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Message-ID: <42270asstr$1052143803@assm.asstr-mirror.org>
From: "Vulgar Argot" <VulgarArgotREMOVEALL@CAPSinsidejoke.tv>
Subject: {ASSM} Marigold, Part 17
Date: Mon,  5 May 2003 10:10:03 -0400
Path: assm.asstr-mirror.org!not-for-mail
Approved: <assm@asstr-mirror.org>
Newsgroups: alt.sex.stories.moderated,alt.sex.stories
Followup-To: alt.sex.stories.d

Marigold, Part 17
by Vulgar Argot
(tags moved to bottom for spoilerage)

It took Dawn several minutes to stop shaking with rage. She sat on a small
stone bench at the edge of Thule's property line, overhung with the branches
of the first few trees of the forest that started abruptly at the edge of
the grass. From that vantage, she could see Jake come out of the house,
light a cigarette as he scanned the yard, then come up the path towards her.

She pointed to the cigarette in his mouth, "Give me one of those."

"You smoke now?" asked Jake, drawing out the pack.

"Only when I'm upset," said Dawn. She accepted the cigarette and let Jake
light it.

Jake stood on the far side of the path. Both of them smoked without talking
for about a half a cigarette.

Jake said, "I don't know this Thule guy, but I wouldn't be too hard on him
about this."

Dawn's eyes flashed angrily, "Don't tell me you're on his side..."

Jake shook his head in the negative as he drew deeply on the last puff of
his cigarette. Then, he dropped it on the path and ground it out
emphatically, far more so than fire safety would require, as if he were
carefully considering his next words.

"I don't take side," he said finally, "But, I've seen Mrs. Vandevoort in
action. If she sets her sights on you, you'd have to be gay or dead and
preferrably both not to have a hard time saying no."

"What about you?" asked Dawn, "You said you didn't sleep with her."

"I'm just a lackey," said Jake, lighting another cigarette, "That kept me
off her radar. She came on to me five or six times as a matter of form. But,
she's smart. If she'd been caught with me, I'd be fired and she'd still be
stuck."

Dawn looked up at him angrily, "What are you doing working for Ivan
Vandevoort anyway?"

"Delivering messages," said Jake, "That's it."

"You don't hurt people for him, do you?"

"Jesus, no," said Jake, "This is Ivan Vandevoort, not John Gotti. I don't
always get to deal with the cream of society. But, there's nothing like
that. Some industrial espionage, maybe. That's about it."

"But, why are you working for him at all?" asked Dawn.

"I've got to make a living, Wildcat," said Jake, "I'm still trying to start
my career as a journalist. I get a steady stream of freelance pieces, but
not enough to pay the bills."

"He's not a good person, Jake," said Dawn gravely.

"I know," said Jake sighing, "But, if four years of J-School have taught me
anything, it's that there are very few really good people out there.
Besides, what about your friend, Thule? He's up to his elbows with the crown
prick and his crowd all of a sudden."

Dawn bit her lip. She wanted to defend Thule. But, she couldn't trust that
Jake wasn't pumping her for information. She wanted Jake to be on the
up-and-up. He'd been the first boy she'd ever had a crush on. But, she'd had
a crush on June Kane, too. So, she said, "I'm not real happy with that
either."

They spent a little bit of time catching up. When Jake asked how her older
sister was doing, Dawn had to admit that she hadn't heard anything since
around Christmas-time, which was not an uncommon amount of time to go
without contact.

Finally, Jake said, "Wildcat, as much fun as it has been catching up, I
really am pretty close to dead on my feet. I've got work to do Monday
morning and I've been on my feet for about twenty-six hours. Do you want a
ride home or somewhere?"

Dawn stood and hugged him, "No. Thanks, though. Take care, Brute Squad. And,
don't be a stranger. I know you remember my phone number."

Jake smiled as they walked back towards the house, "How are your folks?"

"Dysfunctional as ever," said Dawn, "but mostly harmless."

"Still together?" asked Jake. When Dawn nodded, he added, "Damn. Who would
have thought?"

"They'll be together forever," said Dawn, "They live to make each other
miserable. It's much more efficient to live in the same house if you're
going to do that."

Jake nodded and went around the side of the house. Dawn went back inside.
Thule was sitting where they had left him, eyes closed, snoring softly. Dawn
checked the clock. It was just past one thirty. Marigold had said to pick
her up no earlier than two. It didn't take more than ten or fifteen minutes
to get to her house from here. So, for a few minutes, she just sat in the
recliner and watched Thule sleep. Dawn wished she weren't mad at him. With
his mostly-faded black eye, blood-matted hair and a single red scratch
running from his ribs down to just below his navel, maybe innocuous, maybe
given to him by Marigold or Mrs. Vandevoort or some other woman Dawn didn't
know about.

Dawn looked down at her own nails, worried short like a boy's, covered with
only a thin coat of clear polish and frowned. They weren't the sort of nails
you would imagine drawing an angry, scarlet line across a man's back in a
moment of passion--or his belly for that matter. Tilting her head to one
side, she tried to figure out how a woman would get her hand down there at
the appropriate time. She didn't come up with an answer, but found herself
blushing as she considered the possibilities.

Thule looked so peaceful, Dawn didn't really want to wake him. In the short
time that she'd really known him, he seemed perpetually tired. Dawn found
that going to school, maintaining a B average, and maintaining her meager
social life were enough to make her feel tired most of the time. How Thule
kept up with everything he was doing was completely beyond her.

Dawn thought about Marigold. She wondered what the protocol was for dealing
with your girlfriend's boyfriend. She knew she was on dangerous ground with
Thule more or less every time they were together. What had started out as
mostly innocent teasing had turned into a kind of brinkmanship. Until he'd
kissed her, Dawn was beginning to wonder if Thule didn't really think she
was hideous.

When Dawn had felt the handcuffs go on, she'd really thought that she'd just
pushed him too far, either with the constant flirting or by sleeping with
Marigold. She shivered a little at the idea of Thule claiming a right to her
by extension. Then, she tried to decide if it was a good shiver or a bad
shiver. Before she could, she discarded the whole line of reasoning. It just
didn't seem like Thule's style to make such an assumption.

Finally, Dawn examined her anger towards Thule. Part of it was at his
betrayal of Marigold. Of course, if what Thule had done was a betrayal of
Marigold, then Dawn and Marigold had betrayed Thule. If Thule felt betrayed,
he took it with impressive equanimity.

Dawn abandoned that line of thought. It was too confusing and too likely to
make Dawn feel horrible about herself. She'd been in an extended manic phase
for weeks and knew that the coming crash would probably bring her down hard.
The new medication had worked less than a year before it stopped doing
anything about the peaks and troughs. She really needed to get back to the
doctor. But, any time she mentioned the doctor, it was the beginning of
another fight among her and her parents. Her mother was convinced that her
problems were all in her head and just an excuse. Her father wanted to help,
but couldn't stay on topic long enough for the ensuing battle to reach
anything approaching a conclusion. It would take a week of screaming before
she got what she needed. Half the time, the fight brought on the depressive
episode she'd been trying to prevent.

Hugging her knees to her chest, Dawn watched Thule sleep some more. She
wondered how he managed to maintain his aura of brooding intensity even when
asleep.

