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TURNABOUT VIRUS By Dee Dee Perri CHAPTER 1 Dr. Harold Haas handed the younger man a glossy print. "And this?" "What is this Harry?" Smirked Dr. Carl Stine. "A post-dissertation exam?" Even at fifty, Carl still had that boyish quality that had been his trade mark back in the old days at Cal Tech. All those years working in corporate America, double breasted suits and all, hadn't completely erased the child that had come into Dr. Hass' laboratory, some twenty-five years earlier, with eyes filled with wonder. "Go on." Ordered the frail, spidery figure. Sparkling blue eyes twinkled under his bushy white eye brows as he examined his former student. Had all those years dancing to the tune of corporate needs, searching for a better bottom line, killed the curiosity of what had been his most promising student? "Ok, ok, I'll bite. The sex chromosome pair from a human male. I'd guess, ah taken at a magnification of twelve thousand. Right?" "And this?" The old man eagerly handed his former student a second glossy. His eyes carefully reading Carl's expression. "Hum." Muttered the younger man. Consternation grew in his face. "It's broken! The Y chromosome's been, ah, cut! Surely you jest. This isn't from the same culture..." Rather then having the full Y configuration, the chromosome looked like a V. The missing tail could still be observed some fifty microns away. "Yes! The same culture. Now are you ready for this?" His eyes were still studying the younger man's face as he handed him the next photograph. "This is from a "sister" cell in the next generation. Note the two, identical X chromosomes...hum." But before Carl could respond, Harry handed him a second stack of microphotographs. The first showed a double X, the second an XY, again with the broken segment within the nucleus and the last photo, a YY. "Yes, a super male! The original sample was from a female laboratory assistant that worked with me for a while last year. Impressed?" Carl's boyish face twisted into confusion. "How?" "Well, we can go into all the details later but the exact mechanism, a virus of course. Snips off but the one segment of the second chromosome. But, well Carl that's not exactly what's so intriguing. Come dear boy, I want to show you something in the vivarium. Come! Come!" He ordered his companion not only with words but with gestures. Taking Carl by the arm he led him down the hall. The odor of rodents filled Carl's nose as the old man pushed open the door and triggered a flood of memories. Just like the old days before Gen Tech and boardrooms and... "Here!" Harry Haas held up a white squirming mass. "Have you forgotten how to hold a rat? Careful, he's aggressive as hell." Carl's knuckles whitened as he grasped the rat firmly by the scruff of his neck. At nearly half a kilogram, he was a monster. Eventually the young, vigorous male ceased to fight his control and hung there limply. "Ok, why am I holding this beast?" The old man looked as proud as a new papa. Beaming he said, "That awesome specimen, my dear boy, was an ancient, decrepit old female just two days ago!" "Huh!" Carl's startle response caused the rat to renew it's efforts at escape. Twisting in the man's hand, it almost broke free. "Here." Ordered the old man. "Let me take him." As Harry carried the beast back to it's cage he continued: "The destruction of the chromosome produces a cascading effect on the whole nucleus. I don't understand any of it yet." He concluded as he closed the door to the animals cage. "Your telling me that you've found a way of resetting the biological clock?" "Yep! I've done over three dozen preparations. And I might add, I haven't lost a single subject. Morphologically, the animal that you held was about six months old, a young adult. Can you imagine? That would be like taking an old fart like me and..." "Your not seriously considering...Harry, what about the sex change?" Dr. Harold Haas' frail, thin body began to shake all over with the up welling mirth. "Seriously my boy?" And his laughter was no longer covert. "When you reach seventy-seven years of age, when your hearing and eye sight is going...when just getting up in the morning is a major effort. Carl, is your sexuality so precious that you'd rather be an old man than a young woman? Hum? And what has happened to your curiosity? Wouldn't you love to know what it would be like? Hum..." **************************************** "Carl! What are we doing here in this nasty, old barn of a house? In the middle of NOWHERE!" Silvia's anger was all too evident in the darkening flush that had worked its way up her slender neck and across her elegant face. One hand rested warily across her hip as the other knotted into a fist. She was lovely when she was angry, Carl noted with satisfaction. Such an improvement from his first wife who had grown fat and dumpy with age. Silvia, at only twenty-five, was more sex object than helpmate. What his friends referred to as a corporate "perk", a reward for a life spent seeking out profit. He put his arm around her and pulled her close. "Sush, my lovely. It'll be just for a few days, a week at most and then..." "And then?" As always, her anger was quickly appeased by even the slightest hint of reward. "Honey, I'll make it up to you in grand style." "Paris?" "That again?" He laughed. "Sweetheart, treat that old man real nice, you hear? With any luck, he'll make you and me, well, wealthy." "Really?" Her eyes grew wide and round. She understood the importance of wealth. For goodness sake, it wasn't Carl's performance in bed that had won her over. She loved him dearly, of course, but well she'd always feared that she could have done better. "Tell me." "I'm afraid it all too technical to be of any interest to you sweetheart. Let's just say that old Doc Hass has discovered a way to make the old, young again." In spite of the fact that he didn't elaborate, she was impressed. She had a good idea what older people, like her mother, would give to be young again. And then the idea of a youthful, rich husband made her feel all so warm inside. She began to unbutton the front of his shirt as she pressed her pelvis against his crotch. "Silvia!" He blurted out. "I promised the old man..." "Shush." She said before interrupting his protest with a kiss. The thought of money always made her horny. **************************************** "Carl? You remember my son Doug?" The old man's query had broken Carl's train of thought as he entered the parlor. "Huh? Oh, of course." "Douglas and his wife Patty will be joining us for a few days if that's all right?" Carl nodded his head in agreement but he was clearly miffed. "I, well, I thought that we'd..." "Of course, my boy, but well Dougie doesn't normally find much time to visit his old man and, well, my promise to include him on the proposed project, Dougie just can't say no to an opportunity to make more money, you know." Harry ended with a fretful little grin and a shrug. "Ok, so I used the promise to make him rich as a bribe to get him to visit. Come on Carl, you saw the evidence. Between Doug's money and your technical connections with the drug companies, the two of you will make a powerful team, huh?" "Harry, you keep mentioning the idea of making money from all of this but...it will be years, even if every goes as planned, before the FDA might even approve limited trials on human subjects." "I don't plan to go through the FDA, my boy. In fact, if need be, I'll set up a clinic in some banana republic. Those that can afford it and are willing to, you know under go the side effects..." "Side effects, side effects, your talking about a change of sex not some