Nudist Camp Vacation

To NCV fans:

Okay, the Holidays are behind us (almost), so here's a new chapter to cheer you up. (Keep the tissues handy!) I intend to start the New Year right, so I'll be working on new chapters as much as possible.

Many people wrote to me, but since most of you didn't ask for a direct response, I didn't send one. I appreciate your understanding.

As always, I'll be very interested to know your thoughts after you read this chapter. You can write to me at: kenlou16@yahoo.com. Please be patient if my reply to your email is slow getting to you.

Thanks and HUGS! - Ken

Nudist Camp Vacation CHAPTER 30

Quickly glancing into the mirrors, I saw two men jump out of the car. They were dressed in black and wore ski masks! What I did then was purely from instinct; I didn't consciously think about what I was about to do. I just reacted.

Immediately, I punched the red "panic" button on the dash and dropped it into drive, pulling us the short distance back into our parking place. Looking in the mirror to the back seat where all three boys were strapped in, I shouted, "HANG ON BOYS!" then I crammed the gearshift into reverse. Tromping on the gas, all four wheels shot us backward, crashing into the car and pushing it out of the way. At the same time, I heard something crack against the windows! The outer thicknesses of glass on both sides of the car were shattered in several places, but nothing penetrated. I crammed it into "drive" and shot forward, cranking the steering wheel and clearing our parking place. We raced across the parking lot, putting distance between us and our attackers.

The panic button had activated a special device I had installed just after I had the Suburban armored. It did several things, simultaneously. First, it triggered the onboard computer, reprogramming the engine to operate at a higher level of power, and it activated a performance mode of traction control including four wheel drive. Next, it opened a hands-free communication link to my 24/7 security desk and sent our GPS position. It's similar to that "blue button" service you can get in some General Motors products. The status and location of the Suburban were instantly displayed on screens, both in the Suburban and at the security desk. When the signal reached the guards, it triggered an alarm for their immediate attention.

My adrenaline had me in "fight or flight" mode, but there was no question about fighting; I knew only that I had to get these boys to safety! I raced out of the parking lot as a voice came into the car saying, "Mr. Stewart, you've activated an alarm. Is there a problem?"

"YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT, THERE'S A PROBLEM! WE'RE BEING SHOT AT! I've got three boys with me. We're about twenty miles from home, and that's where we're headed! Get hold of Frank Holmes and tell him to let the guards at the house know we're coming in HOT!" It was the only place I could think of where we could be safe, instantly.

"Y-Yes, sir!"

There were six traffic lights I ran through on my way back to the house and I caught glimpses of that dented silver car, weaving in and out of traffic, following us as fast as they could.

I finally thought that I should describe the scene for the sake of my security guards. "There are at least two men in black clothing and ski masks in a silver car, following us at a high rate of speed. Notify the police!"

"Yes, sir! I have them on the phone, sir!" He paused and the line went silent. "They say you should keep your distance from the men chasing you, sir."

I would have thought he could hear our tires screeching as I rounded corners and accelerated! I said, sarcastically, "That's a good idea! I wish I'd thought of that!"

I thought I could hear a weak chuckle. "Yes, sir."

Occasionally in the background, even over the engine and tire noise I was making, I thought I could hear him describing our position, probably over the phone to the cops. I glanced back at the boys to make sure they were okay. They weren't. They were terrified! I guess I would have been, too, but I was too busy blasting through traffic and watching for anyone who might impede us, whether or not intentionally.

As we flew down the highway out of town, our attackers in hot pursuit, I handed my cell phone to Stevey. "Stevey! Find Andy Cooper in the phone's directory and call him! Tell him what's happening!"

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him searching for Andy's number and press "send." His hands were shaking as he put the phone to his ear. Speaking into the phone, Stevey said, nervously, "No, sir, this is Stevey. Alan's busy driving right now. We've been shot at and now we're being chased! . . . What? . . . We're on our way home from the doctor's office."

He pulled the phone away from his ear and asked, "Alan, how long is it gonna take us to get home?"

"Tell him, at this rate, we'll be home before we left!" I looked at Stevey in the mirror and smiled. "About fifteen minutes."

He smiled and put the phone back to his ear. "About . . ." Stevey looked back at me and relayed, "He heard you. What? Oh, okay. Alan, he says he'll meet us at the house. . . . He'll be there about the same time as us. . . . There are already some agents at the house. . . ." Then he concentrated on the phone. "Yes, sir. . . . Andy. . . . Thank you." Then he hung up.