Remembering her anger at him, Dawn focused on the question of where it had
come from. She found it hard to concentrate on an idea too long without
losing her focus. That was another problem with another pill to supposedly
deal with it. She'd actually lost most of her anger at Thule by the time
Jake came out of the house. But, it had flared up again when Jake had tried
to make an excuse for Thule's transgression by talking about how seductive
Mrs. Vandevoort was.

Thule wasn't supposed to be seducable, certainly not by someone he knew for
less than twenty-four hours. If it was possible to flirt with him until he
cracked, why hadn't he cracked for Dawn? She'd thought she was pretty good
at flirting. She'd immensely enjoyed watching his discomfort as she ate her
ice cream. Just how pretty was Mrs. Vandevoort, anyway?

Scowling at Thule, she ran her hand through her cropped hair. It's probably
the bangs, she decided. How the hell can anybody be sexy with bangs? Jumping
to her feet, she decided that it was time to wake Thule. Kneeling next to
him on the couch, she reached up and gently patted his cheek.

His reaction seemed instanteous, his hand flying up and catching her wrist,
pulling it away from his face before his eyes even opened. When he saw Dawn,
he released her wrist warily.

"Sorry," he said, rising, "I thought you were slapping me again."

"No," said Dawn, smiling at his back, "I thought I would take a short break
from the slapping so you could drive me to New York."

Thule turned back to face her, real menace in his voice, "Dawn, you've
already slapped me twice. Don't do it a third time unless you're ready to
deal with the consequences."

Dawn paled. At the same time, she had to fight the urge to jump up and slap
him immediately, just to find out what would happen. Instead, she said,
"It's almost two. We should get going."

Thule nodded, "I have a few things I need to do first. Feel free to make use
of anything in the living room while you wait. It will be maybe a half
hour." Then, he disappeared into the basement.

Dawn was still flipping through the channels on TV, trying to find something
to amuse herself when Thule emerged with a laundry basket full of
neatly-folded clothes. A few minutes later, he re-emerged with the basket,
full of crumpled bedding. Dawn started giggling. She couldn't help it.

Thule looked puzzled, "What's so funny?"

Dawn stopped giggling long enough to say, "Somehow, I just never pictured
you doing laundry."

"Why?" asked Thule, sniffing his armpit, "Do I stink?"

That made Dawn giggle more. Thule, seeing he wasn't likely to get an
immediate answer, shrugged and went back into the basement. When he came
back upstairs, he was carrying a brown file box as if it were heavy.

Sitting down at the computer, he began taking an array of cameras,
microphones, and devices that Dawn didn't recognize out of the box, linking
them up one by one to the computer, then putting them back into the box.
Eventually, he came to one microphone that he kept hooked up to the computer
for a little bit longer than the others. When he unplugged it, he grunted
and laid it aside. Dawn watched with interest as he finished testing the
rest of the units, then took the box downstairs.

When he came back upstairs, Dawn asked, "What was that all about?"

Thule took a flat plastic bag out of the drawer, unscrewed the bottom of the
microphone, dropped a small disc from the microphone into the desk drawer,
and slipped the microphone into the bag, sealing it, "I need to make sure
that my equipment is in working order. I don't make it to the Spy Shop as
often as I would like, so I did a quick test of all of my surveillance gear
I haven't used recently to make sure that it was in working order. This one
isn't, so I'm going to have it replaced. These things have a lifetime
guarantee. So, when they fail, I bring them back."

"What an efficient spy you are," said Dawn.

"I wish," said Thule, "this stuff costs a fortune. If I hadn't bought all of
the surveillance equipment, I'd have enough to buy a new car today."

Dawn looked around suspiciously, "Do you keep this place bugged?"

"No," said Thule, "other than the web cam and microphone in the bedroom,
there's no surveillance here. And those have physical blocks so that they
can't be tapped from the outside."

"Why don't you bug this place?" Dawn asked.

"Because any surveillance can be used against you if it's found," said
Thule, "If I had cameras and microphones here, I would spend all of my time
looking for shunts to see if someone else wasn't using my gear to spy on
me."

"How do you know they don't just have their own cameras and mikes?" asked
Dawn.

"I doubt they would resort to that," said Thule.

"Why not?" asked Dawn.

"Because," said Thule, "if they suspected me enough to bug my house, they
would probably just make me disappear."

Dawn chuckled before she realized that Thule was not smiling, "You're
serious? You think the Vandevoorts would kill you?"

Thule nodded, "If they knew what I had, they'd probably throw anybody they
could against me, including your friend, Jake. But, it doesn't matter. I've
made contingency plans for the information I have to be disseminated if I
die or disappear."

"What do you mean it doesn't matter?" asked Dawn sharply, "You'd still be
dead."

"I'm sorry," said Thule reassuringly, "I didn't mean it didn't matter. Of
course I'd rather not wind up dead at the end of this. I'm pretty sure the
Vandevoorts won't gain anything by killing me because it won't keep what I
know from getting out. This," he held up the pen camera, "should be the
smoking gun I need to tie it all together. Then, I can finish off Brianne
and go to the FBI with what I've got."

"Thule," asked Dawn, her face serious, "did you really think I could be one
of them? That I could knowingly turn you over to people who would kill you
for what I told them?"

Thule sat on the couch next to her, sighing deeply, "Dawn," he said, "I've
wanted to go to M.I.T. since I was about ten years old. I've sacrificed a
lot to get there, denied myself a lot of things in order to save the money
to be able to go."

Dawn nodded, wondering where this was going. Thule seemed to be able to tell
that he was losing her. He tried a different tack, "Dawn, do you know Ioke?"

"Of course," said Dawn.

"Do you want her?" asked Thule.

"I...um. I never thought about it," Dawn lied.

"Well, I did once," said Thule, "and she turned me down. And the way she
turned me down was so sweet that it made me want her even more."

"Okay," said Dawn, "What does all this have to do with me conspiring against
you?"

"Brianne and The Vandevoorts offered me all of it," said Thule, "practically
in one day--enough money to pay for the first two years of MIT, Ioke, and
the promise that there was far more money and pussy available if I just
played ball. And, in spite of everything I'd done up until that point and
all the reasons I had to hate them, I seriously considered it, not just for
a second, but for a whole day. I realized that I could do it. Surveillance
isn't the only thing they can turn against you. It's everything you do to
your head to make yourself able to challenge them. All the tricks, all the
techniques, all the chicanery--it's all the same techniques I would need to
survive in their world. I could do it, too. I'm good at it. Marigold and
Jonas are sweet people, but they don't have the tools to detect a viper in
their midst. Worse, they've already committed to love and trust me. They
would be defenseless."

Dawn nodded, her eyes wide. A frisson of terror and something she did not
want to examine too closely ran down her spine. Thule went on, "It would be
so much easier, too. I could keep Marigold and have Ioke and Brianne and
June Kane and you and pretty much any other girl I wanted in my bed."

"Me?" asked Dawn, torn between being insulted and flattered to be on the
list.

"Maybe not you," said Thule, "You're a little dense."

"What?" asked Dawn, too shocked to be outraged.

Thule smiled gently, "Dawn, why do you think June Kane told you to ride with
me?"