skin rash..." "Now, now Carl. Let's not get into THAT AGAIN! Besides there are plenty of individuals who would be happy to make just such a transition I'm sure. Hum." "And test subjects?" Interrupted the younger man. "I've already initiated my first clinical trial." "Human?" Carl's face blanched. "You can't be serious! Who?" "Me." Harry said quietly. "That's why I wanted you here. I want you to oversee the operation..." "My God! Harry you're nuts!" "Not really my boy. I'm just tired of being old. After Helen passed away...my boy I have nothing to loose. Now, before Douglas and his wife gets here, I need to show you some things in the laboratory." **************************************** Douglas Haas ate with a bovine elegance that nearly matched his corpulent figure. In contrast, his mousy little wife made only a half hearted attempt to deal with the food before her. And neither made the slightest effort to enter into the conversation between Doug's father and the other two guests. It was only the mention of money that brought the younger Haas's face away from the feeding trough. His little pig's eyes studied Carl's elegant wife as she simpered. "Oh my." She said as she laid one hand daintily upon her chest. "My dear, dear mother would simply give anything to be young again! It would be ever so much better than a face lift and a body tuck." She laid her other hand lightly upon her husband's arm. Carl's discomfort showed in his face. He'd not had a chance to tell his wife exactly what would happen to his mother-in-law if she were to under go the treatment and frankly, he didn't want to get into that right now. Fortunately it appeared that Harry didn't want to talk about the process at that moment either but it was equally obvious that Doug's interest was now fully stimulated. "Dad?" "Yes, I think it is about time. Ladies, if you'd be so kind? I'm afraid that I'm going to have to steal your husbands for a few hours. Hum?" On cue, the radiant Silvia and mousy Patty stood up to leave. After a few moments of idle chit chat, the three men found themselves alone at last. "Coffee? Brandy? Cigar?" Offered Harry. Doug nodded yes to all three. As his father turned to the side bar, Doug began: "Ok you got me here. But it better be good." "Oh, its good all right. Son, I've found a sure fire way to reset the old biological clock." "HOT DAMN! Coming from any one else I'd say your full of-" Maybe it was the greed that literally glowed from Doug's eyes or the way he visibly salivated at the concept that made Carl uncomfortable. What ever it was, he was sure that here was an individual with whom he'd have to work and that thought distressed him considerably. How could someone of Harry's nature create such a disgustingly crude, unpleasant creature as his son. It certainly seemed time to throw some cold water on the blooming ambitions of his potential "partner". "Go on, Harry. Tell him about the side effect- hum?" **************************************** It was now about midnight when Douglas Haas went upstairs to join his wife. The moment that the discussion turned to science and away from money, Haas' son had lost interest. Now Harry and Carl were alone again. "When?" Asked Carl. "When did I infect myself or when will the process begin to be evident?" "Both." "As to the first, the I used a common intestinal bacteria as a carrier of the virus." He removed a capsule from his shirt pocket and held it up for Carl to see. "One of these. I took it right after you arrived this morning." He shrugged his shoulders, "As to when the process will be come evident. Hum. I've been running a slight fever all evening. Nothing unexpected of course. I assume by morning most of the cells will be infected. Mitosis takes...well, you know, days sometimes." "But on such a scale?" "All I have are the animal data. Of course one can assume a lower basal rate in my case. But it will not happen all at once if that is what your worried about." "It should be quite messy and potentially painful..." "Well it's true that the sexual dimorphism found in rats is quite limited but unless I drop a lot of weight or go through massive changes in bone tissue...I guess I should tell you..." Carl became alarmed. "Tell me what!" "I have a pretty go idea of what I'll look like, that is when the process is done." "Huh?" "I mentioned the cascade effect, right? Well, when mitosis begins, it will not be just the sex chromosomes that will be altered." "What!" "The whole ball of wax. Only my genes from my mother will be reproduced. Yep! A regular 'clone' of my dear departed mother, that's what I'll be." "That's...that's sick!" "Oh! Really? Then you knew my mother?" "No, of course not! What I mean..." "Odd. How you eventually accepted that I would transform from male to female but now you appear to be appalled that I would have an exact copy of my mother's genetic code." Carl continued to look distressed. "I don't know but somehow that seems...terribly unnatural like incest or something." He looked thoughtfully at his host for a few moments before continuing. "What was she like?" "Didn't know her." Harry grimaced uncomfortably. "She was a free spirit. Ahead of her time." "She died then, when you were quite young?" "No. No she abandoned me with my father shortly after she had me. We never did see her again you know." "That's...that's horrible." "Whatever." **************************************** The next morning, even before he could go downstairs for some coffee, Carl and Silvia had a short but hot quarrel. Oh it was his fault all right. Silvia tended to take things all too literally and when he tried to explain about the "side-effect" of the treatment, well she was horrified. "That's just so yucky!" She screamed in his face. "My mother would NEVER do that to herself! Gross! To be a..a MAN! I want to leave this horrid place NOW!" And she stomped her dainty foot down in a not so dainty fashion. "I can't Silvia. Dr. Haas needs me. Not next week or next month but now." A sneer marred her otherwise attractive feature. "Why?" "Because he's testing the process on himself." It took a few seconds for what he'd just said to soak in. Silvia's eyes widened and then widened some more. In a voice that had dropped into a conspiratory whisper she said: "That old man?" She blinked once and then again. "He's going to turn into a woman? Really?" "Not just any woman," he said. He leaned forward so that his face was but an inch or so from hers and in a tiny whisper, "a young version of his own mother." "Ew...gross." However, somehow the idea of someone other than "her" mother made the idea a little more acceptable. Like going to a freak show there was something titillating about it. Finally she said, "Well, if its done in a few days perhaps." She then brightened up considerably. "You think he'd mind if I watch?" "Silvia!" He said sternly and then shrugged, "Whatever." As he turned to leave she got this odd look of concern on her face. "I wonder what she's going to be like?" Some questions are better left unanswered, Carl concluded as he left his wife still sitting there trying to comprehend the future of Dr. Harold Haas. **************************************** Douglas Haas was already down having his morning coffee. That and what appeared to be a whole side of bacon, a mess of eggs and God knows what else, noted Carl with considerable distaste. Patty offered to prepare something for him as well. "No thanks." He muttered. "Just coffee is fine by me. Ah, Doug? Have you seen your father yet?" Doug replied, his voice garbled as he tried to push a mouthful of food into his cheek with his tongue. "Wait! we got to talk. Hold on, ok?" He swung into the still substantial