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 6
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004

Kelly and Ed had discussed the kind of future Ed had in store for 
himself. Since he had never given it much thought, he had no clue 
and asked for her advice. Kelly suggested that he pick up a little 
college education. The idea of going to college had really thrown 
him for a loop and he decided that he should talk to John about the 
matter. John was in school and could possibly provide some 
insight into what he might study. 

John was slowly walking up the street, chatting with neighbors. It 
amazed Ed at how quickly John had become widely respected in 
the neighborhood. Finally, John reached his house. Ed Biggers 
strolled over and greeted him, "Howdy neighbor."

"Hi, Ed. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing fine."

"That's good to hear."

Nervous about imposing on John, he asked, "You got a minute to 
talk?"

"Sure, I've got all week. I just finished the second draft and I'll wait 
a week before reading it over."

Ed laughed at the idea of this discussion lasting a week. Most 
likely, it would last two minutes with most of it spent listening to 
John laughing at him. He said, "Well, I promise it won't take a 
whole week."

John gestured and said, "Why don't we go out in my backyard and 
chat there? I have two lawn chairs, some iced tea, and a nice patio 
with a good view."

Ed looked uncomfortable for a minute. It took him a minute to 
identify the source of his discomfort before he realized that he had 
never been invited over to someone's house. He answered, "Sure, 
that would be good."

Ed followed John into the house. He watched as John took the 
pitcher of iced tea from the refrigerator and filled two glasses with 
ice. After taking a glass from John, he followed him outdoors. 

After seating themselves in the chairs, John poured the iced tea. He 
set the pitcher on a cinder block situated between the chairs. 
Taking a sip of the tea, he sighed, "Oh, boy! That tastes real good 
on a hot day like today."

Ed laughed as he realized something for the first time. He said, 
"You know something. I didn't know that until a couple of weeks 
ago. I've quit drinking."

"Was it tough?"

Ed was quiet for a moment as he thought about it. He nodded 
slightly, "It was a little tougher than I thought it would be. It wasn't 
that I was an alcoholic. I guess drinking was more of a habit."

John nodded as he said, "I understand. I had the same problem 
when I quit drinking."

Ed looked very surprised to hear that. He had assumed that John 
had never had a tough day in his life. He asked, "You used to 
drink?"

"Oh yes. I quit drinking the night my brother wrapped his car 
around a telephone pole."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know." That revelation surprised him. It was 
then he realized that he didn't really know much about John's past 
other than the heroic activities.

"No problem," replied John. "It took me a long time to come to 
grips with it. I guess the day I died was the major turning point 
with respect to my feelings about death and the death of my 
brother."

"I guess it would tend to change your perspective. Of course, I 
wouldn't know about that."

John was quiet for a while as he thought about his past. He sighed, 
"I guess I'm not so afraid of dying now. I don't know if that makes 
it easier for me to do the things that I've done. I really don't think 
about any of that. I just act."

Ed thought about what John had said. Was a man any less of a hero 
because he wasn't afraid of dying? He didn't think so. Finally, Ed 
said, "You acted in exactly the same manner before you died as 
you do now. That's how you got killed."

"I guess that's true."

They sat there for a while watching the stars come out. The dark 
Arizona sky made star gazing a wonderful pastime. Ed had never 
just sat and watched the stars with anyone other than Kelly. It was 
nice sharing moments like this with someone else. His thoughts 
were interrupted when John asked, "So how do you feel now that 
you aren't drinking?"

Ed laughed as he answered, "Pretty good. I've found that I have a 
lot more time than I ever had before."

"So what are you going to do to fill up that time? Visit that nurse 
from the hospital?"

Ed laughed, "Yeah, I've been doing a lot of that. Kelly's very nice. 
She makes me think about things."

"Like what, if I may ask?"

"Well, we've been talking about my future. It hasn't looked very 
good for a long time." There was a significant pause as Ed worried 
about how John would react. He added, "I've decided to go to 
school."