"So I could spy on you for her and Brianne," said Dawn, "I thought we
established that."

"And, were you a very effective spy, even when you didn't realize what you
were doing?"

"No," said Dawn, lowering her head, "I didn't tell them anything new."

"Why not?" asked Thule.

"I didn't know anything they didn't already know," said Dawn, "I couldn't
tell them anything new."

"Marigold knows more than they do," said Thule, "enough to wreck me if she
went to them. I told her all of it, voluntarily and of my own free will,
even though I started out wanting to exact revenge on her for what she did
to Maya. I told her more that I've told anyone else."

"Because you're in love with her," said Dawn.

"Because I fucked her," said Thule, "and I'm stupid. Because I'm in love
with her, I want to keep her as far away from this mess as I can. Because
I'm desperate for allies and to be understood, I told her as much as I did.
If I'd fucked you, I probably would have told you just as much. That's why
Brianne and June pushed you to sleep with me."

"They didn't," said Dawn, but her voice trailed off, "Oh, shit. They did."

Thule nodded, "Do you know why I slept with Svetlana?"

"Because you're a pig," suggested Dawn.

"Partially," said Thule evenly, "I'm sure there are a lot of unflattering
reasons why I did it. Seeing you in obvious post-coital slumber over
Marigold's shoulder certainly contributed. But the last thought I had before
I decided to do it was, 'here's the one woman in the whole damned town I
could sleep with and not have the Vandevoorts looking over my shoulder
saying well-done.'"

"Thule," said Dawn, sighing, "don't ask me to understand why you slept with
her. I don't think I can. But, I'll make you a deal. If you're willing to
keep my secret--of how I was telling June and Brianne about you, I'll keep
yours."

"I'll keep your secret," said Thule sighing heavily, "I promised I would.
But, I have to tell Marigold about this. I put myself right in the center of
the maelstrom, sooner than I meant to. It effects her, too."

"Thule," said Dawn, turning to face him on the couch, batting her eyelashes
coquettishly, "do something for me."

Thule nodded, "What?"

Dawn crouched in like she was telling a secret, "Give me the cuffs--the ones
you used on me."

Thule's eyes widened, "Why?"

"Because," said Dawn, brushing her bangs out of her eyes, "one day, when
this is all over and we have the time, I want you to feel what it's like to
have them slapped on you when you don't expect it."

"I don't think you want to do that," rumbled Thule, "I don't give up
control...gracefully."

Looking in his face, Dawn shivered. She wanted to back down, but found she
couldn't, "Thule," she said reasonably, "if you want my forgiveness and I
know you do, even if you won't ask for it, get the cuffs."

Thule scowled and stood up. As he walked into his room, he muttered, "Crazy
girls. I don't have enough in my life. I have to manufacture them."

"I heard that," called Dawn.

"You were supposed to hear that," said Thule as he came back with the cuffs,
looped over two fingers. He handed Dawn the cuffs. Pulling out his keychain,
he started unthreading the smaller ring with the two handcuff keys on it,
"Just remember that, whatever you do when I'm cuffed, eventually I'll get
out of the cuffs."

He handed her the keys. Dawn shuddered at the look on his face. Then, he
stood up and started gathering the things he needed for the trip, "Let's get
going."

Dawn stood up and picked up her purse. "So," asked Thule, "do you forgive
me? Are we back where we left off?"

Dawn nodded, "Sure. Just like Batman and Robin."

Thule whirled on Dawn, catching her around the waist, pulling her to him.
She opened her mouth to protest and he covered it with his own, kissing her.
Startled, Dawn tried to pull away, but Thule grabbed the back of her head,
burying his fingers in the back of her hair and refusing to let her go until
the kiss was finished.

"That," he said emphatically, "is where we left off."

"I, um..." said Dawn as intelligently as she could.

"Now," said Thule, "let's go pick up our girlfriend. Do you drive?"

"I, um...what?" asked Dawn.

"Do...you...drive?" said Thule slowly.

"I have a license," said Dawn, "I've driven."

"Fine," said Thule. He handed Dawn his keychain, "it's your big chance with
the Batmobile, Robin. Wake me when we get near the city. I'll take over,
then."

"I haven't driven a lot," said Dawn uncertainly, "Are you sure?"

Thule shrugged, "You've got to learn some time. It's all highways from here
to there. It's no rush hour. I can almost guarantee you've driven more than
Marigold. And, if I try to drive, I'm probably going to fall asleep at the
wheel."

In the car, Dawn took a long time adjusting the seat and mirrors to her
liking and steeling herself. Thule did not seem to share her concern over
her driving skills. By the time she pulled out of the driveway, he was
spread out as best as he could be on the back seat, head on a rolled up
blanket, snoring softly.

When she pulled up in front of Marigold's house, Dawn looked in the rearview
mirror. Thule already appeared to be sleeping soundly. She got out of the
car, walked up the path, and knocked on the door.

Marigold answered the door, smiling, "Hey, Dawn," she said, "where's Thule?"

Dawn jerked a thumb towards the car, "sleeping in the back seat. He had a
long night."

"Poor thing," said Marigold, "Come on upstairs while I grab a few things for
the trip."

Holly waved at them as they went upstairs. Dawn waved back.

Once they were in the bedroom with the door closed, Marigold turned on Dawn,
pushing her back against the door, kissing her, pushing Dawn's lips open
with her tongue. Dawn's lips were still tingling from how Thule had kissed
her. She moaned in the back of her throat. What the hell were these two
trying to do to her? She wrapped her arms around the back of Marigold's
head, kissing as well as she was kissed. Part of her wanted to stay up here
all afternoon. But, when Marigold's hands slid up under the short skirts of
the sundress, Dawn squealed and ended the kiss.

"Marigold," she said sharply, trying to pull away, but stuck between her
friend and the door, "Thule is right downstairs."

"Oh," said Marigold, one hand stroking Dawn's bottom, the other sliding
inside her panties, teasing her sphincter, "whatever would he do if he came
up and found us like this?"

Dawn closed her eyes, her breathing ragged. Marigold kissed her throat. She
shivered, spreading her legs at the insistance of Marigold's hands.

Finally, she whispered, "No," It came out weakly. Even Dawn didn't believe
she meant it. A little more evenly, she said, "Marigold, we have to go.
Thule is waiting and...and, whats her's name?"

Marigold's finger was inside of Dawn's underwear now, the tip tracing her
clit. She looked up curiously, "Who?"

"Your old friend," said Dawn, trying to remember, "uumm...oo, uh...Maya,"
she finally managed to blurt out.

"Oh," said Marigold, withdrawing her hands, "of course. We should get going.
I packed enough clothes for both of us if we need to change. I had to guess
a little at your sizes. I hope what I chose doesn't look too...scandalous on
you."

"Jesus, Marigold," said Dawn shakily, "are you like that with Thule? It's no
wonder he's always exhausted."

"No," said Marigold, picking up a barrel-shaped bag, "with Thule, he's
always in charge. With you, I get to be in charge."

"You do?" asked Dawn, "Says who?"

"Says me," answered Marigold. Then, she counted off on her fingers, "I'm
older. I'm a senior; you're only a junior. And, I saw how you reacted when
Thule told you how he'd taken me in the beginning."

