The Princess Trap

By Tyrone Slothrop & Wanda Cunningham

 

Chapter 13: Business, Basketball, Life, They're All Just Games - Junecellular Building, Pleasanton, July 3

The red striped wire annoyed Cecilia. It appeared on the database, but the final printed specifications called for a red wire. The internship Dad had set up meant helping in the quality department monitoring the final assembly of the diagnostic kits, preparing for shipment the very second trial approval came through. Dad had made sure Alan would have plenty of time to make the late afternoon games at the basketball camp.

Brian manned the workstation next to hers. At first, they both thought the jobs were something their parents made up to 'keep them busy', but by the end of the first day, she was finding it to be interesting.

Bob Margolis was very young for his position as head of Quality Process for Junecellular, but had the confidence and easy going manner of someone much older. He enjoyed having "The Heirs Apparent" (as the kids were known jokingly by the staff) working for him and found them to be refreshing in their open eyed questioning of the obvious. Bob knew that was a crucial element for performing his group's mission.

Brian and Cecilia were 'random checks', told to take any part from the plant floor, and run a thorough check—what Bob called a total genealogy. That meant look at all documents, specifications, supplier records, receiving records and other testing and movement records. Most of the time, it all added up and was perfect. Brian had caught a minor error in a receiving document and Cecilia had found a serial number entered incorrectly. Bob had explained the level of perfection required in the final product, and the regulatory fines and issues at stake. Lives depended on the process delivering as perfect and consistent a product as possible.

So Cecilia had her striped wire on a small assembly. Every computer record said it was perfect, and every written record said it was perfect, except one. Then she had talked to the people in receiving, who told her the parts had a striped wire during trial, and they had heard from the engineers that it was supposed to go to red, but it never had. They showed her the same computer display she had seen in her office.

The engineer who had signed the conflicting paper was no longer with the company and the department head was very dismissive of this little boy telling him there was a problem. He showed Cecilia the same computer screen and told her to forget it.

The woman at the supplier proved to be very helpful over the phone and mentioned to Cecilia that they had been expecting a change in design, but it had never come. They were shipping the same assembly that they had for the engineering test. Cecilia was almost ready to give up and write it off as one strange spec document, especially since everyone else seemed to think it was all fine. Who was she to question it when all these adults with college degrees and years of experience thought it was nothing?

She decided to send her write up to Bob, with the issue unresolved, which she knew would cause red flags to go up.

After lunch, Bob found her.

"Alan, come into my office, please." Bob said, a grim look on his normally sunny face. Cecilia swallowed hard and followed him.

Inside Bob's office were Dad and Janet Vincent, who Cecilia remembered was the head of Information Technology.

"Alan, I received a call from a supplier today, reaming me out for having some kid challenge their deliveries. " Dad began. When Cecilia was about to talk, Dad held up his hand for silence.

"Don't worry, you did your job. You had a perfect right to ask your questions and he should have known that. So it made me suspicious. Meanwhile, Bob here was looking at your report and called me. You just saved all of us, Alan. We were being set up to fail an audit by the FDA. Janet found a spurious line of code in our control software which kept the old spec from a failed trial in the system instead of the final one. That engineer who left and a systems person who recently quit left a time bomb to ruin our approval. We would have lost at least a year and probably our whole investment. Thank you, son."

Struck speechless when Dad shook her hand while Bob and Janet smiled in agreement, Cecilia felt like she was walking on air.

"Now we've got a lot of mess to clean up, and you are going to help us, but right now, you've got a game to go to, and I'm coming to watch. Ok, Allie?"

Cecilia smiled. Dad only used Alan's nickname when he was especially happy.

Brian and Cecilia were on the court and Bill Casey noticed Alan's change in playing style. Instead of going for every shot, Cecilia now made plays, passing the ball and being more concerned with getting the team to score. John Carter and Marissa were in the stands, screaming and applauding.

Larry Elger found himself really enjoying the game. He relaxed, having just finished a cell phone call with Sean, his partner covering the other twin.

He remembered meeting Sean, something she did not. Larry's last mission for his old organization was Somalia, tracking a terrorist group reputed to be expert in chemical weapons. He found them just as they were demonstrating their wares for one of the warlords in a small village.

Markets work on everything. If there is a buyer, there will be sellers. The warlords in the genocidal mess that the Horn of Africa had become were growing impatient with famine as a tool of power, so they sought faster methods. Enter a terror group looking for a sanctuary and protected place to train and refit.

Larry and his team reached the village just after the chemical cloud had been released and watched the Blackhawk spiral into the ground. They had killed the terrorists and discovered the winds had saved the village, but the Blackhawk crew was dead except for the pilot. Larry fought the flames and burning aviation fuel to get her out the wreck and made sure the medical evacuation teams were alerted. He turned her over to the Army team and disappeared.

Sean learned later from the helo pilot of the medevac that a guy had been on the scene and was the one responsible for her being still alive. At that time, Sean had not been sure that was a good thing.

Two months later, back in the USA, Larry showed up at her VA hospital. He introduced himself and despite Sean's reluctance to let anyone see her in her disfigured state, persevered through her recovery and never left her side. Sean was the first positive thing he had done since his parents died and he began his career as a vengeance squad. He was determined to never let her go.

Sean grew to appreciate Larry, despite her blaming him for allowing her to live on in her painful state. For three years he stayed by her, all during rehab, skin grafts, and painful physical therapy, until she was released.

Sean told Larry she did not love him because she felt such a debt to him. Larry told her that was as good a place to start as any.

Larry was shaken from his trip down memory lane by his phone vibrating. A text message from Sean.

BLACK ICE QUEEN> CISSY HAS A BOY FRIEND. SHOULD BE A CHALLENGE FOR OUR LITTLE GIRL

LOVELY LINDA> ALAN MUCH BETTER AT B-BALL- FOR A WHITE KID ANYWAY

BLACK ICE QUEEN> RACIST JEW!

LOVELY LINDA> UPPITY SCHWARZES!

BLACK ICE QUEEN> MISS MY LOVELY LINDA

LOVELY LINDA> PRINCIPAL PLANNING TRIP HOME IN FIVE DAYS- SAVE SOME BROWN SUGAR FOR LINDA

BLACK ICE QUEEN> EVER READ 12^TH NIGHT?

LOVELY LINDA> SHAKESPEARE?

BLACK ICE QUEEN> YES- WATCHING A VERSION BEFORE OUR EYES

LOVELY LINDA> LOVE YOU-GOT TO GO NOW

BLACK ICE QUEEN> LOVE TOO-BYE

 

Chapter 14: A Professional Shoulder - Santa Barbara, July 3

June Carter found herself with mixed emotions about the arrival of her new houseguest. Miriam Sinclair was one of her oldest friends and was renowned for her books on relationships and child development. She was a real MD, a psychiatrist who possessed what was viewed as an unorthodox approach to her work by the medical establishment, and was wildly received by the general public.

June wished the reunion was strictly recreational.

"Miriam, I am so glad you could come and stay with us for the holiday. John just cannot come down until next week and it seems so empty around here. "

"It's my pleasure June. When you called it was a great excuse to ignore pressing stuff I hate to do. " Miriam said.

Alan had met Miriam several times, but never as Cissy. She fussed over his looks and complimented him on how nicely he was developing. Alan liked Miriam; she had always been easy to talk to. She made kids feel as if they were real people.

Alan's ears really perked up when he heard that Doctor Sinclair was going to visit his Dad up in Pleasanton. Since he knew Dad and Cecilia were coming back next week, that did not make sense, unless Miriam was acting as some kind of go between. Maybe Mom and Dad were patching things up?

Alan had settled into a new routine, a morning run with Kim then come back in and wash and primp for a day at the store. In the early evenings, he and Kim settled into Cissy's room for a session of Mortal Quest, where Bandar and Wizard Erindor had made an alliance. They even had encountered Fungo and Maranta, (Brian and Cecilia) playing as a team. Alan knew their names, but maintained a display of ignorance as to who they were, as did Cecilia.

Alan was quite happy, and had almost completely overcome the handicap at the keyboard his new nails had effected. The only drawback to having Kim as a new friend was the fact of keeping up the masquerade almost full time.

Alan found himself increasingly more comfortable in being Cissy, and presenting her to the world. He knew her, and liked her. What he was not sure of was the question : was she Cecilia or someone new? What had started out as a plot and masquerade was becoming something more.

Miriam sought Alan out and chatted with him. She asked few questions, and mostly talked about herself and some patients she had been treating. Alan felt totally at ease with her.

She then asked Cissy a question which made Alan grasp for the 'right' answer.

"Cissy, do you like Kim? He seems like such a great kid, and he is really cute," Miriam asked, smiling innocently.

Alan hesitated. Should he answer like Cecilia? How would Cecilia really answer? Especially to Miriam, who was very smart and could read through deception and even self deception. He settled on the best he could, the truth.

"It's nice having a friend next door. And he and I have fun. And I guess he is cute."

Miriam looked at him carefully and let it drop.

Late that night, Alan was in his nightgown, his make up off and chatted with Cecilia on the laptop.

ALAN>WHATS THIS KIM LOOK LIKE?

CISSY> SEE PICTURE

ALAN>GOT MORE PICS?

CISSY>HERE THEY COME

ALAN>MAJOR FOX!! DOES HE LIKE ME/YOU?

CISSY>WE GO RUNNING AND HE LIKES MORTAL QUEST- HE PLAYS SOCCER

ALAN>LOVE THAT HAIR! DOES HE LIKE ME???

