There Must Be A Mistake Ch. 27

She sat down on the edge of the bed with her head in her hands, and began to sob.

"I am 24 years old, when am I going to start acting like it?"

She stood up undid her bra, unbuttoned her skirt and slid down the zipper.

She screamed at herself, "Take it off dammit, take it all off."

She dropped her skirt to the floor, pulled off her panties, and finally took off her bra. Now for the big reveal. She had to face Adam: NAKED.

She walked to the bathroom opened the door and stepped in.

"Adam can I see you for a minute?"

There was no answer.

"Adam can I see you for a moment?"

There was no answer.

"Adam get the fuck out here!"

"I was washing my hair and didn't hear you. I'm sorry Lau..."

He had no words for what he was seeing. Laura was stunning. She had a beautiful face, and an athlete's long lean body. He stepped out of the shower and walked towards her. They were inches apart when he put a finger up as if he was thinking. He got down on his knees and began kissing her toes.

It broke the tension she was feeling throughout her body, because she started to giggle.

"Stand up you asshole."

He stood up and attacked her mouth.

"He looked into her eyes, and asked if she was still nervous."

"No, I had a discussion with the little girl inside me and told her to take a hike. I'm a grown up, 24 years old woman, and it's time for me to act that way."

"Does that mean we are going to fool around?"

"Absolutely."

"Let me wash this stuff out of your hair, and off your face."

Adam was very careful in the shower. He didn't know how far she would allow him to go, so he stayed clear of every area he could get in trouble in. Fooling around was much more important than playing around in the shower. He washed her hair gently, getting the appropriate moans and groans as he did. When they were finished, they towel dried each other gently. She did not put a towel around her as she walked to their bedroom.

Adam was very happy she had found this new freedom for herself, and was sure she was ready to make love with him.

Laura climbed onto her side of the bed, deliciously naked for the first time.

Adam turned off the light, and climbed onto his side of the bed naked, as always. He moved towards her and began ardently kissing her, and making his intentions known.

Laura put her thumb and forefinger on the pressure points behind his neck causing him to scream out in pain.

"What were you doing Adam?"

"You said we could fool around."

"Yes, on December 26."

"You didn't say that."

"You weren't satisfied with tonight?"

"Tonight was exquisite; there are no other words to describe it."

"Are you looking to destroy that memory?"

"You cheated again."

"Get use to it."

"Good night Laura."

Good night Adam, I love you. I'll see you at 5:00 AM."

******************

Joe said to Sandy, "I want you to look at this account and tell me what you see."

"Where did you get $10 million Joe?"

"Let me ask the questions Sandy and we will get to the other parts later. I've made a lot of friends here, very good friends. We would do anything for each other. You have been gone for a year and a half, and I became the worst Doctor in the world. One day a woman was brought in here. She worked for the spacecraft facility a few miles from here. I gave her a perfunctory exam, I knew what she needed, went back to the desk, and wrote it on her chart. A small wiry man came up to me, and called out 'Doctor.' I turned around and said, "Yes." The next thing I knew I was being held up by two men, being dragged out the emergency exit.

I yelled I'm going to sue all of you, when this man in charge said, "Put your gun in his mouth, and shut him up." He did, and I did. This short man's name is Colonel Lucius Canyon. We are now best friends, and I'm going to tell you why without interruption. I told him the reason I was like this was because I went through a divorce that was so painful I had no reason to continue living. My wife had a lawyer who took everything I ever owned, including my children. If I want to see them, I have to go to Vermont. I went through the entire divorce proceeding including the way you looked at me when I left. If I could have gotten close to you, I would have killed you on the spot. I knew you didn't like it here, but it was no reason to get a divorce. Austin is an hour south, Dallas is an hour and a half northwest. It's an easier commute than Long Island to New York City. What more could you possibly want?

Lucius asked me what I wanted to do about the situation. I told him I want my kids back. He said to me, "There are a few ways to do it. We can kill your wife, or send her to jail. He wasn't joking Sandy, if you looked at his face when he said it, he was absolutely serious. You hurt me so badly I considered killing you, but I went the other way.

