Zzathras

The Son

Chapter One

I was to get to a remote location deep in the mountains and locate a mated pair of Bald Eagles. Not just any eagles. A pair of albino Bald Eagles. My employer was some small, well financed avian club. I didn't know the details, just that they wanted me to locate the nest, photograph it and get them the proof. If the nest existed then they would try to capture the birds to protect them.

I had done several jobs for a large zoo and the club had seen my works in the Amazon rain forest recording numerous rare and endangered birds down there. They wee particularly interested in the fact that I would stick to a job until it was complete. One bird in the jungle was difficult to find and I had to track it by myth and legend for six weeks before finding a small flock of the birds at least ten days hard hike from the nearest friendly village.

Ever hear roumers of cannibals living in the Amazon?

I can tell you from personal experience, they do exist. Let's leave that story for another day.

I was packing like a mad man and arranging for a friend to feed my tropical fish while I was gone, when the phone rang.

"Tony, this is Debby."

"No the check isn't late." She called every month a week before my child support check was due to bitch it was late.

"I'm not calling about that. You need to take Gregory."

"Is the world coming to an end?" I could not believe my ears. She wouldn't even let me see him one day a week. Her lawyers were just that much better than mine.

"Just be in my office tomorrow at nine."

"No can do."

"Why not? It's not like you work." She hated me and I did her after the raping she gave me in court.

"In fact love I have a very well paying job right now and am flying to Canada tonight."

"It can't possibly be as important as your son."

"It isn't my fault that you told him I'm dead. I haven't had ten minutes with him since he was three. Now you want me to act as baby sitter?"

"You fucking bastard."

"You fucking whore."

"How can you be so cold hearted?"

"I learned from the mistress of pain and suffering dear." I wanted to hold my boy so bad I couldn't stand it.

"When can we meet?" Her tone became a bit better.

"My plane leaves at ten tonight and I'm busting my ass to pack."

"Can we come by this afternoon?"

I smiled inwardly. I loved to have her on the end of a stick. "Fine." Hung up in her ear.

I opened my door to the ringing bell. "Debby, I 3;" The most beautiful boy in the world stood up to my rib cage and looked at me with unsure eyes.

"Gregory, this is your father, Tony this is your son." My ex-wife introduced me to the young man that was my son.

An hour later the boy was in my library and we stood in my kitchen fighting as usual.

"God damn you!" She opened with her usual logic.

"What is your problem? You told me on the courthouse steps that I would never see my boy again and you come here telling me that it's time for him to learn to be a man?"

"He has to learn from someone."

"You bitch! First you tell him I'm dead then you want to dump him on me? You are going to fuck him up for life, or is that what you want to do just to hurt me?"

"This isn't about any of that!"

"Then what is it about?"

"He needs a man to teach him what he needs to grow up to be a man."

"Don't lie to me you slut!" My cork blew. "You called me a dickless unich and a faggot in denial. You only wanted to fuck me so you could have pretty little girls. I read your diary remember? You hated me for giving you a boy and every fucking thing you have done since Gregory's birth was directed at hurting me. You knew I loved you, you knew I loved him since before he was born, you knew I would have cut out my own fucking heart for either of you at your slightest whim. Then you castrated me. You took the only thing I wanted in the divorce just to hurt me. You took my son away from me you heartless fucking bitch."

"Eat me." She spun away from me.

"I did remember? You told me I was quite skillful whore of mine."

"You can't make anything easy, can you?"

"For you? Never. For Gregory? Anything." I stood tall and watched her wiggle.

She tore open her brief case and yanked out a folder. "Here you mean spirited queer."

I opened the folder and stared, unable to comprehend what I was reading.

"What are you up to?"

"Nothing. Those are custody papers. You can have Gregory. Total custody. I won't even have visitation. I had him all to myself for six years. Now you can have him until he's eighteen."

"Why?"

"What? You don't want him?"

"Of course I do! I have wanted that boy in my arms since the day you walked out on me. I have wanted to teach him baseball, go fishing, take him to the movies, all the things a dad and son should. But no. You took all that away from me and him. Yes I want him. No I won't be fucked by you again if it means hurting him in the least."

"It is all legit. Take it to your lawyer."

"Believe me, I will. And if this is another one of your cruel games, she will eat you alive in court."

"She?"

"You know her. Julia McQueen."

"You asshole!" It was her lawyer. Or I should say her former lawyer.

"She is my attorney now Debby. She got sick of your games and quit on you remember? Well she has been on retainer for me for five years and has documented every fucking game you ever played on me. If this is another little masterpiece of yours, I will sue you, and take you for everything, including Gregory."

"It isn't a trick. Just sign the papers and he's all yours."

"Why don't I believe you?" I stared her down.

"Please?" The foreign word slipped out of her mouth.

"I will have her look them over and get them back to you as soon as I can."

"Good." She stalked to the door. "I will have Gregory's belongings delivered."

"Debby," She stopped in her tracks and looked at me. "Hurt my son again," I turned cold, "and they will never find your body."

She turned three shades of white and slammed the door behind her.

"Tony?" Gregory's little voice peeped from behind me.

"Yes son?" I could not believe he was mine. She had me second guessing myself again.

"Are you going to kill my mother?"

"If she ever hurts you son, I might just do that. But I wasn't serious. I just want her to think I will so she won't hurt you."

"Are you really my father?" He looked so small and frail.

"Come look in the mirror lad. I think we look a lot alike." I led him to my big bathroom.

"Wow. We do look a lot alike father."

He had a conservative haircut that made his black hair look so sleek I loved it immediately. His face was gentle and classically sculpted. His shoulders were held square and he stood ramrod straight.

"Son, I have to make some phone calls. I think I will have to put off my trip."

"You were going on vacation again?"

"Again?"

"Mother said you take a lot of vacations."

"No. I have a job that will take me away for a few weeks. I was supposed to fly to Canada tonight."

"What work do you do?"

"I am a wildlife photographer. I specialize in finding and photographing rare and endangered species of animals."

"What sort of animals?"

"All sorts. This trip was to find a rumored bird up in the rockies."

"Rumored? As in your not sure if it even exists?"

"Yes. I get paid either way, but I get a bonus if I can record it if it does."

"That's good." He looked up at me with his deep blue eyes. The only good thing his mother gave him.

"Hello Gregory." Julia greeted my son.

"Hello Mrs. McQueen."

"Tony, I really hope this isn't another of her games."

"What games?" Gregory asked.

"Gregory, I won't lie to you. Your mother has not liked me for a very long time. She has done things in the past just to hurt me. Including taking you away from me and keeping you away."

"I know she has done that sort of thing before." He just said it as a matter of fact.

"Well Tony let's look at those papers while my assistant takes Gregory tot he Dairy Queen for a cone." The young lady behind us took my boy's hand and they wandered off.

"Tony, this is no trick. She wants you to take the boy permanently."

"Yea right."

"That's what I say too. We both don't trust her. That's a good sign."

"What does it say about child support?"

"Nothing."

"I paid her half my pay every month for the last six years and she isn't going to pay a dime? I don't think so!"

"Me neither."

"I want half of her monthly pay until Gregory is eighteen."

"Are you greedy or just plain mean?" She smiled at me.

"Not for me. Every penny goes to Gregory. I make enough to pay his expenses."

"Good. If I remember right she makes a tidy sum of over three hundred a year."

"Yup. Then there is the trust fund from her parents."

