An Old Mans Wish

I want you to talk to Henry Crawford, my lawyer. He will give you further instructions. The task, should you accept, is to start a new business, and it is related to what you have just done: You are going to help college students that are on the verge of quitting school because of economic reasons! Some you will be able to send over to Frank and Samantha, but not many, and therefore you will have to find other ways. You can't just hand out money, you have to show that they do something in return, but Henry will tell you about that. You can do this alone, hire people or whatever, it is all up to you. But remember, it is a matter of trust when you help people in need, and all expenses must be covered by incomes.

Good Luck

Jason Jones (III)

So, there was the explanation to what was going on, Daniel thought, talk about no pressure!

They talked about what they had read for awhile, but nothing really came out of it: it was still hypothetical. They drifted off to sleep in each others arms.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Welcome, please have a seat." Henry Crawford greeted them "I don't think I have much to add to be honest, a few specifics only. Other than that I'll answer any questions."

He took a sheet of paper and handed it to Daniel.

"I assume that the fact that Miss Daultry is here with you means that she will be involved, is that correct?"

"Probably. That depends on what the details are." Daniel told him.

"Let us talk details then. The business has already been prepared and funded, but is not yet activated. Its assets are half a million in cash, more than enough to get it up and running I think, a website with servers and everything, a studio with an office, and some equipment. Two employees are standing by if you want them, a photographer and a web designer. That is all. Oh, the website is called 'Educated Strippers' by the way, a name chosen by Jason. You can change it if you want until it goes online. You will account for the progress every month and can show a negative result for five months, but, and this is important, the sixth month have to show a positive result for the total period. In addition there are other demands that I am not allowed to tell you about, other than that it concerns the number of persons helped."

"Is this about recruiting strippers then? For the clubs or the website?"

"That is one way to look at it, but then you might as well say that it is about prostituting students. No, this is about helping students to get an education, but the way the economy is going it isn't easy to start a business and hire that many today. Sex sells, that is the truth, and therefore it can provide an income for a large number of people."

"And how am I supposed to get in contact with those who needs help? If I go to a university or college with a sign saying 'I'll pay you if you strip' I will get a beating and deserve it."

"You are absolutely right about that, but that is part of the challenge, something you will have to figure out."

"What about expenses? How much do I pay?"

"That is also up to you. You will have the half million to start with, but every expense must be covered after six months."

"And if I provide the clubs with strippers, do I pay them too?"

"Of course not, they are counted anyway since the clubs pay them, but you have to be aware that the clubs can say no. There is a limited number needed after all and not everyone is suited to be naked in public."

"You mean only young and beautiful people will get help?"

"Absolutely not! First of all people have different tastes and secondly people can provide different services. If you can help enough students without letting them get naked, then go ahead and do it! By all means. This is just a help because of the economic situation, but if you start a paper mill and hire students that is allowed too."

"Okay, anything else?"

"If you want Miss Daultry to help, you only have to talk to Frank and tell him she quits. That is all, I believe, except this folder with all the information I have. If anything comes up you only have to call me. Good luck."

- - - - - - - - -

Did he want Mandy to help? Of course he did! She was the one that had pulled him through at The Silver Steed, she was the one with the experience.

Before they visited Frank, though, there was another thing to do: talk to his parents and give them an update. It was embarrassing to tell them about the strip job, but it was a part of it after all. In the end they supported him to do whatever he wanted just as he had expected, and with that they drove to the Dollar. Frank showed no surprise at all, wished them good luck and 'find me a new hottie as a headliner', that was all.

Daniels first, and main, concern was how to get in contact with students in need. Mandy suggested that they should contact the administrators to get a list of late payers, but that was secret information. Another idea was to go via fraternities and sororities, but that excluded too many. An add in the student papers was what they ended with, saying:

'In economic difficulty? Can't find a job? Contact us if you are open for new ideas!' followed by their private e-mails. It would take a week for the ads to be published, so they investigated the studio and office and looked at the website to get a grip on things.

The studio turned out to be well equipped and not only when it came to cameras and lights. It was compartmented and was really four studios. One was furnished with stretcher, pillory and other special designs for bondage, one had a huge bed with a canopy, another was a stylised dorm-room and the last had an open shower stall and jacuzzi. The office was an ordinary one with computer and all, nothing special.

The web-site was sexy in design, but without pictures it was hard to say anything more.

The first evening after the papers were distributed the couple sat in the office waiting for a response of any kind. Before long a 'ping' announced a message received.

"Saw your add, am desperate. What do I have to do?" it read, signed Josie.

It was the first of many, the need for economic help seemed endless and covered every part of the country. Instead of the problem being to getting in touch with them, it seemed that the problem was to have time for them. Replies were sent to acknowledge that their response to the ad had been received and further contact would be made soon. To those in the immediate area meetings were set up at the office, but it was clear that if this should go anywhere, more help was needed. The photographer and web designer were contacted and Mandy's sister Kathy was asked to work part-time too, something she agreed to without even asking what she would have to do.