mound of food with what had to be sincere haste. There was little evident at all that the man bothered to chew. And then, finally, the plate was clean. Wiping some of the grease off his face with the back of his hand he fixed his gaze upon Carl. "Pop told me, you know, what he was doing and all. I don't like it. It isn't right. Anyway, me and Patty were thinking of, you know, leaving." He shrugged. "You'd do that? Just leave? Well, I guess Harry really misjudged you." "What do you mean by that?" "I mean, he assumed that you'd figure out just how much this process would be worth and well, looks like we will not be partners after all, hum?" The fat man let a sly look spread across his face. "Well, if he's successful, you know, in time it will all be mine anyway." "What do you mean." Carl's voice was incredulous. "In time? My God man, if he succeeds he'll be twenty, thirty years younger than you." A startled look came over Doug's face like he'd never thought about it. My God! His old man would be younger than him. Inheritance? Christ! He might never see any of this. Without another word to Carl he turned his gaze back to Patty. "Damn it! I don't give a shit about your cousin. We're staying right here." Abruptly Harry had joined then. "Morning all!" He boomed. "Gads, I feel great!" And he did look good. His normally shallow complexion had color and his wide smile matched his sparkling eyes. "I see the patient survived the night." Dr. Stine commented dryly. "Dad?" Doug rose from his chair. "What was grandmother like?" "Don't know son. I wasn't three months old when she left. Hum. But its a fair question considering everything. Dad said she was a real hellion what they called a flapper in those days. Worked honky-tonks and..." "Honky-tonks?" "Oh, the worst kind of place. Fact was, Dad thought she was a stripper or worst before he met her. Lust at first sight. Hum. Anyway, there's more than an even chance that your Grandfather wasn't even my Dad you know." That comment brought Doug up short. He'd always been proud of his Grandfather, a medical doctor and all. "Like to see her?" "Huh?" Harry handed his son a dog eared, black and white photo that had turned a rusty brown. "If you ignore the hair style and clothing, I think you'd say she was some kind of looker, huh." "So that's you in a..." "Can't be too long Dougie." Turning to Carl he gave a lopsided smile. "Couldn't wait for you to get up this morning dear boy. Already took some tissue samples. Hum." His face brightened even further. "Mostly broken Y but I found numerous full XX chromosomes. Hum. You better stay with me all day my boy, history is in the making." And with that he turned back toward the stairs leading down to the laboratory. "Sorry, Doug." Carl muttered. "Duty calls." Doug just stood there thinking: a common whore, a flapper...whatever. He's going to set up a clinic? I think not! No sir, not in this life time! CHAPTER 2 The old man was running him ragged. Just like his student days, get this Carl, do that my boy! And Stine, a major six figure man was acting like some kind of undergraduate gofer. But it wasn't the frenzy of activity that was really getting to him, no. It was watching Harry eat! The old man maintained some kind of pantry all right. Buckets of pure cream, barrels of real butter and God only knows just how much of that saturated fat the old boy had inhaled before lunch. Gross, a little bread with his butter. Whatever else might be happening to Harry, he wouldn't keep his lean, spidery figure much longer. When he wasn't running around the laboratory or eating, the old man was taking a crap. Ugh! The stench had quickly pervaded the whole laboratory. There was now no question in Dr. Stine's mind now that Dr. Harry Haas' chemistry, at least, was undergoing a full transformation. Still there was little outward sign of the impending metamorphoses other than the minor change in Harry's skin tone. Thank God Harry had collapsed like a small puppy early in the afternoon. Carl worked his fingers into the small of his back trying to reduce the tension that had developed there. "Here, let me help you dear." Silvia's long fingers began to kneed the hard knot. Carl closed his eyes. "Saw Harry this morning dear. You sure this isn't some kind of hoax. The poor man seems to be having too much fun treating you like his personal servant." Carl didn't respond. He just let himself feel the tension begin to fade. "Hum." He muttered. "I was just wondering," she began again. "Well, what if his process really works. What do you think an old, really old billionaire, say like Chris Bandeau of Occidental, would give to be twenty again? Huh?" "How should I know...millions and millions if death is staring him in the face. Why?" "Millions and millions." Silvia murmured to herself. "And thousands of millions I should think. Sweetie? If the old man, you know becomes his own mother..." "What Silvia, I don't follow your..." "Well honey, how would anyone ever know he's Dr. Harry Haas, you know, after he's become..." "Your not suggesting..." "No sweet'ems. It's just that you could control the whole thing, huh?" **************************************** Harry was in a party mood that evening when he got up from his nap. He hadn't felt better in twenty, no thirty years, he'd told Patty just before he'd kicked her out of the kitchen. "Tell'm dinner will be ready in an hour maybe two. I'm cooking you hear. Something ah, rich, buttery...hummm. Now get!" "Pop cooking?" Douglas was appalled when Patty made her report. "Didn't know he could. Whatever." He finally concluded. Privately, Carl was relieved. He'd had enough playing nurse maid for one day. "How did he look?" The taciturn woman shrugged. "Pretty much like always, I guess. Done something to his hair though. Kind'a weird." "Like what?" Doug looked at his wife and then toward Carl. "Like he's got black roots or something. You know. Maybe a eighth of an inch. Like he was over due to go to the beauty parlor or something." "That's not the half of it." Silvia volunteered. "I got a good look at his face you know when he came down stairs. It's something a woman would notice, you know." "Like what dear?" "Carl, he's, well he's lost most of his facial wrinkles, especially around his eyes. I'd say he looks younger than you now." "Hum. Makes sense. The skin and hair tissue have very rapid turn over rates you know. Gads I need a stiff drink." "Yea. And we got to talk, you know." Growled Doug. "For example, what if my old man becomes, well, unstable or worse? Contingencies pal. Right Silvia?" **************************************** Dinner that night really did turn in to quite an affair. Harry had done himself proud. Other than the cold soup which Douglas hardly touched, everything else was great! But it wasn't the spread that Harry laid out before his guests or the quantities of fine wine that flowed freely that powered the mood that evening, it was Harry himself. Doug had never seen his father like this before. All else being equal, Harry would, of course, have been the center of attention anyhow, but it was his delightful conversation, antidotes...pure charm that seemed to literally flow into each of them. It was like he'd discovered, so late in his life, the desire to be the center of attention: the belle of the ball, so to speak. Finally, Doug could take it no longer. "Dad?" "Yes Son." Harry was grinning, his eyes flashing. "What? Please we're all waiting..." "Dad." Began Doug again. The somber tone in his voice was totally wrong for the occasion. This dark mood drew a cloud over the other's gaiety. "Your not acting at all like yourself. Its like..." "For God sake son," tittered his father. "How should