"Oh yes!" My attorney went all rabid on my ex-wife just as she did me six years back. "Tony, I want you to know I didn't want to push so hard when she hired me. But the firm I worked for made it clear I would never work as a lawyer again if I didn't."

"That's fine. Just screw the bitch the same way she did me."

We met the darling couple as they walked in the front door of the office with melting cones in hand. "Father, did mother tell you she was getting married?"

Julia and I looked at each other and smiled. "No son, she didn't, why don't you come into the office and tell us all about it." We led my son in to the office and sat down again.

"Tony you fucking asshole!" She began to repeat her insults. I knew I had her flustered.

"Those are the terms. One hundred and fifty thousand in cash up front in Gregory's trust, the same amount every year until the he reaches eighteen. One half of your parents trust goes into his trust."

"You greedy bastard."

"Greed does not enter into it. He needs to be taken care of and this is the same deal you forced on me. One half of my pay and half of everything I owned. At least in this deal we are sure it goes where it is supposed to." I had to twist the knife some.

"What if I get married and decide to quit the trading the market?"

"The amount stays the same. I would suggest you stay working or Gregory's support will eat up that nest egg mummy and daddy left you."

"Your enjoying this aren't you?"

"FUCK yea!" I cheered.

Gregory was nestled snugly in my guest room, the living room, asleep, wrapped in my mother's quilt. I sat before the small fireplace and sipped a glass of brandy, enjoying my victory. We would be moving out of the small apartment soon. Not having to pay most of my money in child support meant I would be able to get a decent place for us. Along with the sizable check I was expecting, we would be comfortable. Not well off, but comfortable.

Gregory rolled over and moaned quietly then began to whimper and cry.

I knelt by his side and cradled his face in my hands. "Son what's wrong?"

"It hurts." He mumbled.

"What hurts?" I grew concerned.

He turned red and buried his face in the warm quilt. "Nothing."

"Bull, you just said it hurts, now tell me what hurts so I can help."

"Mommy said it's nasty to talk about."

"What is?" I was all confused.

"My penis. It hurts." He looked down.

"What do you mean? How does it hurt?"

"It just hurts."

"OK. Show me." I pulled the quilt back to expose him clad only in his form fitting white Hanes briefs. I could see he had a little stiffie happening.

"I don't wanna!" He whined.

"Son, if there is a problem I need to know now so we can correct it. Show me where it hurts. NOW."

He blushed seven shades of red and stood up. He grasped the front of his briefs and pulled them down slightly. His throbbing, erect penis popped out to greet me. I could see the problem immediately.

The fore skin around the head of his little dick was pulled tight over the tip and squeezing him painfully as the glans tried to make an appearance to the world.

"Gregory, does it hurt only when it is stiff like this?"

He nodded shamed.

"And is it hard to pee? Does it come out in a thin stream?"

"Yea and it is getting worse. I told mother about it last year and she told me it was nasty to talk about. She also said that if I didn't stop talking about it she would have the doctor cut off the tip of my peepee."

"She is mean sometimes. First of all, it is not nasty. It is a problem that needs to be corrected. It is a medical problem. The foreskin, that part at the tip is growing closed. Either that or your growing faster than it is. Either way it is causing you pain when you get an erection like you have now, also it is closing off your urethra, the part you pee through."

"How do you know?" He looked at me quizzically.

"Same thing happened to me when I was little. We went to the doctor and got it taken care of."

"Did they cut your thing off?" He covered up and sat down again.

"No son." I laughed. "That would only be a last resort and then all they would do is cut off the foreskin and nothing else. The doctors had me stretch it and rub some lotion into it and it got better. By the time I was in high school it was all better and they never had to cut anything."

"I don't want to have a doctor look at my private place."

"It is either that or we wait until they have to cut off the skin. Then you would hurt a LOT."

"Can't we just try the stretching thing?"

"I want a doctor to look at it. If it is too late than we might have to have you circumcised anyway."

"All right."

"Good boy. I will call the doctor in the morning and we will see what we can do."

"Weren't you supposed to fly somewhere today?" He wrapped up in the quilt as I tucked him in and kissed him on the head.

"Yes, but I changed the plans. Your more important than some silly job."

He reached up and hugged me tight, "I love you father!"

"I love you to Gregory. More than life it's self." I started to cry and went to bed before he could see my tears.

"Well Gregory, your father was right. It seems like you take after him that way too." The old man smiled as he drew the gown down over my boys privates. "You have the same problem he did at your age."

"The very same one?"

"The very same one lad! I treated him and now I get to treat you. Sit up and I will explain it to you. First of all I want to try every thing we can before we even consider taking a knife to that fine example of boyhood down there. Your father remembers the procedure well I'm sure, considering he had to follow it for several years. What I will do is give you a prescription for a cream that you will apply to your penis every night. Also you will stretch the foreskin a little each night to loosen it and allow it to move as it should when you get an erection. Now the first thing is I want you to take a small dab on your fingers and rub it into the tip as good as you can. You might get an erection doing this so don't become alarmed. Then take the foreskin and stretch it out so the hole enlarges. Stretch it until it becomes uncomfortable but not so far as it hurts you."

"Like stretching out before a workout?"

"Exactly. Now as you do this, eventually in a few weeks or possibly even months, the hole will become big enough that it won't cause any more troubles. However, you need to keep doing these exercises until you are fully grown so this does not return as a problem. Should you run out of the cream, baby oil will suffice."

"What if it does not work doctor?" He asked his question formally.

"Then I will have to circumcise you. Take the skin off so it no longer causes a problem."

"You won't snip off part of my penis will you?"

The doctor lifted the gown up and took his small penis in hand. "No son, just this skin here and nothing else." He took the offending skin in between his thumb and index finger and squeezed gently. "If that happens you will be sore for a long time, sensitive down here for longer and have to run around the house naked for a few weeks."

"Naked?!"

"Yes. Haven't you ever done that?" The doctor was surprised.

"No! Mother would never allow that!"

"Well Gregory, if you want to run around naked in the apartment before bed time, you can." I soothed him.

"I don't know." He looked torn between desire to try it and ingrained fear.

"Lad, it perfectly normal for little boys to do such things." The doctor reassured my boy. "I know for a fact that when Tony had sleep overs with my boys, they liked to go skinny dipping in my pool."

"Really?" He smiled at me.

"Yes we did!" I grinned at him.

"I don't know." He looked down.

"Whatever you feel comfortable with Gregory." I sat next to him.

"Exactly. It isn't everyone's cup of tea. Now get dressed lad. I will get that prescription and get you home."

"Father, I can't keep wearing the same clothes all the time." Gregory was upset that his belongings had not arrived yet.

"Don't worry. We can wash those and your stuff should be here tomorrow at the latest. Now go hop in the bath. I will collect your clothes and put them in the wash."

"What am I going to wear then?"

"Do you want to wear anything? It is late and if you want to go naked I won't mind."

"Even sleep naked?" He looked at em still torn.

"Certainly. So what will it be?"

"I don't know."

"You can have one of my shirts. If you want to you can take it off."

"OK." He slipped into the bathroom and undressed quickly. I had an idea.

"Gregory, do me a favor?"

"What is it father?"

"I have to call my employer. Can you put your clothes in front of the washer?" The machine was completely through the apartment in the kitchen.

"Now?"

"Yes please."

"But I'm naked!"

"So? It is just me and you. I have already seen it so there is in worry on that count."

