The Empath Cycle: 2010 Carpe Diem - Book 2

Once they were in the bathroom, Ryanna explained that there had been a problem with the old plumbing some years ago and that Sylvie had insisted the plumber use a parallel set-up so the pressure would be even and a flushed toilet in another part of the house wouldn't mean freezing water up there.

"That's right and it's more efficient too. There's a lot less wasted water that way." Ann agreed.

"While we had the walls opened, she had the wiring done too when she found some old porcelain knob junctions and a mix of aluminum and copper wires. Our electricity bill went down drastically when she was done."

"That's what happens in these old houses when there has been a few renovations over the years."

As Ryanna leaned in to check the water temperature, Anne-Marie turned to Julia.

"May I?" She asked, stepping close to the woman.

"You may, dear." Julia answered.

Anne-Marie reached around her to undo her minuscule top, which brought her face in Julia's cleavage. With her arms around her, she gently kissed to top of Julia's breasts. When the material fell to the floor, she held Julia and rested her head on the firm breasts.

She was about to pull away, she felt Ann's naked body press against her back and her hand linked with hers behind Julia. She shivered when she heard Ann's murmur in her ear.

"Go ahead, my love. Make love to her, but with me."

There were tears in her eyes when she craned her head over her shoulder as she felt Ryanna's hand join theirs. "I remember, my love, and now I understand. I am here." She said before kissing Ann and tasting their mixed tears of Joy.

Ryanna had discovered early after the events which had brought them together that neither she nor Julia could raise their shields completely with Anne-Marie and Ann. She didn't mentioned it to anyone, probably because the subject had never come up.

Again, she could feel a tension building in Anne-Marie. Unlike what happened in the limousine, this was something... positive? The woman wanted to make love to Julia and her, but... She exchanged a look with Julia only to receive the same confusion.

She didn't get what they murmured to each other, but she definitely felt the wave of pure and unadulterated happiness they both emitted when they kissed.

Ryanna didn't have any more time to think as Ann turned in her arms and smiled at her.

"We love you, Ryanna." She said and Ryanna thought she heard it on multiple levels. "You are our dear friend and we wish to make love to you. Will you make love to us?"

Ryanna was caught in a wave of love, lust, understanding, connection... Words failed her. She could only lean forward and kiss Ann. On some level, she felt a raging desire to take this woman, to give herself to her, but what came out was tenderness. As she caressed her back, she accidently touched Anne-Marie. She felt a jolt of... something. Immediately, she touched her again, unwilling to forgo the contact and its effect. It touched something primeval in her. As if she recognized it deep down.

When Ann pushed her thigh between her legs, Ryanna reciprocated automatically. She heard Julia moan, then noticed that she was moaning in unison. She gave herself to their link, finding Julia there and... She knew she should have been startled to find Ann and Anne-Marie's presence too. That's when she realized they were all moaning synchronously. Not like an echo. As if the sounds came from the same throat.

Her/their desire rose and she thrust against Ann's thigh, as she angled her hips so the contact with her pearl was optimized against her own leg, as Anne-Marie humped her thigh with a leg wrapped around it, as she felt Anne-Marie's multiple fingers take her... as an act of love.

Ryanna couldn't help herself. She needed to give/take herself completely. Bereft of rational thought, caught in this maelstrom of love/passion/trust/tenderness and so much more, she opened herself completely. When she met Julia, they melded their shield around this new entity as she had done with her the day she had opened the impossible channel between them.

Julia had been aware of a connection with Anne-Marie and Ann from the moment Ann pulled her in their room and she watched them masturbate together. Something in the small woman was touching her at a fundamental level, creating a tenuous yet unbreakable emotional link, which might explain why neither Ryanna nor she could completely raise their shields when in the presence of Ann and Anne-Marie.

When Anne-Marie turned to her after kissing Ann, she conveyed worlds of meaning with her deep hazel eyes and the gentle smile stretching her sensual lips. Julia could only nod and answer "Yes" before leaning in to the most tender yet passionate kiss she had ever given/received.

Instinctively, she reached and touched Ann. Just as automatically, she reached for Ryanna through their link as she fully opened the shield that was essentially useless between the four of them. She understood the need and joined her shield with Ryanna's to contain their union on all the levels without excluding the external world in any way.