I act? I've conquered DEATH ITSELF! Maybe not forever but for a long, long..." Douglas jerked his gaze away from his father and sought out Carl's. "Dr. Stine, assuming that my father is transforming into that...woman." Now he had Carl's full attention. "Well, wouldn't his brain go through the same change as well." Carl sputtered momentarily. "Well, er, ah, yes. Of course and your point?" Now Douglas swung his eyes back to his father. "In the forty-seven years I've known you, you've never acted this way...ah, noisy, silly...almost...flirtatious..." Now Harry was grinning from ear to ear. "Ah hum!" He announced as he stood up. He picked-up his wine glass. "A toast!" He bellowed at the top of his lungs. "To?" Replied Douglas. "BELINDA!" He roared. "Your Grandmother- DAMN IT! TO ME!" **************************************** Maybe it was his growing sense of vitality, energy or simply the fact that he'd had a long nap this afternoon, but Harry was in no mood to sleep. When the last of his guests had gone to bed, he returned to the laboratory. Doug's observation kept echoing through his mind. His brain was changing. Why hadn't he thought of that before? Why was it so disturbing? Gads he had been so blind to the concept before Doug's observation. Hell after all the histologies he'd performed on his rats it hadn't occurred to him to assess their neurological makeup. Hum. One doesn't think of a brain as being particularly dimorphic but he was sure there was plenty of information that indicated males and females processed information differently...hum. He turned up the heat to drive the last of the night chill from the room. The large mirror that he'd mounted only last week caught his eye. The image that was reflected back was comfortably familiar. As he turned and approached it, he watched his movements. The same, yet slightly different. A bit more spring to his step, of course, and the stoop that he'd been developing over the last decade or so was less evident. Now, only a foot away from the mirror he removed his glasses. Rather than everything turning blurred, the image remained sharply defined. Gads, it had been decades since his near field vision had been this good. In spite of the absence of any obvious external changes, his rejuvenation was obviously on track. Thirty-six hours and counting. Hum...what will it be like to be a woman? Young, sexy. Hum. If there was any question regarding his neurological makeup, it was resolved at that instant. "Holly Cow!" He exclaimed. Doug was right. He had been "flirting" with Carl this evening. A queer, foreign delight had bloomed at Carl's smile. Harry was aghast that he hadn't seen it for what it was: sexual attraction! He'd prepared himself to have the body of a woman but it was becoming increasingly clear that it wouldn't just be an external change. And the worst of it was the obvious fact that he hadn't ever understood "women". Gads did he feel unprepared for what lay before him. Suddenly he felt tired, very tired. He was truly going where no man had gone before and for the first time he was truly aware of the magnitude of the step he was taking. BECOMING A WOMAN! **************************************** It was obvious from his face that Carl wasn't happy coming down to the laboratory at this hour. It wasn't even light out yet. But there was concern in his voice when he spoke. "You all right?" Harry ignored the query. "Boy. We got to do a couple of histologies. I've already sacrificed two of the feminized rats." "NOW!" He was growing increasingly tired of the old man's habit of ordering him about. Hell, it had been years since he'd had to respond to anyone but the chairman himself at Gen Tech. "Carl, neural tissue doesn't go through cellular replacement! Gads, there is just no way that my brain can be, you know, feminized...it'd change our whole concept of aging if..." "You mean you didn't even look at the C.N.S. in your earlier histologies!" Harry looked embarrassed as he nodded an affirmative. Shrugging his shoulders he said, "It just didn't occur to me boy. But...but you know what this means if the process actually causes the neural tissue to regenerate..." "Immortality?" "Yes! A cure for blindness...ah, paraplegics...an enormous boon to human kind in so many more ways than even I had imagined. This could be the beginning of a new age." With a smirk Carl retorted, "Like the year zero A.H. Ok, Harry, you want to start with fifty micron neural sections I assume." **************************************** They worked through the morning and into the afternoon, side by side. Just like the old days, mused Carl to himself. But there was something eating at his gut; something he had to get off his chest. It would destroy the euphoria in which the old man, his mentor, was engulfed and worse. He rationalized that it could wait. Maybe tonight or tomorrow or...He'd almost forgotten the secret that lay hidden between him and Harry in the thrill of the scientific hunt until Patty had come down with a tray of food. She'd glared at him as if accusing Carl of breaking their trust. But obviously he hadn't, not yet. When they were alone again, Carl made up his mind to act: "Harry there's something you need to know." Harry was too absorbed in his calculations to hear let alone respond. Suddenly he leaped up while slapping the lab bench loudly with both hands: "All the time, right in front of my face! I must be lucky 'cause I'm just too stupid to have made a discovery of this magnitude!" "What are you talking about?" "Evidence of neurological transmutation RIGHT! Nothing at the gross structural level RIGHT! How many hours have we spent here looking...for what was right under our eyes..." "You found something then? The hypocampus or the medial superior limbic..." "Mass, dam it Carl! MASS! These femininized brains are a good twenty percent SMALLER than the male controls. AS THEY SHOULD BE! Don't you see? Remember these subjects were initially adult males huh. Oh you bet your bippy my boy, the process does dramatically alter the central neural system. Jesus we're really on the threshold of a whole new age!" "You said we? Harry it's all yours...or it should be." "My boy? What are you talking about..." "There's mischief afoot I afraid." "Douglas?" Carl's face grew ashen. Harry didn't wait for him to reply: "Never should have allowed that boy to go to Law School. That's right isn't it, huh?" "It isn't just him. It's...It's all of us Harry." "You?" Carl's voice was too strangled with emotions for him to talk. He just bobbed his head. Finally he choked out, "I'm sorry Harry, really sorry." Harry flopped down on the nearest lab stool. "They want to take it from me, is that it? Carl? They want to keep it all to themselves. Why? There will be more than enough glory, fame and money for all..." "Doug's afraid of what the transformation might do to your mind you know. He just wants to put it into safer, more reliable hands that's all Harry." Carl shrugged. "Maybe he's right. Maybe we need to keep you out of the driver's seat until we can fully understand who you are." "Oh! So its for the protection of the process hummm. And what are you? A spy to make sure that the crazy changeling hasn't hidden any valuable secrets from the rest of you..." "No." Carl's voice was flat. "No I'm doing exactly what I promised you in the first place. I'm looking after you, er controlling the transition. Sorry Harry." **************************************** A great red orb hung low in the west as Douglas and Patty walked, heads together in secret conversation. The pink clouds that flowed eastward across the plain had transformed the normally drab northern Nebraska landscape into a fairly land