CISSY> GUESS SO- NOT TRYING TO SEDUCE HIM YOU KNOW

ALAN> DON'T YOU DARE DISCOURAGE HIM! I AM BACK NEXT WEEK!

CISSY> WE SWITCHING BACK?

ALAN> DON'T YOU WANT TO?

CISSY> YES, MAYBE, DON'T KNOW. LIKE WORKING AT STORE

ALAN> I AM NOT GOING TO BE BOY MUCH LONGER. WANT ME BACK

CISSY> SHOULD WE TELL MOM & DAD?

ALAN>NOT IF WE CAN AVOID IT.

CISSY> MIRIAM IS HERE. SHE WILL SEE DAD BEFORE YOU COME BACK

ALAN> THAT'S GOOD-MOM MUST BE USING HER TO MAKE UP WITH DAD!! GOOD!!

CISSY> YES. WHAT DO I DO WITH KIM? HE IS MY FRIEND AND DON'T WANT TO MESS WITH HIM

ALAN> JUST LET HIM KNOW I/YOU LIKE HIM

CISSY> HOW FAR DO I GO?

ALAN> NOT FAR YOU MORON- I AM NOT SLUT!!!

CISSY> KISS HIM?

ALAN> IT WONT KILL YOU- WILL OWE YOU MUCHO

CISSY> DON'T KNOW

ALAN> JUST DON'T MAKE HIM RUN AWAY- U CAN DO IT

CISSY>OK- SEE YOU

ALAN>BYE

Alan would later remember the idea of kissing Kim as having been Cecelia's suggestion.

 

Chapter 15: Fireworks And Kisses - Santa Barbara, July 4

Working the tourist flood at the shop had drained the life from Alan. His feet ached and he had added the eyelashes back to his everyday look once more. Mary had told him they really 'did it' for him.

Tripling the sales volume of his section in a very short time brought forth a real sense of achievement and respect from the group at June's Accessories. The shop had become a comfortable place in his world now.

The town seemed full of people milling up and down the shopping district, brought in by the July Fourth holiday, and a great many of them managed to find their way into June's Accessories. He had been working non-stop since ten in the morning and it was now five pm.

"Cissy, go home and get some rest. All the real customers are gone and we'll just get browsers for the last two hours. Go home now and enjoy the fireworks," Sylvia said, an uncharacteristic smile on her face.

Alan looked up and saw Kim standing in the doorway.

"Want a ride home, Cissy? My driver can drop you off," Kim offered, grinning in a way that made light dance in his eyes.

Alan immediately saw the set up and decided to stop caring. He liked Kim, who was the best friend he had had in his life. He loved his sister and she wanted him to be nice to Kim for her sake. Okay, he could be nice to his best friend for his sister, what was hard about that?

He stepped from behind the counter and laughed up at the taller boy. "I should make you buy something here, Kim. No wait, I'll buy it, I get a discount." Still laughing, he led the now worried Kim over to the counter for hair accessories.

Alan picked out a particularly frilly set of hair scrunchies and Mary giggled with him as she rang up the purchase on Cissy's account.

"Here, Kim. Now you can wear these while we're running," Alan said slyly.

Kim burst out into laughter, grabbing one and pulling his hair into a pony tail similar to the way Alan wore his for their beach jogs. Alan told him he had it all wrong and redid it to Mary's increased amusement.

The two kids went out for ice cream, laughing and enjoying the bustling crowds on the street and the sunny afternoon. Alan forgot how tired he was. Kim talked about his day practicing with the school soccer team, and they discussed their new theories about gaining points at Mortal Quest.

Sean Taylor observed the pair and grinned. She wondered how far Cissy would let Kim take this. While to the kids, it was an innocent discussion, to the rest of the world, it looked very much like a very pretty girl and her boyfriend. Sean was having fun trying to guess whether either of the pair was conscious of what was going on.

She reflected on the way her relationship with Larry had evolved. At first, it was very one sided, Larry giving unconditionally and Sean not taking, but more absorbing his devotion, while she was healing both physically and emotionally.

He asked her to join him in his "consulting" business, which was really freelance security work, some of which meant cleaning up a mess that governments could not acknowledge a role in correcting.

So Sean had really learned to kill, swiftly and dispassionately. Her third mission had been the one that aligned her moral sense with her new line of work. Her prey had been a slave trader in Nigeria. While Larry was removing his banker, Sean had found the man taking delivery of a truck load of girls from a remote village. After looking at the scared and abused 'product' in the cargo bed, she had snapped the man's neck in front of the girls. They returned to their village with tales of a tall and deeply scarred woman warrior with one breast, like the old stories. Sean sent word to the village leader that they too would be visited if they continued to deal with the likes of the man whose body was lashed to the truck engine hood.

Sean hoped that the 'Amazon' legend, of women so fierce they hacked off one breast to allow free movement of their sword arm would resonate somehow with local customs. It was the first time she used her scarred body in a positive way.

After that, she gained the confidence to take Larry as a lover.

Alan agreed to meet Kim that evening to watch the fireworks from the bluff overlooking the beach, halfway between their houses. In true geek fashion, they both agreed to bring their laptops, hoping to maintain wireless connection to Alan's network.

June and Miriam were sitting at the kitchen table when Alan came in and announced his plans for the evening. June got a quick puzzled look quickly covered up by a smile and Miriam just started chattering about what a nice boy Kim was and what did Cissy plan to wear that evening? It might turn chilly after all.

Alan had not considered it, but knew that would be out of character. A real girl would have begun planning even before the plans were made.

"I guess just jeans and I'll bring a sweater. We're just going to play Mortal Quest until the fireworks start."

"Okay sweetie. You sure you don't want to wear something a little prettier to impress that nice boy?" Mom asked mischievously.

"Mom! He's my friend!" Alan whined without thinking.

"Okay Cissy. Calm down. We're having dinner in a half an hour." Mom said, smiling again.

By ten o'clock the fireworks display over the marina flickered out, the final detonation still softly echoing. Kim's laptop battery showed no life, leaving the two kids sitting on a bench surrounded by well-maintained shrubbery, looking at the ocean with no distractions. On a long summer night, it wasn't really completely dark yet with a few reddish clouds glowing over the Pacific Ocean.

As far as they knew, they were alone. Alan felt Kim's arm move around his shoulders, his hand settling gently on Alan's sweater. With the wind blowing, it cut some of the chill of the night. Alan's mind started to race with the hope that that would be as far as Kim would go and the sure knowledge that that was unlikely. He was very torn inside whether to pretend to be his sister or be Kim's real friend and tell him the truth.

Just when Alan was about to blurt out the whole plot, Kim spoke.

"Cissy?" Kim asked.

Alan reflexively turned his head towards Kim and was overwhelmed when Kim's tongue suddenly went past his lips and locked with his. Alan went into a state of time suspension.

Dribblets of thought spun around in his mind:

Cissy would definitely do this with Kim

Alan would not ever do this with Kim

This is not a good time to tell Kim he is not a girl

He better tell him now before this gets worse

Maybe this is all he'll do?

Aaaaaacccckkk! I'm kissing a boy!!!!!!!!

 

Alan had absolutely no idea how long he had been playing tongue hockey with Kim. It seemed like it had been going on for days.

When a ship's captain and bridge crew are bickering and going crazy, the engine room will try to respond to the chaotic commands, often to disastrous result. Alan's body had a massive nervous reaction, resulting in a quivering shudder, probably due to the confusion in Alan's normally smooth command center.

Kim's hand fell from Alan's shoulder smack onto Alan's breast and in a reflex reaction, made a grasping motion that amounted to a squeeze.

Simultaneously, Alan's spasm stopped and he gasped for air. Kim, never intending to grab Cissy's boob, pulled away, reading the spasm and the gasp as total disapproval.

"Oh my God, Cissy, I'm sorry! I'm Sorry! It was an accident! I'm Sorry!" Kim jumped up, and before Alan could react., he had fallen off the bench onto the sand pathway with his head landing in the scrub thistles. The eager plant immediately entangled Alan's carefully curled and waved black hair.

"Oww! Ouch! Owww!" Alan yelped as he tried to sit up only to have his hair pull him back into the thistles.

Kim, weeping openly at having offended Cissy and causing her such distress, still had the presence of mind to pull out his pocket knife and start cutting Alan free from the bush, taking care not to cut his tresses in the process.

"I'm sorry Cissy. It was an accident! Please forgive me! It was all my fault!" Kim said as he cut the brittle twig like branches.

Five minutes later, Alan sat calmly, pulling the thistle twigs from his head while Kim cried, leaning on Alan's shoulder. Apparently, Kim had never tried kissing a girl before this. Many girls had kissed him, but they had always initiated it. Cissy was the first who had not chased him. And he never meant to touch her 'there', that was an accident.

Sean Taylor removed her gloved hand from her mouth, hoping she could avoid the hysterical laughing fit which almost gave away her vantage point.

Alan waited for Kim to calm down. "Kim, it's ok. I'm not mad. I like you but maybe we should hold off for now? Just a few days? Please?"

Kim perked up immediately. "Okay, Cissy. We're still friends for now? Please?"

Alan nodded, relieved to have the opportunity to let this cool off and get the real Cissy back. He was afraid to tell Kim he had just kissed a boy. He was afraid to tell anyone this had happened.