"I..." said Dawn, blushing, "Well, maybe I did. But, that was to being
dominated by him, not by you."

"Oh," said Marigold pouting, "Does that mean you won't let me order you
around and bend you to my will?"

"I didn't say that," said Dawn uncertainly.

"Good," said Marigold gaily, "then let's get going. She wrapped her arm
around Dawn's waist, leading her out of the room. Halfway down the stairs,
she called out, "Mom, we're headed into New York. We'll be back late."

"Okay," said Holly, poking her head out of the kitchen, "be safe."

Dawn froze a little to see Marigold's mother. To Dawn, the arm around her
waist was a clear admission of what they'd done. But, by Holly's reaction,
she didn't seem to see it as anything other than an innocent gesture of
friendship. Before Dawn could worry about it much, they were out the front
door and on the path.

"Marigold," whispered Dawn, "you're shameless. What are your parents going
to do it they figure out..."

"Well," said Marigold, "I imagine it would put the kibosh on further
unsupervised sleepovers." Dawn helped her get the suitcase into the trunk.
Marigold took her usual seat and looked surprised when Dawn took the
driver's seat. She tsked.

"And here I was hoping to make an excuse to join you in the backseat and get
my hands on you for a while," said Marigold, "I suppose you won't let me do
that if you're driving."

"Definitely not," said Dawn. She looked sharply over her shoulder at Thule.
He seemed to be sleeping, but with Thule you never could tell, "Marigold,
are you drunk?"

"Nope," said Marigold, "just happy. For the first time, I have a lover that
I chose entirely of my own free will. I even got to seduce you, which is
something that I've always wanted to do. I'm just feeling...happy."

Dawn faltered trying to put the ignition key in and dropped Thule's keys on
the floor, "You...you've always wanted to seduce me?"

"No," said Marigold apologetically, "I'm sorry, baby. I just always thought
it would be nice to be a seductress, even if just once--to have somebody
want me because I had driven them to the edge of madness with lust. I loved
getting you all worked up."

Dawn, sitting back up with the keys in her hand, closed her eyes for a few
seconds before she could say, more or less evenly, "I loved it too. Now,
please don't talk about it anymore or we're liable to get in an accident."

Marigold nodded. Dawn looked at her curiously, noting the mischeivous smile
on her older friend's face, and wondering what she was in for.

                         -=-

Amazingly, Thule slept as long as they let him. As they got closer to the
city and Dawn got more comfortable with driving Thule's big boat of a car,
she asked Marigold, "What has gotten into you today? You're like a totally
different person."

Marigold smirked, making it clear she was avoiding an easy joke, "I've just
been taking stock. I feel like I've wasted the last four years of high
school on Elliot." She said the name disdainfully, wrinkling her nose as if
she smelled something bad, "It's not a new idea. Before Thule, it was like I
was the only virgin left at Mannsborough, but I didn't know what to do about
it."

"Umm..." said Dawn, unsure of how to answer that.

"I didn't know you at the time," said Marigold, "not well, anyway. And, to
look at you, I never would have guessed that you were a virgin. You seemed
like a bit of a flirt."

"I was," admitted Dawn, "I flirted with any guy I thought would protect me
without demanding too much. When I was a freshman, I would have killed for a
guy like Elliot."

Marigold started laughing, "Dawn, he thought I was disgusting. He made me
feel disgusting. And, he never laid a hand on me, even when I wanted him
to."

"He never laid a hand on you," said Dawn, "and neither did anyone else.
Mari, I don't think you know how lucky that makes you at Mannsborough."

"He couldn't protect me from Thule," said Marigold.

"Did you want to be protected from Thule?" asked Dawn.

"Not in hindsight," said Marigold, "But, at the time, it was pretty scary."

"Well," said Dawn, "Thule's different. I don't think anyone could have
protected you from Thule. He's kind of a force majeur."

"You really like him," said Marigold, "Don't you?"

"Elliot?" asked Dawn, "Can't stand him. Always thought he was a prick."

Marigold laughed, "You know who I mean."

"I...um," said Dawn, "Was that our exit back there?"

"No," said Marigold, "That was an obvious attempt to distract me from my
question."

"I flirt with him more than I should," said Dawn, "I...he...There's just..."

"Dawn," said Marigold, "I know you're attracted to him. I don't mind. It
shows that you have excellent taste in men. Why do you think he doesn't mind
that I'm with you?"

"I'm going with, 'because he's a guy,'" said Dawn.

Marigold laughed, "I'm sure there's some truth to that. Why do you think I
don't mind that you're attracted to him?"

Dawn felt miserable, "Because you know I would never betray you with him?"

Marigold laughed and her eyes sparkled, "Dawn, would you take Thule away
from me?"

"No," said Dawn immediately, "of course not. How could I? You're so
beautiful."

"Thank you," said Marigold, "but that's not what I meant. If you were
sleeping with him, would you take Thule away from me?"

"I...don't know if I understand the question."

"If you and Thule and I were all sleeping together..." said Marigold. She
broke off, "Watch the road!"

Dawn braked a little short. In the back seat, Thule rocked back and forth,
but did not seem to wake.

"Maybe this isn't the time to talk about it," said Dawn, "I'm trying to
drive."

"I agree that it's not ideal," said Marigold, "I'll make this the last
question. If the situation I just mentioned were in place, would you be
jealous of me and Thule?"

"I'm jealous of you and Thule right now," said Dawn, "I'm sure I would be
jealous then."

"But, would you want me out of the picture," asked Marigold, "so that it
could just be you and Thule?"

Making sure she didn't take her eyes off of the road, "If I weren't involved
with you, too, I might. I don't think I could do something like that if you
and I weren't..."

Marigold nodded, "But, we are."

Dawn asked, "You wouldn't mind?"

"The thing I'm most afraid of is that he's going to find somebody else,
somebody better for him, somebody more interesting," said Marigold, "and
he's going to leave me. If I tried to keep him monogamous, it would happen
for sure. He'd be monogamous with someone else before our freshman year was
over."

"Oh, Mari," said Dawn, "that's not true. He loves you so much."

"I like when you call me that," said Marigold, her voice a little sad, "The
way you say it makes it sound French."

"Now you're trying to distract me," said Dawn, "Did you just tell me you
picked me out to sleep with your boyfriend?"

"I know it sounds funny..." said Marigold.

"The same way Brianne picks out girls for Randy?" asked Dawn.

Marigold blanched, "No. Not like that at all. Brianne picks out girls
because they're vulnerable, then pressures them into sleeping with who she
wants."

"So," asked Dawn, "you haven't been throwing me at Thule?"

"No," said Marigold, starting to sound a little tremulous, "At least, I
never meant to. You seemed to like him. He seemed to like you. I didn't do
it for some...Oh, Dawn, I'm so sorry. I never meant to pressure you."

They drove most of the rest of the way in silence. Finally, Marigold asked,
"You're not attracted to him?"

"That's not the point," said Dawn, still feeling a little bit angry.

"No," agreed Marigold, "It's not."

A few minutes later, Dawn said, "You know I am."

"No pressure," said Marigold, almost immediately, "Whatever happens, we're
still friends."