Stevey looked at me and almost shouted over the sound of our screeching tires, "He said to get home as fast as we can. Stay ahead of them, but don't let them lose sight of us. He said they'll be ready for us when we get to the house, and he wished us luck."

Those thoughts gave me both strength and apprehension. I wondered what they had in mind for our pursuers. With FBI agents there, maybe my "private army" wouldn't get carried away!

The sun dipped low in the western sky as we closed the distance to the house. That damned silver car had almost caught up to us! I blasted an "SOS" on the horn, three short, three long, and three short, as a warning that we were approaching. I knew that in the pristine quiet of the country, they'd hear us with no problem.

When we got close to the drive, I reached to the dash, switched off the anti-lock braking system, jammed the brakes and gave the steering wheel a quick flick. That put us into a "controlled" four wheel skid and a slow spin to the left, aligning us with the driveway. As we got to the right point, I switched the traction control back on, tromped on the gas again, and shot up the driveway.

We were closely followed by that car, but my maneuver bought us some needed distance. As we got about half way up the drive, we heard what sounded like automatic gun fire! It was on both sides of us, but it was aimed behind us. I glanced into the rearview mirror and saw smoke or steam coming from the front and sides of that car. Its front dropped, and it swerved into the heavy bushes on the side of the driveway.

I didn't stop to see what happened next. I hit the garage door remote so that by the time we got to the garage it was open. As I had done earlier, after we were in, I punched the remote again and the door closed behind us.

I turned to the boys and asked, "Are you guys all right?"

Stevey and Paul nodded, silently. Philly seemed to be in a state of shock. He just stared at me, wide eyed.

I announced to our long silent security, "We're safe. We're home inside the garage. I must have broken twenty or thirty traffic laws."

I heard a heavy sigh. "Thank God," he said in a raspy voice. I think he might've been holding his breath. "The police should be there in a couple of minutes. I let them know where you were going."

"Thanks. . . . By the way, who is this?"

"This is Jefferson Washington, sir. Just call me `Junior.'"

"Okay, Junior. Thanks. You can sign off, now."

"Yes, sir." I heard a click and some static before it went silent. I pushed the panic button again, and all the red and yellow lights on the dash seemed to return to normal. That's the first time I've ever had to use that panic button, and it seemed to work perfectly! Don't you love it when a plan comes together?

I heard a hard knocking on my window. I glanced to the window and realized it had a shattered appearance. Then my eyes focused on a beautiful sight! Tim was trying to see into the car! His eyes were the widest I'd ever seen them! I hit the door unlock button and before I could reach for the handle, he pulled open the door. He stepped into the open door and grabbed me, crushing me into a loving embrace.

When he loosened his hold on me, he looked me over, I guess inspecting for bullet holes, and then he glared into my eyes and slowly inquired, "What the fuck is going on?"

I took a deep breath, sighed the last of my adrenaline away, then smiled and said, "Just a quick drive home from shopping, dear!"

Turning slightly red, he looked at me, a small smile beginning to appear. He looked as if he couldn't decide whether to laugh or get angry. Shaking his head, he said, "So you're all right, then? The boys, too?"

"Yeah," I said softly. "The boys, too. All three of them."

"THREE?"

As we were talking, the boys had gotten out of the car on the other side and had made their way around to where Tim could see them all.

"Yeah, three." Then I whispered, "You know what happens when you get two pubescent boys together? They breed!"

Tim looked at me with a crooked smile then burst out laughing. From several feet away, Stevey demanded, "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?"

I climbed out of the Suburban and closed the door. I explained, "I said something funny. Sometimes a little humor helps to defuse a tense moment."

Stevey glared at me for a moment then relaxed his expression as he said, "Oh." I don't know for sure if he understood, but it seemed as if he did.

I walked over to the boys and one by one, hugged each of them. I hugged Philly the longest, but he didn't really hug me back. I'll definitely have to spend some time with that boy. He looks as if he needs some serious love, and I need to earn his trust.

I looked at Stevey and Paul, then back at Philly and said softly, "You guys go inside. I've got to go back outside and see what's going on."

Tim said, "I'll go with you."