Kim went on talking. "Cissy? I know this is a stupid time, but my 'rents are throwing a big party next week, and I know you and your Mom are invited. I really want you to be there or I'll go nuts with no one to talk to. Will you come?"

"Ok, Kim. I'll have to check with Mom. Are you sure your mom is okay with it?" Alan asked. Mom had given him a real chat about Marge and her social concerns. Frankly, he would be happy to hand all that nonsense off to Cecilia when she got back.

"Marge loves you, Cissy. She talks about you a lot. I'll see you tomorrow! Bye!" Kim ran off up the path to his house. Alan walked the fifty yards to his house.

June and Miriam had witnessed the whole thing from their vantage point, without the benefit of sound, like Sean had from her transmitter and bugs.

"I hate spying on them, Miriam." June said.

"Too bad, Junie. You were worried about the twins and how in hell am I supposed to advise you without knowing what's really going on? It looks like we have an inconclusive development down there.

"I'm heading to Oakland tomorrow to check on the other one, and I have an early flight. See you in a few days, Junie Honey." Miriam said, kissing June on the cheek.

Apparent Calm Before Apparent Storm – Santa Barbara, July 6

The masquerade had changed Alan's perception of clothing from occasional playing to everyday existence. He accepted the planning, fussing and meticulous process dressing required, but had only recently begun to appreciate shopping as a vocation rather than a chore. Mary had taken a few hours off to accompany Alan in finding 'the right dress' for tomorrow's party at the Olangers, and lead him on a whirlwind expedition through the downtown 'finer' stores. Alan surmised that Mary knew every saleswoman and department manager by first name as well as their entire history and probable criminal record.

Alan lost count after twenty three dresses tried on for Mary's opinion and his approval. Mom had the good sense to avoid this, counting on Mary to keep it within bounds. Alan was not sure Mary was playing that way, given some of the dresses were quite revealing, especially the ones that were more halter top and skirt.

As their time wore on, Alan concluded that Mary was having fun, and he was supposed to enjoy trying on the more outlandish outfits along with the more suitable choices. Once he realized that, he relaxed and laughed along with Mary about the effect some of the dresses would have, especially on June's face.

The pastel green dress was perfect, just above the knee with a billowy skirt and was sleeveless but not too revealing. Alan thought he looked really good in it and Mary hugged him.

While Mary went to the ladies' room, Alan asked the saleswoman to send two of his selection in the same size to his home. Salespeople on commission learn never to ask questions when something like that happens and he was rapidly rung up before he came to his senses. Finishing up the transaction, he went in to retrieve Mary and they returned to work.

Later, that evening, Alan and Cecilia chatted on the network.

ALAN> HE DID WHAT?

CISSY> TOLD YOU ALREADY- HE KISSED ME

ALAN> IS THAT ALL?

CISSY> MOSTLY

ALAN> MOSTLY? WHAT ELSE!!!!!

CISSY> IT WAS ACCIDENT

ALAN> WHAT????????????

CISSY> 'FELT UP' BUT ACCIDENT

ALAN> YOU SLUT! ARE YOU OK?

CISSY> FINE-HE WAS SORRY, THEN KNOCKED ME OVER

ALAN> I'LL KILL HIM!

CISSY> NO YOU WONT. I LIKE KIM. SO YOU WILL TOO

ALAN> WE'LL SEE- DID YOU GET THE DRESS?

CISSY> SEE PICTURE

ALAN> I LIKE IT

CISSY> WILL BE IN CLOSET. DON'T FORGET TO DO YOUR NAILS!!!!!! HAVE PLAIN RED #7 NOW. WILL LEAVE OUT. TOES TOO!!!

ALAN> YES MOM

CISSY> DO HAIR LIKE IN PIC- SHOULD BE ABLE TO REAL QUICK

ALAN> ALAN- THANKS- MISS YOU. SEE YOU SOONEST

CISSY> GET BACK HERE CISSY- MISS U 2

 

Chapter 16: Same Night - Off Highway 101 just south of Santa Barbara

The white SUV pulled up into the slot right in front of the chain restaurant. The bright lights of the sign and parking lot held back the two am foggy darkness, and the sounds off the highway were muffled. Bo Dunsett edged his three hundred pound bulk out of the driver's seat of the Ford Excursion and slowly ambled around to open the passenger side door for Manny Hightower.

Where Bo was slow and dumb, Manny was manic and twice as smart as Bo, which meant he had the median IQ in his sights, albeit at a very long distance. Manny wiped down the dashboard and then spent at least five minutes meticulously folding the paper towel for disposal. The prison shrink had diagnosed Manny with mild obsessive compulsive disorder, which was somewhat exciting to Manny until he found out there were no drugs prescribed to go with his condition.

Bo watched Manny fold the towel, patiently holding the open door until his partner had finished. Bo thought about nothing at all, he was a natural-born Zen master who would never achieve enlightenment.

Manny and Bo could have been cast as a comedy team in movies about incompetent criminals except for Manny's mean streak and Bo's willingness to please Manny in implementing meanness. After doing their time for a failed convenience store robbery where they had beaten an elderly clerk unconscious, the pair was frantically trying to re-establish their street presence.

The sexual relationship between these two, while never overt, didn't really bear thinking about.

Satisfied at last with the folding of the paper towel, Manny carefully disposed of it in the plastic trashcan underneath the dashboard. He quirked what passed for a smile for him at his bovine partner and slid out of the seat, wincing a bit when he stood upright because of a disk injury he had suffered in a jail cell in Trona.

With a silent nod, Manny directed Bo to follow him into the restaurant where they were to meet their next employer. Being self-employed criminals had never paid off for them and Manny had decided they could best use their talents as Rent-a-Thugs. For this pair, that counted as inspiration.

Bo followed Manny, thinking about the smells from the restaurant. Cheeseburgers, fried steaks, incarnations of potatoes and various breakfast forms of grease. The cheeseburgers would be good with the American cheese not the cheddar, decided Bo, but stay away from the sausages. No one knew about Bo's only true genius, his ability with food smells. Bo never mentioned such things and who would think to ask?

Inside, Manny ignored the questions of the hostess and headed straight for the back booth near the bathrooms where a dark-haired man dressed in white shirt and white pants waited.

Terrorism, like any modern endeavor, had to cope with globalization. Things that need doing in far away places sometimes have to be done not by true believers, but by subcontractors and then local labor. Iilyas Kanbyiev, the man dressed all in white, was a graduate of various terror training camps and had managed to be a true believer in spirit while never risking more than a bad cold. The Chechen had a firm belief in his own skin, and was unimpressed by an organization that promised payment in full in the afterlife.

Abandoning the cause of his own countrymen, he had become a mercenary subcontractor of terror in the decadent West. His life was good now and he had come to really enjoy running the doughnut shop in Thousand Oaks. He even liked the white uniforms he wore. He decided that this victory for Allah stuff was best done by installing a new hot tub in his home and praising the Name of God while watching videos of women with large breasts.

Manny had recognized his new employer by the white pants. Bo sniffed curiously at the yeasty smells lingering around Kanbyiev. He forgot about the cheeseburgers and decided he wanted one of this man's doughnuts. Manny and Bo slid into the booth; no one said anything for a moment.

Iilyas had already been sent three true believers and needed two locals to perform what he knew to be a useless mission. Useless in that it was only good if it failed miserably but on television. Then it succeeded. If it actually worked, it would be like the small dog that chases cars and one day actually catches one.

The little one is mean and the big one is strong, he thought. He shrugged, as virtues, those were not much but he did not need much. He would hire these two idiots to be his diversion. The three true believers were out dealing with the old man and his wife then, which was good, since Iiyas did not want to be seen with them. One of them would be there to eliminate the old couple who ran the catering business when they were no longer useful.

While Iilyas began describing the job they were to do, Manny straightened the arrangement of packets in the little boat of artificial sweeteners. Bo tried to form a thought, a speculation about why one could never get good doughnuts from a place that also sold hamburgers. After a bit, he gave up and thought about nothing until the Zen of Cheeseburgers made him one with his stomach.

 

Chapter 17: In The Nine Kingdoms: - Cyberspace, Planet Earth, Mortal Quest domain.

Bandar looked at the small black stone that Wizard Erindor had handed him.

"You say this is a spell holder? And you traded for it two days ago?" Bandar asked, the object almost disappearing in his huge hand.

"Yes, I am told it comes from the Warrior Queen. If you hold it and say the word, all other players in the game perceive you as a princess until you reverse the spell. You also take on the powers and weaknesses of a princess," Erindor intoned.

Princess characters were very popular with those players who preferred to play the game by forming alliances and using their negotiating skills. They were physically weak, but had their own magic. They could entice and distract more powerful players.

Bandar knew a lot of princess characters were not real women. The avatars for them were voluptuous and most of them looked like something from a harem populated by Vegas showgirls.

Bandar was famous with many princess characters given his reputation as a rescuer and protector of the weak. Bandar put the stone in his backpack, wondering if he would ever have use for such a thing.

In another reality, Alan glanced out the window toward Kim's house, glad that his new friend hadn't waited for tandem play to offer such an embarrassing treasure. Does he think I should play a Princess character? Well, obviously he did.

Alan glanced down at his feminine chest. He had become quite accustomed to them, their weight and feel as he moved. In order to keep up the masquerade he stayed disguised as Cissy even while playing the game unless he had locked a door between himself and the rest of the house. Lately, he'd been going to that amount of trouble less and less often.