of color, but neither gave even the slightest sign that they were aware of the beauty around them. Patty's eyes glowed with new found respect that bordered upon awe for her mate. She'd always thought of herself as being a pilot fish joined in life with a killer shark. Like the insignificant little fish she was, the pilot enjoyed the scraps of food that spilled from the mouth of her companion. Before today, however, she'd not appreciate just how magnificent and powerful- ruthless her mate was: a great monster shark! The way he'd taken charge of the situation; how he'd controlled the other man through his own wife. But she was still only a little fish. She would be insecure without him by her side. "Stay here? Alone with them?" "A few days, two weeks at most. Pop's Will puts all of this in firmly in my hands. As soon as I have him declared- dead." His eyes were hard and dangerous as he stopped to study his wife's eyes. It was a big responsibility he was placing upon her. Nothing, absolutely nothing must go wrong while he was gone. "Pop must not be allowed to leave here, no matter what might happen until the change is completed. After that...legally he or rather she will be a non-person." "And Stine?" "He's nothing my dear Patricia." Douglas snapped his fingers in front of Patty's face to emphasize his point. "Nothing at all. Men like him, scientists, can be bought and sold like...cattle!" "But he expects to share in...you promised him...ah..." Douglas reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small envelope. "Here." He said as he handed it to her. "The capsules contain some of the virally infected bacteria that Pop used. If he looks like he's getting, you know, to be a problem...feed him these, huh. But he must not be allowed to escape my dear! Ever! It is only a matter of when we do our dear Dr. Stine. A female Stine, another non-person should be at least as easy to manipulate as Pop." Douglas turned and looked around them as if seeing, for the first time, the landscape drenched in "pink". "What an absolutely perfect situation Pop selected for his swan song. Hell the nearest town is almost forty, fifty miles away. If you ask me, this is absolutely the most desolate, empty hell hole on the planet. Look! After I leave, don't even try to use the other vehicles. I'll sugar the fuel tanks tonight. At most they might get ten miles. Hum, but you better leave the phone lines alone. It'd be too suspicious if they should just 'go out'. Patricia, you do know how to disable the phone lines don't you?" "But what if I need to talk to you?" The idea of not only being alone with them but really cut off from her Douglas was terrifying. Gads, he was asking too much of her. "Cellular. Hide this. If things do go sour, you can reach me by just hitting this key here. You got it? It preprogrammed to a number that can reach me day or night. Pat I can be here in under three hours by corporate jet. Hum, I'll have a chopper sent in to the nearest airport to complete the final leg of the trip. Patty, don't worry, Dougie thinks of everything." **************************************** "Silvia? What are you doing here? Where's Harry?" She didn't like the tone of her husband's voice, not at all. "He's taking a nap." She said with a waspish bite in her voice as she held up a key. "He's not going any where. Don't be so jumpy, he's only an old man." "A very smart old man. Don't ever underestimate him." "Hump!" She retorted. Men always overestimate themselves, she knew that for a fact. She turned her back on her husband and began to undress. "Doug's leaving in the morning." She announced. "I don't trust him." Responded Carl. Any man that would do what he's doing to his own father..." That brought out a sneer on her face: "Oh! And you? Listening to you talk, why that old man is like your own father, maybe more so. Face it! What we got here is just too big to allow petty bourgeoisie values to control us, you said so yourself only last night." Strain and growing guilt was evident on Carl's face. "I'm still worried by that pig Douglas. Never liked lawyers much anyway." "Sweetheart, I got it all under control. Not to worry." "What are you talking about? Control...Dougie boy. Christ, am I hearing you correctly!" She made like she was wrapping something around her finger. "Like that! The poor man is starved for something better than that bland little mouse..." "SLEEP WITH HIM!" "Sush. Not so loud my dear. Besides, sleeping isn't exactly what I promised him." Carl's mouth dropped open, his face paled momentarily before the rage could rush up from his gut and color his face. He tried to speak but only gasping sounds came out. "Cat got your tongue, my love." Simpered Silvia. Before he could explode she closed and locked the bathroom door behind her. It took all the control he could master not to smash down that door and drag her out, kicking and screaming. Moments later, he heard the sound of water coming from the shower stall. How had they sunk to this depth? Was there nothing left. His wife was going to sleep with that gross, slimy pig! Whatever else he'd learned, his wife had showed an aspect he'd never known existed. It was obvious she'd do anything if the price was right. Anything! Damn it he wasn't going to take this lying down. A cuckold! Never! **************************************** Harry was staring at the ceiling above his bed in the dim twilight, thinking. It was ever so good to be starting a new life he concluded for there was simply nothing left of his old one that was not tainted. It wasn't his son's treason that bothered him so much for he'd known for years that Douglas had been consumed by his lust for money and power a long time ago. That he could have grown from his seed in Helen's womb, that's what hurt. Douglas had to be his personal failure, not Helen's. Never had there been a more loving, self giving woman than Helen. What had he done wrong to be able to create such a monster from such beauty? He snuggled down, pulling his covers up to his chin and closed his eyes. Carl's face loomed before him. How could one with so much raw talent for science become so perverted? He blinked his eyes rapidly to drive away the budding tears. Yes it was time to begin a new life. Let them scratch and claw at each other, he'd have none of that. He let his hand slide, under the covers, across his now smooth chest. The last of the snow white body hair was gone, except for his crotch and the bush on top of his head, he was as hairless as a child. The skin, no longer discolored by age spots, had grown soft to the touch. In little more than two and a half days, he'd gone from a wrinkled old man to a sexually neutral child. The external genitals were now but a sham. Carl hadn't noticed and Harry hadn't wanted to share that fact with him. Only the sac that had held his testicles remained. And they itched. What would the morning bring? He, no...Harry caught himself, SHE could hardly wait to see. **************************************** "You seem to be taking this awfully well Carl." "I'm trying to go with the flow, my dear. You're right as always. Twist that pig around your finger. Some how I'll survive the night. Here. I borrowed a bottle of port from Harry's cellar. I know you hate port but it just happens that Doug loves the stuff." He grimaced. "You think I'll need to woo him with booze! Get serious Carl!" "Trust me my dear. A little swill is just what that pig needs." "Humph!" Snorted Silvia as she stomped from the room. She hadn't taken two steps down the hall way until she stopped. Maybe the pig didn't need a stiff drink, but she would. She cracked open the bottle and took a long swig directly from the