by J G Jerome
“Let me give you some more context,” I tell her. “I don’t know all the answers about the afterlife. I believe one or more divine beings watch over us. I know for a fact that souls exist and angels exist, but they don’t work like Christian culture would describe them. Soul-less come to exist from one of three methods. They are born without a soul, they have a soul seed that doesn’t blossom, or someone that knows my kind of magic pulls the souls out of them.”
Carla sits up. “Why would you do that?”
I shrug, “I can think of several good reasons.”
“Name one,” Carla challenges. I can’t help it; I like her. She makes me think and challenges me.
I nod, “Okay. I suppose if you knew someone with a sick body but a good soul, and you also knew of a healthy, evil person, you might pull the evil soul out and put the good soul in.”
She asks, “And that would leave a sick zombie?”
“Only if the necromancer pushes life back into it. Otherwise when you pull the soul out, the body dies,” I explain.
“So, how am I alive?” she asks.
“You were born that way, Carla. I don’t know the mechanics of it. Regardless, your brain doesn’t have that integral connection to a soul. You don’t have a soul seed either. You survived birth without it,” I explain.
She leans into Marissa. She appears to be taking comfort from the contact. “Look, Carla. You’re taking comfort from Marissa right now. You have built the habit of social skills, and that one you appear to use instinctively. You can have friends and lovers - a full life.”
She continues to stare at me. “Okay. That’s something,” she says. “You said you could give me a soul. How would that work?”
I purse my lips as I look into her eyes before turning to Marissa. “Are you okay with this?”
She asks, “Sidney?” I nod. “I’m okay with it now.” Her eyes are bright and rimmed in red, but she’s not weeping any longer.
I look at the blond. “Carla, I recently found a ghost. Ghosts are the exact opposite of a zombie - a disembodied soul or soul fragment. This ghost, Sidney, was murdered near here in 1891. Sidney would like to be alive again. If I would put Sidney inside you, you would no longer be just Carla. You also wouldn’t be just Sidney. My understanding is you would be a blend - having the memories of both of you. You would have your memories but also remember being murdered and everything before it. You would remember being locked in a soul box for over one hundred years. It might tax your sanity.”
I can see the gears turning, but Carla doesn’t say anything. I continue. “Also, Sidney is a magician. You likely would have powers and know how to use them.”
She finally asks the question she’s been wrestling with her intellect. “Will I be able to love? To feel love? To give love? To have empathy?”
“I think so, but I don’t know.” I look over towards Josie. “You know Sidney the best of any of us. What do you think?”
Josie says, “I don’t know him well, but he was kind, funny, and smart.”
Carla is confused. “He?”
I nod, “Sidney was a young man. I was planning to resurrect him, but he asked to be paired with a ‘pretty female zombie.’ Today he would probably be labeled a transgender. Labels aside, I expect him to be part of our family once he, or she, has a body again. Based on what I’ve heard from people that knew him, he is very empathetic and emotionally healthy. I’m sure he would find you suitably pretty.”
She smiles slightly.
“Carla,” I draw her attention back to me. “I promised you that you would be out the door in thirty minutes or less. We’re running out of time. There is no rush for you to decide. I will be back in about ten days. Come visit us again. Call Marissa to arrange it. Okay?”
She nods. “I have a lot to think about.” She turns to Marissa. “I miss you.”
“I know, Carla,” my lover answers. “We had a lot of fun together, and I loved you. The lack of connection hurt. Paired with my growing love for Will, I arrived at a point where I had to let you go. I miss you too, which is why I have been crying. Despite that, I’m not coming back. I have moved on.”
“Will you let me in your life if I do this?” Carla asks.
“Carla, you can be in my life again either way. I just can’t commit to being your lover. You may find that to be more difficult if you gain more emotions rather than less. Don’t make this decision one way or another based on me,” Marissa says. “I love the family I have now - Will, Rebecca, Josie, and Audrey. They are my loves and my lovers. I make no guarantees one way or another that you and I will ever be together like that again. You have to decide based on what you want irrespective of anything between you and I.”