"Are we still...?" Dawn started to ask. Her face felt warm.

"I don't know," said Marigold, "That's all so new to me. I never thought
about a girl that way before. I know I would like to do it again," She
smiled broadly, "and again...and again."

"Dammit, Marigold, I'm trying to drive," exclaimed Dawn.

"I can drive," said Thule from the back seat, "We're close enough now. Pull
off at the next exit."

Both girls grew pale at the sound of his voice. Mariogld found her voice
first, "How much of our conversation did you hear?"

"'Dammit, Marigold. I'm trying to drive,'" repeated Thule, "Although, I was
having the damnedest dream."

                                          -=-

"We're making really good time," said Thule as he searched for a parking
space, "I can stay with you two while you get pierced if you like or I could
go finds something to amuse myself on St. Mark's."

"I'd like you to come in," said Marigold, "I could use the moral support."

"For getting your ears pierced?" asked Dawn, "It's over in like two
seconds."

"Actually," said Marigold, "I was thinking I would do my clit."

"You will not," said Thule.

Marigold looked indignant, "Why not?"

"Why would you want to pierce your clit?" asked Thule.

"Well," said Marigold, "I was reading about it the Internet and..."

"I have got to teach Jonas how to set up a parental filter," said Thule,
"You learn the damnedest things on the Internet."

"I'm not a child," said Marigold churlishly.

"Granted," said Thule, "but I don't think you've given this very serious
consideration. Start with the ears. See how you like it."

"Everybody's got their ears pierced," said Marigold, "even you, by the looks
of it."

"Those have probably closed," said Thule, "I haven't worn anything in them
for years."

"I want to do something different," said Marigold, "not just my ears. How
about my nipples?"

"No," said Thule, "Marigold, one of the primary reasons Jonas trusts me with
you is because he thinks I'll keep an eye on you. If you come home with your
nipples pierced, he's going to be furious at me."

Marigold's face was accusatory, "You're in cahoots with him. I'm finally out
from under Jonas's watch and my boyfriend is in cahoots with him."

"Jonas is a good man," said Thule, "He only wants what's best for you, like
I do."

"Fine," said Marigold, "I'll do the ears and the belly button, then."

"Fine," said Thule, getting out of the car."

As they walked along the sidewalk, Dawn leaned close to Marigold, "You
weren't really planning on getting your clit pierced, were you?"

Marigold giggled, "No. But, I didn't want any trouble over the belly
button."

Dawn just shook her head.

"Thule," called Marigold. He'd walked a little way ahead. Now, he slowed to
let them catch up. When they were even, she said, "You should get yours
done, too."

"No, thank you," said Thule emphatically, "I've got enough football players
coming on to me without giving them the wrong idea by piercing my navel."

Marigold laughed, sliding her hand under his shirt, rubbing it over his flat
belly, "I think it would be sexy."

Thule looked puzzled, "You do?"

Marigold nodded.

"I've never heard of a straight guy with a pierced belly button," said
Thule.

"Would you do it for me?" asked Marigold.

Thule sighed, "How about a nipple?"

"Your nipples?" asked Marigold.

"No," said Thule, "a nipple. Singular."

"Hmmm. Which one?" asked Marigold.

"Either one," said Thule, "your choice."

"Do the right one, then," said Marigold.

"Fine," said Thule.

Marigold fell back a few steps so that Thule could not see her smile of
satisfaction. But, Dawn saw it perfectly well.

                                 -=-

There was no line at the shop. A woman standing up front, wearing enough
examples of the piercing arts to qualify as a showcase, showed them into the
back room. As she walked, she recited a list of the safety and health
precautions they took to make sure that the piercings would not get
infected. Dawn didn't understand all of what she said, but it sounded very
reassuring.

"Those dresses are good for navel piercing, no waistbands. You'll want to
avoid waistbands for at least two weeks. They can rub up against the
piercing and irritate it. Who wants to go first?"

Thule volunteered, stripping off his shirt and sitting in what looked to
Dawn like a dentist's chair without the overhead apparatus. It was over in
less than five minutes. Thule winced a little when the needle went in, but
seemed to take it well.

Marigold went next. Thule held her hand and, when she reached out, Dawn her
other. But, the attendant said, "One of you is going to have to move or I
can't get at her ears properly." Dawn backed off, standing behind Thule.
Marigold tensed up as each ear was done and gave a little gasp when the
needle went into her navel. Dawn could see her grip Thule's hand a little
bit tighter and close her eyes. Then, she was done.

"Did it hurt a lot?" Dawn asked her, getting a little bit nervous now.

"Nah," said Marigold, "the anticipation is much worse."

Dawn sat up on the chair, hiking her dress up.

"Okay," said the attendant, "this kind of underwear isn't going to work. Do
you see where the waistband is? Sometimes, it will ride up and that's a
problem."

"I'll wait outside," said Thule.

"Unless you want him to stay and hold your hand," said Marigold. The
attendant must have heard something in Marigold's voice because she looked
up, surprised.

Dawn realized that she wouldn't have thought twice about taking off her
underwear in front of Thule. She was already thinking of him in the sort of
terms where that wouldn't matter. But, she still wanted to glare at
Marigold. The girl was relentless.

Still, Dawn wanted to be comforted even than she wanted to glare, "Mari,
would you hold my hand?"

"Of course," said Marigold as Thule walked out into the reception area.

Dawn found that the navel piercing hurt even less than she remembered her
ears having been. She felt a little silly for having made a big deal of
wanting any moral support at all. After she got up, the attendant said,
"You'll want to wear underwear cut like Marigold's for the next two weeks."

"I don't own any underwear cut like Marigold's," said Dawn.

"Either get some or go without," said the attendant.

After they had paid and were out the door, Thule said, "We should head up to
the Spy Shop next."

Marigold said, "And find somewhere to get Dawn some sexy underwear."

Dawn looked at Marigold, who was grinning at her, enjoying her ability to
shock. Dawn decided she'd had enough of that little game and said, "No rush.
I'll just be careful how I sit." Marigold gave her an appraising glance,
eyes lingering on where the hemline fell on her dress, just above the knee.
Dawn just smiled at her, "After all, I've got Thule here to protect me."

                               -=-

When they walked into the Spy Shop, a salesman immediately detached himself
from what he was doing and came over to shake Thule's hand.

"Heya, Cam," said Thule, "since when do you work Sundays?"

Cam chuckled, "I asked for some extra shifts so I could afford an engagement
ring."

"For Heather?" asked Thule, "Have you asked her yet?"

"Not as such, but she's made it pretty clear she would say yes," said Cam,
"Boy, am I glad to see you. This could put me over the top."

Thule laughed, "Sorry to disappoint you. I just came in for an adapter, a
battery, and a free replacement."

"Oh," said Cam, "no problem. But, let me show you that ultra-high gigahertz
transmitter you were asking about on the list."

"Sure," Thule smiled. Then, turning to the two girls, he said, "Listen, this
might take a little while. This whole block is full of shops you would
probably find more interesting. Why don't you meet me back here in like half
and hour?"

"Come on," said Marigold, taking Dawn by the arm, "I can see that Thule and
his toys want to be alone."