still dusty bottle. The warmth that exploded in her stomach was re-assuring. One pig was pretty much like the next she rationalized. Besides, it might be necessary to switch sides if Douglas proved too smart. Hum. What ever else might happen, Silvia was determined to be on the winning team. Yea, she'd give herself with gusto to Harry's son, why not! CHAPTER 3 Harry was already up and dressed when Carl unlocked the old man's bedroom door. The sight that met his eyes was shocking, to say the least. Harry was wearing cut-offs that revealed his smooth, hairless legs. But it wasn't the feminine appearance of his legs that drew Carl's attention: "Harry! What did you do to your hair?" Harry ran his hand across the shaved dome that glistened in the late morning light. The absence of eye brows and the bald head suggested a store front dummy. But there was nothing artificial in the expression the flashed from his eyes. "Don't ever lock me in here again, you hear! I'm not going any where and I sure as hell don't appreciate being held as a prisoner in my own home! Geeze Carl, you look like death warmed over! Bad night, huh?" The idea that Carl had a bad night seemed to delight Harry all too much. "Come on, lets go down to breakfast Harry." His voice was as tired as his eyes. Carl hadn't slept a wink. Fact was, Silvia hadn't come back to their bedroom at all. By the time that they had gotten to the kitchen and sat down, Harry had pretty much figured out what was going on. Not that he said anything. The continued absence of both Douglas and Silvia and the grumpy manner that Patty served them was conformation enough. All ready their little palace coup was coming apart. Hum, if he were a betting man he'd risk it all on Douglas. There wasn't any advantage greater than a complete lack of scruples, now was there. Deliberately working salt into the festering wound he asked: "Have Douglas and Silvia already left? Hum?" The crash of a plate breaking was more than ample reward for Harry. "Huh!" Exclaimed Carl. In a voice that was loaded with malice, Patty, as she bent over to pick up the pieces of broken china, said: "Doug left before sunup. Had business, I reckon, to finish up. Said he'd be back in a week, more or less." "And Silvia?" Carl's voice was strained. "What about my wife...?" "Gone. Said you'd understand." "Understand?" He sounded almost on the verge of tears. Fighting for control he fixed his eyes on the broken china on the floor. "Oh, yes." He said in a halting voice. "I, I just forgot, that's all." Although Harry was careful to control his features, inside he was grinning from ear to ear. Just as he thought, that little tramp had hopped beds as soon as she saw that it was to her advantage. He felt sorry for Carl. Indeed, as he looked at the man's face, that queer feeling of impending excitement welled up again. He poured almost a full pitcher of raw cream over his cereal. "I'm starved." **************************************** Silvia was clearly flustered as she sat beside the strange man driving the car. Doug hadn't been at all like she'd imagined. She'd never, ever, really been fucked before! While he was still ugly almost to the point of repulsive, he'd taken her in a manner such she'd imagined as a young virgin, alone with her sexual fantasies, that is before the reality of men like Carl. And smart! Calculating, complex like Carl could never be. Gosh, if she wasn't in love, well she was certainly infatuated. Here was a man that could rule her. That was the problem, wasn't it, she wasn't in control any more. That thought should have made her alarmed but it didn't. No. For the first time in her life she was on a real adventure. They were all alone weren't they, in the middle of no where. She reached over and unzipped his pants. Silvia was interesting, of course. So elegant and cool on the out side, but a volcano when aroused. A smile crossed Doug's lips as he felt her hand on his crotch. As she freed his hard member from the confines of his jockey shorts, he worked at keeping the car on the road. It couldn't get much better than this, he concluded as her warm mouth engulfed the head of his penis. The problem was, it was always like this. The sexier they were the harder they seemed to fall. The hunt, the challenge! Gone! Always too fast. Maybe that's why he'd kept Patty. No hunt, no challenge and no let down! They'd been together only half a day and already he was getting...bored! **************************************** "Another game of chess?" Asked Carl. Harry's face show hurt as he thrashed about on the sofa as if looking for a more comfortable position. Fully stretched out, he held his head up by leaning on his elbow. He slowly slid one bare toe across the ankle of his other leg and then, ever more slowly the rest of the way to his thigh. "You didn't even notice." He whined. Carl was cross both from the lack of sleep and the discovery that his wife had taken off with that pig. "Notice what!" He snapped. "Well if your going to be that way." Harry muttered as he pulled himself into a sitting position. "Christ Harry, don't play games with me. What?" "My legs. Look at them, hum. Kinda nice, I mean, well look at them." "Oh." Carl squinted at them. "Your supposed to be playing doctor, Doctor. Go on, touch them, hummm." "You shaved then or what?" The skin was baby soft and absolutely without stubble. "Oh don't stop." Harry squirmed with delight. Carl's face bloomed with embarrassment as he jerked his hand away. "Your...your enjoying this?" "It makes me all tingly inside if that's what you mean. I feel like purring. Anyone ever tell you how handsome you are?" That was just too much for Carl. The chess board and all its pieces crashed to the floor as he stood up. His face was now beet red. Flustered he said: "Harry?" Harry's voice dropped slightly and he spoke with a deliberate lisp: "Tay fella, you better get used to the new me." In reaction to the alarm that was growing upon Carl's face, Harry decided to cut the clowning. "Sorry." He apologized. "Please. Sit here." He patted the couch. "Next to me. I will not bite, I promise. Son, we need to talk." Carl did sit down but at the far end of the couch. He watched his charge warily. "What was that all about?" "Carl I am changing. Outside, inside, in every way. Even or especially in my feelings, ok? I wasn't kidding you know. Your hand on my leg...OH! Delicious! Shocking isn't it, hum? Me, your ancient professor getting turned on by your touch. Look boy, if your going to be any use to either of us, you got to adjust your thinking on this and now! Dr. Harold Haas no longer exists. I am a woman!" He shrugged his shoulders. "True, a little incomplete here and there you know but I will never be Harry again. Hum, maybe we need to make the break now..." Carl frowned. "Break?" "Carl, I'm going to my room to change into something...more appropriate. Ah, it might help if you no longer refer to me as Harry. I'm serious. Considering who I am genetically, ah- Belinda. OK? Belinda! And with that, he or rather she flounced out of the room leaving behind a much troubled man. **************************************** "Gosh Patty am I glad your here." She looked up from her book and said in a terse voice, "Yes?" "Please, you got to help me." "What?" "Patty, well I don't know the slightest thing about, you know, being a woman and, well, would you, could you please help me get dressed?" "Huh?" "Look. The last time I was in Denver I bought a whole wardrobe. This sweet young lady help me pick out some things for a young girl and well, let me show you." When they entered Harry's room, the man ran over and threw open the closet door. "Look." A low whistle escaped from