Eric Courtney - The married sister

Something was done. It was done at three o'clock that morning. Rod found himself stirring from a deep sleep by the persistent ringing of the front door bell. He got out of bed warily, drudging about on reflex, used to being called at all hours to fly his chopper on a mission. "All right, all right," he mumbled, stumbling to the living room and stopping sleepy eyed when he saw Gail still sound asleep on the couch. The doorbell stabbed through the early morning silence and jolted him awake. He blinked and walked to the door, wrapping his robe around him.

"Who's there?"

"Me," a voice answered in a stage whisper. "That you, Rod? It's me, Lee."

Rod threw the door open and stood with a quizzical grin on his face. "Lee! What the hell are you doing?"

Lee came in. "Didn't you get my letter? I got a ride clear to Denver and got a plane down. How are you, you old son-of-a-gun?"

Rod shook hands, taking in Lee's appearance sleepily. He had grown, becoming strong and rangy. Slimmer and not as tall as Rod, but growing. And that crooked grin of his was familiar. To him, Lee always looked as if he had just come from pulling off some insane prank and was pleased with himself.

Rod let him in, watching him haul in his gear and noticed his appearance was getting a little "farout". He grunted to himself, hoping he wasn't one of the peaceniks. "What are you doing here? What about school?"

Lee shrugged and gave him a fine enigmatic smile. "I got kicked out."

"How come?"

Lee stood on one hip, looking at the floor and lazily scratching the back of his neck. "Well, I could tell you a lot of stories but the truth is I got caught balling the wife of the head of the history department in a broom closet and all hell broke loose and when it was all over it was suggested that maybe I should pursue my education elsewhere."

Rod laughed. "No? Really? Caught in a broom closet!"

Lee looked rueful. "Ever try to put your pants on while you're running down a hall stark naked with an irate husband swinging at you and his wife screaming bloody murder up and down the hall?"

They laughed together and Rod held a shushing finger to his lips, pointing to the sleeping form of Gail on the couch. Briefly, he explained what had happened and they carried Lee's suitcase and sleeping bag into the bedroom. Rod got drinks and closed the bedroom door. He was delighted to see Lee and, as they sat and drank and joked, it reminded him of good times in Saigon, nights when they stayed up and drank. He liked Lee, liked his honesty and, as they talked, he found he could tell him things about the war that he had kept locked up inside of him. Lee was a good listener and said, "Yeah, I've been thinking about upping. Hell, I'm bored. I'd like to see a little of that life over there. I mean, that's where the action is. It's all that basic bullshit, all that spit and polish you go through, that stops me."

"Yeah, it's a drag. Sometimes I think of re-upping. Most of the time, I don't know what the hell I want."

They sat, relaxed, drinking. "Yeah, I know the feeling. Hey, how was the poontang over there. Fill me in, man."

They talked on, their voices low and confidential, drinking, laughing together over sexual adventures. Lee listened closely, his eyes glinting like some predatory bird sizing up a potential meal.

Finally, he leaned forward, nudging Rod's knees. "Listen, last time I was here, I got to know a chick. Her name is Kim Clarke. Wild? Out of sight. A real far out broad for real."

"What's she like?" Rod asked, feeling the scotch and a certain man-to-man smuttiness.

"She's a topless, bottomless, double-clutching, breech-loading, high-stepping, gear-shifting, air-cooled, free-wheeling wild dancer. Didn't Gail tell you about it?"

Rod shook his head and tried to keep calm. "No, she never mentioned it." Perhaps he was going to find out some of what was bothering her.

Lee shrugged and nodded understandingly. "I took her to one of those topless-bottomless places. She had never been. The chick there, Kim, turned me on and so I met her."

"Ah," Rod said, holding up a finger. "That's what's bothering her. She told me you were kind of wild when you were here."

"Wild?" Lee looked like he was posing for a picture as the innocent angel. "Wild? Me?" Then his lips spread in that crooked insinuating smile and Rod slapped him on the knee.

"Probably the whole thing upset her. I mean, the place and you, her brother, making out with a dancer. You know how she is."

"Yeah," Lee grinned. "Only it didn't upset her and I didn't make out with Kim until later. I told Gail I was going back to school and went back down and shacked up with Kim for two long grueling days. I tell you, she is out of sight. No bull, just a straight come-on and hop right into bed."

"No kidding?"

"An inexhaustible fucking machine."

"No kidding?"

"Wake up in the middle of the night with her going down on me. Listen, I'm going to see her for sure this trip. Like to meet her?"

Flattered, Rod laughed and said, "Why not? Always wanted to meet a fucking machine."

"Great!" Lee said enthusiastically. "Tell you what. Tomorrow night we'll all go down to the club and you can catch her act."

"She really strip? All the way?"

"All the way and believe me, what you'll see is nothing compared to what she does in a bedroom."

"Too much, huh?" Rod asked, his mouth a little open, his cock beginning to jerk and swell in his pajamas.

"Listen, I'll tell you a little of what she does. Ever heard of using whipped cream? Puts it all over your cock then eats it off."

"Really?"

Lee grinned sardonically. "And that's just for openers. Like she says: if you cum on that, it don't count."

The two laughed together, Rod amazed by Lee's outlook and excited by the prospect of meeting such a girl as Kim. Lee went on regaling him with her lewd and bizarre conduct. He described her body in detail and topped it all with, "And guess what? She's only just turned seventeen. Honest! She's so built, she looks older. Phony I.D. allows her to work in a nightclub. We'll all go down to see her tomorrow night. What say?"

Rod was only too eager to agree when he remembered Gail. "No good. Doctor says she's got to stay off her feet for a few days."

Lee looked concerned and nodded. "Tell you what. Why don't I bring her up here after her show? Man, that would be a gas. Gail will get tired and go to bed and I'm sure I can talk Kim into a private show."

Rod's cock gave a leap. "It would be wild," he said, dubious that such a thing should ever happen.

Lee reached and punched him on the shoulder. "Like old times in Vietnam, I bet. Tell me about over there. Ever smoke any of that Vietnam grass?"

And there the discussion took a new turn with Lee admitting and producing some grass and Rod tiptoeing to the door to check on Gail before lighting up and smoking and relaxing into a rambling euphoria where he talked of the war and, eventually, his buddy. They ended the talk with both silent and drugged. Lee stirred himself, unrolled his sleeping bag and fell asleep on the floor. Rod crawled into bed thinking of all the kids who had been wounded and killed. Thinking of the body of his roommate when he was asked to identify it.

When you can go like that, he thought, quick and without warning, when you can go for no good reason at all, what the hell difference does anything make? Live it up.

He rolled over on his face and fell asleep, determined he would somehow have the dancer, Kim, over to their house that night.

Gail woke early, looking around, locating herself and sitting up. She felt sleepy still, but rested. She put some weight on her feet and found she could hobble to the bedroom. The shock of seeing Lee on the floor and the empty glasses and bottle made her catch her breath. She retreated from the room hastily, shutting the door and retreating to the couch. She sat, trying to think of what to do. With an impulse, she thought of leaving the apartment, going away until he had left. Yet, where could she go? All her clothes were in the bedroom.