Author's Note:
Thanks to my editor Dr Mark for all his help and advice.
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Caleb 27 - Back again.
Dianna led us into a room, holding the painting I had given her. I could see she had tears in her eyes, and I knew they were happy ones. I was pleased that I had managed to repair at least some of the damage I had done at the farm when I'd been so angry over the attack.
She walked to one side of the room, and I saw the photograph the painting was based on on the wall. It was yellowed and faded, in a small frame, and was about half the size of the painting.
Dianna took down the photograph and replaced it with the painting, taking care to ensure that it hung straight and wasn't going to fall off the wall. She stepped back to admire it. The tears that had been gathering in her eyes escaped and rolled down her face.
I reached out and gathered her to me and held her for a few minutes.
"I'm sorry, Dianna," I said to the top of her head. "What I said was cruel and uncalled for."
She tilted her head back to gaze at me with her own set of golden eyes. "I had been hoping that we were making progress," she said. "When you said those things, it was as if we were back where we started."
I shook my head. "I have so much to sort out," I said, still holding her. "I sometimes forget where I am with things, and people. You and I are in a much better place than we were."
"But not back to normal?" she asked.
"Not yet," I said, a small smile playing around my mouth. "But I do have a plan for that."
I heard all the girls give a little gasp, and Mary moaned slightly. Waves of arousal hit me from both the twins. Dianne looked to them and then to me with confusion.
"Not yet," I repeated. "But soon, I hope. One more thing. If you want to get back in Ness's good books, stop calling her Vanessa. She doesn't like it."
"But it's a beautiful name," said Dianna.
"It is," I said. "One day she may grow to like it being used, but for now she likes to be called Ness. You're starting on the back foot if anything you say to her starts with 'Vanessa...'"
She nodded, and we broke apart, moving into the kitchen where she started to serve the dinner she had cooked.
After we all sat down to eat, Dianna seemed eager to make conversation. "Maggie tells me that you managed to hold onto memories of a whole three years of study and assimilate them," she said, her voice betraying some wonderment. "How did you do that?"
It was nice to hear that she was impressed with something I'd done that, finally, wasn't tainted by some moral complication. Maybe that's why I spilled the beans so easily. I told her all about reading my own mind and figuring out how to sort memories for more efficient storage. I told her how once I had 'trained' my brain to do it, it became automatic, and virtually any memory I took would get assimilated.
She looked disappointed for a moment, but then I saw the wheels start to turn. "So, if I'm right," she thought out loud, "you could only do that with Telepathy. As an Empath, I wouldn't be able to 'retrain' my memory storage. I wonder, though, if maybe you could help someone retain memories though- even a Norm, maybe."
"It would be a long process," I said. "I guesstimate it took me about twelve hours asleep and awake to assimilate that set of memories."
"Would you be willing to experiment with one of our agents?" she asked. "She is about to go undercover and has a huge amount of information to assimilate. We can give her the memories of those who know it, but it's no good because it all gets muddled. She's trying to cram it into her head the old-fashioned way, but the window of opportunity for her insertion is closing. I don't want to lose the chance, but I also don't want to send her in if she's not ready. Her safety is obviously my primary concern."
"How long do we have?" I asked.
"A month at the most," said Dianna. "Then it will be too late."
"What does she need to learn?"
"She needs to be a certified accountant," she said. "So far she has the basics down, but it's effectively a two-year course she is trying to learn in two weeks."
"I'm assuming you've got a real one on hand," I said evenly. It would be baffling if they didn't. The point I was making was that I'd need their consent too.
"We've got someone teaching her," she confirmed. "It's too slow, though. And yes, he's on the inside. No issues there."
"I still have my classes at the university," I said, "although I will have more free time now I'm not wrestling."
"You'll get paid for your time too," Dianna said. "The three thousand is literally a retainer. The hourly rate is one-twenty."
"One dollar twenty?" I asked. "Isn't that a little below union rates?"
"One hundred and twenty," she laughed. "Doofus!"
"Okay then," I said. "I'm back at PSU starting Monday. Let me get my new class schedule and see how much time I have available and then I'll let you know. I should be starting my Healing training too, so my time is going to be tight, but I'll manage. I'm starting to think I need a secretary."
"I'll do it," said Amanda. "I could sit on your lap and take dick-tation."
That got eye-rolls from pretty much everyone. Still, I sent her a little private jolt of gratitude and horny, which she appreciated. In turn, she gave me a subtle head-tilt towards Mary.
"Secretary-slave,"
she sent.
"She might be into it."
As tantalizing as the thought was, I also briefly wondered which twin would take the actual work more seriously.
We finished the meal and, after spending time helping to clear up, we set out on our interrupted journey home. We arrived at the house just after nine.
Josh's parents were still there, having planned to go home the following day. His dad, Steve, was about an inch shorter than me, with short blond hair and a stocky build. His mother, Cassandra, was much more rotund; the term 'Rubenesque' popped into my head, and it fit. She was about half a foot shorter than her husband, and also had blonde hair and blue eyes.
They stood to greet us as we piled into the house. I'd had to park on the drive since I'd lost the garage opener with my stolen truck. Jules had changed the code on the garage, but we hadn't ordered a new remote yet.
"Mom, Dad," said Josh, "this is Caleb, my ex-roomie and now my landlord, I guess. This is Mary, Amanda, and Jules." I saw a glint of mischief in his eyes then he continued. "His girlfriends."
"They are all your girlfriends?" asked Cassandra, her eyes wide.
"Not exactly," I said. "But we are all together. And Josh..."
Josh looked at me, and I grabbed the nearest girl's - Jules's - hand and showed him the ring.