"If you insist father." He came out with his clothes bunched up in front of himself to cover his modesty. As he passed me I looked at him from behind and gaped. His backside was a perfect bubble butt. Muscular like a gymnast, and tight with good curves that led down into his perfectly tanned legs. Well outside the white area that indicated his swim trunks. They must have covered him to his knees.

He disappeared around the corner and quickly came back with his hands in front of him. "Gregory, come here." I knelt down. "Never let anyone make you feel ashamed of your body. It is beautiful and I want you to be comfortable in it."

"I'm not beautiful father."

"Yes you are. Now give me a hug and go take your bath."

The boy gave a nervous hug to his father then ran to the bathroom.

"WOW." Was all I could say.

That evening Gregory watched my TV while sitting on the floor in a silk shirt of mine. I could see his pale pink skin though the material where it rested on his skin in places an I reveled in is beauty as the evening wore on. Soon he yawned a bit and I told him it was bed time. He stood up and I could see the silk brush against his penis.

"Greggy, it is time for your medicine lad."

"Do we have to?"

"I know your embarrassed about it. But without it you will have to have the surgery."

"All right then."

He lifted the shirt as I opened the tube of medicinal gel.

"Gregory, you might as well take that all the way off. This is going to take a while."

He reluctantly took the shirt off and placed it on the couch.

"Climb up in my lap and I will show you how to do this kiddo." I patted my lap and he climbed up. "You remember the doctor said I should do this for you a few times to show you how?"

"Yes."

"Do you have any problems with me touching you there?"

"No. This is something different than that naughty stuff."

"OK." I gently took his flaccid member in my hand and pointed the tip upward at us so we could easily see it.

Squeezing a tiny dollop onto the boy's penis I rubbed gently with one finger around the outside edged making sure it was coated fully. He tensed up as this happened and I slowed down.

"Just relax. I know it feels good and it is confusing. Just relax and let it happen." I rubbed him gently as the gel was absorbed into his tender skin and I could feel his tool inflating slowly. I quickly took the skin in between my fingers and began to gently stretch it out

"How is that?" I asked. He instructed me as to when I was pulling to hard and when it was just right. I squeezed more onto his pole as it reached full extension and worked it under his foreskin to allow the head some lubrication.

"It's starting to hurt, father." He moaned.

"I'm going to try to get the head out. Maybe that will help some."

As his penis throbbed in my trembling hands I rubbed his penis up and down trying to work the head loose. He moaned half in pleasure half in pain as I did it. Soon it was obvious that his foreskin was simply too tight yet to allow passage of the cherry red head of his boy stick.

"It isn't going to happen this time Greggy. I'm sorry."

"It don't hurt so bad this time. Is that because of the medicine?"

"I think so. It still hurts?"

"Yes."

"Want me to kiss it and make it better?" I teased.

"No!" he giggled. I put up the medicine and we cuddled for a good half an hour there in my living room.

His throbbing erection finally subsided and he dozed slightly in my arms as I pondered taking him on the trip with me.

I picked him up and layed him gently on the couch, covering him with my favorite quilt again. I picked up the shirt and took it with me as I placed his clothes in the wash. I would go to bed and he would have at least an hour of naked time first thing in the morning as his clothes dried.

I hammered my own aching rod to release in my bed before slipping to sleep.

"Father?" Gregory asked from his breakfast.

"Yes son?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"Did you like putting the medicine on my penis last night?"

"What makes you ask?"

"You had an erection the entire time. I could feel it while I sat on your lap."

"Yes I did have one. And I don't know if I liked it or not. I liked having you in my lap. I loved doing that for you because it made you feel a little better. But the actual holding of your penis? I don't know."

"Oh." He looked back into his cereal.

"Why?" I questioned in return.

"I don't wanna talk about it."

"I answered your question. You have to answer mine now."

"I felt so weird. It was like the bad touch they told us about in school, but it wasn't cause it was a medical thing. I shouldn't have liked it." He blushed deep red.

"You liked it?" I asked him nonjudgmentally.

He nodded in shame.

"Gregory, having your penis rubbed feels good physically. That is just the way it is. The rest of it is the fact that you have been told by people that having it touched is bad. So if you felt pleasure then you feel bad for feeling good."

"That's it exactly!"

"OK. Now I am going to tell you something that goes against all that."

"What?"

"Your body is yours. Do whatever makes you feel good." I looked him deep in his eyes. "To a certain extent. I will set limits. I don't want you doing stupid and dangerous stuff now. But if rubbing your wee wee feels good, or if running around naked feels good, then I won't stop you."

"You mean like I am now?" He had not bothered putting on his clothes even after the buzzer indicated the dryer had finished before I served breakfast.

"Yup. Now I will tell you that I felt good last night holding you and doing that for you. I also felt mixed up and confused."

"Why?" He looked so innocently angelic.

"Because I enjoyed it. I have been told that if I touch a child like that then I would be a monster and go to jail. But I also know that you needed me to and it was to help you."

"But it wasn't bad touch!"

"It was like it but not for the same reason. Can you see the reason why I'm mixed up about it?"

"Yes, I think so father. I won't tell anyone. But I liked it when you put the lotion on my penis. It felt good and didn't hurt as much."

"That lotion will make your skin more stretchy and slippery. It will help as we continue the stretching so it does not hurt any more."

"Good, I want you to do it every time. I liked it."

"Good. It will make it easier than having to sit on you every night." I tousled his hair and we finished breakfast. Me in my sweats and him – as boys should be – naked.

I called his school and found out that they were in the last couple days of the year so it was no problem to take the child with me to the mountains. I wasn't sure if he could handle it but I wasn't going to sacrifice a single moment with him if I could avoid it.

"Tony, this is a job, not a scout trip." Mr. Hawkins informed me.

"I understand sir. If you have a problem with me taking my son with me on this job, then I will have to decline your generous offer."

"You wouldn't. You couldn't. You want this job so bad you can taste it. To photograph and help save this sort of creature? You won't do such a thing." He was confident in my desire to be the man to find the nesting spot of these two mythical birds.

He was right. To a point.

"I have just been granted the greatest gift I could ever hope for Mr. Hawkins. My son has been returned to me after six years. I won't give up a single day with him for all the money in the world, nor for some silly parrots that are simply put, mutants."

"Your really that serious?"

"Absolutely."

He was silent on the other end for what seemed an eternity.

"Tony, I don't care what it takes, just don't fail us in this one. If it will give you peace of mind to take your son along, then by all means do so. Just don't let him interfere with the objective of this expedition."

"Thank you sir!" I realized I had been holding my breath.

"And another thing young man!"

"Yes sir?"

"I must applaud your commitment to your boy. Not many people would risk this kind of money for their child. Many of my counterparts think having children means sending them off to boarding school as soon as they stop drooling on themselves. Good show Tony, I am proud you stood your ground with me."

"Thank you sir. I won't let you down. In fact we can be in the air day after tomorrow and it won't put us but a few days behind. We will still have the entire summer to locate the nest before first snow."

"Be sure you don't dawdle lad. Up there the summers are short and winter hits with the swing of an old lady with a frying pan."

"Understood sir. I will call you in the morning."

Gregory's clothes and belongings arrived late in the afternoon. I was surprised by the lack of volume. No toys to speak of. No play clothes, no real personal items. Just a bunch of formal clothes, one swim suit/long shorts, a short set that looked like a school gym uniform. Some books, a few magazines and the pillow my mother made him when he was born.

"Don't you have anything other than this?" I was amazed.