Carla nods, looking off into the distance. I offer her my hand. “Please let me escort you to your car.” She looks up at me, then down at my hand. She slowly places her hand in mind, and I gently pull her to her feet.
I open the door and release her hand as she walks out the door in front of me. There is a police car behind Carla’s car. I murmur, “Just get in and drive slowly and confidently away. Ignore what I’m about to say.” She nods.
I walk with her around to the driver’s side door. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Carla. Go home and get some rest.” She gets in her car.
Carla looks up at me, “Thank you, Will. You were a big help.”
I nod and shut her door before I look back at the police officers. “Is there a problem, Officer Johnson? Officer Bird?”
Office Bird asks, “Where is she going?”
“Home, ma’am,” I respond. “We were packing up to leave when she pulled up. She wasn’t feeling very well, so we took her inside and let her sit down. She felt better, so I escorted her to her car. I understand she’s on her way home.”
Carla’s car pulls away slowly and evenly. She signals and turns right on Aubrey towards Montezuma, and disappears from sight.
Office Johnson asks, “Who’s we? That young lady is still with you?”
Rebecca walks out with her clutch. “Well hello, Officer Bird. Did you come to check on me?”
The female cop grins. “I don’t know, Rebecca. Do I need to?”
Rebecca walks up to the female officer and murmurs, “I think you just want to know how William is in bed. I can tell you, he’s awesome!” Marissa and Josie walk out and lock the door.
Officer Bird flushes with embarrassment, so I turn towards Officer Johnson.
“The obvious answer to your question is ‘yes.’ She’s gotten much healthier, don’t you think?” I ask. Rebecca slides up under my left arm and kisses my cheek.
Officer Johnson asks with absolutely no diplomacy, “She of age?”
She pats the officer on the shoulder, “Thank heavens, yes! I don’t know that I could have waited, and then William would have been in trouble.”
“How did you determine that?” he asks.
“I engaged a private detective agency through a friend in Phoenix,” I explain. “They discovered that she is from Colorado and that she last worked in the White Mountains. The detective chased down her ID and got it to us a couple of weeks ago.”
“May I see it?” the officer asks.
Rebecca pulls her ID out of her clutch and then she pulls her passport.
“An ID?” he asks.
Rebecca says, “I never learned to drive. I did get a passport in high school for a trip to Europe.” She extends the passport to Officer Johnson. He looks at the picture then flips through the pages finding entry and exit stamps.
He hands it back with a shrug. “Thank you, Rebecca. I just wanted to be sure you are safe.”
Rebecca cocks an eyebrow at him. “My Willliam faced a knife-wielding attacker to protect me and killed him with his bare hands. I’m not sure I could be more safe, plus he and my friend Marissa are teaching me to defend myself. You need not worry on my account, Officer Johnson.”
He actually snaps to attention as he notices Marissa. He says, “Ms. Tomlinson! Please
give my regards to your father.”
She says, “I will, Officer Johnson.” Marissa wraps her arms around Rebecca. “You ready to roll, Baby?”
Rebecca nods, “Yes. Let’s get going.”
“Have a safe trip,” Officer Bird says as she gets back into the car. Officer Johnson waves with a small smile before he crawls back into the driver seat. We all get into Marissa’s car.
“Is everyone ready?” I ask.
Josie says, “We’re good, Will. On to the Den of Iniquity.’
Marissa is driving, and we are heading east on AZ-69 heading generally southeast to connect with I-17 at Cordes Junction. My arm is on the console with my fingertips resting lightly on her thigh. I don’t want to distract her from her drive, but I figure she could use a little comfort after the Carla ordeal. We are listening to my ‘Big Bad Voodoo Daddy’ radio station on the Pandora Radio app.
As we pass Main Street of Dewey-Humboldt, she places her right hand on my left thigh. As we enter the ‘business district’ of Mayer, she signals a right turn and pulls into the Circle K parking lot before putting the vehicle in park.
She looks at me. I see that the redness is gone from her eyes, but they still glisten more than normal.