The first meeting was a nervous one on both parts. Mandy and Daniel met the young guy outside the office and showed him inside. His eyes moved around, not least at the sign above the entrance that said 'Educated Strippers', but he had a hard time looking them in their eyes. Seated in the office Daniel started up the interview.

"I guess that you understand what this is about by now. We understand if you are shocked and want to leave, but let us explain this first. We have done this ourselves for different reasons and it isn't easy. In the beginning it is even worse, you are sure that you can't do it, never ever, but if you are desperate enough you can, and we will help in every way we can. It is also the case that we are not only looking for strippers. Primarily it is, but if this works out we will need assistants of different kind. First of all I want to know if you are desperate enough to do this?"

The guy looked down on his hands in his lap as he spoke.

"I am, but honestly I don't think I can do it. I can't dance or anything, have never stripped in front of anyone before and I certainly don't want my parents or friends to find out. But if I don't do it I will have to quit school. My family isn't wealthy and I lost my scholarship."

"Before we continue I will say this, and I should have mentioned it from the beginning: your identity will not be revealed and you will wear a wig, fake moustache or other things as a disguise. About not being able to do this, well, maybe not, but we won't know that until we have tried. We have at the moment three alternatives but only one that is applicable to you: to strip in front of a camera. We have a male photographer, he is not into men by the way, but if you would prefer it Mandy here can do the job. There will be no-one else watching if you don't want it. Later on there might be other possibilities, like couples or bondage, but right now this is it. How much money do you need to finish this semester?"

A figure was mentioned, a proposal of a try-out for a fifth of that to begin with was offered and reluctantly accepted and a contract signed with a date for the casting. Then the young man left.

They had twenty more interviews that day, most with women but not all of them. A few turned down the offer, one very upset, and only one seemed comfortable being there. She was very confident and said she had previous experience so she was told to contact the Silver Dollar, and if that didn't lead anywhere to return to them. A phone call from Frank a few days later confirmed that she had been hired.

The interviews continued the next day at the same time as the photographer, Ben, started with the photo-sessions. Everyone and anyone was accepted that was willing, but Ben grew frustrated soon enough with the pampering needed to get anywhere. He was used to working with professionals that followed instructions with no hesitation. The photos showed clearly how nervous and shy the models were, and after a week it was decided that it was better for everyone that Ben found another job. He sighed from relief as he left.

So there they were, with no-one to stand behind the cameras and more than sixty models waiting for their first shoot. Desperate situations demand desperate solutions so Mandy, Daniel and Kathy took over that job, hoping that patience and understanding would compensate for their lack of skill. With three of them they at least were able to keep the schedule.

The website went online when they had thirty sets of pictures in total, but sales were slow, both memberships and advertising. When they had covered a fifty mile radius around their home town, covering travel costs and fees for their models, it was obvious that they had to expand to other parts. To be perfectly honest only one model in ten was a knockout, two were good and the rest ranged from mediocre to 'not so good': they needed more quality to attract people. The top models were supposed to compensate for the others after all, but a handful of them was not enough.

With Kathy still going to school herself and working weekends for them, Daniel and Mandy hired a studio in another town, set up castings with the people living in that area, packed the equipment and left. Mandy had snickered ironically when he had decided that the Los Angeles area was next.

"California girls, is that what you think?" she had said.

"And guys!" he replied "Don't forget the guys."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let me tell you, it is a myth. Those who hang out on the beaches, tanned slim and beautiful are rich and don't need our help."

"Possible, but they have egos, they want to be seen. We can't count them as being helped but they can help promoting the site."

Therefore the models already contacted and scheduled received a question if they knew other students that were interested and the replies were encouraging, not to mention some of the new recruits. That set the course for the following areas they covered. In four months Educated Strippers showed a profit and the number of employees grew steadily.

- - - - - - - - -

After six months, the stipulated time limit, Daniel and Mandy sat in Henry Crawfords office, ready to get his judgement. They were aware of the secret clauses, but since they were secret they couldn't know if they had been fulfilled.

"Not bad," Henry said as he watched the results "not bad at all. We will have to see if it is enough though."

He took out an envelope from his briefcase and opened it.

"I only got this yesterday from the foundation board members, I have no idea what it says so I will have to read it through if you will excuse me for a moment."

He began his reading, at times looking at their result sheet. Then he sat back in his chair looking from one to the other.

"Well now, that was interesting reading I must say. I can tell you that you haven't fulfilled all criteria." he held up his hands to silence Daniel when he opened his mouth "Wait, let me continue please. Like I said there are some issues, but," he smiled and reached into his briefcase again "just like Samantha in Vegas I have a selection of envelopes. The difference is that I don't have to decide, just follow the results. In this case it is number seven, in the middle of the spread, so here you are, please read it at once."

He handed Daniel the envelope across the desk and sat back again.

Daniel, don't worry about what Henry said about the missed criteria. First of all you didn't know what they were, second you weren't supposed to reach all of them. Yes, that's right, do you know anyone who have reached all the goals he, or she, has set up? No, failing is part of our lives, we all do it but if we are lucky we learn from that. If we are stupid, on the other hand, we pretend that it never happened, like my vulture family. God forbid you ever become like them! Now, let me specify your 'failures':

You didn't cover all areas of the United States.Good for you! Though you were on a mission to help, no single person, or group of persons, can do everything. We have to settle for the next best thing, doing the best we can.

