Tending Minerva
Chapter 1 by Orpha Creed
I had applied for one of the new condominiums located 12 miles South of Huntington Beach, just off of highway 1 overlooking the ocean, but the opportunity to close a deal came at a very inopportune time when I was taking some special courses in Germany. Disappointed, I returned to the states and to my old house in Huntington Park, a suburb of Los Angeles. Six months later, I received a call from the realty company that one of the condos would become available in June so I decided to make the change after inspecting the luxurious beachfront location. It was a bargain at only $2,650. per month and I needed the change desperately.
I had only been settled in for about a week when I heard a woman screaming at the top of her lungs from a direction just outside my patio door. I rushed out on my fourth story veranda and discovered that the screams were coming from an open door to the neighboring condo.
I jumped the railing to the next veranda and stuck my head in the door. "Who's screaming? Everybody OK in here?" I asked as I slowly entered the room.
A nude, muscular woman stepped through the bedroom door and glared at me holding a small butcher knife. She held it up in the stabbing position and ran at me screaming and babbling incoherently. Using her forward motion to my advantage, I grasped her attack wrist with my right hand, rolled my body under her, lifting her off the ground and slamming her to the floor violently, completely deflating her lungs. Her eyes bulged grotesquely as she struggled but I placed my knee on her chest, preventing her from regaining her breath until she blacked out from lack of oxygen. I hurriedly tied her hands behind her and Rolled her over on her back again, Proving mouth to mouth until she regained conciseness. She screamed at me as she struggled to get free. Another naked woman stumbled through the doorway, bleeding from a stab wound in her leg. I pulled her to the floor, wrapped my belt around her leg and began tightening the tension. Finally the artery was closed and the bleeding slowed to a slight seepage.
"You need new friends lady," I said as I bolted back over the railing to grab my cell phone and my medical bag. Bounding back over the railing, I resumed dealing with the situation by calling 911 and clamping the severed artery in several places so I could allow blood to flow out into her leg.
"She was very lucky that you were there Dr. Creed," the paramedic on the ambulance crew commented as they loaded her.
The police had the muscular woman in the back of a patrol car. "Doctor, I need your full name for the report if you please," one of the two patrolman demanded.
"Dr. Orpha Creed with a C," I responded and began the long procedure of interrogation.
About a week went by. It was Sunday afternoon when I received a knock at my door.
"Hi, remember me?" she said warmly as she stood posed in my doorway.
"Uh yea, I sure do!"
"I just wanted to thank you for saving my life. Cary would have killed me if you hadn't come along or I would have just bled to death."
"That's OK. Why don't you come in and I'll fix us a drink," I asked.
"Sure, My name is Minerva and you're Dr. Creed?"
"Uh yes, but please call me Orpha. Minerva is yours? What an intriguing name. The 'Roman goddess of wisdom and arts.' I'm not so sure that you were given the appropriate name."
"Why do you say that Orpha?"
"Oh never mind dear. What do you dirink?"
"I'll have a glass of Merlot if you have some."
How many life altering, situations and / or relationships start with a simple glass of wine. In most cases, Orpha would have simply found and excuse to avoid such an interface with a neighbor, but she was attracted to the obvious vulnerability of this particular individual.
Orpha opened a bottle of imported Argentinean merlot and poured her a glass, then poured Stoli over a tumbler of ice for herself. " Now tell me about Cary. Was or is she your lover?"
"Yea, you could say that, a long time ago she was," Minerva said sadly. "She wasn't always like she is now."
"And how is she now dear? I know she's an addict. Her pupils were dilated and she had tracks on both arms. How could you ever get involved with someone like her? You just don't seem the type."
Minerva looked at her feet and shook her head. "I have to go now and make some calls to my family. I can't thank you enough Orpha. Can I hug you or would it bother you?"
"Yes dear, you can hug me and yes, it might bother me but I'll try to stay under control," Orpha replied with a warm smile.
The younger Minerva lingered in Orpha's arms for a little longer than expected as though Orpha was a mother figure. Orpha gently held her until she slid back and headed for the door.
"Lets get together again for a drink when we have time," Orpha said warmly.
Orpha read for most of the morning, catching up on her usual pile of medical publications. She looked at her watch and saw that it was 2:30PM. She knew that the sun would be at just the right angle on the West facing veranda to soak up a few rays, so She slid out of her top and shorts, fixed a drink and headed for her chaise in the sun.
"Well just look at you," a female voice sounded to her left. "How do you stay so gorgeous Orpha?"
