This story is a work of fiction. Only the really boring parts are autobiographical. Any resemblance of any character in this story to any real person is unintentional and pure coincidence. Please read Chapter One to get the context for this story.
*****
The Monday after my meeting at Karen's condo, I called one of my connections. Jim Carr had served as Governor Warren's "political adviser" during her campaign for President. I had met him when he was in my state, and we'd had beers together a few times. He was now a K Street consultant by had good connections in Government.
After pleasantries, I started by telling Jim that my source for what I was about to tell him was privileged. I gave him the basic part of the story first. When I finished, the line was quiet for almost a minute.
Finally, Jim said, "I heard something about that during the campaign, but I dismissed it as urban myth. You are sure that what you're telling me really happened?"
"Jim, I wasn't there so I can't give you 100%, but I think my source is truthful."
"Well, the campaign was vicious and I know that there are folks at 1600 who wouldn't mind getting their own back, but Trout is pretty discredited now. I'm not sure anyone at a responsible level is going to be very interested in this."
"Does that change if you can tie in Speaker Rhoden and Majority Leader McDonald?" I asked.
"That makes a huge difference. What makes you think that they were involved?"
"I don't know their level of involvement, but they knew and ogled, "I said. Then I proceeded to tell him about the JSGFT's appearance at the White House.
"Let me make some calls," Jim said. "My guess is that someone will be getting back to you."
I waited a couple of days. I wasn't sure how to push the issue if I met with indifference in Washington. To my relief, I got a call from some on DOJ's Public Integrity Section. I fed that person all of the details I had been given and sat back to wait to see if an investigation developed.
That afternoon, my phone rang again. This was Karen.
"Harry, how are you? I have to be Downtown tomorrow at Federal Court to testify in an auto theft case. The AUSA thinks that I'll be done before lunch. If I am, are you free for lunch? You can bring me up to date."
How would I turn down lunch with Karen? "Sure," I replied. "Call my cell when you are finished and we'll work out the details." I gave her my cell number.
About 11:00 the next morning, my phone made the odd noise it makes when it receives a text with an attachment. The text said "DONE & HUNGRY. K." The attachment was a photograph, of Karen, facing the camera and smiling. She was nude in the picture.
I texted back "5TH & MAIN. 5 MIN."
I met Karen, looking gorgeous in a conservative business suit on standing on the corner. I couldn't resist teasing her.
"You look great, but I like your texting outfit better," I said.
Karen smiled. I attach that when I want to be sure to get someone's attention," she said. "They won't let me wear that one in court. Where are we eating?"
I took Karen to a new, rather pricey, place that had recently opened. Its shtick was "inventive cuisine." That notwithstanding, it wasn't a bad meal, but maybe that was because of the company.
Over lunch, I told Karen about my calls with Carr and DOJ.
"I've heard of that PI guy," she said, referring to the lawyer from Public Integrity. "The word is that he doesn't let go when he gets hold of something until he has a conviction. I hope they leave him on it."
A few moments later, Karen said, "Oh! I need to tell you that there is a third JSGFT girl in with us now. Remember that I told you we had a girl from the Coast Guard?"
I nodded.
"That was Carrie. She's a lot of fun. She doesn't look like anything special with her clothes on, but she is beautiful naked. Anyway, she's in."
That was the third or fourth time I had heard Karen or MaryLou comment on how their JSGFT colleagues looked nude. I couldn't resist asking a carefully worded question.
Karen smiled at my question. "Harry, we spent a great deal of time together stark naked. There were training exercises where the only clothes we took were footwear. If you spend that much time with people naked in stressful situations some, well, intimate bonding is going to happen"
"I see," I said.
Karen smiled again. "No you don't. You haven't been there, at least not yet. Don't worry, though. Just because we JSGFTers have a special bond doesn't mean that any of us, well at least most of us, don't like men."
I really wasn't sure how to take that. I tensed a bit and said, "Well, it is none of my business. Not that it would happen, but the ethics rules prohibit me from relationships with clients."
Karen smiled her high intensity smile. "I know," she said.
We didn't hear anything for about three months. Fortunately, Karen, MaryLou, and Carrie (whom I'd yet to meet) knew how government works. Finally, I got an e-mail from a lawyer at DOJ sending an agreement that allowed me to tell DOJ who I represented in connection with JSGFT without the Government being able to use that information against my clients. After talking it over with Karen, I signed and returned that agreement.