She felt her/their pleasure escalate as she gave/took herself without restraint.

The four women were sitting in the backyard, enjoying the beautiful June weather when they felt a wave of... pleasure? It lasted only a short moment, so they thought Ryanna and Julia had raised their shields tightly to avoid a repetition of the catastrophic events.

They were glad when the four of them had walked in the house, hand in hand. They knew how guilty Ryanna and Julia had felt over the whole incident. When Anne-Marie asked for their help as therapists, it had been as beneficial for them as for her. In the last two weeks and a half, they had regained their vivaciousness, their joie de vivre.

From what Ryanna and Julia had told them, they felt a connection with the two women. They had become fast friends over and above their therapist/patient relationship. The four women sitting outdoors certainly felt a link with them on so many levels, be it respect, gratitude, admiration, kinship, but they didn't know them on a personal level like Ryanna and Julia did.

After a while, Sylvie got up and stretched.

"Is anyone hungry?" She asked.

"You're going to ruin your appetite, honey." Patricia scolded her. "Supper will be ready in an hour."

"I know, mother." Sylvie grinned. "I'm only going to get an apple, or something healthy. Sheesh. I'm not in convalescence anymore."

"In that case, bring me back a danish, sis." Jade teased.

Sylvie turned her back on them and grumbled all the way to the house, over-acting the role of the put-upon victim.

She was bent over, looking at the selection of fruits in the fridge reaching for a bunch of green grapes when she realized that she was hearing a low buzzing, just at the edge of her perception. At first, she thought it was the fridge compressor. Then she went around the kitchen to try to pinpoint the source. Everywhere she turned, she got the same level, so it had to come from elsewhere. She walked slowly around the ground floor with no success. She went up the stairs slowly, trying to extend her senses. On the first floor, it still seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. On the second floor, she got the same result.

She heard noises coming from the open door to her room, but they were auditory level sounds. She walked quietly into the room. When she peeked into the bathroom, she saw the four women in the shower. Ann was making love to Anne-Marie. Ryanna and Julia were similarly engaged. With a smile, Sylvie pulled back, undetected.

She didn't see that Anne-Marie and Julia, their backs to the wall, were holding hands.

On her way out, she picked up the grapes and went out. By the time she arrived where her wives were seated she had dismissed the incident as a case of tinnitus and put it out of her mind.

An hour later, Patricia found the four women asleep in Ann and Anne-Marie's room.

She couldn't hold back a sigh of tenderness at the sight of the four naked women sleeping peacefully. Anne-Marie in Ann's arms and, beside them, Julia in her usual position, half draped over Ryanna.

Patricia almost went back out, but she knew they wouldn't want to miss the celebrations. She sat on the bed beside Julia and gently put a hand on her hip. Lightly caressing her side, she called to her. She felt a shiver run through her wife and heard her mumble something that sounded like "Thank you for sharing us", but she couldn't be sure.

When she leaned over and kissed Julia's cheek, she was rewarded by a brilliant smile.

"It's time to get up. The supper should be ready soon." She said quietly.

"Thank you, my love." Julia replied, just as quietly. "We'll be down in a minute."

Looking over at the other women, she saw three identical smiles which she returned. She didn't think anything of it. They had had a good time together and they were happy, after all. By the time she started down the stairs, she had put it out of her mind.

The women walked to the Community Center, hand in hand. Anne-Marie, in her second favorite place, snuggled under Ann's arm, holding her waist, beamed.

They found a spot on the grass to eat the delicious supper Pierre and his cohort of co-chefs and helpers had prepared. They laughed at Jade's antics as she pilfered choice tidbits under Pierre's nose with the help of a horde of children. By the time coffee was served, they were all laying on the ground, moaning as they rubbed their stuffed bellies, but they were among the first on their feet and the last to leave as the team of volunteers returned the area to its original pristine state.

A band of cousins played folk, rock and pop favorites for all ages and tastes. They all danced until they dropped, caught their breaths and were back on their feet again. As always, Ryanna, Julia, Jade and Sylvie were coaxed into a performance of their spectacular acrobatic dance. Everyone sang the traditional St-Jean-Baptiste nationalist songs with gusto, off-key or not. Robert Charlebois, Gilles Vigneault, Félix Leclerc, Claude Léveillé, Plume Latraverse, they were all part of the répertoire everyone knew by heart. Around 10:00pm, a bonfire was lit and circles of people danced a mad saraband around it.