The gameplay continued; Bandar and Erindor had teamed up with Fungo the dwarf and Maranta the thief to begin their approach to the Swamp Kingdom. None of them knew the place very well, and word was out that a new Dark Lord had taken the throne.

Bandar, scouting ahead at Erindor's request, spied a troop of Dark Soldiers moving to surround his three companions in their camp. Before he could do anything, they were captured. Some force had suppressed Erindor's wizardry and their combat skills were not up to the task. Even the thief's stealth had been neutralized by the quick actions of the Dark Soldiers.

The leader of the captors used some magic to remove Bandar's friends to the far castle in the blink of an eye but Bandar's location magic allowed him to find their prison quickly.

He needed a stratagem. Assaulting the castle alone would be useless, and normally he would have recruited more companions. But there was no time; the captives would forfeit a lot of points to restart in another location after an hour.

Alan didn't even look up. He brushed aside an errant strand of inky hair that had escaped his ponytail and had Bandar take the stone Erindor had given him out of his pack.

Bandar fingered the stone and said the words.

Alan's screen reset and he was suddenly Brunhilde, a tall blonde princess with a long flowing gown and impossible bosom. Brunhilde started off to the castle, knowing full well she would be captured and taken before the Dark Lord.

After faking an attempt to elude a squad of Dark Soldiers, she was captured and found herself suddenly in the torch-lit throne room of the Dark Lord, who looked for all the world like that famous Austrian action hero politician. Brunhilde curtsied and the Dark Lord approached.

As soon as he reached for her, she uttered the spell reversal and Bandar wielded his sword, running the Dark Lord through. While the Dark Lord's corpse had his points reduced, Bandar used his victor's rights and demanded the release of the prisoners, who then suddenly appeared before him. Fungo, Maranta and Erindor all surrounded him and thanked him for saving their character points, which would have been lost within ten minutes.

Bandar spied another prisoner walking towards him, tall, beautiful and her face strangely familiar.

"Thank you Bandar. I am Miri, the Warrior Queen. You have freed me from the Dark Lord, also."

Miri asked Bandar how he accomplished the rescue so quickly. Bandar knew of Miri, ranked number two in the entire game, but this was his first encounter with her. Like all champion players, both loved to talk gameplay, so the others bid farewell, it being a good closing point. Miri and Bandar used the private channel chat, outside of gameplay.

MIRI> YOU USED THE SPELL HOLDER? THE PRINCESS ONE?

BANDAR> YES- IT MADE ME BRUNHILDE

MIRI> HOW DID YOU LIKE BEING BRUNHILDE?

BANDAR> WAS VERY DIFFERENT- USED TO BEING STRONG AND HAVING REPUTATION

MIRI> YOU USED IT WELL

BANDAR> IT WILL COME IN HANDY

MIRI> BEWARE THE 'PRINCESS TRAP'

BANDAR> WHAT?

MIRI> YOU USE IT TOO MUCH YOU NEVER GO BACK

BANDAR> HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?

MIRI>DEPENDS ON YOU-DIFFERENT FOR EVERYONE

BANDAR> THANK YOU-GOOD TO KNOW

MIRI>YOU MADE A LOVELY PRINCESS

BANDAR> THANK YOU- I GUESS

 

Chapter 18: Reckoning - Pleasanton, July 7 lunchtime

The last game of the series entered its final period and Cecilia felt determined to win. The play had been pretty even and the score stood close though "The Hardcases" (coached by Bill Casey) trailed the "The Spendrights" (coached by Oscar Price) by four points.

Cissy's arms felt like lead and her black hair in its masculine-style ponytail lay limply on her shoulders. She'd been the playmaker for the whole game so far, shooting only when she'd been fouled—scoring both times—but mostly passing the ball to Mike, Bobby and Brian who made layups and did the rebounding.

Cissy passed the ball in to Mike after another Spendright goal and Mike quick-passed it downcourt to Bobby. At the midcourt line, Brian grinned at her. "These guys are tough," he said. "But we can beat'em."

Cissy gritted her teeth and smiled fiercely back. Brian slapped her on the ass as they swapped positions a few moments later. That had taken some getting used to but Cissy hardly noticed now. On the sidelines, Coach Bill Casey took off his baseball cap, fanned his face with it and rubbed his forehead.

They had worked out that signal before hand, time for Cissy to change her style of play. Bobby passed the ball out to her after rebounding a failed lay-up. Brian signaled being open and the Spendright players moved to block Cissy's pass.

She took three steps, dribbling only once. She found her mark outside the three-point half-circle. She faked a pass to Mike, her team's center then went up smoothly and shot for the basket. No one thought to block her and her shot went cleanly through the net.

She grinned as her teammates slapped hands and they all ran upcourt to guard the other goal.

"Allie!" Mike made an okay sign with his hand.

"Way to shoot, Alan," said Brian. Bobby just nodded and Lee, the fifth member of the team, shook hands with himself.

She felt good. Tired but very, very good.

Twelve seconds later, Mike sent the ball back to her after rebounding it away from the Spenders. With no one guarding her, Cissy dribbled to her spot and shot another clean three-pointer. The Hardcases had the lead now and they never gave it up.

The Spendrights just could not adjust to the Hardcases' new tactics. It had seriously messed with their heads. Bobby and Mike kept the pressure on in the key while Lee and Brian fed almost every ball they got to Cissy and she made all but one three-pointer she tried. The tallest Spendright managed to tip that one off-trajectory but Mike grabbed the rebound and the Hardcases got two, anyway.

Just to keep the game honest, Cissy still passed the ball if someone guarded her too close and one of her team looked to have a shot.

"Feed the Machine," screamed Brian, gleefully and the Hardcase's fed her.

Before the whistle, Brian relayed the ball to her from Lee bringing it in. She passed it back to Bobby just as he crossed the mid-court line. Bobby passed to Mike who began his lay-up then passed to Cissy, standing on her magic spot. Swish. Seconds later, the Hardcases had won the game by thirteen points. She'd never even had to resort to her second "magic" spot.

"When did you learn to shoot?" one of the Spendrights asked, leaning forward, hands on his thighs. He looked every bit as tired as Cissy felt.

"Always knew how," she told him. "Coach's been making me work on my passing." She grinned at him and he shook his head, smiling ruefully. He's cute, she thought, then quickly suppressed that lest any hint of the attraction she felt for the tall boy in the red shirt show.

The Hardcases celebrated with butt pats and pounded each other on the back in jubilation. After a brief handshake line-up to end the game, Dad came over.

"Great play, Allie! Great shooting! You kids are going out for some lunch on me and Marissa will pick you up. Then I'll see you at the house so we can pack and head home for a while. Okay?" John asked in a rush.

Cecilia nodded okay and hugged her Dad. She just had to find a way to shower this time.

Fortunately, the locker room had shower stalls with doors that actually locked, and she was able, with some complicated pre-positioning of ace bandage and clothing, to actually shower the sweat off and emerge with clean clothes, while still maintaining her masquerade. She still felt tired, in fact, she ached everywhere but the hot water had felt amazingly good.

Watching Bobby running around the locker room with nothing on but a towel was more than she could take though, so she got out of there quickly. She'd been incredibly lucky so far, but at times she felt like she must be pushing things near some quantum-limit of close calls.

Dad and Coach Casey were talking near a mini-van so she wandered over that way.

"Alan is a talented shooter and has a good eye for making the right pass at the right time," she heard Coach say. "But he's either too aggressive or not aggressive enough going for rebounds. I kept him out of playing too much in the key for fear he would foul out or get hurt. We'll work on it."

"Hmm," said Dad.

Hmm, indeed, thought Cissy. How in the world did one work on getting the right level of aggression? And why had she never had that problem playing on girl's teams? Of course, the other girls had mostly been afraid of her she realized. Would that always be true when she went back to playing girls? Or would it be different at higher levels? Would she have to play the boys now to get a real challenge?

"Hey, Allie," Dad said, noticing her. "We were just talking about you." He beamed at her proudly and she grinned back, not mentioning what she had overheard.

The other players joined them before much more could be said and they all piled into the van for the trip to the restaurant. Dad followed in his sports car and Cissy could have ridden with him but the team was having none of that.

"Carter is the Machine!" crowed Brian, pushing her ahead of him into the van.

The team ate at the Fred Robin and had a good time, laughing and telling insulting stories about each other. Cecilia joined in and gave as good as she got, she'd learned this part of the male ritual. Her dad had to leave to take care of some business things but promised to catch up with her at the house and talk more about the game. Cissy watched him leave, it was so great to be making him proud but she felt suddenly wistful that it was Alan he was proud of.

The players drifted out one by one as their rides arrived and finally Coach Casey left with the van and Lee who did not have a ride. "You two, okay?" he asked before leaving.

"Yeah, sure," Brian said. "I phoned Mom and she's just running a few minutes late."

"We'll be fine, Coach," Cecilia assured him.

Casey nodded and headed out. John Carter had arranged payment for all the meals with the restaurant manager, so no one had any worries about what they ordered or getting cash to pay the check.

Brian and Cecilia settled in and relaxed since Marissa was not expected for another half hour. They talked about the game some more and then about plans for the rest of the summer. Cecilia regretted that she couldn't be more specific because she knew she would miss Brian but she was happy to hear that he and Marissa had plans to move near Santa Barbara within the year, when Junecellular finished launching the new product.

"That will be so cool," she said before it occurred to her to wonder how Brian would take to meeting the real Alan.