So, off they went. For the next half hour, Dawn and Marigold went window
shopping. Marigold was so flirtatious and funny that Dawn scarcely
recognized her from the girl she'd followed over to the geek table at lunch
a few weeks before. She worried that Marigold was going to try to cram four
years of wildness into the last five weeks of school. But, the worry was
deep in the back of her mind. Mostly, she just enjoyed being out and being
seen with this beautiful creature who was both her friend and her lover. She
wished she could tell everyone what they'd done.

When they got back to the shop, they could see Thule talking animatedly at
the display case to Cam. Marigold caught Dawn by the arm before she walked
inside, "Let him have his fun."

Dawn nodded, "Did you see some of that stuff in there? It's kind of scary to
think that anyone can go in there and buy it."

Marigold nodded, "Although, if they couldn't, Thule would never be able to
gather all the dirt he has. I hate to think what kind of revenge he would
have to get if he couldn't."

Dawn shivered at the thought, "Did he use this stuff on you?"

"Only when I knew he was using it," said Marigold.

"You're saying he never used it without you knowing?" asked Dawn.

"Yes," said Marigold.

"How would you know?" asked Dawn.

Marigold shrugged, "He would tell me."

Dawn did not voice her doubts. But, she suspected that Marigold had an overl
y rosy view of Thule's ethics. Suddenly, she found herself wishing that
Thule were not so determined to tell Marigold about his indiscretion with
Mrs. Vandevoort. She was afraid it would destroy Marigold's impression of
Thule and, by extension, her happiness.

When Thule came out, he was lugging a big, black plastic bag. Dawn asked,
"That's what you need to make that little, tiny camera work?"

"No," said Thule, looking annoyed, "It turns out that the camera takes
custom parts, not the industry standard. They're having the parts
messengered down from Boston, but I'll have to drive back out here tomorrow
to pick them up at nine a.m."

"Thule," said Marigold, "We're not meeting Maya until seven. If she accepts
our help, it could be midnight before we get out of the city. At best, you
would get five hours of sleep if you drove out and back and you're already
dead on your feet. Why don't we stay in the city tonight and drive out
tomorrow?"

"No," said Thule wearily, "There's no reason all three of us should miss a
half day of school for this."

"I don't mind," said Dawn, "and, she's right. Sleeping in the back seat of a
car can't be good for you. You've got bags under your eyes big enough to
carry groceries."

"I'll pay for the hotel," said Marigold, "if that's what you're worried
about."

"That would be appreciated," said Thule, "but not what I'm worried about."
He sighed, "If you two can get the okay from your parents, we'll stay."

"What did I tell you?" asked Marigold, "Cahoots."

It was only five p.m. when they finished at the Spy Shop. Thule parked near
the diner, then walked Marigold and Dawn to a small park a few blocks away.
They sat on facing benches, Dawn on one side, Marigold with Thule's head in
her lap on the other. The three of them chatted easily. Considering what
they had come into the city to accomplish, the whole scene was remarkably
normal.

Thule dozed a little, on and off, his body never really relaxing. Whenever
he spoke, he was clearly alert. Dawn also noticed that he only checked the
time once and, when he did, it was time to go.

They got to the diner at 6:45. At 7:30, Maya still wasn't there.

"Now what?" asked Marigold.

"Now, we wait," said Thule, "She was in a pretty dicey situation. It may
take her a while."

Marigold went outside to call Jonas. A few minutes later, she came back in
and handed Dawn the phone, "He wants to talk to you."

Dawn took the phone, "Hello, Mr. Tarr."

"Hello, Dawn," said Jonas, "How are you?"

"I'm fine," said Dawn, "And you?"

"Just fine," said Jonas, "Marigold tells me you're staying in New York with
her and Thule. Try to keep them from burning the whole city down. Would you,
please?"

"Yes sir," said Dawn.

"Anything else is probably too much to ask," said Jonas, sighing, "Give the
phone back to my daughter, please. Would you?"

After Marigold had hung up her phone, she asked, "What did he want?"

"He told me to keep you two from burning the city down," said Dawn.

"He's so repressive," said Marigold, "Now, what am I going to do with all
the gasoline I bought?"

Thule scowled at Marigold, his face full of mock ferocity.

Maya walked in at 8:05, looking weary, but defiant. When she came up to the
table, Thule rose, gave her a hug, and helped her sit down. Maya looked at
Marigold as if she expected the same sort of greeting. Marigold made no move
to rise.

Dawn watched Maya as she made her excuses. She was short, about the same
height as Marigold, thin and delicately-boned, a dark-skinned Latina with
hair almost as short as Thule's. She regarded Dawn frankly as Thule
introduced her as a friend who came into New York to get a piercing done.

"Cool," said Maya, "we should compare piercings some time. I can show you a
few that would make you blush." Then, she turned to Thule, "I imagine you
guys ate already."

Thule nodded, "But, feel free to order. I'll take care of the bill. Then,
you can tell us what your situation is."

After Maya had gotten her food, she said between bites, "I ran away from my
grandmother's a few times before I turned eighteen. She kept having the cops
bring me back. For my eighteenth birthday, she gave me a gold cross, a fancy
Bible, and the boot. I moved in with a...client."

"A client?" asked Thule.

Maya nodded, "I met him at a party a while back...Listen, this part isn't
important, except to say that he apparently had built up a lot of hostility
towards me that I wasn't entirely aware of--and his girlfriend was worse.
Shortly after I visited you, they striped me up pretty good and kicked me
out."

Maya spoke casually, breezily, as if none of what she said mattered. Dawn
was horrified. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"I spent a few days in a friend's dorm room, then took my trip out to Long
Island, right before I visited you," said Maya.

"You didn't look striped up when you visited me," said Thule.

Maya laughed, "That's because I spent most of the visit on my back." She
turned to Marigold, mischeif in her eyes, "Did he tell you that, princess?"

"Tell me?" said Marigold evenly, "He showed me the tape."

Dawn wished to God that she knew what they were talking about. But, she
thought she was beginning to understand why Marigold had been so erratic of
late. She was trying to compete, in some warped way, with Maya. Did she
really think Thule was still attracted to Maya? It seemed obvious to Dawn
that he was not. Maybe there was some part of the story she hadn't been
told.

Maya looked shaken, "You recorded that?" Then, gamely, she added to
Marigold, "So, princess, don't keep me in suspense. What did you think of my
performance?"

"I think you're a sick person," said Marigold, "and you need help."

"Ah," said Maya, "now we get to the crux of the matter. Tell me, goldilocks,
what is your conscience worth to you?"

"Maya," said Thule, his voice heavy with warning, "Marigold is here to help
you. You will speak to her accordingly."

"Ooh," said Maya, rocking her shoulders in a crude imitation of seductive
behavior, "Thule, you're so big and strong. I wish you were this fucking
good at protecting your women a few years ago."

Thule started to rise, "I had a feeling we were wasting a trip. Come on.
We're getting out of here."

"Dammit, Thule," said Maya, her voice rising enough that several other
diners began craning their necks to see what the commotion was, "After I
snuck out to meet you tonight, I'm probably homeless again. You'd better
fucking listen to what I have to say. You owe me."