"I spend most of the year at the boarding school. They have very strict regulations concerning personal property and clothing. Only light blue shirts, a tie, a blazer, three pair of trousers, three pair of short pants, one gymnastics uniform, and seven pair of socks and seven pair of plain white briefs for undergarments."

"We gotta buy you some real clothes boy. Not much considering the place we are going but we must. You can't explore the unexplored in those clothes."

"You mean shopping?" he looked excited.

"No. unfortunately not." He lifted the shirt to expose his parts to me and I prepared the medicinal gell.

I will make a specific list and we will buy what is needed and no more."

"What sort of things will I need?"

"One pair of blue jeans, one pair of denim shorts, one long sleeve shirt, one T-shirt, one sweat shirt, a light jacket, one set of long underwear, boots, five pair of socks, three pair of briefs, a hat, sunglasses, tooth brush, a back pack. Also a few other items. But those are it for clothes."

"A swimsuit?" he asked me as if I had forgotten.

"No need for one. It will be just you and I. No one else will be there for the entire time we are there."

"No one? Not a single person?"

"For the most of our trip it will be just us."

"WOW. You mean I will swim with my trousers on?"

"No I mean you will swim nude."

"Naked?!"

"Yes. We have very little space to spare. Besides, I thought you liked being naked."

He blushed deep red.

Tomorrow was the day. I had us packed and Gregory was eager to be off. He never got to travel except to and from school. Our gear was stacked by the door and I sat in the living room with my camera gear spread out while I lovingly cleaned each and every piece. Gregory came trotting out of his bath totally naked and smiling from ear to ear as he sat in front of the fireplace to dry off.

"What are you doing father?"

"Cleaning my cameras. They must be in perfect working order before we leave."

"Oh." He watched politely asking a question here and there without interrupting me much. I occasionally pointed a freshly cleaned lens and body at him to watch him blush and scramble to cover up. He eventually caught on that I had not loaded any film into the cameras and played along with me.

I saved my most expensive camera for last. The Minolta rd-175. Not he top of the line model in digital cameras, but a good quality that I liked because it used almost every one of my Minolta accessories. I had a half a dozen large pcmcia memory cards for it and a laptop that I used for location shoots.

I pointed the cleaned camera at my boy who was laying on his side watching me. He smiled innocently and I pressed the button. He giggled and I said, "Want to see the picture?"

"You didn't take my picture!"

"Yes I did." I grinned like a school boy.

"You don't have any film in it!"

"This one is digital son. It don't use film. Come over here and see!" I led him to my PC and put the card into the reader.

"You did!" He covered his mouth as his naked form popped onto the screen in front of us. He was on his right side looking at the camera with a wonderful smile and exposing himself without the slightest hint of shame.

"Yes I did. You were so beautiful I could not help it. Are you mad?" I was concerned he might be.

He stared at the image for a long time and I watched as he seemed to be critiquing himself. "I'm all white on my bottom."

"You will get plenty of sun this summer son."

"Will I look as good as the boys in those books?" He looked deep into my eyes.

"What books?"

"The ones in your library. The ones with the naked people."

"Oh those books!" I knew which ones he was talking about. My collection of Mann, Sturges, McBride and others.

"Yea. Will I if I swim naked?"

"Son, by the end of the summer you will look so good, that god himself will be impressed."

"Good."

"Are you mad I took this one? If you are I can delete it."

"NO! don't do that!" He stooped me from pressing the button. "I like it and want you to keep it." He climbed into my lap and we looked at his beautiful form.

"Time for your medicine Gregory." I scooped him up and sat in my recliner for his treatment.

As the night before Gregory and I cuddled in my lap for an hour before he went to bed. I felt whole once again. He was so warm and soft, the size I remembered my favorite teddy bear to be when I was little. Of course he was so much larger than the stuffed critter, but he still fit right into my arms the same way that bear did when I was seven.

The soft glow of the gas fireplace warmed the angelic face of my long lost, recently found boy. Nothing could make me feel more alive or complete than that moment.

My mind, suspicious and fearful, realized this might all be some horrible trick Debby was playing on me. Get me all in love with my boy and thinking we had a life together just to swoop in and tear him away from me again.

She hated me. I hated her. It was the way of things.

I loved her once and thought she loved me.

I had found her diary sitting opened shortly before Gregory's second birthday. In it she bragged how she was going to have beautiful little girls by me, and how they would be the little models and actresses she never could be.

She bragged how she seduced me and made me fall in love with her so she could have her little money makers and then she would divorce me, taking me for everything my father left me in his will.

She is certainly one greedy bitch.

Then when Gregory was born she began to hate us both. Her plans twisted to causing me hurt through Gregory. She never wanted a boy, and she made her feelings quite clear on that matter. She spelled out how she would divorce me, take everything including my beloved son, and then torment me for ruining her life. She wrote how she would send the little boy off to boarding school as soon as they would take him so she could get on with her life.

I never got the chance to present the diary to the court. She made it vanish. With it I could have come out of it with Gregory and my soul intact. Without it I sounded like a raving father desperate to keep his boy and hating his wife. She made me look like a useless vagabond.

She knew my work when we married. Then she ragged on me to turn to the fashions industry. She wanted connections so she could see to it that her little girls had all the breaks to become successful. I never wanted to deal with stuck up models and all that went with it. I wanted to photograph nature. She saw it as a waste of my talent and pushed me hard to give up my life's work.

She never minded the few weeks a year I would be gone working then the couple months home all the time with her. I would come home horny and loving. Doting on her every whim.

I found out she was boinking some director of a modeling agency. She hoped to have an edge when her little princesses were born.

Needless to say I was wary of the slut.

Gregory yawned and stretched in my arms.

"Ready for bed little man?" I asked him hugging him close.

"Do I have to father? I like this."

"No son, we can cuddle a while longer."

"Thank you." He snuggled in close again.

"Gregory, do you always speak so formally?"

"Of course. The headmaster and mother both get angry when I don't."

"That's silly. You sound like some English barrister."

He giggled like bells. And turned around to hug me close again.

"Boys should not sound so uptight Gregory. You sound more like a grown up than a boy."

"I will try father."

"Don't try to hard lad. Just let yourself relax. You can start by calling me something other that 'father' all the time. Try dad, or pop, or daddy."

"I will." He mumbled into my flannel covered chest. "Do you want to take some more pictures of me tonight?" He was gazing over my shoulder. I figured he was looking at the picture still on the monitor.

"Aren't you tired?"

"Yes. A little. However I want to. I might not want to tomorrow."

"Are you sure?" I looked him straight in his blue eyes.

"Yes!" He jumped up and sat on the lamb skin rug before the fire place.

I dug out my digital camera and some lights. He watched as I set up and contemplated his poses. He was so beautiful. The fire added an orange glow to his skin and he seemed so at peace. He was obviously sleepy but also eager to do this.

I tried to keep his privates out of the images but in several it seemed so natural and right I could not help but record him with his boyhood exposed. He curled into a ball, stretched like a cat, laid back, crawled forward, knelt, crouched, stood. I could not help but love him.

Soon he was yawning and having a hard time keeping his balance. I laid him gently to the rug and covered him with he quilt. After packing my gear once again I loaded the images into my PC and viewed the three dozen images. I deleted about ten I wasn't happy with, and archived the rest.

I myself was tired as well and laid back on the soft couch. The day coming would be long and hard. Our plane left the airport shortly after noon.

"DAD!" Gregory shook me hard.

"What?!" I woke up grumpy.

"It's eleven! We gotta get going!" He pulled on me and urged me up. He was still nude and I could see he just woke up himself.