I told Lucius I didn't want anyone getting hurt. He told me it would take more time, but he could get it done before Thanksgiving. Then he said,

"From this point on, you will not talk to me about this situation. For you it does not exist. You know nothing about it. You are like being treated as if you are the president. It is called 'Plausible Deniability'. You will not leave Temple. You will show up at work everyday, and do your regular chores on your off days. You'll make no changes in your habits."

"That was it, I didn't know a thing from that day forward. I want you to look at this new entry, and another account that is part of a portfolio opened in my name. I will never use it, unless you say you and the children are not coming with me."

"Oh my God, Joseph, this says $1 billion. Where did you get $1 billion?"

"I got $700 million from your parents, and $300 million from another resident of the west side of the river. You can close your mouth now, while I explain the reason why."

Lucius doesn't do anything without a plan in place. He checked me out first to make sure I was telling the truth. Then he had you checked out to find out why you divorced me. Do you know you tell that story to anyone who asks, while you are dancing? Do you remember a doctor by the name of Benjamin Braddock? He has a five-story home he would like to show you. It is five blocks from Massachusetts General, and one block from Beacon Hill. He is actually an out of work actor, who did an excellent investigative job for Lucius. Part one of this plan for you was already in action, before he found out about your parents involvement in the divorce.

Unfortunately, you had already turned onto Clark Road, the turn sign had been removed, and the road behind you had been closed. The Lincoln was in place with our two people safely inside. You couldn't have hurt them if you tried. You came roaring around the corner, hit the car exactly where our engineer knew you would. Your airbag exploded, and knocked you unconscious for about four seconds. During those seconds, a cloth containing chloroform was placed over your mouth and nose, and it put you into a deep sleep. Over the next 30 minutes, you were given tiny amounts of vodka and Valium, which would show up in your system hours later.

The turn sign was put back in place, the sawhorses were removed, and Clark Road was reopened. Our work was done.

Unfortunately, the Mel Gibson and Danny Glover got involved. No one in our group anticipated this happening. These two men, in their early 20's were driving sports cars in the middle of the night, side by side, down a deserted road. It was a recipe for disaster, even if you weren't there, but you were, and you were still unconscious.

Our crew had already left the area, waiting for you to wake up and call the police. That would have been the end of phase 1. Rory and Lucy would go through the same problems but we would have asked for more money from your parents. Shortly after you got a new car, the police would find with a small amount of personal use marijuana. They would test your blood and none would be found in it. You would be cleared of a crime again. A month or so later, with our children in the car, you would have a flat tire, and a local policeman would stop by to help you. He would open your trunk and find three 20-pound bags of marijuana inside. You would be arrested for trafficking in illegal drugs, and sent to jail. I would get my children back, and there would be nothing your parents could do about it, because they would not have enough money to fight me."

"Joseph, you would have gone through all of that to get Deborah and Rebecca back?"

"I would have done anything I had to do, to get them back. I would walk through fire to get you back."

"Now you have three choices to make Sandra, and all of them are going to be hard for you to make.

First, I will give you the $1 billion, but there is a catch. Before you can use any of it, you must continue to live with your parents, until they are both dead. You and the children must live under their control, as you have for the past 18 happy months. If the children decide to go to college, and your parents are unwilling to pay for it, they will have to get student loans. It will be very hard for them considering you have so much money locked away. You are 34. Your mother is 55. Her mother is approaching 75 years old. Her mother is 93. Considering the longevity of your mother's lineage, you will have a long time to wait to use that money. However, that is only your first choice.

Second, I will give you the $10 million that is in this checkbook. You can leave your parents and go wherever you want to go. It is not a great deal of money, at least not what your use to, but I think you will be able to get by on it for a long period of time. This is every penny I have in this world, except what you will find in my wallet on December 25.

Third, I am going on the spacecraft as their Doctor. I would like you to go with me as my wife, and our two girls. Space has been reserved for us but I have to let them know within the next four days, if it is just me, or the four of us that are going."

"Were Rory, and Lucy for real?"