John had just finished putting down his iced tea glass, which was 
fortunate because if he had been holding it he would have dropped 
it. He had never heard anything so surprising in his life.  He took a 
moment to compose himself before he said, "That's great. What are 
you planning on studying?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." Getting asked the 
question surprised him. He had expected that John would suggest 
something to him.

John was taken by surprise again. He asked, "So what are you 
thinking?"

"I don't really know what there is out there. Many things, well, 
they just seem out of my reach. I couldn't be a lawyer or doctor, for 
example. I'm a little old to start down those paths."

Ed waited for a long time for a response, getting more nervous the 
longer John was quiet. John finally broke his silence when he said, 
"Ed, let me ask you one question."

"Go ahead."

"What do you like to do more than anything?"

That was a question that he had never considered and didn't 
understand what that had to do with going to school. He answered, 
"The only thing I've ever done is work cattle."

John shook his head, "No, I don't mean work you like. I mean, 
what do you really like to do?"

Ed's face wrinkled in confusion. He asked, "When?"

"Imagine that tomorrow you get to do anything you want. You can 
take the whole day off with no worries. What would you do?"

The fact was that he was faced with a lot of free time now and 
didn't know what to do with it. The weekends were almost torture 
now. He answered, "I don't know. What would you be doing?"

"I'd be out hiking. I hike almost four months of the year."

He liked riding out in the desert, but wondered how that would 
help. He said, "I didn't think about stuff like that. What has it to do 
with deciding what you are going to study?"

John smiled as he answered, "I wanted to understand rainbows, 
sunrises, and sunsets."

"So you studied physics. Yeah, it makes sense." It did make sense 
to Ed and he thought that John was fortunate to have been able to 
combine his interest and his work.

"What would you be doing?"

"I guess I would be riding around on my horse." 

John was silent for a minute or two. This line of questioning wasn't 
going as well as he thought it should. It wasn't natural for an adult 
man not to have some kind of interest in something. A sudden 
inspiration hit him, "What are you doing while riding your horse?"

Ed looked around a little embarrassed as memories of his father 
hitting him for his worthless daydreams returned. As a result of his 
father, he had hidden his interest since then. "Promise you won't 
laugh?"

John made a boy scouts honor gesture and said, "I promise."

Ed made a sucking sound between his teeth. This was one of the 
hardest things to admit aloud. Finally, he said, "I'm looking at 
rocks."

"Rocks?" asked John. 

"Yes," replied Ed, happy that John had not burst out laughing.

"Any special kind of rocks?"

Ed answered, "All kinds. There are examples of sedimentary, 
metamorphic, and igneous in the area."

"Are you more interested in the geology of the area or the 
mineralogy?"

"Actually, I like the mineralogy. You know, I look at things like 
the shape, composition, and color.  The geology just helps me 
locate them. You don't think that's weird?"

John laughed and answered, "God no. That's wonderful!"

Ed looked shocked at the positive reaction. He asked, "You don't 
think it's childish?"

"Oh, Ed. You and I are going to have to go to Arizona State 
University. There's something there that you really need to see."

"What's there?" He wondered what he could see at the University 
that dealt with rocks. He still felt that rocks was a childish activity, 
his dad had beat that lesson into him well.

"Only one of the finest mineralogy departments in the country. It is 
going to blow your mind with the kinds of things they're doing 
there."

Ed sat up straighter and asked, "Really? What kinds of things?"

John smiled and answered, "You'll just have to see for yourself."

"You know, I never thought of actually studying rocks formally."

John answered, "Let me tell you something that I really believe. If 
you are passionate about a subject, someone will pay you to work 
in it. It doesn't matter what subject. I know of a guy who likes to 
review bad movies. He has a nationally syndicated column where 
he gets to review bad movies. Like I said, it doesn't matter what 
subject you are passionate about, someone will pay you for what 
you know."

"You're serious aren't you?" The idea that someone would pay him 
look at rocks sounded so ridiculous that he had to seriously 
consider it.