Thule leaned over the table so that he was almost face to face with Maya,
looming over her. When he spoke, his voice was a growl, almost feral. Dawn
could barely make out the words, sitting right next to Maya, "I'm only going
to explain this once and I will do it in terms you understand. I hold all
the cards here. If I tell you you're a dog, you sit up, you beg, and you
bark. If you don't, we're out that door and you're on your own. No more
chances. No phone calls. No e-mail. No midnight visits the next time you
lose your fucking mind."

Maya wailed, "But, you promised to help me."

Dawn saw one of the waiters heading over from the cash register, looking
resolute. Thule saw him, too. Whatever look he had on his face when he
turned, the waiter suddenly decided that he had a pressing need to attend to
in the kitchen.

"We are trying to help you," said Thule. He sat down and sighed, "What sort
of help were you expecting?"

"Some money," said Maya, "or a place to stay while I straightened my head
out."

Thule laughed. It was not a kind sound, "Why don't I just give you my keys
and a quart of whiskey? The effect would be the same."

"Finally," said Maya, brightening a little, "You're talking my language."

Thule raised a warning finger. Then, he said, "Marigold talked to Jonas. He
has heavily funded a mental health facility out on Staten Island called
Wingside. They're expecting you, tonight."

"A rubber room?" asked Maya, "That's how you want to help me?"

The waiter seemed to have found his nerve or, at least, some friends. He'd
brought two other waiters and a cook. As politely as he could, he asked, "Is
everything all right here?"

Thule looked at Maya, "Is it?"

Maya sighed, "No. It's not," All of the waiters tensed, "I asked for my
burger medium well and it was all pink in the middle."

"Everything's fine," said Thule, "We'll be out of here in a few minutes."

Seemingly mollified, the staff members diffused. The waiter said, "I'll get
your check."

"Last chance," said Thule, "Do you want Marigold's help or not?"

Maya ran her hands over the top of her head, "Is it a nice place?"

Marigold said, "From everything I've seen, it looks just like a college
campus."

"Would I be able to check myself out?" asked Maya.

"I doubt it," said Thule, "We arranged to have one of the staff meet with
you tonight so that you can be officially committed. You would have to stay
until you were better."

Maya laughed, but she was clearly about to start crying, too, "So, forever?"

"No," said Marigold softly, "I told the director what I knew about your case
history and he said that they've had a lot of positive results with similar
cases."

"You know," said Maya, "I wouldn't be in such bad shape if my dad could have
waited a few weeks to send me away. A lot of Randy's other victims made out
like bandits. I kept my mouth shut for free."

"I'll take care of this," said Thule as the waiter dropped their check on
the table, "Then, we should get going. Ferries are on the hour at this time
of night."

Once the bill had been paid, Maya followed them out, looking numb and tired
and defeated. Dawn felt herself desperately wanting to wrap Maya into her
arms and comfort her and she barely knew the girl. Thule guided her with a
gentle hand into the passenger seat. If Marigold minded having the
"girlfriend seat" taken away for this trip, she didn't show any sign of it,
taking her place next to Dawn in the back seat. By the look on Marigold's
face, she was ready to cry too. Dawn wrapped an arm around her, kissing her
on top of the head as she had seen Thule do to comfort her.

They drove in silence, joining the line of cars getting on the ferry in the
nick of time. Once they were underway, Maya said quietly, "I want to go up
top."

Thule shot her a warning glance. Maya said, "Come on, Thule. It's my last
night of freedom. Wind in my hair and all that."

"Come on," said Thule, leading her abovedeck. There were few passengers this
late on a Sunday night. Maya sat alone, miserably, on a bench, shivering in
the wind. Dawn saw Marigold nudge Thule's shoulder a little, giving him
permission to go and comfort her. Thule did, sitting next to her, wrapping
his arms around her. Dawn wrapped her arms around Marigold from behind,
warming her as much as she could, taking the brunt of the wind herself. She
couldn't hear what Thule and Maya said, except the phrase "so tired," from
Maya.

The rest of the ride was more of the same stony silence. Thule handed Maya
the driving directions, asking her to keep him on track. When they got lost,
Thule was extremely patient while Maya looked like she was afraid he would
explode at her any minute.

Eventually, they pulled into the parking lot of the facility. Wingside
apparently had some experience in dealing with reluctant new patients. In a
surprisingly short period of time, Maya had signed the paperwork committing
herself for observation, been assigned a room, and been taken into a private
room for prelimary evaluation. Thule, Marigold, and Dawn sat in the waiting
room, which really did look like the lobby of an upscale hotel.

"This is not what I expected an asylum to look like," said Dawn.

"Only the best class of loonies come here," said Thule, "It's really state
of the art."

"You should see the brochure," said Marigold, "tennis courts, pools, classes
for college credit. Hopefully, that will make it easier for her."

Eventually, the doctor who had brought Maya in for evaluation came out,
rubbing his graying temples and asked them to come back to his office.

"Keep your mouths shut," Thule muttered as they walked down the hall, "I'd
hate to have to leave one of you here if he figures out how nuts you both
are."

"Mr. Roemer," said the doctor, "I believe I owe you and Mr. Tarr and
apology. When he called and said he had a patient he wanted us to
prioritize, I assumed...well, I have not had a good history with rich donors
and their 'priority patients.' And, particularly when I heard that this poor
girl was mixed up with the Vandevoorts, I assumed the worst."

Thule was immediately alert, "What do you know about the Vandevoorts, Dr.
Edmonton?"

The doctor scowled, "I worked four years at Silent Hills upstate. In that
time, I saw more than a dozen of Ivan Vandevoort's 'priority patients.' I
tried to blow the whistle and nearly lost my license over it." He sighed and
leaned in conspiratorially, "Normally, I wouldn't be telling you this, but
from what that young lady says, you and I are very much on the same side."

"Jesus Christ," said Thule, "she talks too much."

"You can rely on my silence," said the doctor, "However close I am skirting
to an ethical violation here, I do still respect the client-patient
confidentiality. I asked Miss Delgado if I could discuss this with you. Oh,
she also asked me to get your permission to list both you and Miss Tarr as
her emergency contacts. She said that family wouldn't care if contacted."

"Fine," said Thule. Marigold nodded too. Then, Thule went on, "Can you give
me anything concrete on the Vandevoorts? The names of their priority
patients? Files?"

"Like I said," said Dr. Edmonton, looking sad, "I can't violate patient
confidentiality. I could give you a copy of everything I used to make my
case at Silent Hills. It's not enough for a conviction, but...Are you the
right person to give this to, Mr. Roemer?"

Thule shrugged, "I can't say. I'm sure I would find it to be interesting
reading."

Dr. Edmonton didn't seem to like the answer, "If I'm wasting my time, I
wish..."

"Doctor," said Thule, iron coming back into his voice, "There are things you
can't say. There are things I can't say, either. If you're looking for an
exchange of information, I can't help you. If you think it would be to your
benefit to give me a copy of what you have, you should do so. But, there's
nothing I can do to facilitate that decision."

"Well," said the doctor noncommittally, "She should be fully processed by
now, if you would like to say goodbye."

Thule and Marigold nodded, following the doctor deeper into the facility.
Dawn went back out to the waiting room. When they came out, Thule had
Marigold under one arm and a bulging interoffice mail envelope under the
other.