Suddenly, four sixteen-year-olds from the next division up in the basketball league swung into the booth, blocking their exit. "One of the waiters told us this table has a prepaid tab," said one of them.

"Heh, heh, heh," said another.

The bigger boys ordered food on the group tab and stared at Alan and Brian, daring them to say something while the waitress was there. Cecilia and Brian both decided they could stand the four teenagers to hamburgers, fries and soda. They did sort of know them, after all. Maybe they don't have much money, Cissy thought, feeling a bit of upper class guilt.

At first it was fine, with the older boys mostly ignoring the two younger ones. Then the leader sort, Chuck, began staring at Cecilia. "What are you, a fruit? You look like a fruit with that ponytail," he said around a mouthful of meat and onions.

Cecilia just glared back at him. Chuck let it go when he didn't get an immediate rise out of Cecilia. He turned to Brian, "Hey, you two girlfriends?" The other older boys thought this the height of witty repartee.

"Heh, heh, heh," said the Butthead clone again.

Brian ignored them too. The two smaller kids looked at each other and the clock, and knew they just had to wait it out until Marissa came.

When the waitress came around with drink refills, Cecilia bolted over the seatback to get out and use the restroom. Somehow, she'd thought Brian would follow but one of the big boys grabbed her friend's elbow. "Hey, don't be antisocial. If one of you isn't here, maybe they drop a bill on us? Stick around till pussy-boy gets back."

Cissy hurried, her cheeks burning, realizing that Brian might as well be held hostage for her return. She knew that the bigger boys had not really guessed her secret but it was embarrassing to think she'd given something away, besides the insult.

Staying in character in the middle of her distress, though, it didn't even faze her to go into the men's room but as she entered the stall, she felt a tug on her shoulder.

"Hey kid—you wanna give me a blow job now we're all alone?" Chuck grinned at Cecilia who gasped, getting ready to scream. This was way over the line and all her instincts came out: alone in a bathroom with a boy who wanted sex?

Before she could scream, she felt a hand over her mouth and saw Chuck thrown against the wall. A black-haired man, thin and wiry-looking and wearing Oakley sunglasses, two inches shorter than Chuck, about Cecilia's height, had grabbed them both.

"Don't you scream unless you want me to arrest you, kid! Nod if you agree!"

Cecilia nodded. She felt near an incredible panic. Arrested? Exposed? From one real mess into another?

"Don't worry, son—you can be honest with me. Nothing wrong with being gay. I'm gay myself!" the dark-haired man said, addressing Chuck.

Chuck's eyes grew as big as saucers and he started stammering. "I'm not...I don't...It was just...."

"Quiet, boy! Now I have this whole thing down, and it looks like little junior here," and the stranger gave Cecilia a gentle shake, "is a part of a gang of gay teen prostitutes that work here."

Cissy swallowed hard and tried to squirm free to protest, but the strange man had her in a grip she couldn't evade. His arms were hardly bigger than her own but they might as well have been iron bands.

He continued, "These nancy tarts prey on poor gay boys like you. And all you wanted was a blow job! So here's the deal. I take the kid here with me and get him to confess. If he is a gay hooker like I'm saying, then I'll need you to come to court. I got your name and address from your car plates. Now don't worry, it's okay to come out of the closet. I know! Things will be better when everyone knows you're gay. So you can go now, and I'll call you if the kid confesses!"

Cissy watched tears run down Chuck's cheeks. She couldn't say anything with the man's hand over her mouth but she didn't know what she could have said, anyway. The situation had turned from threatening to bizarre; it no longer seemed real.

"You listening, Chucklet? You comprehendo what I'm saying?" the man demanded.

Chuck turned and ran out the door as fast as possible.

The iron grip on Cissy relaxed a bit but not enough for her to wriggle free. Casually, the dark haired man turned her to face him. "Now you, Alan Carter—or should I say Cecilia?--you were about to ruin your poor brother's reputation in this area forever with what you were going to do."

Cecilia felt nauseated. How did this man know? What the hell was going on?

"Don't scream," the man said and he turned her loose. "My name is Larry Elger and I'm not going to hurt you."

Cecilia rubbed her arms where Larry's grip had been almost painful. "Howminnie? Hoodija?" she complained.

Larry grinned at her; he didn't look as if he grinned at people a lot. "You did fine passing as a boy, Cissy, but you still don't quite have it all. Chuckie was just seeing if you would tell him to stick it or knuckle under. If he really thought you were gay he would never have gone near you. Sad but true, boys are always being tested, and the pack uses it to decide if you'll stand up, even against bigger guys, and take what comes. The worst you would have gotten from Chuckie was maybe a sore arm and a bit of respect if you told him to go to hell. Got that?"

"How did you know about me?" Cecilia asked, finally articulate, warily sizing up Larry. She decided she would never win a staring match with this man. When the first grin had faded, his face had the intensity she'd once seen on a wolf in a nature documentary. But this guy was right in front of her and not a television image.

"My partner and I were hired by your Dad to keep an eye on you. Let's say, while you kids were very convincing, you could not stand up to real surveillance," Larry said, grinning again.

This time his face relaxed into a normal friendly expression and Cissy wondered if she'd imagined that peculiar predator grimness. "Did you tell our parents?" she asked.

"No, we didn't think it was necessary for us to give them that information," Larry answered truthfully.

"Huh," said still trying to puzzle it all out.

Larry continued, "So now Chuckie finds he owes his entire reputation to what you say to what he thinks are the police. And being accused of being gay when he is not is going to make him petrified for a few days. Don't be too nasty with him. It was actually a bit of a sign of respect that he chose you to test."

"Ok, I guess I understand. But guys are weird," Cecilia said, some calmness returning to her demeanor.

"You've haven't seen the half of it, honey. Now go out there and catch your ride. Marissa should be pulling up about now."

Cecilia started to leave. Larry added one more pearl of wisdom. "And Cecilia? Just so you know next time, and I hope there never is one, if all four had come in at once? Then scream, run and fight like hell. Ok?"

Cecilia nodded and made her escape.

"Mom's here," Brian called from the doorway and Cissy ran toward him. "What the heck happened to that guy, Chuck?"

Cissy snorted. "I dunno, he ran out of the bathroom like he'd been snakebit," she said innocently.

 

Chapter 19: We're Going To A Party, Party! - Santa Barbara, July 7 lunchtime and after.

Sean Taylor turned away from Roger Comstock, weary of the attitudes of the State Department Security team detailed to protect the Olangers. The preparations big party later that evening went on around them while they discussed things near one of the French doors. "We don't need some private pussy complicating things," one of Comstock's men said.

Sean ignored him. She wasn't just some private detective doing bodyguard work to fill in between jobs tracking down deadbeats and serving subpoenas. Bodyguard, and similar potentially hot activities were her only business; she was a skilled specialist and these guys seemed to think they were Secret Service.

Her principal target, Cissy Carter, would be at the Olanger party and Sean had been added to the guest list through June's intercession with Marge. Sean just wanted the Olanger security team, State Department fuckups or no, to be aware of her presence and what she was doing there to avoid any ugly issues if the shit hit the fan.

Comstock clearly felt his vast talents were being wasted guarding Serge Olanger and a frigging lawn party. Olanger was just a retired big cheese who only made yesterday's headlines. Comstock's contempt carried over to his work and his team reflected a similar arrogance.

Slipshod, superficial, picky, nice-nice, soi-disant "official" surveillance would not protect her client, Sean knew.

The government types regarded Sean Taylor as a potential loose gear in their smoothly functioning machine, but she knew they couldn't really prevent her presence without making a scene with their principals. Marge Olanger knew that Sean was Cecilia's bodyguard and she approved.

So, Comstock had switched from obstruction to intimidation as a tactic. "You're gonna be checked, vetted and watched like a hawk watches a pigeon, and if you so much as sneeze in a fashion one of the Olangers dislikes we'll arrest you. And you better not be carrying." Meaning, no firearms allowed.

"Let the pros carry, sugar. You can hold the little girl's hand if you want." Roger added.

Sean kept her temper in check. She knew Roger would likely never be cleared for the stuff Larry and she had done for parts of the US Government. He thinks he's cock-of-the-walk but he's not even chicken a la King , she thought. So be it, she knew she was on her own.

Roger Comstock had tried to threaten here with a background check. She found that actually kind of funny. Sean and Larry had been fighting 'The War On Terror" years before it had been declared, or even recognized by the public. Now that it was all in the open, they found that their services were less called upon, since the government could now do many of the things publicly prior administrations found inconvenient to admit they were doing. So the two operatives had turned to security and other more mundane work to make a living, while their old friends and comrades were flying helos in lots of nasty places and tracking terrorists in even nastier ones. Comstock would run into an official blockade himself, trying to check Sean's background; he didn't have the security clearance necessary to see her file.

With that happy thought, Sean simply walked away from the penny ante, obstructionist, probably incompetent, but official, security chief.

 

* * *

 

Later that afternoon, at the Carter house, June discovered Felipa babbling frantically on the telephone, an event so unusual she decided to breach Felipa's privacy. "What is it, what's got you so upset, Fe?" she asked.

The maid's rapid fire Spanish reply quickly swamped June's ability in that language. "Despacio, por favor! Y en Ingles! Slower and in English, please!" June was forced to appeal. After getting Felipa calmed down enough to stay in English, June pieced together the story.