"You bet," replied John. He looked up at the sky for a minute and 
then stated, "I'll tell you what, let me make a call or two tomorrow 
and arrange a visit there. I'm not sure when the visit will be, but 
we'll drive up there together. If you want to take Kelly with you, 
that'll be alright too."

"John, you're an amazing person. I'm really glad I talked to you."

John shook his head, "I'm glad I was able to help. It's not going to 
be easy. You'll have to take a bunch of stuff that has nothing to do 
with mineralogy."

"No problem." Ed realized that he would happily sit through a 
bunch of other stuff to have a chance learn more about rocks. He 
was very happy about this prospect.

The next evening, Ed came over to find out about going to the 
university with John. In response to his knock on the door, John 
answered. He took one look at Ed and frowned. Ed was rather 
taken aback by the less than friendly reaction. John noticed the 
change in Ed's demeanor and apologized, "Oh, Ed. I'm sorry. I'm 
expecting my girlfriend to drop in anytime now. I had thought you 
were her for a moment there."

Ed knew about the big blowup between the two. It was a good sign 
that she was coming out here. Ed laughed in relief. He said, "Hell, 
I'd be disappointed if a man was at the door when I was expecting 
a woman."

John smiled as he said, "Well, I'm sorry anyway. I set up a visit to 
the university for the day after tomorrow. If Kelly comes, that will 
make four."

Ed grinned at the thought of going there with Kelly. He nodded 
excitedly and said, "Okay, I'll talk to her tonight. We'll both take 
the day off."

"Great. I'm looking forward to it."

"So what are your plans for your girl?" Ed was curious about how 
John treated the woman in his life.

"Oh, I was going to Maria's for Dinner and then over to the bar to 
meet Shirley."

Ed looked around and then said, "I'm going to head across the 
street. Don't want to interfere with the grand reunion."

"You don't have to run off."

"Now you're just being polite," replied Ed with a laugh. As he 
turned and walked away, he shouted out, "Good night John. Have a 
nice evening."

"Thanks. Have a good night!"

Ed walked across the street and started to do a little work on the 
yard. About the time that John had opened his front door and 
checked the street for a second time, Ed had worked out a plan. Ed 
shook his head when John waved and went back in the house. 

Ed wandered down the road, calling out to people as they ran into 
their houses in a move to avoid him. The few that turned around, 
listened to what he had to say nervous at his attention. After he 
delivered his invitation, he went on to the next neighbor. Everyone 
he talked to was left confused, staring at him walk away.

Ed entered the Bar and sidled up to the counter. Worried about 
what it meant, Shirley looked over at the smile on his face. She 
came over and asked, "Coke?"

Ed shook his head and answered, "No. I need to rent the place for 
the evening."

Very surprised at the request, Shirley asked, "What's the 
occasion?"

Ed answered, "John's girlfriend is coming to town tonight. I want 
to throw a little party for them. I've invited everyone that I've seen 
so far."

Shirley looked at Ed in wonder. He was actually putting together a 
party for another person. She asked, "What would you like to 
serve?"

Ed answered, "I figure you could serve soft drinks and ice tea. 
Anyone that wants a drink would still buy it from you. I was going 
to get Maria to cater it and some fresh pies from the restaurant next 
door."

Shirley liked John a lot and the idea of having a party appealed to 
her. She shrugged, "Okay, I can let you have it."

Ed asked, "How much?"

A usual night brought in about four hundred. There should still 
about two hundred in liquor sales, so two hundred seemed like a 
reasonable amount. She answered, "Two hundred plus the cost of 
beverages?"

Ed said, "Great. I'll be back."

"I'll be here," replied Shirley. She went to work cleaning the 
pitchers and getting the place ready for a crowd. She had doubts 
that anyone would show up, particularly if Ed invited them. Still, 
this was for John and for some reason she really liked the man. 
Besides, she was curious who the woman was and what she was 
like.