"Shit!" I sprang into action and we straightened the apartment as fast as we could. Our traveling clothes were set out and ready.

"Into the shower boy." I commanded.

He jumped in the shower and turned on the water as I stripped off my clothes. He didn't even notice me until I stepped in with him.

"Dad!" He moaned.

"Never you mind boy. We have to hurry and we can shower together to save time kiddo." I didn't even take into account the fact that he probably never saw a man nude before.

I noticed he kept staring as we soaped ourselves up quickly and rinsed. I let him look all he wanted and soon we were clean and racing to the cab to try desperately make our flight.

The two of us ran through the airport like mad men as the crowds stared at us with annoyance. We didn't care.

"Hold that door!" I yelled as the lady at the gate started to close the door. She looked up and smiled as we handed her our tickets gasping for breath.

"You barely made it sir."

"We over slept ma'am." Gregory explained for me, as I gasped and coughed. I was in good shape but hated running.

"Hurry now, the pilot wants to get flying now." She smiled at us and I grinned like a silly ape at the cute lady.

Once in the air Gregory and I giggled like monkeys at each other while our fellow passengers stared at us. The flight would take us about four hours to Vancouver. From there we would meet the man who hired me and get the rest of our information. He had a charter water plane that would take us to a lake a few days horseback from the general location. Once we hooked up with the Indian man that had the horses he would leave us and return at a predetermined date to recover the horses as we left the mountains.

"I like riding horses dad." Gregory listened intently to my itinerary.

"Good, cause we will be riding them for most of the summer."

"Will we have a cabin?" He told me he always wanted to live in a log cabin.

"No, son, we will have to live in a tent."

"Oh." He looked a little dejected at the thought.

"We will most likely be on the move too much to worry about a cabin Gregory. This is my work and it isn't easy."

"Oh." He seemed at a loss for words.

We both yawned long and hard as we relaxed into the flight.

As we stretched in the cool afternoon sun at the Vancouver airport, Mr. Hawkins came up and introduced himself.

"Tony! It is good to see you, this must be your boy Gregory?" He was a stiff, over dressed older man.

"Hello Mr. Hawkins." Gregory shook the old man's hand.

"Tony, the plane is ready to go. You must hurry, another organization has hired Malcomb to locate the birds as well."

"Malcomb? That shit head couldn't find his ass with a map and both hands." I disliked Malcomb almost as much as I did my ex-wife.

"Still he is competition. And quite vicious competition. I hear he is not above hurting his opposition."

"Hurting my ass. He's the one that sent those cannibals after me in the Amazon. Just make sure I have a handgun and good rifle in that plane. If he tries anything I won't hesitate blowing his ass away."

"Tony! I never heard you talk this way." The old man stared wide eyed at me.

"If he endangers me that's one thing. If he endangers my son, he's dead meat."

"Ummmmm. Well, just be certain that you find that nest as soon as possible. Once you do, use the laptop and up-link to contact us and we shall mount an expedition immediately."

"Let's get this show on the road Gregory." We loaded our personal gear into the plane and took a package from Mr. Hawkins as the pilot warmed up the bird. "You'll hear from us the moment I find them Mr. Hawkins."

"Report in every three days boy. If you fail to make two contacts in a row we will send in a rescue party to your last location. In the gear is a elt device should you need it. We have updated maps in the computer and a digital satellite link. Just get there fast and find those birds!" He yelled as we started moving away from him.

It didn't take long for the urban sprawl to be replaced by a carpet of green and a sky of crystal clear blue. It would take another three hours in the air before we got to our location. The nearest human would be at least three weeks by horse back away. That is if you didn't include the local Indians that, as far as I could tell, were not near the area we were going to.

It almost reminded me of the Amazon. Hundreds of miles of green canopy and the occasional mountain poking up. Soon the mountains grew tall and majestic. Their numbers multiplied and we were surrounded by spires of rock and snow.

"Father, this is so beautiful!" My equally beautiful boy gaped in wonderment at God's creation.

"Yes it is. Untouched by man or machine. Outside the natives, no one has ever seen much of this land except from an airplane."

"WOW." His eyes were wide with wonder and excitement.

I dug out my small 35 mm camera and snapped a couple quick quite images of my boy in absolute wonderment. The reality and innocence on his face was just screaming to be recorded and I refused to let this moment pass by.

All too soon, the pilot looked at me and Gregory and said "Just over that mountain boys!"

"Will we see Indians dad?" Gregory asked his millionth question.

"Only a couple. The ones that are providing our horses. We won't spend much time getting to know them, they should have a camp made already and we can ride at first light."

The pilot competently landed the plane on the placid waters of the glacier fed lake. We taxied to the bank and I could see a small camp already made with a small campfire smoking in the gentle breeze.

We unloaded the plane alone and wondering where the people that made the camp were. Gregory felt uneasy as did I.

"Where the hell is that damned Indian?" The pilot griped as we unloaded the last bundle.

"Watching us."

"What the hell do you mean?"

"They are watching us. They don't want anything to do with us." I explained.

"How the hell do you know that?"

"I know natives. I deal with them for a living. It isn't like they never saw a white man, but they just don't want anything to do with us."

"Screw them! The least they could do is help us unload."

"It didn't take us long." Gregory pointed out. "We're all done now. So why complain?"

"Because I like to damnit!" The grumpy pilot complained.

All too soon the plane took off, leaving us alone in the middle of nowhere. Gregory seemed nervous and I was dead tired. The evening was coming fast and the air turned chilly in the spring time night.

There small pup tent seemed crowded as we entered, but we became accustomed to it quickly after we crawled into one sleeping bag and I applied his medicine. It was interesting doing it in such a cramped area, but not impossible.

Shortly after we passed out and the day ended.

My watch invaded my restful slumber and woke me to a wonderfully warm little boy in long johns nestled in my arms. "Wake up baby!" I cheerfully crowed in his ear as he struggled to wake up.

We ate cold C-Rations from an army-navy surplus store and cleaned up the camp before leaving for the location on the map. Two horses and three mules carried us and all our gear up into the mountains we were destined to search.

"Dad?"

"Yes son?" I was happy. A horse under me and no intrusions. Just me and my boy. No phones, no Debby, no worries.

"Are the Indians still watching us?"

"No son. They are probably back at their homes with their families by now."

"Good. I don't like people watching me without me knowing it."

"This is their land. They have the right to watch us."

"How do you know they were watching us?"

"I learned to know when I was in the Amazon. The Indians there are even more paranoid than the ones here. I spent months with them and even befriended a local Shaman. We taught each other a lot."

"Like what?"

"He taught me his healing, I taught him English, or some, and I also taught him some card games. He liked poker a lot."

"Poker? You taught him to gamble?"

"No! They have gambling down to an art form. They will gamble on anything under the sun. Everything from which way a bird will fly off a tree to how large a boys penis will be when he is born. Nothing is beyond a bet to them."

"Your kidding!"

"Nope. They have been gambling for centuries. Long before any European fools stumbled on them, they had the art perfected."

"Cool!"

We talked about everything we could think of in the time we rode. I insisted we eat on horseback to make up as much time as possible. We stopped only a few times to stretch and pee.

Our first day was long and hard, but uneventful. We made camp close to a steam and rested our sore butts and aching feet in it's cold waters.

"Dad, this water is COLD!" he shivered in the coming gloom.

My naked ass was goose bumpy as I sat close to him and relaxed. "Yes it is. These streams ands rivers are fed by glaciers. The water is literally ice cold. We can't stay in the water too long."