Manuela, Felipa's cousin, ran a catering business with her husband, Jose Miguel Beltran, and partly thru Felipa's connections, they had been hired for the Olanger party tonight. They were both into their sixties but Beltran's were considered one of the best and most experienced caterers in the area. Manuela always asked Felipa to make a special chicken and rice dish for such events, and Felipa had made it and then been unable to reach either Manuela or Jose all day. When she got their office, she was told they had called in and said they were going out of town, and that their staff would be handling the Olanger affair. She had been tearing her hair out trying to reach them. Such behavior was completely out of character for her cousin.

"Y mi plata especial de mi abuelita por la fiesta, no es posible ellos no lo quieren!" Felipa finished the tale, slipping back into Spanish.

"Your cousin wouldn't do a party without your special dish?" June asked, just to be sure she'd got the idea.

Felipa nodded, her dark eyes almost tearful. "It's impossible," she repeated. Actually, the spicy, savory, arroz con pollo, based on Felipa's grandmother's recipe, was a special treat for the catering staff, almost all of whom were from the same group of small villages in Mexico.

June called Sean on her cell phone. She knew Sean would be somewhere on or near the grounds since Cecilia was at home, just as Sean had been nearby ever since John had hired the guards. Rapidly, June explained the issue, and Sean's sense of danger went up several notches. Something like this happening near a major event at a security target's house? Suspicious.

"Mrs. Carter, do you want our people to look into this? I'll need my partner to get down here as quickly as possible and he can turn coverage of Alan over to another associate for a few hours until they fly down here tonight," Sean asked. "I can't leave here and no one is going to be better for this than Larry."

June didn't hesitate. "Yes, Sean, please do. And I can have a plane waiting for him at Oakland in half an hour." She liked being able to say that, this wealthy stuff had uses after all.

 

* * *

 

After taking the call from Sean, Larry called John and explained things to his employer.

"You've got to go then," said John Carter, who'd just got off the phone with June. "My regular company security will be fine for the next few hours here, since I'll be with Alan the whole time. Take my car to the airport and Melissa can have a company car sent to take Alan and I over later."

Larry nodded, unhappy at having to leave John and Alan in hands less competent than his own. Once he took on a responsibility, he liked to see it completely through but Sean was right, the situation in Santa Barbara required his presence more than he was needed with Alan. "I'll see you there, sir," he said simply and turned away before John could nod.

A nondescript Hispanic-looking man got off a chartered aircraft at the Santa Barbara airport less than two hours after June heard Felipa's hysterics on the phone.

 

* * *

 

Scheduling major primping had become automatic for Alan. He had allowed an extensive commitment of several hours to get ready for the party, time for shaving his legs and underarms as well as a wash and set for his hair. He figured this would be his last appearance as Cissy, and he wanted to go out in style.

While he worked on his appearance, he thought about his meeting with Miri in the game. It still seemed very unusual and apparently had affected him at some level he didn't quite understand. Had she been trying to tell him something? What did it mean?

He shook off the distraction as he worked on his eyes. The little torture device that curled his lashes back and made them stand out had become as simple to use as a toothbrush with enough practice but he would use that last, after eye shadow and a bit of liner. The plum colors he chose made his eyes look bluer while at the same time making him look older. But not too old.

Meticulous by nature, he'd made detailed notes on his makeup, along with a photo image of his face for Cecilia in a password protected folder. Alan hoped her skills were up to duplicating the effect. He smiled, imagining himself offering to coach his sister in the arts he had mastered.

All done, he admired the effect. Alan intended to get Kim really drooling tonight so he could turn him over to the real Cissy all warmed up. He practiced, smiling and blinking in the mirror, Mary had been coaching him in flirtation for weeks now, and Alan had absorbed his lessons well.

"It's a good thing Kim is a gentleman," Alan said to himself. "Otherwise he might do something I might regret."

 

* * *

 

Larry didn't waste much time, after a phone conference with Sean, he took a rental vehicle and headed to the Hernandez home, which turned out to be a well-maintained ranch house in a quiet neighborhood. Parking half a block away, he strolled down the broad tree-lined street. No one is going to notice one more prosperous-looking Mexican-American, he thought.

After walking by the Hernandez place, Larry called the plates of the car in the driveway in to some of his contacts. It turned out not to be registered to either of the Hernandezes or their company. It belonged to a doughnut shop in Thousand Oaks, whose owner had a Chechen-sounding name. Larry frowned, a bit disgusted, some of the Chechens had become real loose cannons on the international scene. Bad enough the Russian underworld spreading out into crime in Europe, Israel and America; now the old Soviet Union was exporting their homegrown version of terrorists.

Larry didn't spare much energy worrying about the political situation in Chechnya, he didn't really care who was in the right there but he doubted the Hernandezes would get doughnuts for their catering business from a shop on Moorpark Road more than forty miles away.

Briefly, Larry considered turning over what he knew to the authorities but decided that he needed more information before he could count on the local yokels to do what he wanted them to do. After all, what did he really know?

I need an interior view of the house, he thought. Down the street he saw a utility van with a crew doing something to a gray metal box next to a series of cable runs. He walked down and, without anyone quite seeing him do it, appropriated a hardhat.

Armed then with his ubiquitous clipboard, pencil, sunglasses and purloined headgear, he examined the electric meters of the nearby houses. Eventually he walked by the meter on the Hernandez home, and planted a CCD camera and transmitter on a main windowsill of the home. He also left some listening devices at key points and retired to his rented SUV.

Shortly, on the screen of his laptop, he observed a man watching TV and yelling at something. Larry turned up the gain on the bugs and heard cursing in Arabic, followed by yelling at someone to shut up. On screen, the man was looking at a closed door off the TV room. Larry's Arabic was quite good enough to penetrate the man's thick regional accent and his new suspicions sent quiet jangles down his nerves.

Larry used his cellular internet and sent the picture to some people who might be interested in a man with a Libyan accent who associated with a Chechen baker. Now I've got to wait to see if he's alone, he thought. He checked his Glock one more time.

Better give Sean a heads up, he decided, the party starts in half an hour. He sent her a text message with his phone and kept his eyes on the laptop screen hooked up to the bugs.

 

* * *

 

Not very much later, Sean entered the party grounds wearing an expensive black silk pantsuit, with black gloves and a high neck, allowing no visible scars, and she had her prosthesis on giving her a normal appearing outline. Two inch heeled sandals made her height even more impressive without restricting her movement much—she could kick them off in a second if she needed to. She wore her hair natural, short and very curly.

She wanted to tell Comstock about the issue with the caterers, but wanted one more piece of solid info from Larry. Knowing Roger, if she gave him a warning he did not believe, his mind would close down on all possibilities in that direction. She was betting it would not be poison in the food, but that could still be a definite possibility, and knew that Roger would never delay the food and face the wrath of Marge Olanger without real proof. Food poisoning made for terrible television and the terrorist playbook was more about horror as an entertainment medium than actual casualties.

Alan made his entrance with June, and they both looked great. Sean smiled at how good the dress looked on Alan posing as Cissy. Kim came right over and clung to Cissy like a lifejacket in a storm, since as long as he was with her, the old folks would leave him alone and stop asking idiotic questions.

Sean noticed a white SUV pulling up the delivery entrance, with a placard thrown over the side of the door with the caterer's name. The guards checked the IDs of the two occupants and let them through. She decided to keep an eye on the truck.

Bo and Manny, wearing the white jackets of the caterer, unloaded two cases of plastic cups from their truck. Sean looked at her champagne glass of crystal and wonders where they are using plastic at this posh affair.

John, Cecilia and Miriam arrived at the Carter house next door, having driven over from the airport. Cecilia felt tense, knowing that the switch tonight would be tricky. They entered the house and immediately proceeded to to their respective rooms to clean up and get changed. Cecilia informed her Dad she would take some time and asked him to head over without her and see Mom. Miriam was also invited, once Marge Olanger found out the well published author was a houseguest next door.

John changed quickly, wearing the expensive men's casual clothes normally called for at parties in Southern California. He headed over to find June, whom he has not seen for at least eight weeks.

An hour later, Cissy, her hair and nails done, somewhat miffed that she had to borrow one of her brothers padded bras to fill out the dress, was waiting at the gate for Alan to show up. He was due to come and switch with her in five minutes.

Larry received a call from his acquaintances who were suddenly very excited about the man in the house. After a brief but animated conversation, he called Sean and told her to watch the caterers; the man at the house of the owners is a watch list terrorist. Larry informed Sean he would take the guy down and hope the Hernandez's were still alive.

Alan surprised himself with how much fun the time spent casually talking and mildly flirting with Kim had been, and sadly realized he had to go. He told Kim he had to excuse himself and promised to be right back.

Meanwhile, Sean found Comstock and told him the caterers were definitely suspect, describing the situation at the Hernandez house. She told him to detain any catering employee who had been added to the clearance list in the last two days. For once, Comstock pondered the facts and did what she asked. His men began to pull waiters aside.

John and June were standing next to Marge and Serge Olanger, making small talk about being neighbors when one of the waiters pulled an H & K submachine gun from inside a plate of manicotti. John saw the movement and pushed Marge and Serge to the ground after shoving June into the pool.

The waiter/terrorist only managed to get off a few silenced rounds before he found four red stains that appeared on his chest, slowly widening in contrast to his white uniform. Comstock's men, while arrogant, were excellent shots even with silencers. The other terrorist found himself becoming intimate with the Olanger's lawn, convinced to look closely at each blade of grass by a gun barrel at the back of his head.