Ed went over to Maria's Cantina. She wouldn't be opening for 
another hour, but he was sure that she would be there. Knocking on 
the door of the restaurant, Ed waited for an answer. Maria opened 
the door and saw Ed standing there. Uncomfortable with the 
situation, Ed said, "Maria, I need to get some food catered."

If her business hadn't been teetering on the verge of bankruptcy, 
she would have shut the door right then. She didn't really trust Ed, 
despite the events earlier with Harry. In an untrusting tone of 
voice, she asked, "What do you need?"

Ed said, "How about a container of enchiladas, some tacos, 
frijoles, rice, tamales, and sopaipillas?"

This was a pretty good size order. She asked, "How many people?"

Ed replied, "About fifty people."

Maria thought about it and worked out the figures in her head. She 
thought about eight dollars a person, but lowered that to six. She 
said, "That'll run you about three hundred."

Ed shrugged and answered, "Fine, it's worth it."

His calm acceptance of the amount made her wonder what the 
occasion was that prompted him to do this. It was a fact that even 
Ed couldn't bully that many people into coming to a party. She 
asked, "What's the occasion?"

Ed smiled, "John's girlfriend is coming to town tonight. I want her 
to feel welcome."

At the mention of John's name, Maria smiled. For John, this would 
be no problem. She asked, "What are the details?"

Ed said, "I've rented Shirley's bar for the evening. I figure people 
will start arriving in about an hour and a half. Can you deliver that 
much by then?"

Knowing that John was the guest of honor, she answered, "For 
John, we can do it."

Ed had no idea of what John had done for Maria, but he didn't 
argue. Instead, he said, "Thanks a lot, Maria. I really appreciate it. 
I'll see you there."

Maria watched Ed walk off to the center of town. When he was out 
of sight, she went in and started to work on food. She shook her 
head as she thought about Ed actually setting up a party for 
someone else. 

Ed headed to the restaurant in town. The sign on the door 
advertised fresh home-made pies. He often ate there and knew the 
pies were pretty good. A lot of people in town bought whole pies 
here and took them home for desert. He entered and went over to 
the cashier. The woman behind the counter looked at Ed and 
asked, "What can I do for you?"

Looking over the selection of pies, Ed asked, "How many pies can 
you spare tonight?"

The woman answered, "All of our pies are for sale."

Laughing, Ed replied, "If I buy all your pies, you won't have any 
left for your other customers."

The woman, surprised that Ed could be that considerate, thought 
about how many pies she could let go without creating a problem. 
She said, "Would eight be enough?"

Ed answered, "That would be perfect. Could you deliver them to 
the bar?"

"Sure, it will cost an extra five bucks delivery fee."

Ed pulled out a fifty and laid it on the counter. He said, "Eight pies 
at five dollars a pie and a five dollar delivery fee. This ought to 
cover it. Keep the change."

Very surprised at the tip, she said, "Thanks."

Ed turned to head over to the bar to check on the arrangements 
there. He paused and turned to the woman behind the counter. He 
asked, "Do you know John Carter?"

She was quiet for a moment and then answered, "Sure, he's been in 
here a couple of times. He's a nice guy."

Ed said, "His girlfriend is coming to town. The party at the bar is 
to make her feel at home. You can come to it."

"Thanks, I might stop by." She watched Ed leave wondering what 
had happened to him. It didn't matter, she would drop by just to say 
hello to John. Delivering the pies herself would allow her to say 
hello to John when he arrived at the party.

It was much later when Betsy entered the bar, followed closely by 
John. Once they were in the bar proper, everyone shouted hello. 
Both John and Betsy jumped at the sudden outburst and were 
immediately surrounded by a large crowd. Ed came up to them and 
with a grin on his face said, "Hello neighbor. Can I buy you two a 
drink?"

John smiled at the reference to their meeting. He replied, "Sure, 
we'll take two wimp drinks."

The whole bar laughed at that with Ed laughing the loudest. 
Puzzled by the reference, Betsy recognized that it was an inside 
joke. Ed came over to Betsy and extended his hand, "I'm Ed 
Biggers. I take it you are Betsy."