When Stevey said, "Me, too!" I objected. I caught Tim's determined expression so I announced, firmly, "Tim will go with me, but Stevey, I want you to show Paul and Philly into the house. Wait in the living room."

Stevey started to object, but he must have thought the better of it. It must have been the scowl I had on my face when I saw him gathering breath.

"Okay," he said, weakly.

Paul and Philly silently followed Stevey into the house while Tim and I climbed into the Suburban. As we waited for the garage door to open, I briefly explained to Tim what had happened at the Abbott house and how I happened to collect yet another boy. Then I told him about our quick trip to the doctor's office and how we'd been attacked as we left. I would give him a more detailed explanation later.

"So when Philly's parents had been arrested, I couldn't just abandon him. It'll be a lot better for him to be close to his brother, too."

He sighed, loudly. "Yeah, I can see that. I just hadn't thought I'd be a dad so soon. I mean, I kinda hoped I could be a father, some day, but not for a while."

"There's another thing. They've both been beaten, pretty badly. Paul more recently. I got pictures of Paul before we left the house, then Dr. Graves found evidence that Philly had been beaten when he examined him." I got a little choked up as I softly said, "Tim, you won't believe what they did to those boys."

Tim stared at me sadly as we pulled out of the garage. I drove slowly back down the drive. I stopped about a hundred feet short of the commotion and we watched from the inside the Suburban. There the car sat, jammed into a clump of cedar bushes, still giving off an occasional wisp of steam. There were half a dozen men in camo clothing and four in what I would call casual business attire. They were swarming all over the car, pulling the two men from it, handcuffing them.

Finally, I recognized Andy about the same time he saw us. He motioned for us to stay away. We hardly needed to be told to stay away from the scene that was playing out before us.

As two of what I'm sure were my guards led each of the men toward waiting police cruisers, they tore off the men's ski masks. For some reason I was surprised to see that they were both young and quite attractive. It just seemed wrong, for some reason, to see two attractive young men do something as hateful as shoot at us! I found myself wishing they were old, fat and ugly.

When Andy approached the Suburban, Tim and I climbed out and greeted him: Tim with a handshake and me with a hug. Andy announced, "Well, that's the last of them, I think. Those two represent the remainder of the group's enforcers. They're all in custody, now. I don't think you'll be having any more trouble from them."

I looked at Andy, skeptically. "Are you sure?"

Andy smiled at me, sadly, and then sighed. "Yes and no. I'm as sure as I can be, but in this business you can't be too cautious. I think you should keep your guards for a while, anyway. Are the boys okay?"

"They're shaken up, but they're okay. You can see for yourself what they did to our car," I said, motioning toward the Suburban. I glanced over Andy's shoulder at Tim. His eyes were flooding. I reached out to him and he came to me for a tight hug, weeping into my neck. "Tim," I whispered, "what's wrong?"

He took a halting breath then he whispered into my neck, "It's just that so much has been going on. You saved Stevey's life so many times, I lost count, and I could have lost you just as many times. I love you, Alan. I love you so much it hurts."

I chuckled, softly, into his hair. "You keep saying that, and I keep telling you that love isn't supposed to hurt, but I know what you mean. You're my angel from Heaven. I love you, Tim Smith. I love you more than my own life."

I had my eyes closed, but I could feel Andy's eyes on us as the three of us stood there in the driveway. A large hand came seemingly from nowhere and rested gently on my back. Startled, I looked up into Frank's placid eyes.

He smiled at me and said, "You okay?"

"Yeah," I breathed, "Now."

Tim looked up at him, wiping his face as we relaxed our hug and they shared a gentle gaze, a smile growing on Tim's red face. "Hi, Frank," he whispered. "Is it really over?"

Frank nodded and said, "Yeah, I think so. The guys and I are gonna hang around for a few more weeks, though. I still don't trust those guys."

"Suits me," I said. "Where've you been, Frank? I haven't seen you for a while."

He shared a knowing look with Andy then said, "I've been working with Andy, here. He needed someone to infiltrate the pedophiles, so I volunteered."

Andy chuckled. "Don't let him kid you. It was his idea. I wouldn't have let him get involved if I didn't think he could handle himself. I only told him where I needed him. I couldn't believe that he could insinuate himself into the group so easily and completely. They must have been desperate to have him on their enforcement team. He found out the last of what we needed to know and we got him out at just the right time. It was perfect that he didn't have any obvious ties to law enforcement. They had moles everywhere, including the Bureau, and could easily check to see if he was legit. Of course, Frank helped us get the moles, too." He looked up at Frank with admiration, as did I!