By 11:00pm, the younger children had long succumbed to the call of the sandman and parents led the slightly older ones toward their beds, many in their arms, fast asleep. The party was still in full swing for a large crowd, but Ann and Anne-Marie pleaded a long day and walked slowly to the house.

They often stopped along the way to kiss and hug. Finally, they sat on the porch, Anne-Marie in her favorite place, on Ann's lap, arms around her neck, head on her shoulder. They listened to the distant music as they watched the stars.

"I understand Sylvie's pleasure at sitting here at night." Anne-Marie sighed.

"Yes. It reminds me of home." Ann told her. "Wait until we go camping in the tundra. You still have some light pollution here. Out there, it feels like you can reach and touch the stars."

"Didn't you say there are caribou and bears and wolves in the tundra?"

"So? You take precautions, just like we lock the doors in the city."

"Why don't we table that idea and come back to it at a much later date? I don't want to have nightmares."

"I'll be with you always, love. Nothing and nobody will hurt you."

"I know, my love. I know."

They were quiet for a while, soaking in the atmosphere of peace surrounding them.

"I'm glad we made love with Ryanna and Julia." Anne-Marie said quietly.

"So am I, love. They're good people. I like them a lot."

"You were right, my love." Anne-Marie said in her soft voice, after a moment of silence. "We made love to them, but with each other."

They locked gazes for a long moment, each communing with the other's soul.

"I am here." They whispered in one voice before kissing tenderly.

Ann picked her partner gently in her arms and walked to their bed.

Chapter 3

The three women were sitting at a picnic table in the shade. The others had elected to leave them alone so they could talk in peace.

"So you see, Karlie." Anne-Marie said. "We want to invest and I always heard that real estate was a good place to put your money. I know it's a lot of work, but I heard the return is worth it."

Karlie was silent for a moment as she considered what to say.

"You heard right, Anne-Marie. There are many ways to go about it. You can buy fixer-uppers, repair and flip them for a profit. If you know what you're doing, it can be very profitable, but it is labor intensive and any worker you hire means less profit."

"I can do most of the work myself." Ann told her. "But, as you said it is labor intensive and I don't have a lot of free time on my hands."

"There's buying rental properties like triplexes, quadraplexes or even blocks. If you do it right, you can be millionaire in fifteen to twenty years, though the market for that kind of investments fluctuates wildly. Also, you need to hire building managers for the largest, but they are the most profitable buildings. For the smaller, you have to collect rents, take care of the leasing and maintenance unless you make an arrangement with a contractor. It's a lot of work, but there is good money in it too."

""I see we'll have to think of something else." Anne-Marie said. "Neither of us is willing to quit our job to work on something like that."

"I agree." Ann added. "I love my new job and I wouldn't want to quit or loose it for anything in the world."

"Don't give up so quickly, ladies." Karlie said. "There is another way to invest in real estate. You still have to do your homework so you don't get swindled, but you can do it with a minimum of time on your part."

"What is that miraculous way to invest?" Anne-Marie asked ingenuously.

"You invest in a company that manages real estate. They are geared up to do all the work. They have staff and professionals in all the fields required, much like the firm you work at. The problem is to avoid the crooks and the swindlers. That's why I said you have to do your homework."

"That sounds like a plan." Anne-Marie went on. "I imagine we'd have to start by consulting the Better Business Bureau, the Consumer Association, the SEC and other places like that."

"That's the best way to do it if you don't know anybody in the field who could give you references."

"I know some people." Ann said. "But they are all in the Lower North Shore. I guess they could recommend companies in Montreal."

They let Karlie fidget on her bench for a moment before taking pity on her.

"That's okay, Karlie." Anne-Marie said, reaching across the table to put her hand on Karlie's arm. "Ryanna told us about your real estate company and we researched you superficially so we know you need money for expansion."