"Cause we would get hypothermia?"

"Shit boy! Most people can't pronounce that much less know what It means."

"The school is good. We go all year round except a couple weeks between every semester."

"That's going to change. I want you to have time to be a boy and not some damned bookworm. School learning is all good and nice, but there are some things you can't lean from a book."

"Like what?"

"Tying a knot, fishing, climbing a mountain, riding a horse, shooting a rifle, skinning a rabbit, starting a camp fire 3;."

"Ok!Ok! I get the idea!" He giggled as we stood up and grabbed our clothes. We walked back to the tent and crawled in nude and loving it. Gregory was still a bit nervous and curious but he covered his feelings well.

I carefully zipped our bags together and we crawled in and he opened his legs up wide for me to get to. I carefully applied his medicine and we grinned at each other like school kids.

"I like this dad. It feels good and your making me better."

"You could do the same thing lad."

"It never felt like that when I touched myself."

"Well, it does feel different when someone touches you there. I just want you to know I love you. I don't want you to think this is what normal people do. Adults should not do this unless there is a good reason."

"Like my medical one?"

"Yes. If another person did this then it would be bad."

"What if I liked them and wanted them to?"

"It would depend. At your age it would be difficult to say. Kids should not do these sorts of things. But then it is your body."

"Yes. I like it. It feels so good."

"I can't say what you should or should not do Gregory. Just remember that if you don't want it then it is a bad thing. If someone forces you then they should be punished."

"Like child molesters?"

"Yes."

"But, technically, what your doing is the same. So what if someone found out, would you go to jail?"

"Possibly. But you have medical need and I'm not doing this for pleasure."

"But your enjoying it!" HE looked straight at my throbbing erection.

"Well, yes I am!" I said proudly. "I can't control mine any more than you can yours."

"Can I touch yours?" He blurted out the question.

"Gregory I don't know."

"I should not have asked!" He rolled over and blushed deep red in fear and embarrassment.

"Gregory, I'm not mad. Your just being curious. All boys are."

"It means I'm gay don't it?" He buried his head into his small pillow.

"No. All boys are curious about all sorts of things. You have seen how it feels to have me touch you. Now you want to touch mine. It feels good to you, so it must feel good to me right?"

"Yea." He rolled over again and looked at me with red watery eyes.

"I don't mind. I'm nervous as you. I haven't ever had a boy touch me there."

"I never had anyone touch me there either."

"Son, if I let you touch me then I will be going over the line. My touching you is for a medical reason, if I let you touch me I could get into trouble."

"Even if I want to?"

"Yes."

"Then I won't tell anyone. I just want to. I don't know why. I never saw a man's penis before except the ones in the museum. Yours is so big and hairy. I have so many questions to ask I don't know where to start."

I rolled over and spread my legs open for my boy to explore me in the dim light of the falling sun.

His first tentative touch came as a poke to my nuts with his index finger. "Yours are so much larger than mine."

"Because, when you hit puberty, your privates will start growing. When you start producing semen your testicles will get larger."

"Oh. Sperm?"

"Yes." I almost shot my load as his palm slid up my engorged rod.

"It is so hot dad. I can feel it."

"OHH YEA." I moaned.

"It feels good?" He grinned at me as I smiled in bliss.

"YEA."

He rubbed my tool like I did his and watched me as I shivered and moaned. He then took the tip in his hands and looked at my glans closely as it pulsed and bobbed in his hot little hand.

"Yours isn't hurting?"

"No honey. The stretching I did when I was growing up made the skin loose enough so it would slip over the tip."

He rubbed my aching erection several times making the skin slide over the tip and he giggled as I groaned and moaned. "You like this a lot don't you dad?"

"More than I thought it would! Please don't stop!" He took me in both hands and rubbed with a gentle intensity I could not have believed possible.

"I like making you feel good dad." He smiled at me as I tensed my whole body up in expectation of the orgasm that was rushing up on me.

"Baby, something is going to happen, stuff will come out of it, don't be scared!" I gasped at him as the moment came.

Streams of pent up semen shot from my pulsing cock in a fountain of sperm that squirted and oozed over my boy's stroking hands. I grunted and groaned in ecstasy and lust as he giggled and laughed in nervous discovery.

I gasped for breath as my climax subsided and I floated back to earth. "Good God son, that was so good." I smiled at him with love and newfound feelings for my boy.

"Was it really good?"

"In ways I can't explain."

"Like mine?"

"More so. I haven't done yours that much because it hurts yours. When it is easier and less painful maybe we can explore that together."

"Cool!" He grinned at me. "Want me to get a towel to clean it up?"

That night we cuddled together naked and loving. We slept in each other's arms throughout the night.

We rode for days that slid into weeks. The work was repetitive and slow. I had to search entire mountains and basically go on stake out waiting for the mythic beasts to grace us with their presence. Gregory never grew bored. He was almost as patient as I was and learned everything I taught him as fast as I could present it to him.

We hunted wild game to supplement the rations we brought with us and foraged for fruits and vegetables. He loved every minute of it. Except the cleaning of the animals. And the taking of their lives. I was grateful that he didn't relish in the killing of another creature.

In early July while the sun was hot and the breeze cool, we stumbled upon a surprise.

"What is it dad?" He asked in wonderment.

"That my boy is the first hot bath either of us has had in a great many weeks." We stood staring at a natural hot spring nestled deep in the forest, surrounded by idyllic green trees and moss covered rocks that made an inviting bed. I decided on a few days of rest. "We can make camp right here at the edge and rest here for a couple days. I think we earned it." My boy agreed whole heartedly.

In less than an hour we had our camp made and were drooling over the thought of a hot bath. Gregory wanted to run right into the water.

"No lad, first things first. We have to test the water and make sure it won't burn us." I began to strip. Gregory followed suit and grinned wide as he did every time I got naked with him. "No, none of that boy. We both need to wash. There will be plenty of time for that later."

We carried a towel and wash cloth with a pitifully small bar of soap tot he edge of the steaming hot spring. I dipped a toe carefully in the swirling water. "OOOOOOHHHHHH this is gonna feel so good!" I moaned.

"So we can get in?" Gregory asked in his ever hopeful voice.

"Slowly boy. It is very hot but not too hot." I slowly slipped into the hot water and melted as my tense and rock hard muscles quivered in pleasure.

Soon we both simply floated in the embrace of the hot spring and let our cares and worries dissolve in the water. The sky was speckled with clouds and they seemed to echo our total contentment at just floating there.

"Dad?"

"Yes son?" I never tired of his sing song voice.

"What if we don't find the eagles?"

"Then we don't. But I will still think back on this summer and remember you." I had taken nearly forty rolls of film of my boy on this trip and intended to take at least as many more. This near elven landscape inspired me to new creative endeavors. I would shoot a dozen or more rolls of him here in the next couple days.

"won't you feel bad cause you didn't find them?"

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"Cause it isn't my job to feel that way. I do this work not just to find the critters I photograph. But also for the hunt it's self. If I find them I will feel a lot better but I won't feel bad."

"Oh."

We washed slowly and tenderly, every millimeter of each other's bodies and dried ourselves on the cool moss covered rocks. The tall trees and hills that surrounded us protected this spot from the cool breezes and we just snoozed a whole afternoon away as the birds and deer observed the strange creatures that visited this hallowed place.

"Dad!" Gregory whispered as the sun dipped low.

I glanced in the direction he was staring ad saw the largest bull elk I had ever imagined not ten feet from my son just inspecting his nude form.