I couldn't help myself. I leaned into Frank and grabbed him into a hug. What I wasn't expecting was the bear hug I got in return! He patted my back and said, "Show me these boys of yours."

I smiled up at him and tipped my head toward the house. "Let's go."

As the three of us slowly walked toward the house, I kept my arm around Tim and he didn't seem to want to let go of me. I said to Frank, "It looks like Tim and I will be guardians or foster fathers of two more boys. You'll remember Paul. He's the one who was kidnapped with Stevey." Frank nodded. "Paul's eleven year old brother is also here. Philly and Paul were both physically abused by their parents and adult brothers."

Frank looked at me with a pained expression. "Honestly, I can't understand how a parent could hurt their own kid. It's just . . . wrong!"

I nodded, sadly. "It's like I've been saying. Some people should never be allowed to be parents."

When we got to the front door, Stevey flung it open. He jetted past Tim and me and threw his arms around Frank. I thought I could see Frank's eyes cloud up.

Stevey looked up into Frank's face, smiling brightly. "Hi, Frank! Where you been?"

Frank smiled down at Stevey and said, "Oh, I've been around. Where are your friends?"

Paul and Philly peeked around the open door.

I encouraged them, saying, "C'mon out here, guys!"

Slowly, tentatively, they stepped around the door and out onto the porch. I introduced them to Frank and they shook his hand. I didn't think Paul recognized him, so I explained to him, "Frank was the reason you and Stevey were rescued from those kidnappers."

Paul looked up at him, admiringly. "Thanks. That was really scary. I thought they were gonna kill us."

Frank nodded and whispered, "I was scared, too." Then he cleared his throat and said, "I'd better get home. It's been a while and I miss my kids."

He got a little choked up when he mentioned his girls and he looked at me a little startled. I don't think he intended to get that personal and he may have been slightly surprised at his own reaction.

I smiled at him and put my hand on his shoulder, turning him away from the boys. I hoped to save him from further embarrassment. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tim herd the boys back into the house.

"Thanks, Frank," I said. "You'll never know how much I appreciate all you've done for us." After walking a few steps, I turned to him and said, "Frank, please come back and visit the boys. They love you, you know."

I guess I said the right thing at the wrong moment, because his eyes clouded and a tear rolled down his cheek. He looked at me and whispered, "You won't believe what they were doing. I hope you never have to see it, yourself."

At that moment, I felt a pain hit me. It shot through me to my very soul. I must have felt, for an instant, the pain Frank was feeling, remembering what he had seen. I felt the need to comfort him, so I said, "There are people in this world who are only concerned with their own wants and needs. That's why we have so many people in prison, to keep them from harming the rest of society. When someone inflicts their own ideas on someone else, without the other one's consent, that person must be removed from society. But when someone steals the innocence of a young person, I don't think that person can be punished enough. Frank, I know there are a lot of boys that will never know you helped them, and that's the best kind of help you can give."

I squeezed his shoulder and he nodded and swallowed, hard. After taking a deep breath, he looked at me and smiled. He smiled at me long enough that I wondered what he was thinking. Then suddenly, he grabbed me into a bone crushing bear hug.

While he hugged me, I could feel his halting breathing. I hugged him as tightly as I could, and then patted him on the back. It's always the biggest guys, it seems, that become the most emotional. They hold it in until they can't hold it any more then it explodes from them.

Frank finally released me from our hug and took a few steps to the edge of the porch, wiping his eyes. He took a deep breath and let it out, slowly, looking out over the twilit land in front of us. The horizon is about ten miles away, but it seems much further. The view is pastoral, with rolling hills, rows and groups of big, old trees, pastures, fence lines, and a few small creeks, all of it various shades of greens and browns, but in a glow, reflecting the colorful sunset. I stepped to his side and looked out at the view with him.

After a long moment, Frank looked at me and said, "Thanks, Alan."

I was honestly puzzled. "Why are you thanking me?"