"I... Hum... I didn't..." She hesitated. "That's true. We have a good, solid, family owned company and we are looking for investment for the next stage of our expansion, but I... I don't know if you want to put your money with us. First, we need quite a bit of money. We have a good cash reserve, so we are looking for investors to match it at less than fifty percent for the new division because we want to maintain control. Second... The reason we need investors is to... No. Forget it. I'll help you set up your own company. I'll recommend trustworthy professionals for you to hire, but this project is not for you.... Ann? Are you all right?"

"Oh! No!" Anne-Marie cried as she lunged to catch Ann's slumping body. "Karlie, help me get her on the ground or, better yet, in the lounge chair over there."

Karlie was barely out of her seat when the patio doors crashed open. Ryanna and Julia raced over to Ann. Sylvie was only steps behind them with Patricia who had picked up some robes to cover their naked bodies, but they shrugged them off when they tried to cover them.

"What did you do, Karlie?" Julia growled as she helped Ryanna carry the shaking Ann to the chair. "We told you to shut the fuck up about this. The stupid project is not an emergency. It took six years for Sylvie to make her discovery. Ann gave us a map. All we have to do is learn to read it to get there."

Anne-Marie who had been laying on Ann's body, trying to reassure her, asked Ryanna to take over. She went to Karlie and sat her down on the bench and embraced her trembling body.

"That's okay, Karlie." She said in a soft voice. "She didn't mean it, sweetie. She loves you very much. We all do. You need to stay with us." While she was talking, she gestured to Julia who was shaking badly as she realized what she had done, pleading silently with her to sit on the other side of the woman and to hold her. "Come one, Karlie, we know you're a good girl and you didn't do or say anything wrong. Please forgive Julia. She loves you with all her heart and she's very sorry. She needs you to be strong for her. She's just a little girl after all. You're the strong one here. Please come back to us."

Sylvie was falling under the hypnotic voice when she heard a commotion in the copse of trees separating their property from the neighbor on that side. Turning, she saw Jade making a beeline straight for Karlie. She was all wet as if she had jumped out of the pool to race home which didn't help Sylvie as she intercepted her. She did her level best to explain what happened and what was going on. It didn't help matters that she didn't know the details herself.

"Please, she needs you to calm down and project love and reassurance to her. Anne-Marie is helping her and Julia is in a bad state too. They need you. We all need each other if I understand correctly." Sylvie told her.

All that time, Anne-Marie had kept her monologue in the same tone and cadence. Ann had fought off her anxiety attack and was sitting beside Julia, holding her as Ryanna knelt before her and held her hand while caressing her face gently, projecting all her love and support on their private link. Patricia had crawled on the table and was caressing her hair lovingly, kissing it every so often.

Anne-Marie gestured for Jade to kneel before Karlie and for Sylvie to touch her too.

"You see, dearest Karlie, everything is all right. Ann only had a panic attack and she's fine now, she's here for you. She loves you very much. Jade is here too. Your Jade who loves you with all her heart. You need to stay with us. Your family loves you. They need you. Julia needs you. You are a strong girl, I know you are. Your wife needs you, Karlie."

However long it took, Anne-Marie never let up, afraid she was the only link holding the women's tenuous grip on sanity. Karlie because of the onslaught of negative emotions Julia had projected in her anger and instinctive need to protect Ann. Julia for the deep-rooted moral conflict her actions had precipitated.

At one point Karlie leaned over and kissed Anne-Marie gently, whispering "Thank you", before turning to Julia and taking her in her arms.

"Julia, my love." Karlie told her softly, trying to imitate Anne-Marie. "Stay with us, darling. We love you with all our heart. And we need you very much. You are our wife and we are less without you. You complete us. We need you. Please stay with us..."

On and on she went until Julia collapsed in her arms, wracked with deep sobs, wailing her pain and apologies as tears poured from her red-rimmed eyes.

Anne-Marie stood and leaned over to whisper in Karlie's ear who nodded her understanding and stood up, keeping Julia in her loving embrace.

"I love you Julia. We all love you. Let us show you just how much we love you, baby." Karlie picked her up in her arms and walked to the house, their other wives kept a hand on Julia, caressing her as they followed. When they reached the stairs, Patricia stepped beside Karlie and wrapped her arm around her waist to guarantee her for the climb.