Gregory slowly sat up and pulled a small tuft of grass from a rock crevasse. Holding it out as a sort of peace offering, Gregory let the immense animal eat the tender blades from his hand and I gaped in awe at the raw power and confidence in the beast that stood before the first humans it had ever seen. Never learning the true bestial nature of us he had never learned fear. I was glad for this as my son softly touched the animals nose and let the elk walk off having decided we were not a danger.

"Dad, did you see that?!" He whispered in total excitement.

"My god that was so cool Gregory." I whispered back.

We made our way back to the camp and I made Gregory slip on his jeans, well worn and perfectly snug on his slim frame and ungodly beautiful when he neglected his undies. I put on my jeans as well and a T-shirt as well while I hooked up the satellite link to my employer and turned on the computer.

Soon Mr. Hawkins was on the laptop screen eager for an update as he was every three days.

"So Tony, any luck?"

"No sir. I'm sorry to report we haven't found them yet."

"Unfortunate, at least there is still several weeks left in the summer."

"True sir. I think I have it narrowed down tho. There simply aren't that many places left in this area for them to be, and I'm positive this is the area the man said they would be."

"Satellite tracking says it is my boy. So how is young Gregory holding up?"

"I'm fine Mr. Hawkins." Gregory appeared at my shoulder when he heard his name.

"Indeed you look it lad. Fit and fine to run. I must say this work certainly makes you look good."

"Thank you sir. Thank you for allowing me to come."

"Think nothing of it my boy. So Tony, how are your supplies holding out?"

"We will need more of all the consumables. Please, whatever you do don't send any more c-rations. They are miserably bad and not exactly an eco sensitive item to try to dispose of."

"I can arrange something different. How about the animals?"

"We lost one mule to a lion. I have it's hide to take home now. We also lost one horse to a broken leg. It also nearly killed me in the process."

"Unfortunate lad. But I can see by your reports you have been sending my secretary that you haven't let that slow you down."

"Can't let the little things get in the way. Has there been any word on Malcomb?"

"He's on the other side of the range from you as far as I can see. He is being financed by some rather eager and wealthy people. He is only one man in a set of teams. They are scouring half of the Rocky Mountains and none of them are within three hundred miles of you."

"Good. I would hate to have to pay him back for that Amazon incident."

"We can air drop you some supplies. Is there somewhere you would suggest?"

We worked out the logistics of the drop and he assured me a night drop would be acceptable. I didn't want any others coming into the area, guided by the plane. Three days from now I would have a load of fresh supplies and we could restart our adventure.

The minute the link was terminated, Gregory slipped out of his pants and went about his daily dinner making duties. I was amazed.

"Gregory, I thought you would keep your pants on."

"Why? I like being nude. It's just you and me. Besides, those pants are a bit tight and the zipper scratches my weenie."

I smiled at him and we prepared our meal.

The next morning we both left our clothes in the tent and just lazed around. I cleaned some of my equipment and took a lot of nice scenic pictures as Gregory explored the forest around us. I trusted him to stay close and call out if he needed help.

Soon he came back and noticed I had my camera out. "Want to take some of me nude? You haven't since the night before we left."

"Son I would love to. I think this place is perfect for this sort of thing." So we set out to record every tree, rock, puddle, and bush with my naked and beautiful boy.

I draped him over a boulder and let him relax while I circled him snapping picture after picture, then climbing a moss covered tree and doing little boy things. Then he swam in the hot spring and played carefree there for a while. I was in heaven. He looked so at home and so peaceful I could not help it.

Soon a guest returned. "Gregory, look." I spoke quietly and he turned his head to see the elk come up to the water to stand proud and tall over my son.

The feeding of the elk was repeated today and I recorded every move made. Gregory slowly stood in the water and I snapped shots as the water dripped off the boy. Then he walked slowly toward the magnificent animal and offered a handful of sweet grass to him. I slowly moved around them taking quiet pictures, not wanting to disturb the tranquil moment.

Gregory's small, naked, white form was so frail and elegant next to the massive elk that stood next to him as if watching over the child. He looked at me as if in judgment and as if to warn me to protect the gift god gave me.

Then with a gentle stride and leap the great animal was gone.

"Wow!" Gregory smiled all the world as if he had just won the lottery.

"You can say that again Gregory. And this time I got it all on film!"

"You did?" He cheered. "That's so cool!"

We celebrated with some chocolate. The whole day was spent lazily, we deserved it.

Without a doubt, this was the best time of my life. My son was happy and I was whole again. I had no worries and I was comfortable that for the moment my boy was mine. Debby could not touch us here and that was fine by me. If I had to I could keep us working jobs like this for twelve months a year. She would never have a chance to find us.

We rode the horse to the clearing and awaited the sound of the airplane, it would carry over the sounds of the forest like fingernails on a chalk board. Dusk came and was replaced by a deep night with a bright full moon. The mules grazed closely and waited patiently.

Soon the droning of the twin engine plane came to our ears and I activated the locator device. I lit a ground flare and held it high. I wouldn't consider launching an aerial flare. It could attract unwanted attention and possibly set the woods around us ablaze if it didn't burn out completely before it hit the ground. It wasn't that the forest was dry. It had rained earlier in the week, but rather it wasn't as wet as it should. The rainfall had not been as significant as it should have been.

Soon the plane roared over our heads as the bush pilot skimmed the tree tops with the skill of one that could only be honed of years behind the stick. He passed over and banked hard right, turning around and climbing a couple hundred feet so the parachute would open for us. It wouldn't do to have our gear splattered all over the forest.

As he came over for the second and last time, a package was dropped out the open cargo door. It's parachute blossomed open as the pure air caught it's silk. It drifted toward us and landed practically in front of us.

"Think they coulda gotten any closer dad?"

"Hope not. If they did we would be squished flat." I switched off the locator and we went to work packing the mules who seemed a bit put out that they had to work after hours.

Mr. Hawkins had indeed kept his word. We had fresh fruit, canned meats and vegetables, fresh clothing, a new first aid kit, tent, boots, more ammunition, even batteries for the equipment. I chaffed at his assumption on some of the gear. I would have told him if the batteries needed replacements, which they did not, and having extras meant we would have to haul them out with us. I refused to bury something like that out here. Tin cans would decompose in the time it took one tree to mature. But the chemicals in the batteries would poison the land, even if it was just a small amount.

We hauled it all back to the camp site and crashed for the night. Tomorrow would be soon enough to sort and pack it.

We returned to our routine and I scouted the mountain and surrounding area as best I could. Gregory hardly even considered wearing clothes any more. HE donned his pants only long enough for me to make my reports and then he shucked them the moment I shut down the up-link

Gregory's daily treatments went well and we both enjoyed our time together. He never achieved orgasm because it grew painful for him as he approached the primal peak of pleasure. We both wanted him to feel the ultimate pleasures. Patience was a virtue that god granted us both in enormous amounts apparently.

One day Gregory took a stick and line to go fishing in a creek nearby. I warned him I would be on the up-link so he would not expose himself to my employer and I set to reporting to Mr., Hawthorne.

"Tony, please tell me you have good news this time."

"Nothing yet sir. I have eagle sign, some droppings and a couple abandoned nests, but nothing more." I sighed, I actually was growing frustrated.

"I have news of Malcomb."

"Please say a bear ate him." I grinned evilly at the thought.

"No. He knows your location. Someone here is feeding him your reports."