He smiled, sheepishly. In a soft voice, he said, "You brought me into this turmoil just a few short weeks ago, and it's changed my life. I thought, at first, that I'd just be helping one boy from the unwanted advances of one man. Instead, it grew into a much larger thing. I could never have imagined all this was going on. It's shaken me to my foundations. There was an organization of these men, but that's been broken up now. What really bothers me is that there are so many individuals out there that think the same way. They could prey on a boy or girl and think nothing of what they're doing to them. They think only of their own carnal desires. Then there are people like Paul's parents who don't know the treasure they have, right there in front of them. Instead of nurturing a precious human being, they tear it apart. It hurts to know that such people exist. I can only pray that Stevey and Paul, and little Phil, too, overcome what they've been through and become good, healthy men."

I looked up at Frank and whispered, "I think they will. At least they have a much better chance, now. The human spirit is remarkable, if not resilient. With some help, I think they'll be fine."

"I hope so. I pray so."

As we stared out over the darkening countryside, Andy made his way up to the porch. The men who had been arrested had been taken away, and he had been helping to gather information from the scene for whatever report had to be filed.

"Hi, Alan. Frank. Sorry to bother you, Alan, but I need to get a statement from you."

Frank turned to me and said, "I've got to be going. I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?" He put his hand on my shoulder, gently.

"Yeah, that's fine. It'll have to be after lunch, though. I'll be at the office in the morning. I've got an appointment."

He nodded, then turned to Andy and shook his hand. "I'll come by your office in the morning and finish up that report. Then you can pay me!"

Andy chuckled. "That'll be fine. Thanks, Frank."

Frank nodded and left.

Turning to Andy, I said, "C'mon in. I hope you don't mind, but I need to get the boys settled."

"That's fine! I don't mind."

We stepped into the house and I led Andy into the dining room, where Nell was feeding the boys, all four of them. Seeing them eating I realized I was hungry. I asked Nell, "Is there enough for two more?"

She smiled at me and said, "You know better than to ask. I made a couple of lasagnas and a big salad. With all these growing boys, I imagine I'll be making a lot more food than I used to. You know, of course, that means a raise?"

I chuckled at her and said, "You've spoiled my surprise." Turning to Andy, I said, "You'll join us, won't you?"

He hesitated, shrugged, and said, "Sure. Thanks."

As we stepped up to the table, I motioned for Andy to sit at the other end. Making introductions, I said, "Guys, this is Andy Cooper. Andy, you of course know Tim and Stevey. This is Paul, my new ward, hopefully soon to be our son. And this is Philly. I hope he'll be our son, too."

Philly was sitting next to Tim. He looked up at me then at Tim with his wide, blue eyes and blushed. Tim looked at Philly and smiled. Tim's warm smile did something to Philly, because he smiled and turned even redder. If I didn't know better, I'd say Philly was developing a crush for Tim! Tim turned to me and winked. He sees it, too. Oh, well. We'll cross one bridge at a time.

Tim looked over at Andy and asked, "Who were those men and why did they shoot at Alan and the boys?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure. I'm pretty sure they were connected to the group in Houston, but I'm not really sure why they went after you guys. I think it might be because they didn't want you to testify against their friends. But they weren't being very talkative when we arrested them. We'll see what happens when we get them into custody."

Tim listened attentively. "Hmm," was his only response.

The rest of the meal was silent. As the boys finished scarfing down seconds and the rest of us just finished, I announced, "If we're all ready, let's see about giving our newcomers a tour and show them their rooms."

Paul and Philly looked at me with wide eyes. Andy was smiling at them, but they didn't notice. I secretly wanted Andy to see the sleeping arrangements. I know I'm being weird, but somewhere, deep down inside, I felt I needed his approval. After all, it's not like I had ever had a house full of boys before this! I stood from the table and beckoned Paul and Philly to lead the parade. First, we checked out the kitchen.

"Boys, this is the kitchen, and that poor withered old woman is our galley slave." I winked at Nell.

She rose to her feet from her seat at the kitchen table. "Yes, I'm the slave of the manor, but don't you two get any ideas that you can boss this old lady around." Then her voice got soft. "Anytime you boys want anything, you just ask, or help yourselves to anything in the refrigerator. If you want anything special, just say the word and I'll get it for you. Okay?"

After they nodded in silence, Stevey whispered, "She must really like you guys! She usually growls at us!"

Paul smiled at Nell, but Philly's eyes got big. When I laughed, Philly blushed and smiled at his shoes. I guess he finally caught that we were all teasing each other.