Patty's lips. There was a small fortune in new clothing hanging there. "How did you know what size?" "Dad had kept her wedding dress, well such as it was. Anyhow that's what I used for a template. But that's not relevant right now. I got a few things, you know, closer to my current size that should fit until the skeletal changes are done." Stupefied, Patty just stood there as Harry carried an arm full of clothes out of the closet. "Undergarments?" "Oh yes. Here in the chest of drawers. Eeee! Kind of sexy don't you think?" He held up a pair of silk bloomers. "Your serious?" "Couldn't be any more serious. Patty, do we do the makeup now or after I get dressed?" With a laugh she said, "Why don't you take a bubble bath first, huh? I got some if you need it." "Great! And Patty, thank you from the very bottom of my heart." "Got your eye on that man downstairs don't you." Harry blushed. "It shows?" "Yea. Well welcome to the pains and joys of womanhood Harry." "Belinda." He corrected her. "Harry died just now!" **************************************** Instead of taking the first flight out, Doug and Silvia took a room at the airport Holiday Inn. It'd be a kind of honey moon or at least that is what she'd planned. But both were feeling a little under the weather and tired. Probably for the first time since he'd reached adulthood, Doug declined to eat dinner. Maybe this sexy woman would motivate him to lose some of that excess weight, hum, right!. But the sex was still interesting. Silvia should have felt at least as exhausted as Doug but after only a few minutes she'd awaken to an enormous hunger that had nothing to do with sex. Famished, she tried to get Doug to go with her. Just the idea of food turned his stomach. "You go kid, I'm just...you know...too tired." Normally that would have been enough for Silvia. Besides, she ate like a bird, a little this and a little that. Not like this great feeding machine lying beside her. She could get a snack in the bar that would hold her over until breakfast. Well one thing led to another and before long she was at this all night truck stop about half a mile from the hotel. "Another round of your wonderful country fried steak please." "Fries?" The waitress looked incredulous. How could such a small woman put so much away? Maybe she was pregnant or something. "Sure, the works. Love that salad dressing. Hey and bring me the dessert menu when you got the time. I could eat a whole pie!" "Sure Honey. And some more milk?" She added with a sweet smile. **************************************** Dinner was late that night. The reason became all too apparent to Carl when Patty and Harry, that is Belinda, finally came down stairs. While she wasn't exactly beautiful, the transformation was enough to take away Carl's breath. A black wig covered her bald dome and the makeup...Belinda's blue eyes were absolutely striking. The careful application of makeup attenuated, somewhat, the large nose and the brilliant red lipstick amplified the man's thin lips into a false fullness. But if Belinda were trying to pass as a woman, he'd not succeed tonight. He moved with the awkwardness of a man in a dress. "Well!" Said Carl. "Quite a transformation!" "You like it, really like it?" "Sure!" Lied Carl. "Harry, I mean Belinda, your, ah...beautiful." Even under the makeup Carl could see Harry's color change. Harry's eyes widened and his nose flared. "I know when your lying, damn it!" He was suddenly both angry and hurt. In the next instant, Belinda fled back up the stairs from which she'd just descended. Shocked, Carl looked to Patty for support. "What was that all about?" "Men!" She snapped. "Wait..." "Look, unless you want to do it yourself, I'm going to whip up some dinner." "But Patty? What did I do wrong?" **************************************** Belinda didn't strip off her clothes or remove her makeup- no, she studied her reflection in the mirror. OK, she'd have to practice moving like a woman. No wonder Carl had been put off. He'd looked more like a truck driver in drag than a real woman. Part of the problem with dresses, Belinda concluded, there were no pockets. Like where do you put your hands? It was obvious that he'd need tutoring. Maybe later tonight or early tomorrow Patty could show him what to do with his hands at least, hum. But he didn't need Patty to practice walking in these heels. Now how in the hell do women get that swaying motion when they walk? **************************************** For Patty it had turned into a surprisingly delightful evening after all. Harry, that is Belinda, was really wonderful company and she found herself drawn to the man-woman in ways she'd never been drawn to anyone else before. For one thing he was so eager to learn from her. "No, not like that. See, watch me." Belinda giggled. She'd been doing that a lot tonight, giggling. It was pleasant and not at all artificial to giggle. "But...but Patty, my wrist isn't broken?" "Well it should be. Your a lady, see. Helpless. Oh much better. Hum, you sure you've never been in drag before?" Patty giggle as Belinda flounced across the room, hips swaying in exaggerated motion. "I think you got it, by Jove!" "Well I owe it all to my teacher." "Me?" She squealed. "You got to be kidding. I've never vamped anyone, not even or should I say especially Dougie." The mention of his name knocked her out of the pleasant, buoyant mood. Belinda, sensing this, walked over to her. She wrapped her arms around Patty, "Now, now. What did we agree upon? Huh?" Without another word, Belinda pulled her tight and just held her. When she felt the shudders of impending tears, Belinda began to stroke her back, still without speaking. At least five minutes elapsed and the front of Belinda's dress was wet from Patty's tears. "You know," said Patty, her voice muffled against Belinda's chest, "a man couldn't do that. They'd have to do something, fix it." Her eyes still bright from her tears searched Belinda's face. "You do have a woman's soul you know." "More than that." Interrupted Belinda. "I haven't shown Carl yet but..." "But what?" "My genitals, ah...well their no longer male." "Really?" Somehow that thought made Patty sad. New tears bloomed. Belinda was speechless. Finally he said, "I didn't know you thought of me that way." Patty brushed back the tears from her eyes. She wasn't about to say what she was feeling. She couldn't say how sad the idea of finding and loosing such a special friend in the same evening was. She blinked her eyes rapidly, you want to show me?" "Yes. I mean, if its all right with you. Its, well kind of weird having a birth canal and...Jesus...Patty! I'm feeling really weird! Please get Carl, NOW! **************************************** Patty was besides herself as she hovered over the disorientated man- woman. "What's happening to...her?" "I was afraid of this. It's her skeletal structure. It's got to be stressful. Anyhow, its late and the drug should allow her to sleep for most of the night anyway." "I'll stay." Patty said in a very tiny voice. "Carl, I want to stay with her. Please, I'll wake you if she needs you, you can be sure of that. OK?" Carl gave her this funny look. What had come over this woman tonight? It was obvious that her relationship with Harry had been changed. "Sure. I'd appreciated the chance to get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a hectic day I'm afraid." "Hectic? I don't understand?" "The last stage of the metamorphous could be quite dramatic. Yes. All traces of Harry will be gone and soon. You did see his mother's picture didn't you? They don't look at all alike." **************************************** Silvia felt positively grotesque when she