Orpha spun around to the neighboring veranda. "Oh hi Minerva, what are you up to dear?"
"Trying to clean some of my blood from the carpets and walls. I think I'll have to get a professional in here tomorrow since I'm not having any luck."
"Jump the railing and come join me for a drink and we can chat for awhile," Orpha suggested.
Minerva made herself a drink and sat next to Orpha in the double chaise.
"I hope I don't offend you sitting here naked dear," Orpha said with an impish smile.
"You know better than that Orpha, you know my sexual preference now don't you?"
"Sure honey, I was just teasing you."
"Teasing is quite an understatement Orpha, you are in fact turning me on," Minerva said returning her own impish smile.
"Bring your leg up here dear, I want to examine your leg wound," Orpha ordered ignoring the flirtatious thrust.
Minerva brought her leg up against her stomach and lifted her short skirt while Orpha gently worked the bandage off.
"Nice small, uniform stitches. I see a little inflammation. Be sure and keep it clean dear and ...," Orpha hesitated, "What type of topical antiseptic did they give you?"
"I don't think they gave me any."
"Stay here, I have some in my bag."
Orpha jumped up and went inside, reappearing after a minute with a tube of antiseptic cream. She slipped on a rubber glove and gently applied the cream around the wound.
With her usual impish grin, Minerva took Orpha's hand and pulled it upward toward her pubic mound, covered by a pair of white bikini panties.
"Now behave yourself Minerva. Shame on you," Orpha responded returning her grin.
"Do you want to spank my little ass Orpha,"
Orpha grabbed Minerva's ankle. Lifting it upward and exposing a bare cheek of her butt, Orpha have her a sharp whack with her open hand. Minerva's expression transformed into that of a submissive child as a tear slid down her cheek.
"Come on now dear, that didn't hurt that much. You act like a child. How old are you anyway?" Orpha asked.
"I just turned 23 last month," Minerva replied. "How old are you Orpha?"
"Never mind dear, considerably older than you."
Orpha was 43 but one couldn't really tell her age. She had short black hair, blue eyes, very slender but wiry, almost catlike. When she walked, her head moved steadily ahead motionless while her resilient, sinewy body propelled her forward with a very fluid motion. A master in a very unique but little known martial arts form taught to her in the Ryukyu Islands off the Southern tip of Japan, requiring extreme agility and lightening speed along with a high degree of self discipline. Her high level of skill enabled her to snatch a honeybee out of the air without being stung or injuring the bee. She was double jointed and could wrap her leg upward and around her neck while standing on the other leg. She wore little or no makeup and wore small accountant's glasses with thin metal frames. Not a pretty woman by any means but very striking and authoritarian in appearance.
"Are you a Lesbian Orpha?"
Orpha smiled sarcastically at Minerva. "I'm a doctor and a writer dear."
"That's not what I asked you!"
"Straight or Lesbian refers to my Sexual preference dear, not what I am. I AM a doctor and writer."
"Ok ok, I get it, then what's your sexual preference Orpha?"
"That my dear, is none of yours or anyone's business unless I choose for them to know." Orpha responded with a cool smile as she played with Minerva's mind.
"Are you mad at me?" Minerva asked sadly.
Orpha place her hands on both sides of Minerva's face, leaned forward and gently kissed her on her lips. "No, I think you're very sweet and I like you immensely. Oh just one more thing dear, did you ask for a blood test when you were at the hospital?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"Cary's been mainlining and you need to be tested for HIV. Let me take a blood sample into the university with me tomorrow and I'll test it myself and give you the results. No one will know. OK?"
"If you tell me what you want me to do, I'll do it Orpha, anything at all," Minerva replied with her delicious, impish smile which made her appear like a little waif as she laid back in the chaise with her legs drawn up in the fetal position. Her light ash blonde air cut in a pageboy draped lazily over the pillow attached to the chase.
Orpha pressed her thumb against her inner arm to raise a vein, then withdrew drew her blood into the syringe. "I have to jump into the shower dear and get ready to leave for the evening. I'm meeting with some associates for dinner and a few drinks at my favorite haunt. Come back tomorrow and we'll share a bottle of wine or something.
"Hmmmm, the wine sounds good but the 'or something' sounds even better."
Orpha jumped up and headed inside. Minerva turned and watched her leave. "Poetry in motion," she thought as she observed the long sinuous muscles in her legs and definition of her calf muscles as she walked into the darkness of the condo.