"Yes, I am. Nice to meet you Ed." She smiled and nodded her head 
in greeting. 

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I wondered what kind of angel could 
throw steady John into such a frenzy. He was racing around today 
like a mad bull in a red room. I bet he cleaned that house three 
times before you got here. I do know that he was looking out the 
door every five minutes to see if you had arrived."

Betsy laughed and turned to John, "Is that true?"

"I only cleaned it twice and it was every four minutes, not five."

She kissed him on the cheek and laughed, "Only twice? I'm 
shocked and dismayed."

The rest of the evening went by very quickly. Ed enjoyed watching 
John and Betsy interact with everyone in town. The amazing thing 
to him was how popular John was after being in town for only a 
month. He liked Betsy, she was so much like Kelly that it was hard 
to believe. Most important of all, it was good to see John happy.

After settling up with Shirley and Maria, he left the bar feeling 
very pleased with himself. The first to leave the party, he felt that it 
would give some of those that were intimidated by him a chance to 
mingle a little more. The past few weeks had demonstrated to him 
how he was viewed by most people. At least now, he had done a 
nice thing, not expecting a reward. 

As he walked home, he whistled a tune to himself, not even 
knowing the name of the song. It was a nice evening and he 
enjoyed the walk. The street was nearly deserted as most of the 
people were at the bar. 

The Sheriff's car was parked outside his house and the Sheriff was 
sitting on the hood. He watched Ed wander up the street waiting 
for him to return home. When Ed reached him, he said, "Hello, 
Ed."

Ed frowned as he wondered what the problem might be that would 
bring the Sheriff to his place. He answered, "Hello, Sheriff."

The Sheriff asked, "What's going on Ed?"

Ed answered, "There's a party for John up at the bar. I think there 
is some food left. You might want to stop by. Maria outdid 
herself."

Shaking his head, the Sheriff said, "I thought I told you to leave 
John alone."

Ed shook his head as he tried to imagine giving up the friendship 
that he had only now acquired. He answered, "Would you like to 
come in and have a glass of iced tea?"

The Sheriff stared at Ed and nodded his agreement. Standing up, 
he followed Ed into his house. Ed went to the refrigerator and 
fixed two glasses of iced tea. Standing behind him, the Sheriff 
noticed that there weren't any beers in the refrigerator. Ed turned 
and said, "I have a couple of cases of beer. You know anyone that 
would like them?"

The Sheriff laughed as he answered, "I'm not sure that it would 
look too good if I handed out beer to some of our better known 
drinkers."

"You're probably right," replied Ed. Opening the pantry, he pointed 
at the stack of cases there and asked, "How about you take these 
and use them for your department picnics?"

The Sheriff looked at the cases of beer and shook his head at the 
quantity. Rather than leave them here, he decided it would be 
better to take the beer off Ed's hands. He answered, "Sure, I'll do 
that."

Ed answered, "Great."

Leading the Sheriff to the living room, Ed seated himself in his 
comfort chair, offering the Sheriff a seat on the sofa. The Sheriff 
sat down sipping his iced tea. Once he was comfortable, the Sheriff 
asked, "Didn't I tell you to leave John alone?"

Ed looked at the Sheriff and said, "Until a couple of weeks ago, 
there was only one person in town that I respected. Then I met 
John and that number doubled. Since then, I've been looking 
around at the people around me and found that a lot more of them 
that deserve my respect. I now have one friend and I'm not giving 
him up because you want me to leave him alone."

Ed's statements surprised the Sheriff in many ways. He asked, 
"Who was the person that you respected?"

Laughing, Ed replied, "I know you won't believe this, but it was 
you."

"Me?" asked the Sheriff. He had been holding Ed back form killing 
others for as long as he could remember. 

Ed answered, "You were the only one in town that consistently 
stood up to me and kept me from getting into more trouble."