"Yes, Lucy is still in Massachusetts General, and will be for three more weeks. The doctor's in Montpelier totally misdiagnosed her. They are going to be sued through their noses. Her spleen kept expanding, until it was three times its normal size. It could have burst at any second. It would have killed Lucy and her baby. In retrospect, they waited too long to take her there, but hindsight is always 20/20."

"If the girls don't want to go Joseph, I can't go."

I know, that is why I offered you the $10 million. It's all the money I have in the world."

"What about the $1 billion?"

"It doesn't matter either way to me, it only matters to you. If you are staying, you know the rules. I will have a lawyer fill out the contract and have you sign it. On December 25, I will leave on a journey that I will never return from, but at least I will know it was my family's choice not to come with me, and I did not abandon them."

"I love you Joe."

"I know, even though I hated you for divorcing me, I never stopped loving you. Go talk to the girls, and don't rush them. It's a life altering decision. They will never see this planet again. They may never step foot on another planet. There will be some kids older than they are, and others younger than they are. I don't believe there are any their exact ages. I'll ask for the demographic breakdown of the other children. Let me know what they decide, I'll be at the hospital."

***************

Joe arranged for a tour of the scientific building for Sandra, Deborah, and Rebecca for Saturday afternoon at 2 PM. The girls were so excited about it, they were a pain in the ass all morning.

"Dad call them, they'll let us come over early."

"Do you know what they do in that building? They have guards all around it day and night, because of what they do in that building. You should be honored they have given us permission to go inside. The people in their have developed more than 700 patents over the past eight years because of their space program. That's more than NASA or any other private program in history."

"Please call them daddy, you are their friend. They'll do it for you. You are important to them. "

"Sandy, why did we decide to have children?"

"I think we were both horny one night, and our common sense got overruled."

"I think it happened to us twice, either that or I've been drinking."

Deborah said, "That's not funny daddy."

"You look funny Deborah. Give me one of the five phones that are on the table. I'll let you listen as they tell me no."

"There is only one phone on the table dad."

"I must've been drinking a lot."

"Mom, hit him please."

Joe dialed, asked the question, and put the phone on speaker, while waiting for the answer he expected. His head hit the table when he heard,

"Sure Doc, come on over."

"I'm going to kill myself."

"Told you so."

"Now I'm sure I'm going to kill myself."

Sandy said, "Just think of all the things you were willing to do to get them back."

"What things, it must've been a case of temporary insanity. I think I just wanted you, and they were the booby prize."

"Stop it daddy and get moving."

"Someone stole my car keys."

"They are right here daddy, next to your wallet and handkerchief."

"It doesn't look like I'm going to get out of this, does it?"

"No Joseph, not while they are still alive."

"What a wonderful thought."

"Daddy, the car is that way."

"I was thinking about an alternate plan of action."

"Killing us won't work."

"Why is that?"

"Mommy won't stop crying for a month. You can't stand it when she cries. You would have to kill mommy too. You love mommy too much to kill her, and if you did, you would go into a deep depression after realizing what you have done. You would take a knife, cut both your wrists vertically, your carotid artery, stab yourself in the heart, and call 911 so the police will find you. You were always very organized that way."

"Very well done Deborah, and excellently thought out. I know what you're going to be when you grow up."

"What do you think I'm going to be when I grow up daddy?"

"A beautician."

"Kill him mother or I will."

"Better still, get in the back seat of the car, and buckle up. Maybe your father can find his way to the scientific building."

"What building are we going to?"

"Don't start daddy, we can't replace your genes, but we can replace you."

"Okay, but don't touch anything, I don't want you turning into frog man."

"Spiderman."

"Whoever.

**************

Good morning Doctor Finch, it's good to see you again. Who are these fine young ladies?"

"Andy, this is my wife Sandra, my daughter Rebecca, and my daughter the big mouth."

"Daddy."

"She is sometimes called Deborah."

"Good afternoon, will everyone over the age of 21 pass through the gate, except for their purses. Everyone under the age of 21 must put their shoes dresses bras and panties on the carrier."

