me, call the number. Either 
Cathy or Mary will put you through to me."

The woman looked down at the card surprised to be receiving a 
business card from such a young boy. It took her a minute to 
realize that it was a family card. She stared at the names written 
upon it. The name of John Carter was still on the card. She looked 
up at William and asked, "You're one of the Carter Clan?"

"Yes," replied William surprised by the question. "I told you my 
name was William Redman Carter."

"I guess I just didn't realize," said the woman wondering if it was 
such a good idea to take him to her church. She'd hate to have 
problems arise because she took one of the children of John Carter 
to a Christian Church. She glanced over at Ed and back at the card 
for a second. Curious, she asked, "Are you Ed Biggers?"

"Yes," answered Ed surprised that everyone in the down didn't 
know his identity. It was then that he realized that he hadn't been 
into the town more than a dozen times over the past six years.  

"It doesn't bother you if I take him to a church?"

"Not at all," answered Ed with a smile at her reaction to his 
answer. 

"I'll see you Sunday, Ms. Jordan," said William ready to continue 
the trip through town. 

Together, Ed and William stepped out of the police station. Ed 
asked, "So why did you arrange to visit the church?"

"I'm curious about the whole Baptist thing," answered William as 
if it were the most natural thing for a child his age to wonder about 
the differences among branches of the Christian Faith. Linda was a 
Catholic and he had been to church with her many times. The 
experience made him wonder why there were so many different 
varieties of churches.

"Ah," answered Ed understanding that William was extremely 
curious about the world. It was just a rare occurrence when he 
showed that curiosity for others to observe. 

William looked across the street and spotted a park complete with 
a swing set. Excited, he sped up to cross the street for the park. As 
he ran, he called out, "Swings!"

Ed was about to call out for him to look both ways before crossing 
the street when a large black bird perched on a crosswalk let loose 
with a raspy call. Almost tripping over himself, William slid to a 
complete halt. An SUV sped past him while he stared at the bird.

The bird had flown away by the time Ed reached William. Ed said, 
"What happened?"

"The raven shouted a warning," answered William with a puzzled 
expression.

"You were almost hit by that car. Haven't we told you to look both 
ways before you cross the street?" 

"The raven shouted a warning," repeated William. He stared at the 
ground as though given a great puzzle to solve -- one with most of 
the pieces missing. 

The repetition forced Ed to consider what happened in a different 
light. Looking down at his son, he asked, "What do you mean, it 
shouted a warning?"

"I heard it say the word danger as clear as day," answered William. 
Looking both ways, he started across the street as he said, "It spoke 
to me."

Ed followed William across the street trying to make sense of what 
his son was trying to tell him. It wasn't that he doubted animals 
could play a large role in the lives of the family. Rover, Shadow, 
and Tiger had been guardians of John. After they left other animals 
had watched over John, but they had never spoken to him. William 
wasn't in the service of the Gods and Goddesses, so that wasn't the 
explanation.

Ed watched as William went over to the swings. Within minutes 
the young boy was swinging back and forth, but his mind was 
elsewhere. Ed frowned at the sight of his son deep in thought. For 
a bare fraction of a second, he had been a regular child who was 
excited at the chance to play on a swing set. It was a shame that his 
time acting like a child hadn't been a little longer.

After a few minutes, William called out, "Hey dad, come on and 
play. It's fun."

Grinning at his son, Ed climbed onto one of the seats and started 
swinging his legs. It didn't take long before his robe was fluttering 
in the wind created by his movements. He leaned back and laughed 
as the sky rocked back and forth above him. 