finally arrived home. Her mother used to go on these eating binges, a fact that accounted for her rapid swings in weight. But in spite of the tightness of her bulging stomach that felt like a lead weight, she was still hungry. Fortunately, Doug would never know. He was fast asleep when she returned. It would remain her secret. Doug was fast asleep all right. It seemed that every hour or so he'd taken a crap. The frequent interruptions were exhausting. He hardly noticed her lying there asleep when he went to the can again. It was obviously some kind of stomach flu. Just damn poor luck considering how much he had to do. Damn! **************************************** Carl didn't go directly to bed. He was almost done with a project he'd started earlier in the evening. Having scanned and digitized the old photograph of Belinda and then drawing from admittedly rough estimates as to her height and general figure, he'd constructed a computer rendition of what Harry might look like when the process was complete. Now setting the program back to Harry's last digitized configuration, he set the morphication program in motion. There would have to be major modifications in the man's bone structure. The square jaw and ample nose smoothly flowed into the feminine, oval face that look back across the decades. Oh that the process could be that easy, painlessly easy. There was one thing that was for sure, if Harry was right, he'd be one hell of a good looking woman in the next day or so. CHAPTER 4 Patty had dozed off but probably only for a few minutes, it was just after three in the morning. She turned up the thermos stat to drive the chill from the bedroom and walked back beside Belinda's sleeping figure. It was getting easier and easier to think of him as her. Changes too small and too slow to be detected in process had all ready worked a transformation upon the features. The nose was smaller by half and now possessed a slight up turn. The jaw was no longer square and aggressive. Indeed, the full sensitive lips just begged to be kissed. In spite of her embarrassment, Patty gave in to that growing compulsion. Gently, ever so gently, she pressed her lips against Belinda's. Startled, she jumped back as Belinda returned her kiss. "OH MY GOD! You startled me!" Her eyes flickered open as a smile erupted. "Hi! Into girls huh?" Patty was blushing furiously. "You OK? Do you need another shot? I'll call Carl right now." "Hold on Patty." Surprise rose in Belinda's face. "Is that really my voice?" She lay back and closed her eyes again. Alarmed, Patty repeated herself, "You OK?" "You just can't imagine how OK, Patty my love. God I feel good. And this voice, what do the girls say now, ah, like ah, wow! A voice to kill for, huh?" She opened her eyes and turned her head toward Patty. "It is a nice voice, isn't it?" A silly grin sparkled across Patty's face. "Sure, if your into that sort of thing. A little deep and husky like..." "Yea, like one of those blues singers. What we used to call a whiskey voice. Real sexy. Fits you know." "Why?" "Cause, its the way I feel. Real sexy. Like I got my motor running or something." Closing her eyes and then with a swipe of her arm she threw off the bedclothes. "Tell me, what do I look like, huh? Don't lie." Startled, Patty gawked at the naked form. "Well, er, you don't need a bra, least wise not yet." "Fraid of that. OK, go on." "Christ! Just open your eyes and look for yourself." "NO! This is the first time I've been reborn. Come on Patty, let me enjoy myself. Flat chested. OK, I can live with that. Anything good to report?" "Well, lets see. Forget that career as a professional basketball player. I'd say you lost almost a foot in height." "Hum...a midget." Patty giggled. "No you clown. Maybe five foot and a little bit more. It must have hurt." "Yea, that's for sure. More...More!" "Well, hips. Those are womanly hips all right. And a waist, a regular hour glass figure. So you can forget about a career as a model." "OK, big hips and probably a fat ass. Doesn't sound like much class." "Oh but your wrong Belinda. I'd say, lets see with breasts, hell you can buy them anywhere, you fit right in as a Playboy foldout, yep!" "Thank God! I was getting worried." Belinda opened her eyes and sat up. Looking down at her body as she ran her hand over its surface, her smile resurfaced. "Damn weird looking at a woman's body from this angle. But it sure seems ok by me. Thanks Patty for the gentle landing. Now where's that mirror?" As she slid off the bed and down to the floor, she took her first step. "I think my vamping skills will go up two hundred percent or more." Patty giggled as Belinda deliberately wiggled across the room. Now standing in front of the full length mirror she began to make faces at herself. "You ever see such a large mouth? Huh? If I smile I think the top of my head might fall off. OK, come on, lets go wake Carl." "Like that?" Squealed Patty. "Sure. Besides, I need a man's opinion." Patty didn't follow. She was jealous. Jealous of Carl for it was obvious that Carl would take to her like a duck to duckweed. "I'll make breakfast. OK? When you and Carl are, ah...done come on down stairs." "Sure sweetheart! When we're done, as you say." Belinda gave an extra twist with her hips as she stepped through the door. "But it could have been you!" Patty was seeing red when she stomped down the stairs. This was stupid, she wasn't into to women. Gads! Maybe she was? **************************************** Patty played with the capsules in her hand. Doug hadn't called and things certainly had not gotten out of hand...yet! "Patty?" She almost jumped out of her skin. "Oh! Done all ready?" The attractive, young woman emitted a fleeting smile. "Yea, such as it was. Our Doctor Killdare doesn't have much bedside manner. Hey! Sorry Pat. He never laid...anything on me, I swear!" "None of my business anyway." Patty mumbled. "Sure! Like you don't care. Pat, I'm horny as hell..." "Girls!" Bellowed Carl. "Right! Cad!" Retorted Belinda. "Ease off, will you. I'm a married man." "Sure and the Pope's..." "Hey you two. I got eggs in a very special cream sauce, hash browns, and.." **************************************** The stench had driven Silvia from the room before six which- was fortunate. By the time Douglas came down stairs, she'd had five trips through the breakfast bar. And when he got there, well, the sight of all that food made him sick. Fortunately, she'd had enough at least for now. Later on the plane to Orange County California, while she eyed his untouched breakfast, he explained what they were going to do. As he flashed his father's master card and explained that "old Pop" was going to visit Newport Beach, she continued to eye the now cold plate of food. "You going to eat that?" She asked. "Airplane food makes me sick." He growled. He hardly noticed when she traded trays with him as he continued to explain the "accident". "Ever handle a power boat?" "A what?" She said. "A power boat, a fifty foot Chris Craft." "Not exactly." "OK! It doesn't matter. See we take it out of Newport tonight; wreck it off Catalina and come back by cattle boat the next day." "Cattle boat?" "Never mind. Can you handle a dingy?" "A what?" "Never mind! Hum. Excuse me." Why?" "I got to go to the can." "Christ! Again? Hell, why did you bother getting first class tickets anyway, its the same can for everyone you know." "Funny, real funny. Now get out of the way." "Steward?" "Yes Madam?" "You wouldn't happen to have another breakfast available would you?" "No problem Madam." "The steak, of course." Her belt was threatening to cut her in two. She'd run out of notches. OK, starting at noon, diet time- right! *****