I led the boys to show them where the garage was, back through the kitchen and dining room, across the foyer, into the living room, and then to my library cum office. Then we went into the entertainment room. It was only then that I realized that the boys' eyes had been bugging out, and they'd been completely silent.

"Boys, what do you think?"

Philly just continued to gape around at all of it. I think he was in some sort of a trance. Paul finally blurted, "Kewl! Way kewl! All this is yours?"

"Well, mine and Tim's, and Stevey's while he's here. But it's yours, now, too. We play video games on the big screen, but you can play them in your rooms, too. I've got it all networked, so you can call them up on your computers."

Paul looked at me in astonishment, but said, "Huh?"

Stevey chuckled at him and said, "That's okay. I'll show you. I've been messing around with the computer in my room and I figured it out."

Paul looked at Stevey, I think with a little lust in his eyes, and said, "Kewl!" Then he looked at me and said, almost in a reverent tone, "You know, Dad, you could fit ten of our old house into this place."

He called me "Dad." I'm not used to that, yet, but I like the sound of it. I swallowed hard and said, "This is your home, now. Let's go pick out your rooms."

I glanced at Andy who had been following us silently. The look on his face could only be described as "misty." I think he was just happy for the boys.

Paul slid up to my side and put his arm around my waist, bringing Stevey along with him with his other arm, for a side-on hug as we staggered from the room. As we all processed toward the stairs, Paul finally let me go, but kept a tight hold on Stevey. Stevey put his arm carefully on Paul's shoulder and looked into Paul's green eyes with his lusty gaze. They shared a meaningful exchange, but they both blushed when they caught me smiling at them.

As we started up the stairs, Philly stepped up beside me, but I noticed Tim on his other side with his arm over Philly's shoulder. I smiled down at Philly as he looked up at me with an almost guilty expression. I think it'll be a while before he warms up to me. I smoothed the short hair on his head and put my arm around him, too, as we reached the top of the stairs.

Quickly thinking about the arrangement of the rooms, I decided to put Paul across the hall from Stevey's room, so they would be close, and Philly could have the room next to Paul's. I remembered that up to now Philly and Paul had shared a room, so Philly would be close to Paul in case he needed him.

We showed Paul to his room first. With a flourish, I waved my arm at the door and said, "Master Paul, this be thy kingdom."

He smiled at me, and then peered into the room, in wide-eyed awe. "This is MY room?" he squeaked. He seemed to whisper as if he were in church, "This is twice as big as the room I shared with Philly."

I allowed a moment for his reverence then said, "Yes, it's all yours. I know it's not decorated for a boy, but we'll leave that to you.

He looked up at me, almost pleading, and asked, "Can I hang stuff on the walls, too?"

I smiled and choked, "You can do anything you want. If you need more furniture, like a bigger desk, a recliner, or whatever, just say the word. All you have to do is ask. I think the first thing we need to do is get you guys your own TV's and stereos."

He hesitated a moment then flung himself at me, grabbing me into a tight hug. I rubbed his back with both hands while he mumbled into my chest, "You're the best." When he let me go, he looked up at me and wiped his eyes. He glanced at Stevey then walked into his room, closely followed by Philly.

"Philly?" I said, "Don't you want to see your room?"

He looked up at me, apparently perplexed. "D-Don't I get to share this room with P-Paul?"

It suddenly occurred to me that this was the first time I remembered hearing Philly speak. Paul bit his lips and looked at me, pleadingly. Instantly, I understood the attachment Philly had with Paul was not completely shared by Paul. Obviously, Paul was in need of some measure of privacy, not surprising for a thirteen-year-old.

Kneeling, I was as tall as Philly. He stepped carefully closer to me as I whispered, "Don't you want your own room? All big boys get their own rooms. That way you can put your own stuff on the walls, play your stereo, watch TV, and do other stuff, and it won't bother your brother. Isn't that what you want?"

He shuffled his feet, looking down at them and said, "I guess." When he looked back into my eyes, I smiled and held my hand out to him. After a short hesitation, he took my hand. Standing, I slowly led him to the next room, his room, and walked with him into it.

He gasped. "This is just like Paul's room!"

I smiled into his eyes and said, "Yes it is, almost. The colors are a little different, and the furniture is different, but it's pretty much the same." Then I led him into the private bathroom saying, "This is yours, too."

He gasped again. "No way!"

I chuckled. "Yes, way," I whispered.

