George Perry - The willing wife

"What happened?" the woman asked with alarm.

"Her husband was afraid we'd find out, so he told me the F.B.I. was in on it. Probably thought we'd kill his wife if we found out. He's really worried about her safety, you know."

"What should we do?" the woman asked.

"Only thing we can do. Let the woman go and forget the whole thing."

"Did he get the money?" Jan asked out of curriosity.

"Yep. Got it with him in the car."

"So close, yet so far away," Jan said wistfully.

"Just feel bad for the kids," the woman said sadly. "Been telling them things were going to get real good pretty soon. Now we'll have to tell them our plan didn't work."

"The money is probably marked anyway," Jan offered.

"We figured that from the start," Pa said. "Knew the bank would mark the money so they could try to get it back. But we had that all figured out. Read in the papers how people 'wash' money so it can't be traced. It's complicated, but we figured it wouldn't be too hard in the small amounts we'd need."

"Then your only problem is getting the money," Jan said.

"That's about right," the old man said. "Had planned on sending one of the boys into the car to snatch it, while your husband was on the phone with me. But it's too risky now. If they stake out the phone booth, the boy will be caught. And you know how kids are when they get scared. Blow they whole thing… besides, I wouldn't want one of the boys to get in trouble anyway."

"We tried, Pa," the woman said. "Can't say we didn't try to give them a better life."

"Listen," Jan said as a thought crossed her mind. "I may have a plan… suppose I dress up like one of the boys and snatch the money from my husband's car?"

"What difference would that make?" the woman asked. "Then you'd be in trouble instead of one of the kids."

"But I can tell them you made me do it at gunpoint. And I thought you were hiding behind me. So I had to do it or get shot."

"You know, Pa?" the woman said, hesitating as she weighed the idea. "It just might work."

"I don't see how," her husband said. "They'd wonder why the minute she got in the car she didn't duck down and hide."

"That's easy," Jan shot back, bubbling over with enthusiasm. "I didn't know the F.B.I. was there… and besides, you also told me that if I tried to escape you'd shoot my husband in the telephone booth!"

"Wel, I'll be…" Pa said with a twinkle in his eye for the first time since Jan had seen him. "It just might work at that?"

"Of course it will," Jan said. "And you have nothing to lose if I get caught… because you were ready to call it quits anyway."

"What do you think, Pa?"

"It might work at that," he answered. "It's worth a try, since we ain't got nothing to lose."

"Then you'd better get some sleep, Mrs. Latimer," the woman suggested. "You'll have to be at the drop-off place by four in the morning."

Jan felt wide awake and too excited to think about sleep, but they were already putting out the lights in the kitchen and she didn't seem to have a choice. Then she remembered she had been sleeping most of the afternoon, exhausted from her session with Al. She took the candle from the woman and started up to her bedroom. She was flled with the thrill and excitement of her new role in the plan. It tickled her just to think that she was going to have a chance to get even with the bank.

As she entered her room, the light from her candle fell on a shape in the bed and she realized it was Al. He was fully dressed and obviously had been dozing while he waited for her.

"How do you feel?" she asked softly, closing the door.

"Great," he said, getting up and stretching. "I couldn't tell you at dinner how much you helped me. So I came back… to say… err… I guess… what I mean is…"

"I know what you mean," she said. "Let's just be friends… okay? No more hangups or crazy notions."

"I'm going to miss you," he said softly. "I've never known anyone as beautiful as you… inside and out."

"I'm going to miss you too," she said, adding, "and all the others too."

She knew instinctively that he had taken their relationship too seriously. As did Tom and David. She noticed they even avoided her eyes when they were in the same room and she wondered if they'd be all right after she was out of their lives.

"Well, I guess I'd better go," Al said, standing and lowering his head for a dash to the door. He didn't want her to see him all choked up again.

"Why don't you stay for a few minutes?" Jan said. "I might need someone to talk to… I guess I'm a little nervous."

"All right," he mumbled, and remained standing at the foot of the bed.

"I have to get some rest," she said. "Have to get up early. But I should see you again tomorrow. I don't think I'll be leaving right away."

The sad expression on his face and the way he stood there with his head drooping, forced her to go to him and put her arms around him. She wondered how long he'd been an orphan. And the thought crossed her mind that she was probably the only person to show him any affection in years. It certainly wasn't the nature of the old woman they called "Ma" to show any feeling, she told herself, understanding for the first time why they all had acted like animals back in her house.

"Come on now, cheer up," she said, going to him and hugging him. They were both about the same size, she noted, her mind suddenly jerking back to the reality of what she must do in a few hours. The fact that she had found the right size clothes to wear on the mission gave her some satisfaction. "How about a smile? That's better."

When his hands slipped around her waist to the small of her back, she wanted to back away from him so he wouldn't become involved again. But he held her securely pressed against his groin. Jan lifted her hands to his neck, her fingers interlocking behind him and her arms stiff, putting her lips at a safe distance from his.

"Things are really going to get better around here," she told him in a convincing voice. "After tomorrow… well, the whole world will be a better place for all you kids."

"Yeah… I know… but it'll still be lonely," he answered. "The kids will be better off, but the older guys… well, they need… you know… girls and dates and places to go…"

"Well maybe that will all change too," she said, feeling one of his hands slip from the small of her back to enter the top of her slacks. He was testing, she knew, but couldn't bring herself to flatly reject the attempt. "As a matter of fact, I'm even going to help with the plan. Now isn't that a laugh? Who ever heard of the victim helping to pull off the crime?"

"Hey! Why don't you stay with us then? You know… be one of the gang!" he offered hopefully, his hand quickly slipping further inside her slacks to gain more ground.

"I couldn't do that," she answered sadly. "It would turn you all into fugitives. My picture would be in all the papers and sooner or later someone would find me, then all of you."

His hand was kneading the firm balls of flesh, deep in her slacks now, and she could feel his cock stir in his pants. He kept her pressed tight against him, and her cunt began to throb in answer to his cock. But she kept telling herself not to risk any further involvement. It would only hurt him more if she let him think she wanted him, she told herself.

"It's getting late and I don't have much time to get some rest," she said in an attempt to change his thinking.

"I went out of my mind when I saw your bare ass back at your house," he said, massaging her now with both hands inside her slacks. "It was the most beautiful ass I had ever seen. And that's probably the reason I dropped my load so fast out in that field. Seeing you kneeling, with your ass sticking up for me just drove me crazy."

"I'm flattered, Al, but you'll find other girls with asses even better than mine. The problem is… we can't get… involved again."