Two things happened very rapidly. First, I was e-mailed a draft "Report on Joint Study Group on Female Terrorism" with a covering message saying that the final report would be released in five days. The report was pretty accurate and thorough, although it portrayed the women who served in JSGFT as victims of "pornographic sexism at the highest levels of the Federal Government."
That characterization did not go over well with my clients. MaryLou said over the phone that "I have never been anyone's victim and I never will be."
Over drinks, Karen explained, "I feel victimized because promises were made to me that were not kept. I don't feel victimized from being in JSGFT. It was fun and it opened up a whole new aspect of life for me. I like people seeing my bare tits, ass, and cunt. It is a real turn-on. But for being in JSGFT, I'm not sure that I would ever have developed the courage to experience that."
The second swift development, which my clients liked a lot more, came in a call from a female lawyer at DOJ. The Government had decided that my clients and the other members of JSGFT had, indeed been victimized and were due compensation. The Government initially offered each lady $1.5 million in return for a full release. We negotiated that up to $2.5 million. Karen, MaryLou, and Carrie turned in their letters of resignation.
Two days before the JSGFT report was due to be officially released, Jim Carr called me to say that the report had been leaked to The Times and a story on it would run the next morning. With consent from Karen, MaryLou, and Carrie, I called The Times and disclosed their names as members of JSGFT. Their names were added to the story.
As MaryLou had expected, I, as the front person for the ladies, was bombarded with requests for interviews. Those were declined. We let the story pick up steam, which it did, for a couple of weeks. Slowly, the media figured out that my clients wanted money to tell their stories and money offers started. Those were uniformly well below what the ladies expected.
While the ladies started to get frustrated, I thought that the price would go up with time. My fear was that someone else who had been in JSGFT would cut a deal first. What I didn't appreciate at the time was that Karen and MaryLou were the only two who were really proud of their time in JSGFT. MaryLou especially can be very persuasive and had brought Carrie in with them.
Finally, the opportunity which the ladies wanted arrived. I was called by a cable TV channel not usually interested in news. They wanted to do a two or three part series that would involve extended interviews with the ladies "in uniform" as the TV people put it and would include footage of my clients re-creating the types of things they did (or trained to do) in JSGFT. After some discussion, we reached a deal that would pay each woman more than she had been paid by the Government.
The TV people rented an entire waterfront resort on an island in the Caribbean for a week to tape their program. That was when Karen reminded me of our deal that I was going to the Caribbean with them and would be just as naked as they.
"I'm not sure that will work. I seriously doubt that that the channel wants a naked old man on this program. This is about beautiful younger women," I told Karen.
I had underestimated my clients. They went directly to the TV execs and said that they were pulling out unless their lawyer was brought to the island for the entire week and was allowed, correct that, required to go nude the whole time.
I had more or less simultaneous calls from the TV show producer who, not knowing my deal with my clients, was begging me to go along with the nudity; and Karen who told me to "pack a bag for the islands, but don't put much in it."
I negotiated a modest five figure fee to compensate me for a week of enforced nudity and met Karen at the airport with my small bag. In San Juan, we met up with MaryLou and Carrie and the TV people who had chartered two small planes to take us to the island: one for people and one for TV production detritus. The limiting factor was a very short runway on the island, so we had to stop in St. Marten to refuel.
I spent some time on the flight talking to Carrie, my client whom I'd never met. She had blonde hair and a very cute face. She was bright and funny and great to talk to. However, Karen was right that clothed she didn't really attract much attention.
We landed on the island in the early evening. I climbed out of the plane after my three clients.
MaryLou adopted her command voice. "Harry, we're on the island now. Strip off. That was the deal. You're naked until you get back on that plane."
Well, I couldn't argue because that was the deal. So, I started undressing there on the runway apron while the TV folks unloaded the second plane. After I stripped, Karen took my clothes. I stood completely nude in front of my three clients.
MaryLou loudly said to Carrie, "See, I told you that he has a nice dick."
Karen looked at the other two ladies. "Girls, Harry is on our team. We can't let him go nude by himself."
With that, Karen began taking her clothes off. MaryLou just said, "cool" and began stripping down. Carrie looked a bit dubious, but started to undress too. When she finished, I saw that Karen had been right again. Carrie had a perfectly formed and proportional body. I glanced at Karen who winked at me.
When all four of us were naked, a young lady on the production staff noticed us and ran over. "What are you doing?" she asked. "We don't start filming until the day after tomorrow!"
In a voice that would leave a new recruit weak-kneed, MaryLou declared "The four of us are nude until, at least, we get on that plane to leave. Nothing in the contract says that we can't."