I ask, “Are you okay, my love?”
Marissa nods just before two more pairs of hands appear from the rear seat to touch her. “I’m doing alright, Will. Honestly, I’m not paying attention to the road as much as I should. We ladies are supposed to be superior at multitasking to males, but I’m not doing a very good job at the moment.”
I tell her, “I haven’t noticed a problem, honey.” I cup her cheek and lean in for a kiss. She attacks my mouth hungrily. When we break the kiss, she holds me in place and leans her head against my forehead.
Eventually she gives me some room. “Would you drive? You know where we’re going anyway. I’d like to crawl in back and cuddle one of our wives.” She gives a small smile as she says ‘wives.’
I grin back at her. “Of course, beloved.”
She pulls her key fob out of her clutch and hands it to me. She says with a little bigger smile, “Thank you, husband.”
I tell her, “Let’s talk about this some more once you’ve had some time to process.”
She nods and pulls me in for another passionate kiss. She eventually lets me go and says, “That’s just one of the many reasons I love you, Will. You always give me what I need - even if I don’t know I need it.”
I smile, “That’s my job as your husband.”
“And me as your wife,” says Rebecca.
Josie adds, “Me too, sweetie. You want me to move up front?”
Marissa looks back over the seat. “There is definitely more leg room up here, but I’d kind of like to crawl into your lap and be held. Rebecca would hold me, but her lap is smaller.”
Rebecca says, “Not to worry. We can swap out if you want the...how did you say that, Will? The ‘bonus plan?’ Is that adding sex to cuddling?”
We all laugh at that. I concur, “That’s right, baby. Okay, ladies. Everyone rotate one seat to your left.”
Giggling ensues as we do a quick approximation of a ‘Chinese Fire Drill’ - I actually do make a circuit around the car first, which gets Marissa laughing. She explains what a ‘Chinese Fire Drill’ is while I think to myself. ‘Laughing is good. Mission accomplished.’
I adjust the seat and buckle myself into place in time for Marissa to lean up and kiss my cheek.
I smile and pull back out onto the highway.
“Marissa, ensure you are inside Josie's seatbelt. It’s not as good as having your own, but it’s better than none.”
“Okay,” she agrees as Tape 5’s rendition of Pantaloons comes on.
I get to speed as we crest the hill. Rebecca says, “I like this song. I can relate to pantaloons.”
Josie comments over the seat, “I like that they’re singing about me.” She demonstrates a decent voice by singing the lyrics. “Tonight Josephine, try something keen! Soon, get off your pantaloons!” She giggles. “I also like the idea of my lover getting me out of them.”
“Exactly,” murmurs Marissa.
We listen to a variety of Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, Puppini Sisters, Royal Crown Revue, Brian Setzer, Caro Emerald, Earl, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Colin James, Imelda May, and Devil Doll.
Cherry Poppin’ Daddies’ ‘Zoot Suit Riot’ gets us onto I-17 heading south. We pass Sunset Point and head down the mountainside as Caro Emerald’s ‘Dr. Wanna Do’ comes on. Colin James’ ‘Jumpin’ from Six to Six’ welcomes us into Phoenix, and Devil Doll’s ‘Liquour Store’ ushers us off the freeway.
We discuss our plan as I pull into Bernadette’s neighborhood. We will have lunch with Bernadette, Audrey, and Viktorija. This evening, we will have dinner with Audrey and her parents. Then we will stay overnight at Bernadette’s place. Saturday morning we will do the mysterious ‘Shryl task’ - whatever that is. That afternoon I will take the ladies with me when I go to train at Master Hiromatsu’s dojo. I cleared it with him in advance, and he is happy to have them come to train while I go to the class. I mention to the ladies that I don’t recall ever seeing a female student there, but I haven’t been to his ‘open’ classes, either. Saturday night, Audrey and I will put on a show in the theatre at Bernadette’s. Sunday, Rebecca and I will fly to North Carolina while Marissa, Josie, and Audrey all go home.