You didn't, as far as we know, help any Hindu female transvestite.Well, not surprising, is it? That is actually only an example I came up with, there are probably several specific minorities that could be mentioned, but the point here is that, according to Henry's evaluation you did cover a lot of other minorities. This is important: you can't go around saying "Are you a heterosexual American of Christian belief, between twenty and twenty four years of age, with no criminal record, no divorce in the family but with a war-hero among your ancestors? Otherwise I won't help you!" Always ignore the details that isn't any of your business!

You're not married yet!This is serious, now. I know, I never married myself, but I regretted it eventually. It is important to have someone to love and who loves you, someone who let you be who you are and loves you despite your faults. And, not least, someone who put things in perspective. Work is not essential in itself and neither is money. What you can accomplish with work and money might be though, and once in a while you need someone who reminds you of that. If you work for a few hours each day, even eight maybe, and know that what you have at home is more important so you leave your office even though you should finish that contract, then everything is well. I never had that safeguard.

That was it! Not so bad, was it? I suppose you have figured it out now, haven't you? Except for that last thing it wasn't really failures, if you had covered them I would have worried. About marriage though, I didn't think you would have done anything about that yet, but one can dream and hope, right? In all honesty it might not be essential for running a business, but it is important for happi-ness if you find the right partner. I believe you have managed to find pure gold, so if you agree, why wait? No pressure here (well, a little pressure) but until you have married Mandy, if you agree with me that she is the one for you, you are stuck in this square, unable to move either backwards or forwards. Henry has a bank-account for this purpose should you decide to go ahead, one million dollars. Be aware that you have to be sure that it is the right thing to do. No fuck-ups just to get... whatever it might be. When/if you have taken this step, return to Henry with Jonathan and Mildred and we will finish this once and for all.

Sincerely

Jason Jones (III)

- - - - - - - -

Sitting in Mandy's living room an hour later they looked at each other for long minutes. Kathy was in the kitchen making a simple lunch for them before she was to go to work at Educated Strippers. She hadn't asked how things went at the lawyers office and they hadn't said anything.

"What..." they suddenly said at the same time, then got quiet waiting for the other to continue. It was Daniel who did in the end:

"What are your thoughts about this? God knows that I want you as my wife but I also know that you have Kathy to care about and that you don't want to be a trophy wife. Not that I have any ideas in that direction, I'm a simple chauffeur after all, and I see no problems with Kathy staying with us, but that is only my view."

"You are right on both accounts, but there is another issue that's more important."

He thought hard about that: what had he missed? If it was that important he should know what it was after all. Nothing came to mind though and he finally gave up:

"I'm sorry, but I can't think of anything. Maybe I'm just plain stupid."

"Yeah, I think you might actually be: You haven't asked the simple stripper if she wants to marry her simple chauffeur."

"Oh, that thing. Sorry again. Goldielocks, simple stripper of mine, dearly beloved Mandy, will you marry me and share your life with me forever?"

"Yes Daniel, simple chauffeur of mine, I will marry you and share your simple life forever. But, I have one condition: that million won't be touched. Well, maybe a little, but I want a simple wedding and I think I know where I want it to take place. Is that okay with you?"

His answer was lost in a shout from the kitchen where Kathy had dropped a glass bowl that shattered into pieces. Ignoring that she came running and threw herself at her older sister, arms around her neck.

"Finally!" she squeeled "How long have you been a couple? Three, four years? About time he got his ass out and did something! Congratulations sis!"

- - - - - - - - -

'Simple' is a matter of definition after all, and so is 'small'. The people invited were not that many, his parents, Kathy, Frank and a few others from the Silver Dollar, Henry Crawford of course and a few close friends. Jason's closest relatives were also invited, not with any expectations of them showing up though, and they didn't. You might wonder about Samantha from the Silver Steed since Frank was invited, but there was no need for that: she hosted both the ceremony and the following reception at the Silver Steed.

"Hell, we need to come up with new ideas like this!" was her comment when she was asked about it, and Frank laughed and agreed.

There were no problems of any kind, both said yes, exchanged rings and kissed in front of the parson who didn't even raise an eyebrow at the stripper outfits all participants wore. After all he worked in Vegas and was used to a lot.

Daniel had a moment of deja vu at the reception when Mandy said:

"Let's dance. Relax and do what I do!", but nothing odd came out of it, did it?

The honeymoon was spent in Vegas, a week of leisure and pleasure, eating frequently at the Steed but never staying for long after that.

After returning home, staying in Mandy's home for the time being, a meeting was arranged with Henry Crawford who summoned all interested parties. The meeting was held in a conference room large enough to seat forty people, but that many weren't present.

Henry sat together with his secretary, Samantha, Frank and two others at the front, Daniel, Mandy Jonathan, Mildred and Kathy sat to their right and opposite to them sat Donald Jones (1st) and a handful relatives. Henry Crawford opened the meeting.