He looked at me for a long moment then started to swing my hand with his. I guess he was testing his comfort level. Suddenly, he let go of my hand and ran to the bed and jumped up on it, then quickly turned and sat with his feet extended pointedly off the bed, his hands clasped between his knees and his head hanging down. It looked as if he was waiting to be disciplined.

I softly asked, "What's the matter? Forget how to jump on a bed?"

He jerked his head up at me and had a quick sparkle in his eyes, his mouth hanging open.

"You know, it seems to me I heard somewhere that all beds need a certain amount of jumping on them to break them in. I don't think this one's ever been jumped on, so you better get to it!"

Slowly, he started giggling then got to his feet on the bed and started tentatively jumping, watching for my reaction. Gradually, he lost himself in it and started jumping with all his might.

Tim, Andy and I traded glances and watched him jump as Paul and Stevey came running into the room. Paul looked at me then Philly and said, hoarsely, "Philly's jumping on the bed!" Then he turned to me and looked at me as if I'd lost my mind.

I smiled and said, "Yes, he is. And he's doing a fine job, too." Then I turned serious, put my hand on his shoulder and said to him, "You guys need to catch up on things you missed out on. Bed jumping is an important part of your childhood. If I don't catch you jumping on your bed, accidentally breaking something, or doing something else like that once in a while, I'll be disappointed. You need to be a kid while you can."

He stared at me for what seemed like a long time. I was about to ask him what he was thinking when I saw a tear roll down his cheek. Slowly, I put my arms around him and he came to me, putting his arms around me. I held him for several minutes, resting my cheek on his head and slowly rubbing his back. Philly finally got tired of jumping and turned his attention to Paul.

Philly stood on the bed, catching his breath and asked, "What's wrong with Paul?"

I smiled at him and softly said, "Nothing's wrong with Paul. He just needed a hug."

"Oh."

He jumped off the bed and came running to me, stopping short then held his hands behind his back. Studying me, he said, "Thanks."

I smiled, sadly, and said, "You're quite welcome." Paul secretively wiped his face on my shirt then looked up at me and sniffed. I kissed his forehead and said, "Why don't you guys get settled up here while Tim, Andy and I take care of some things downstairs?" Looking at the others, it occurred to me that the boys didn't have any pajamas to sleep in. I asked Paul, "Do you guys wear pajamas to bed?"

He sniffed again and said, "No, we usually sleep in our under shorts."

"Hmm. Okay, we'll have to get you some more clothes tomorrow. Do you have a key to your house?"

"No, but I know how to get in. There's usually a window unlocked, so we climb in through it. It's how we get in when we come home from school."

I didn't like the sound of that, but I nodded. "Okay, then, Tim, will you take them by their house tomorrow?"

"Sure! But what about the office?"

I snickered. "I'll write you a note."

He gave me a smirky grin. "Thanks."

I turned to the boys and said, "We'll be downstairs."

We made our way downstairs and into the living room. I offered Andy something to drink, but he declined even water. Tim and I sat together on a couch and Andy sat on a chair close to us. I put my arm around Tim and he snuggled against me. When I looked at Andy, I saw that he was studying us.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

After a moment, he said, "Nothing is wrong at all. In fact everything seems to be completely right. Alan, you are a remarkable man."

I felt Tim squirm closer to me then say, "He sure is."

They were about to make me blush. "I just do what has to be done. There isn't anything special about that."

Andy just shook his head as he pulled a small tablet of paper and pen from his pocket. "Tell me what happened after you left the Abbott's house."

I took a deep breath and went into replay mode, neglecting nothing, including the visit to David Graves' office. Andy nodded all through my regurgitation, asking only occasionally what time it had been at certain points.

When Andy stopped writing, he said, "Thanks. You have a very good memory for details. Now, I've got to be on my way. It'll be a short night." Then he turned to Tim and said, "I want you to have an escort tomorrow. I'll be assigning an agent to go with you. He'll be here first thing in the morning."

Tim looked a bit surprised. "Okay, but it'll be a little crowded in my Mustang."

Andy smiled at him and said, "He'll be following you in his own car."

"Oh. Okay."

Andy stood so we got to our feet as well. On our way to the door Andy said, "You've got a very nice house, here. The boys should be very comfortable."

"I hope so. I'm a bit worried about Philly. He seems so shy and he's so small for his age."