Manny and Bo, hearing the commotion, made a grab for Kim. Alan tripped Manny while Sean kicked Bo in the side and pulled Kim out of his hands. Sean yelled for Alan to go the other way but Alan tried to run to Kim and Sean, thinking Sean was another terrorist. He was grabbed by Manny, who was amazingly strong for his size. Manny threw Alan in the front seat of the white SUV while Bo clumsily produced a gun and held it on Sean and Kim. He got into the truck while Manny dug divots in the lawn with the rear wheels to get out of the estate. The gate guards were all focused outwards since the alarm went off , and were too slow to react to Manny crashing through the service entrance from the other direction.

Larry threw a flash bang grenade through the window, having deduced that the man was alone except for (he hoped) the Hernandez couple. The terrorist, now blinded and deafened, was easy for Larry to take down with a well placed kick and handcuffs.

He found Jose and Manuela, tied in their bedroom, beaten but alive. He asked them if there was only one man, just to be sure and Jose nods. He made sure they were well enough to wait for the Homeland Security team to arrive, which he expected within thirty minutes. After learning their basic story, he received a call from Sean, now in pursuit of the kidnapped Alan. Larry immediately told Jose and Manuela to wait for the authorities, he was sorry he could not stay but he had another crisis and must leave immediately. They attempted to thank him as he ran out of the door towards his truck.

John Carter was in the process of fishing June out of the pool when Marge and Serge , having shook off their security people, came over to help him.

"Mr. Carter, I want to thank you… " Serge began.

"I saw the gun first, Serge. Anybody would have done it. Are you all right? Marge? I hope I did not hurt you. " John was holding June who, while a very good swimmer, had managed to aspirate a large amount of chlorinated water.

Marge kissed John on the cheek and thanked him profusely. Serge held her while a security man brought a large pool towel for June.

Cecilia , found by security personnel who then made her come over to the protected area, was spotted by her father.

"Allie, it's good to see you safe! Where is Cissy, I mean Alan?" John asked, exposing his knowledge of the masquerade. June blinked while Miriam was being herded into the area by more security. Miriam heard John and looked at Cecilia, who was standing there stunned.

Cecilia cursed Larry Elger. He must have ratted them out! And where was Alan?

 

Chapter 20: Ransom Of Red Cissy- Pacific Coast Highway, somewhere near Santa Barbara, July 7 late evening

Manny was the epitome of the distracted driver. Constantly cleaning every surface he could reach while running the big truck mostly within the same lane at least ninety percent of the time seemed to be his version of happy motoring. Given that most sane people have no wish to be hit by a Ford Excursion at speed, Manny was aided in this pursuit by the other drivers' sense of self preservation.

Alan hoped he might be put out of his misery in a fiery wreck before Manny got them to wherever they were going.

Bo sat in the back, clearly terrified that Manny was at the wheel. Apparently he had seen this movie before, and it ended badly. Alan heard him sobbing and mumbling some kind of prayers.

Manny kept asking Alan questions, and Alan was getting the idea that Manny and Bo together would have to study hard to even be classified as learning disabled.

"You a rich kid?"

"Your parents gonna pay money for you, sweetie?"

"You scared, girlie?"

Alan noticed Manny's habits about cleanliness. He knew a rest area was only a few minutes away so he formed a quick plan.

"I'm gonna be sick! I'm gonna throw up!" Alan squealed, backing up this threat with disgusting dry heaving noises.

Manny almost rolled the truck by swerving into the median.

"No! No! No!, Not in my truck! No Kid! Stop it!"

"I'm gonna wet my panties! I have to go!" Alan illustrated his intent by adding hip wiggling and squirming for visual reinforcement.

"Hold on kid! I'm pulling over! Here's a bathroom! Hold on!" Manny pleaded. He felt almost physically sick from the mental image of vomit all over his dashboard. Bo shook and a series of louder prayers emitted from the back seat.

Manny managed to pull into the deserted rest stop. Jumping out to the parking lot, he grabbed Alan out of the bench seat and then out of the truck. Using a knife to cut the plastic cuffs, he told Bo to take the kid to the bathroom.

Alan kneeled down and actually got himself to throw up, spewing cherry punch all over the running boards. Manny went ballistic.

"No! Kid! No! Bo! Get her to the bathroom and the hell away from my truck!"

Bo picked Alan up and set him down at the door of the ladies rest room.

"Go ahead. I'll be here." He said, clearly embarrassed to discuss bathroom matters with a girl.

Alan gave him his sweetest smile and pranced into the rest room. He looked around and did not see anything resembling a weapon, so he decided to play for time. He clung to the belief that the police or someone had to be after these two idiots.

Bo settled down and sat, and then shifted uneasily. Sitting on the stuff in his pockets made him uncomfortable, so he emptied the bulkier items and set them on the ground. After Alan stalled in the stall for ten minutes, Bo decided he had to relieve himself and yelled to Manny , now furiously cleaning all the windows in the Ford.

"Manny, you watch the kid!. I gotta go!" Bo said while he ambled over to the men's room on the other side of the building.

Alan choose this time to come out. He spied Manny running right for him, wheezing and panting. Manny apparently had not been a regular with daily exercise.

Alan then observed Bo's extra junk on the ground, so he started reaching for it, picking it up while Manny began screaming for him to leave it alone. One was a can of "Bear Spray", meant for warding off an attacking grizzly.

"Put that down kid! You'll hurt yourself!" Manny yelled.

Alan looked at him innocently as Manny approached to within seven feet.

"Is this cologne? I like perfume!" Alan said innocently as he held the release trigger on the pepper spray canister, generating a cloud of noxious Capsaicin fumes.

The out of breath Manny ran right into the mist open mouthed, yielding an immediate heaving and choking condition in his breathing rhythm, causing him to break stride.

Alan then picked up the Air Taser, a small handheld nonlethal weapon that paralyses an opponent with thousands of volts..

"What's this Mr. Manny? A flashlight of some kind?" Alan aimed the weapon at the gagging and choking Manny and the compressed air cartridge fired two needle probes into Manny's chest and ribcage, followed by 50000 volts of discharge.

Manny was choking, gagging and writhing on the ground in a fit of highly mixed neural signals.

Bo came out of the men's room, hiking up his pants. Alan looked at him and realized he was fresh out of weaponry. Summoning his courage, he turned and faced his doom when Bo was suddenly surprised by Sean landing a flying kick off the roof of the rest facility. Bo's head ended up twisting halfway around and he fell, clearly unconscious.

Sean picked herself up and grasped Alan by his forearms. "It's over , Alan. You did very well. I'm sure Manny there regrets the day he ever laid eyes on you."

Alan looks up at the beautiful black woman and realized he has seen her several times before.

"I've seen you. Dad hired you to follow me!"

"Good guess, Alan. Yes, my partner and I have been with you two since you switched identities. You threw us a curve on that one, but it seems to have worked out. You are very good at being Cissy, by the way." Sean said, smiling at Alan, straightening out his dress and hair in a maternal fashion.

"Does Mom know?"

Sean looked at Alan, in his green pastel dress and pantyhose, his bustline, and his slightly smeared makeup and messed up hair, and decided to tell him.

"Yes, Alan. They knew all along. Your Mom figured it out just after Cecilia boarded the airplane. "

Somehow this news made him dizzy. "How did you find me?"

"There are several tracking devices in your clothing. Why did they stop, it was really stupid for them to do?"

Alan nodded and told her the story.

Sean continued after she got her laughter under control. "Then as soon as you stopped moving, I was able to move in. I expect the authorities here within minutes."

"Then I will be exposed! No!" Alan started to panic. All his bravery had been used up for the day.

"Not to worry, Alan. The folks who are coming want this to be quiet, and I doubt they will do much more than talk to you, and then ask you to shut up. Now I am going to chain Manny and Bo here to their truck and we are heading back. Ok?"

Alan nodded, following Sean into her pickup truck.

 

Chapter 21: All In The Family- Santa Barbara- July 8 , Late Morning

Miriam had forced an agreement by all the Carters that she would play mediator and referee. She had spent individual time with both of the twins and then June and John.

She also found a source of sound and unique observation in Larry and Sean, whose own story was fascinating to her, what little of it she could glean from their occasionally evasive answers.

Miriam had all four Carters together around the large dining room table. Alan and Cissy were back to their normal, or at least gender specific clothes. Alan's hair still had a lot of curl left and he had not had a chance to remove his nail polish.

"There are a lot of things that have happened here and I am available to discuss it in some detail with each of you if you wish. But there are also some common things that I think everybody needs to know to sort this out. This may be uncomfortable, but realize this. Enough is known by everybody that it is better to have everyone agree on some things in common than for each of you to wonder what everyone else is thinking of you. Does anyone object? " Miriam said, scanning the expressions around the table.

"First, Alan and Cecilia, while you were both were skillful at your disguises, you gave yourself away. From birth, you could say. June? Please explain."

June smiled, like most women do when they talk about delivering their children. "You were both a difficult delivery and Doctor Johansen used forceps, which are like a big set of salad tongs to pull each of you out. Forceps can leave small little ridges on the skull of an infant, whose skull is soft and does grow. But in some cases there is a residual mark. Both of you have a small little ridge, almost imperceptible on the back of your heads, but on different sides. When Cecilia left, who I thought was Alan, I hugged Alan who I thought was Cissy, and felt the back of her, I mean his head. This is so confusing to discuss!"

Alan and Cissy nodded. John rolled his eyes.