Not sure if Ed was sucking up to him, the Sheriff let the subject 
drop. He said, "You say that you respect John. Why?"

Ed asked, "Did you check up on John?"

The Sheriff shook his head and said, "The hospital wouldn't release 
any information about him. Patient client privileges."

Surprised, Ed sat there for a moment. He had only taken the word 
of the people at the hospital about John. Thinking about it, he 
decided that there was one way to prove it. He picked up the 
telephone and called information for the Austin Police Department. 
When they gave him the option to put the call through, he accepted 
it. As he handed the phone over to the Sheriff, he said, "Ask them 
about John."

The Sheriff, shocked, took the phone from Ed. After a five minute 
discussion with an officer on the other end, a very pale Sheriff 
handed the phone back to Ed. He looked at Ed and said, "Is all that 
stuff true? Did he really do all those things?"

Ed shrugged and answered, "He doesn't talk about it. I do know 
that one of his rescues very nearly cost him his girlfriend. She 
came here today and I wanted to make sure that she had a good 
time."

The Sheriff thought about the things the officer had told him about 
John. He could understand how that might have an effect on Ed. It 
went far to explain some of the changes that Ed had undergone in 
the past few weeks. He said, "Okay, I believe that your intentions 
are not bad."

Ed said, "I would appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone what you 
learned tonight. John asked me not to tell anyone about his past. 
I've respected that as much as I can."

"Why is he here?"

"You mean, is he hiding out?" asked Ed. He laughed when he 
thought about the real reason. It was actually more impressive than 
much of what the Sheriff had learned. He said, "He's writing his 
dissertation to become a Doctor of Physics. He wanted a quiet 
place to work where he wouldn't be interrupted. I respect his need 
for quiet and time to work on it. I only talk to him when he's taking 
a break."

"You really like him, don't you?" asked the Sheriff. He had known 
Ed for a long time and could hardly believe what he was hearing. 
His experience told him that Ed had a need to dominate everyone 
around him. Ed was driven to be the Alpha male in a pack.

The subject was actually making Ed feel uncomfortable. He didn't 
like talking about his feelings, but the Sheriff really wanted to 
know. He answered, "Yes, I do. Knowing him has made me 
rethink my life and I'll tell the truth. I didn't like what I saw."

The Sheriff finished his iced tea and set the glass down. He stood 
up and said, "Ed, for the first time in a long time I really believe 
you. As long as you watch yourself, I'll leave you alone."

Ed stood and extended his hand. When the Sheriff accepted his 
hand in a handshake, Ed answered, "Thanks, Sheriff. You don't 
have to ignore me either."

After loading the beer into the back of the car with a lot of help 
from Ed, the Sheriff drove off shaking his head. If someone had 
told him a month ago that he would have had a conversation with 
Ed Biggers over an iced tea, he would have thrown them in the 
drunk tank. He wondered if it was time for him to retire. On 
second thought, there were still a few out here just like Ed. There 
was still work for him to do.

After the Sheriff left, Ed picked up the phone and called Kelly. 
When she answered, he said, "Hello, I'm searching for the most 
beautiful woman in the world. Is this she?"

Laughing, Kelly answered, "This is she, if the caller is a special 
cowboy."

There was a real connection between the two. He said, "Well, 
you're talking to a cowboy that's arranged a trip to the university to 
check out their programs. Would you like to go with me?"

"When?" asked Kelly happy that he was taking his future 
seriously. 

He said, "The day after tomorrow. John's girlfriend is in town and 
she's coming along. I'd like it if you came with me."

Kelly thought about it and decided that she could take a day off 
from work. In her opinion, it was important for her to support him 
in his quest to improve himself. She said, "I'll call the hospital and 
see if I can get the day off."

Ed, not having thought about that, answered, "Okay. Let me 
know."

The two of them talked for another half an hour. It was the kind of 
small talk that lovers make when they don't want the conversation 
to end. Nothing serious was exchanged, just talk of their evening, 
the weather, and other topics. 