4
Lunch at the Bordello
By the time we are a couple of blocks from Bernadette’s, Marissa still hasn’t said anything about the Carla episode. “Marissa, how are you doing with our conversation with Carla?”
Marissa says, “That was hard. I’m glad she knows what is going on, but it was really hard to see her like that. I don’t want her to think that I will just run back to her if she takes Sidney on. I’m invested in the love of you three and Audrey. I don’t want to ruin what we have.”
Rebecca says, “You still love her.”
“I shouldn’t,” Marissa says. She chokes off a sob. “How do you stop loving someone, Will?”
I frown. “In my case I found it relatively easy after years of an abusive marriage ending with adultery. I don’t hate her, but I’m angry at her and would be just as happy to never see her again.”
I hear her sniff. “I thought I was over her. If we stayed on the street, I would probably have been fine. It surprised me when you asked about her relationships. I didn't think she could make me break down like that, but I lost it.” I feel a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you explained everything to her, and I’m fine with Sidney moving in with her...so to speak. The hard part will be if she does choose to move forward with Sidney, she will be part of the family - even if we won’t see her frequently. I don’t know what I’ll do.”
Josie says, “Maybe you will see her on the side like you and Will before you broke up.”
“I saw Will on the side because I loved Carla but also craved the touch of a man. If I need the touch of a woman, I have my two beautiful sister-wives - three when Audrey moves in with us. I have everything I need here with all of you.”
Rebecca turns around and looks at her. “Except Carla.” I can’t see Marissa’s reaction in the mirror. Rebecca continues. “You didn’t stop loving her, honey. You were tired of being hurt by her lack of empathy.” I pull into Bernadette’s driveway.
“And she can’t help it,” Marissa sobs. I put the CRV into ‘park’ and shut it off.
Josie says, “It’s not your fault, honey.”
Marissa holds her breath and blows it out. “I’m just so sad for her that she can’t experience what I’m feeling with all of you. I love you. All of you,” she sobs.
We all assure her, “We love you too.” I whip my handkerchief out of my hip pocket and hand it back.
She sniffs, “Thanks, Will” as she takes it out of my hand.
I tell her, “Marissa, we are yours. You are ours. No matter what happens with Carla, we are here
for you. Always.”
Josie says, “Unless you go fucking the gardner and pool boy.”
I don’t find it funny, but it does get a chuckle out of Marissa. “Not happening,” she says.
I get out of the car and pull Marissa out of the back seat into a hug. She squeezes me tight and kisses me sweetly. I tell her, “I love you, Marissa. Whatever you need, I’ll move heaven and earth to get it for you.”
Josie and Rebecca take over the hugging. I retrieve the bags from the back.
Luis runs out the door and grabs a couple of bags. I follow him toward the door as the ladies grab their handbags and follow me.
A statuesque, Latvian blond meets us just inside the entry. Viktorija looks ravishing standing there barefoot in a mid-thigh, silk kimono robe. Her décolletage is bared to below her breastbone by the barely closed robe.
I collect a very warm kiss. “Wow, Viktorija! That kiss might make me think you were looking forward to seeing me.”
Her eyes dance. “Will, I dreamt of you last night. It was quite...inspiring. I’m sorry if I’m overly forward.”
I chuckle, “Not to worry, sweetheart. Let me introduce you to my lady wives. Marissa, Rebecca, and Josie.”
Marissa hugs her before looking at her shrewdly. “My ‘gaydar’ says you’re not really into women.”
Viktorija shrugs, “True - much to Audrey’s dismay. It’s too bad, really. I love Audrey dearly; she’s my BFF. I just have a hard time with it. Plus, it would prove useful in my work here. For some reason, if a female client comes in, there's a high percentage chance she will ask for me.” She gives Marissa an appraising look. “There is one noteworthy exception. We’ll see if your gaydar picks up on that. Hmm?”
Marissa chuckles as Rebecca hugs Viktorija. Rebecca says, “Audrey tells me you’re going to be joining our family soon.”
“I would like to,” Viktorija says shyly. “It’s a little presumptuous of me to think you will all just welcome me in to share your man. You don’t even know me.”