"Mom!"

"As you can tell Mrs. Finch, we don't get a lot of young women here. We love the reaction we get from the young girls."

"Andy, normally I would have expected a three-page dissertation on protocol from the big mouth."

"He would have deserved it."

"Your escort will meet you on the second floor. She is a petite little thing, so be nice to her."

When the elevator door opened, Monty was standing there waiting.

"Hello Doctor Finch, Mrs. Finch, please step out of the elevator. Deborah, Rebecca remain in there I have to give you your instructions. Doctor, you may show your wife around, I will be escorting the children."

"Thank you Monty."

Monty got into the elevator, and put the key into the elevator panel. She let the door close and locked it into position. She looked at the two girls, with a really angry face.

"There are things at each station that scientists have been working on for weeks and months that could change this world's future. The spacecraft, 'The Best Luck' is completed, and is in the fitting out process. What the scientists are working on now is for Spaceship 2, which is already being designed. It will be ready to fly in less than 10 years. If you think that's a long time, ask NASA how long it takes them to go from concept to flight. They will tell you it is between 25 and 40 years. 10 years in the space industry is nothing. When I'm asking you to do is to keep your hands away from the desks. Don't touch the computers or anything on the tables. It may look like garbage to you, but it could be very important to a scientist. You can ask me anything you want, and if I don't know the answer, which will more than likely be the truth, I will find someone who is not busy to give it to you. Are we okay?"

They replied in duet, "Yes ma'am."

"Okay let's go have some fun with science and math."

As Monty opened the elevator door, has Gordon got out of the other elevator. Monty screamed, "Stand up straight dammit."

"I am Monty, honest."

"Did you just disagree with me?"

"Uh, yes, but in a good way."

"Little turd, I will meet you tonight a training."

"It's Saturday, we don't train on Saturdays."

"Did you just disagree with me again?"

Gordon mumbled, "Am I ever going to get to the bathroom?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"See me in six hours, and I'll let you know."

"Thank you very much Monty."

"You disagreed with me twice, didn't you."

"Yes, but I wasn't disagreeable."

"I'll go easy on you this time, after 100 extra push-ups."

"Thank you Monty."

"I wasn't finished. 100 extra leg lifts."

"You didn't answer me Gordon."

"I didn't know if you were finished Monty."

"Come here little turd."

"Yes Monty, are you going to hit me for disagreeing with you?"

"When you're not looking I will. However, I want to know if you are working on anything important now."

"No, I'm just going over some data for the launch."

"Excellent, I have a job for you."

"As long as it's not dissecting another Buffalo, I'll do it."

"Gordon, this is Rebecca and Deborah Finch. They are Doctor Finch's daughters. You are now going to take them on an educational tour of this facility. You will answer all their questions, except those that are classified or have implications of patentable products. Girls, this is Gordon Luck. He is a senior scientist. He is brilliant. He has a photographic memory, and that the age of five helped NASA save a project called Orion, which you may have heard of already. His entire family, from the oldest to the youngest they are gifted beyond measure. I will let him tell you about each of them as you walk along. Gordon the girls are your responsibility, if you lose one, you will answer to me."

"Monty, do you have any handcuffs?"

"Move out Gordon."

Gordon started running down the aisle and yelled, "Come on girls, the fun is down here."

As he passed his father's office door, he saw him sitting at his desk. He motioned to the girls to follow him.

"Dad, do you have a moment?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"I'd like to introduce you to Doctor Finch's daughters, Deborah and Rebecca."

"Ladies, this is the man who started it all, my dad, Doctor Even Luck."

Rebecca took a deep breath in. "I heard about you in school. You're the man who made radio waves go around mountains."

I smiled, "Yes, that's me. What are you doing here today?"

"Our dad is going to be on board as your spacecraft, Doctor. My mom said it's up to us to decide if we want to go with you or not. If we go she will go with us. If we don't she will stay with us. We know she wants to go with our dad, because she's been a very sad without him. However, this is a very big step for us. We're 11 and 12 years old, how many people are going to be on board our age?"