"Come on," he said, "I want to try to make the ferry. It's going to be
tight"

They missed the eleven p.m. ferry by a few minutes. Dawn saw it pulling out
as they approached the terminal. Thule let out a groan of frustration.

"The next one's at midnight," he said. Getting out of the car, he sat up on
the hood and lit a cigarette. Then, he opened the envelope, reading and
taking notes. Dawn and Marigold talked about nothing in particular in low
voices.

When Thule began excitedly rearranging papers, Marigold asked, "Find
something interesting?"

Thule waved them over, "Dr. Edmonton was very thorough. He's got copies of
internal memos about each of the Vandevoorts' priority patients. He's
blacked out the names, but not consistently or well. I've managed to
partially reconstruct seven names. Look at these five."

He held out a list he'd written on the back of one of the photocopies.
Marigold said, "Those are all girls who went to our school.  Wait..." she
said, "Didn't we have a big brouhaha after Missy Collins ran away?"

Thule nodded, "We've had a lot of runaways, far more than we should have. I
noticed that last year when those three girls ran away together. I just
presumed it was because things were so bad. I mean, it was all girls and I
knew how tough it must be to be a girl at Mannsborough."

"One of those three is on the list," said Marigold, "but, what about the
other two?"

Thule said, "That is the big question, isn't it?" By the look on his face,
he didn't like any of the possible answers.

                                -=-

On the ferry ride back, all three of them went up top. Dawn couldn't say why
and doubted the other two could, either. It just seemed like the right thing
to do. The wind was cold and the temperature had dropped precipitously.
Thule wrapped his arms around Marigold, gesturing to Dawn, who held Marigold
from behind. They stood that way for most of the trip, Thule's arms around
Dawn's shoulders, Dawn's around his waist, Marigold in between them.

                              -=-

There was a problem at the front desk with the late check-in and the triple
occupancy. Dawn thought they were going to wind up sleeping in the car, but
Thule was relentless, his answers becoming more terse by the minute.
Eventually, the desk clerk seemed to realize that the situation was building
to some sort of explosion and changed his attitude from reticent and bored
to reluctantly helpful.

Up in the room, a generic hotel room with two beds in a room barely big
enough to hold them, Thule said, "I wonder if that bastard would 'forget' to
put in a wake-up call if I asked for one..."

Marigold looked concerned, "Thule, it's already after one. You're going to
be dead on your feet if you try to get up before nine tomorrow. No wake-up
call. Please."

"It can't be helped," said Thule, "I've got..."

"You've got to sleep," said Marigold, "Thule, what do you think happened to
those girls? The ones who didn't wind up at Silent Hills?"

"I don't know," said Thule wearily, "maybe..."

"Whatever it was," said Marigold firmly, "I don't want it happening to you
because you're too tired to think straight. Or to me or Dawn."

Thule sighed, "I promised..."

"You promised to get revenge," said Marigold, unyielding, "Are any of the
promises you're trying to keep more important than that?"

"No, ma'am," said Thule, trying to sound meek and obedient.

"Then, get some sleep," said Marigold, "There's nothing going on tomorrow at
school that can't wait. Dawn, do you have any tests tomorrow?"

Dawn did, but she said, "Not a one."

"Fine," said Thule, as if he were the one who had made a decision, "I'm
going to get a shower and go to sleep. Wake me in time to check out at
noon."

"Late check out is at one," said Marigold, "I'll wake you."

As soon as Thule had trudged into the bathroom, Marigold opened the suitcase
she had fortuitously packed earlier in the day, came out with a translucent
white nightie and the vendor t-shirt Dawn had worn the previous night.

"Which do you think is sexier?" Marigold asked.

"The nightie," said Dawn, wondering why it was even a question.

"Hmmm," said Marigold, "but I wonder if Thule would agree? Ah, well. Which
one do you want to wear?"

"The t-shirt," said Dawn, "I would show right through the nightie."

Marigold tossed the t-shirt on the bed. When Dawn bent down to get it, she
could feel Marigold standing behind her. As she rose, she felt Marigold's
hand sliding down her spine.

"Mari," Dawn said shakily, "How could you possibly be thinking about that
after the day we've had?"

"Tell me you're not," said Marigold, her hand sliding under the hem of
Donna's dress, "and I'll stop. If you want to know the truth, I never really
stopped thinking about it for more than a few minutes at a time. Does that
make me an awful person?"

Before she could answer, Dawn felt Marigold's finger probing cautiously into
her. She gasped and shivered, "I...I, um...."

"I bet you wish you'd bought the right kind of underwear today," said
Marigold, chuckling.

"No," moaned Dawn, bending over a little further, "I really don't."

Marigold's hands worked their way up Dawn's back, stripping her as they
went. Dawn knew she was trying yet again to get the three of them into bed
together. She found that she didn't mind the idea so much. When she'd heard
about Maya's experience living with a couple, she'd been sure that she never
wanted that arrangement for herself. But, she wasn't Maya and she knew that
Thule and Marigold could never treat her the way Maya had been treated. And,
she wanted them both so much, especially after today.

Stripping off her bra, Dawn lay back on the bed, guiding Marigold's head
between her legs. Let Thule find them like this. It didn't matter anymore.
She welcomed it.

Or, so she thought. When she heard the water turn off in the bathroom, she
chickened out and pushed Marigold away, then scrambled for the t-shirt.
Marigold gave her a naughty smile and slipped into the nightie.

When Thule came into the room, he surveyed the scene. Looking right at Dawn,
he said, "Nice t-shirt. I've got one just like it."

"Actually," said Dawn, feeling bashful, "This is yours. Marigold lent it to
me."

"It looks good on you," said Thule, crawling into the bed she was not
sitting on. Marigold came over and rolled him onto his stomach, mounting him
and rubbing his shoulders. Deciding to give them some privacy, Dawn decided
to take her own shower.

She was so intent on masturbating that she never noticed when Marigold came
in behind her until she felt the shorter girl's hand join hers between her
legs. Dawn flushed, but didn't stop. When she did slide her hand away,
Marigold used it as an excuse to slide her fingers in even deeper. Soon,
Dawn had to bite her fist to keep from crying out.

"What...about...Thule?" she asked, not entirely sure what she meant by the
question.

"Thule's too tired to play," said Marigold, "Will you play with me?"

Dawn nodded before turning on Marigold, pinning her back against the wall,
and kissing her. Sliding her own fingers between Marigold's labia, then
deeper, she was rewarded with little gasps and squeals, maybe of pleasure,
maybe of outrage. Part of her hoped it was outrage. When she went down on
her knees to let her tongue replace her fingers, it was definitely the
muffled sounds of pleasure that she heard.

Gripping on to Marigold, she was merciless in letting her tongue and fingers
seek the spots that would give pleasure. She knew why, in spite of
everything, she was so worked up tonight. Tonight was an oasis of peace and
anonymity. But, a lot of things had been put in motion. Tomorrow, Thule
would see what was on the camera chip, figure out what to do with the
records the doctor had given him and do God alone knew what else. Tonight
was the calm before the storm.

Marigold, Part 17
by Vulgar Argot
(rom, FF, MF[nosex])

-- 
Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights
reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
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