Alan spoke up. "You mean all that salon stuff you did to me and you knew the whole time I was me? And you still made me do it?"

"Alan, I was waiting for you to tell me what was going on, and frankly I was a little mad you thought your Dad and I were that stupid. You could have stopped anything at any time by just stopping pretending to be Cecilia!"

Miriam held up her hand to avoid the discussion escalating out of control.

"So June decided to see how far Alan would go to be Cissy. And you were incredible, Alan. The only person June brought into her counter –plot was Fiona, who I also know is as tight lipped as anyone could be."

Alan realized how important Fiona had been, coaching with makeup, the strategic padding. He would never had been as convincing without her. He also realized that, aside from the eyebrows, Mom had issued instructions that were entirely reversible, no hair coloring, no perms, no bangs. And even the eyebrows were androgynous enough that he could be Alan if he wanted to..

"So no one at work knew?" Alan asked. That was important to him.

"No one, Alan, you fooled them all. Especially Sylvia and Mary. That was impressive." Mom said, smiling widely.

Miriam continued. "Cecilia was even more successful. Nobody read her at all, except John who knew before she got off the plane. And you went through basketball camp and even some lessons in male behavior without making a flagrant error. Larry interceded in your most difficult problem, but I'd give you a pass on that. Of course, a male shrink would not, so there."

"There is a major issue outside this group that remains, and that is Kim. You two need to tell him what is going on. Despite the consequences. " Miriam stared at Alan and then Cecilia, who both shook their heads in agreement.

"Now for the real stuff. Alan and Cecilia, I have known your parents for longer than you two have been alive, and I have never seen a stronger marriage. They are not breaking up. However, they did throw a massive amount of change your way and I cannot blame you for getting caught reading the wrong signals. I also know they are very proud of you and have never expressed any reservations about who you were. The reasons for your deception were false, but your desire was real. Every child wants to be accepted by their parents, and every child is their own worst critic.

"Cecilia, you felt you were a disappointment to your mother because you were not feminine enough. And you wished Alan were your sister sometimes. These are not unusual feelings.

"Alan, you felt you were not manly enough. Every boy your age feels that. You also found you and Cecilia were had a special relationship when you shifted between male and female guises, which made you happy. That is unique, but understandable, since Cecilia is your best friend. And now you have achieved in the adult world as Cissy. That alone should make it attractive to you."

"Your parents decided to play this one out. I cannot tell if that was or was not a good move, but it is the move they made, motivated a little bit by the fact that the whole masquerade was somewhat insulting to them."

Alan and Cecilia looked up. They had not considered that until now.

"So that is it. Cecilia, I think you may have had enough being a boy to last you a lifetime. Alan, you are the one with a choice."

Alan looked startled. 'What choice? If Cissy is back, how can I be her?"

Mom and Dad decided to enter the discussion at this point.

June looked at Alan. "Actually Alan, Cecilia is back. Cissy has been here all along. She is what you made of her yourself. It's up to you and what you want to do with your life, or maybe just this summer."

John nodded his head. "Alan, Mom and I have known about Allie for a long time. It is your life. And I love you whether you wear pants or a skirt. Just do it because you want to, not because you think everyone else wants you to."

"Alan, I want you to talk to someone else before you think about it. There is no need to hurry, you've got your whole life to decide." Miriam said.

 

Chapter 22: The UnSpoken – Santa Barbara, July 9

Kim entered Cissy's room, hoping to relax and just play Mortal Quest. It had been hectic since the terrorist incident and the Olanger Security team was being totally revamped.

Cissy came in, wearing a silk blouse and miniskirt, her hair just done. She smelled wonderful.

"Kim, I want you to meet my sister. Her name is Cecilia." Alan said, his face uncertain.

Cecilia entered the room, wearing an identical outfit. "Hi Kim, I heard a lot about you."

Kim was stunned. "Two Cissys?"

"No Kim, my name is Alan. Please give me five minutes to tell you a story before you get mad. I never wanted to lie to you or hurt you. You've been the best friend I ever had!" tears were running down Alan's cheeks.

Kim sat still. He kept looking at the twins and shaking his head.

Alan composed himself and told the whole story. Kim's eyes went wide, especially when it dawned on him just who he had kissed. He remained silent until Alan finished.

"Is that it? No more surprises? " Kim asked.

"The whole thing." Alan said, still not knowing what would happen.

Kim grinned and said "Let me say this. For a boy, you are a real good kisser. But let's make a pact. It will be a Wizard's rule. 'The thing which will never be mentioned.' Ok?"

Alan and Cecilia nodded yes, smiles breaking out.

Kim continued. "And another thing. Cecilia, it's good to finally meet you, for real." Kim touched her face and began to kiss Cecilia.

After about two minutes had passed , Alan made grunting noises. Kim looked up, grinning. Cecilia had a distant but happy look on her face.

"So are we going to be two girls and a guy, or two guys and a girl, or sometimes three girls? " Kim held up his hair and laughed.

"Lets play it by ear. We are still Bandar, Erindor and Maranta. And soon, Fungo will join us here."

The three touched hands, like they did in the game, to signify a partnership.

 

Chapter 23: Hand Me Down Wisdom- Santa Barbara- July 10

Sean Taylor entered the room and Felipa ran up and hugged her.

"Where is Mr Larry? He saved my cousin. They want to send him some food. You two must come to their house!"

Sean giggled. Standing next to her was a woman with long black hair in a skirted suit, who looked somewhat Hispanic.

"I'm Larry Elger, Felipa. I'm here to talk to Alan. I usually don't dress this nicely when I am rescuing cousins. " Larry gently shook Felipa's hand.

Felipa rolled her eyes and then smiled. She hugged "Linda" so tightly, Larry thought he would break a rib. Felipa just laughed and kissed him on the lips.

"Thank you so much, Mr Larry! You will come over to Manuela and Jose's?"

Larry and Sean nodded yes.

Alan was wearing a pair of jeans and a Mortal Quest tee shirt when Sean and Larry stopped by. Sean excused herself and left Larry/Linda with Alan.

"Are you like this all the time, or I mean when you're not working, Linda?" Alan asked.

"No, this is something I only do in private these days, when Sean asks me to, Alan. "

Larry gave Alan a highly edited version of his life, and included more about Sophie and their relationship than he had ever told anyone, even Sean. Sophie was a rare woman who loved her men dressed in feminine attire. Not for dominance or games, but just because she loved it. Larry had been a very late virgin and had fallen deeply in love with Sophie. His professional skills merged with his personal existence at a crucial time in Larry's life. Sophie had linked dressing and love for him. It had lasted to this day.

Sean had dealt with her own body image trauma and had come to love Larry, and found his nature somehow fitting with her needs. They both had secrets they hid from the world and shared with each other.

Alan got technical, asking Larry about how he handled his genitals, and other challenges for a crossdresser. Larry gave him a rundown of tricks and methods, and the downsides. Larry was discouraging of taping and tucking, since there was a risk of cutting off the blood supply, so he recommended using control garments, and suggested resorting to the other methods only in extreme circumstance.

Larry knew Alan was groping with what direction to take. He had built a new person and he liked her. He also was worried what he would miss by abandoning Alan.

"Linda, or Larry. Do you ever want to become a woman? Would you want to be Linda full time?" Alan asked as Linda said she had to leave.

"Not on my life, kid. Linda is a nice diversion from who I am, but I am not ashamed of who I am either. I've made my decision. I'm Larry, and Linda sometimes, but always really Larry.. I do know a lot of the good parts of being a man don't come until later in life. That's as clear as I can make it. But that is my decision, and not yours.

"Good luck, Alan. You twins have been a real diversion for the Ice Queen and me."

Linda kissed Alan on the cheek, and Larry shook his hand. He left Alan with a contented expression on his face.

 

Chapter 24: Curtain Down: Santa Barbara and the Nine Kingdoms, July 11.

Cecilia had agreed to give up her nickname for another three weeks. She was busy working out everyday with her new found passion for soccer, and felt it was the least she could do for her brother. Besides, she felt "Cecilia" sounded so much more mature.

Alan was finishing the month at June's Accessories as Cissy, but had cut down to four hours a day. After which, he became Alan, and Kim was schooling him in soccer, along with Cecilia, when they were not playing Mortal Quest.

Cecilia had finally cut her hair short, but not too short, since Kim wanted it at least over her ears. Alan was now free to grow it to Bandar's length.

Sean and Larry took a vacation. No one knew where, but John and June kept scanning the news for outbreaks of mysterious piles of dead terrorists.

Iiyas was happy to get back to his doughnut shop. He never realized he was now under extremely tight surveillance by three government agencies, and he just assumed all those new customers liked his food.

John moved back home four days a week, no exceptions. The FDA had given approval and Junecellular was on it's way..

June and Sylvia adopted the "Cissy" market analysis for their other stores and sections, and found surprisingly good results.

Bandar, Erindor, Maranta and Fungo walked across the plains of the Nine Kingdoms, dealing justice and death to their enemies.

Miri, the Warrior Queen, the second highest ranked player in the world, looked down from her tower at the four companions.

"You passed this one, but the Princess Trap has more snares if you stay and get entangled. Good Luck Bandar." Miri said to herself. Miriam Sinclair closed her game console and wiped the tears from her eyes.

END

 

Watch for the "The Princess Contest" for more of Cissy and Cecilia

Characters here also appear in "I Can See For Miles", and also "Hide In Plain Sand" coming soon

  

  

  

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