We were at the door, so Andy turned to me and said, "I've seen it happen before. A boy or girl in a stressful environment is almost always smaller and shorter than their peers in a healthy environment. The stress knots them up so they won't or can't eat, and their systems seem to slow down their production of growth hormone so they just don't grow. But I've seen a lot of them recover, once they've been placed in a good home. Just be ready for him to sprout like a weed. As far as his shyness, I wouldn't be surprised to see him come out of his shell, soon. He's still at the right age to recover quickly." He looked directly into my eyes with those beautiful eyes of his and said, "In your hands, he'll do fine."

I cleared my throat of the lump that had formed there and said, "Thanks, Andy." Then I gave him a hug.

As Andy was turning to shake Tim's hand, Tim grabbed him into a hug, too. Andy appeared a bit surprised, but hugged him back.

When we finally closed the door after Andy left, Tim grabbed me into a tight hug and plastered his mouth to mine. It was a glorious kiss! I melted into him as he formed his body to mine. My hands roamed all over him, feeling his virile form under his thin shirt. When I found his nipples and gave them a gentle tweak, he squealed! I looked into his eyes and whispered, "We'd better take this upstairs."

Just then we heard a quiet commotion at the foot of the stairs, turning, I saw Stevey and Philly standing there, but Paul was stepping carefully up the stairs, holding his hand in front of himself saying, "Ow, ow, ow!" Stevey had a decided bulge on one side of his pants and Philly was fondling his tent pole!

"How long have you guys been standing there?" I asked, smiling and still holding Tim in my arms.

"Not long," Stevey said, hoarsely.

He was trying to get a good look at the front of Tim's pants. I glanced down to see the enormous tent in his pants. He was trying to wiggle to rearrange it. Mine was a little less obvious, hanging down my leg. Tim's blush was getting redder, so I made sure I was blocking their view. Tim covered himself with his hands as much as he could.

I looked at my watch. "It's time for bed, guys. Go brush your teeth."

Philly blurted, "But I don't have a toothbrush, and Paul doesn't either."

"That's easily remedied. I have extras!"

I turned them around to head back up the stairs as Stevey craned his neck to get another look at his brother's front. I gave him a gentle nudge and said, "Stevey! There's nothing to see!"

He mumbled with a smile, "That's not what I'd say."

I handed out toothbrushes and toothpaste from the hoard I always keep and made a mental note to stock up their bathrooms with all the other things they might need. Nell's about to have a very large shopping list! I'll have to increase her household allowance three or four-fold!

It didn't take them long to get settled and tucked in. As I made a final check, Stevey got a hug and a kiss and so did Paul. Philly was still wide-eyed when I tucked him in.

"Are you gonna be alright?" I asked while I was smoothing his hair.

He nodded then shook his head.

"What can I get for you?"

He blushed. "It's just . . . I never slept by myself before. Is it okay if I have a light on?"

"Sure." I looked around the room then remembered the night light in the bathroom. Walking into the bathroom, I said, "Let's see if this'll work." I turned on the light and opened the door as far as it would go.

When I got back to the bed, he said, "That's not enough."

"Hmm. Okay, let's try this." I walked out into the hall and turned on the light at the far end then returned to the room, leaving the door slightly ajar.

Philly looked around. "Yeah, that's okay I guess."

"Okay." I smiled at him and kissed him on his forehead.

He looked up at me with a question in his eyes. "Why'd you do that?"

"Kiss you on the forehead?"

"Yeah."

"I did it because I love you and want you to remember that when you sleep."

"Oh. Do you love Tim?"

"Yes, I do. Very much."

"Oh. Did you kiss Paul?"

"Yes, I did."

"Oh." He thought for a long moment then said, "G'night, Alan."

I whispered, "Good night, my precious little man."

Just as I was closing the door to its "ajar" position, Philly said, "Alan!"

I rushed back into the room and sat on the edge of the bed. "What is it, Philly?"

"I've been thinking. I want everyone to call me Mike. My middle name's Michael and Mike's short for Michael. You and Paul use your middle name, so I wanna use my middle name, too."

I smiled at him. "Okay. From now on, you're Mike."

He smiled. That was the first time I saw him with such a brightly lit face. He seemed genuinely happy.

"Okay, now, time to go to sleep."

Suddenly, he reached up and grabbed me into a tight hug. I hugged him back as my vision blurred. Then he pulled my head down and kissed my forehead. He whispered, "G'night . . . Dad."