"FUCK!" I stood up and stalked about the camp for a full minute. "What is he doing?"

"We think he's still on the other side of the mountains from you."

"Think?" I asked.

"We haven't gotten any data on him in a week now. There is no reason to think he is anywhere but where we think he is. You haven't gotten any further than he has, so I would imagine he is confident that you are not going to be successful."

"Fuck that. I still have a few weeks before first frost. I WILL find those god damned birds."

"DAD!" Gregory came pounding back into camp as naked as the day he was born. "DAD! LOOK!"

My head snapped upward. Sailing overhead were a pair of birds high up in the sky. White against a pure blue sky.

"My fucking god." I whispered.

"Tony! What is it?" I heard Hawthorne on the link.

I ignored him as I snatched my camera bag up and shot off in chase of the no longer mythical birds. Gregory was in hot pursuit of me as we raced in the direction of the creatures.

We chased through the forest trying to catch a dream on the wings of a bird. We ran until we were covered by sweat and our feet hurt. Gregory did good keeping up and I nearly killed myself several times by watching the birds rather than the ground at my feet.

After an eternity of running and climbing, the birds came to rest on a tall tree top, almost as if they were playing tag with us, or perhaps to grant us a breather.

"Dad, I can't run any more." Gregory gasped next to me as I heaved and coughed.

"Neither can i." I yanked out my camera and a long lens. I had to get hard proof immediately. "Stay right there kids. Just for a moment." I mumbled as I focused on the pair. They seemed to be watching the strange man and his naked boy. I clicked off several frames into my digital camera before they leapt off their perches and sailed north again.

"Dad, I can't 3;"

"No need boy. We know this is their hunting range. I think within the week or maybe the next we will know where their nest is."

"So we can stop running?" HE asked in his hopeful manner.

"Yes." We both collapsed on our asses and grinned widely at each other.

"Tony, come in man!" Mr. Hawthorne was white with worry on the computer screen.

"I'm back sir. I want you to see something." I snapped the memory card into the laptop and began to send him the pictures. Gregory sidled up to me and sat in my lap without a care in the world.

"Tony, Why is your boy naked?" Hawthorne asked non-chalantly.

"EEEK!" Gregory screamed as he bolted out of view.

"Well, he was taking a bath when he spotted these. We had to chase them quite a distance to get these shots."

"Oh my god, they do exist." The man declared in a whisper.

"Yes sir. I can say with confidence that we will have the nest located within the fortnight."

"Sweet mother of god, I had given up. Tony do you know what this means?"

"Not a clue sir. Just get that team going. I expect them to be on site within six hours of us locating the nest. We will be on the move at first light sir."

"I want daily reports boy. The team will be at your drop off point at the lake by sunrise."

"Daily reports." I confirmed. "Hawthorne?"

"Yes Tony?"

"Find Malcomb. I don't care who you have to buy or how many kneecaps you have to bust. FIND him. I won't be responsible if I see him. He would willingly feed me to cannibals. If he even shows his head I will assume he is going to put my son at risk and I won't have that."

"I understand." He sat back and smiled widely. "Good show Tony. Good show." He sat forward a little. "Gregory?"

"Um yes Mr. Hawthorne?" He cam back to my shoulder in pants and shirt.

"Good show to you as well lad, you have quite a fine body boy."

Gregory groaned in humiliation and hid behind me.

We sat before a roasting rabbit and a small bottle of wine we found in the supplies. I intended to let Gregory have as much as he wanted. We cuddled and snuggled in the moist heat of the hot spring.

Dinner was wonderful and I was comfortably buzzed by the wine as we slipped into the tent.

Gregory spread his legs and I massaged his little pole with his medicine. We both were enjoying ourselves as I ministered his medical requirement. I hoped that this summer his foreskin would loosen up enough to let him have his natural erections without pain. He still felt discomfort as his pole inflated, however the discomfort had been reduced to a minor annoyance. He was frustrated that his head would not pop out, but he was resigned to letting it happen at it's own pace.

Without warning, as I stroked him gently with the cream, his foreskin gave way and his glans popped out. "OWWWWWW!" He yipped. "That hurt!"

"I'm sorry Gregory!" I apologized as his hands grabbed his little tool.

"What happened?" He looked down and saw his cherry red head peeking at him. "It came out!"

"Cool lad! It hurt?"

"Yea. It stings! Why did you do it so hard?"

"I wasn't trying to hurt you." I kissed his cheek and cuddled him. "It finally happened."

"It hurt a lot."

"Want me to kiss it and make it better?" I knew he wouldn't accept my offer.

"Yea!" He opened his legs and thrust his hips at me defiantly.

I grinned at him. Heady with wine I knew his inhibitions had slipped in the last few weeks. It could not be the wine, he didn't like it and only sipped a little from my glass. I slipped down to position and looked up at him. He grinned in hysteria, thinking I wouldn't do such a thing.

I puckered my lips and wet them with my tongue. I gently placed my lips on his newly exposed head and kissed it softly. He giggled hysterically and giggled with spasms of newfound pleasures. I kissed it again and opened my lips a bit before wrapping my lips around his glans and love kissed it with my tongue tickling the little hole of his.

"WOOOOOOWWWWWWW!" he moaned.

"Like it?" I asked.

"God that feels so great."

"Want me to continue?" I asked knowing he would not refuse.

"Please dad!"

I went back to kissing his head and licking his pole like an ice cream cone. He moaned loudly and grabbed my head as I suckled his rod with love and tenderness. He began to thrust his hips into my face as his first orgasm creeped up on him like a lover in the night.

"Dad! Something is happening!"

"Let it son. You won't regret it."

We coupled gently and lovingly. He grunted and groaned as I pushed him toward orgasm.

He curled up around my head as I bobbed my head on his crotch as I let his glans stimulate it's self against my tongue. He whined as he slammed into my mouth and then he suddenly went rigid and huffed loudly.

"Oh god, oh god! I can't believe it!" He blacked out as his body convulsed against my face and I licked his privates as they slowly deflated inside my mouth.

I cradled him lovingly until his eyes fluttered and opened. "My god dad, I can't believe how good that felt!"

"So you liked it?" I smiled at him.

"Damned straight." He hugged me tight and rubbed his small frame against my body.

"I love you Gregory." I kissed his head gently and stroked his tight bumm.

"I love you too dad. I hate mom for keeping us apart."

"I don't know any more if I hate her or what she did. All I know at this moment is I love you and will fight to keep you."

"Me too dad."

"Gregory?"

"Yea dad?"

"I think Mr. Hawthorne was impressed with your body today." I giggled.

"DAD!" he punched me in the chest a few times.

"It's true. I know he likes the human figure as art. HE has an extensive collection of artistic nudes in his collection."

"I forgot I was naked." He mumbled in embarrassment.

"So? I'm proud of you. I don't care if the whole world sees you naked."

"I DO!" he screamed.

"Well, we can discuss that later. I'm pooped right now. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow." I hugged him close and we settled in to sleep. My tool throbbed against his rock hard backside as I slipped into a drunken sleep of contentment.

I felt a warm pressure on my legs as I drifted back to consciousness the next morning. It was fifteen minutes before my alarm went off, as I always woke up. My cock was pounding hard and hurting with desire as I recalled what transpired the night before.

I looked down and found Gregory laying half on my legs licking the head of my engorged penis like it was a lollipop. I moaned uncontrollably and he turned to grin at me like the Cheshire cat.

"You finally awake dad?"

"If I'm not I don't want to wake up. That feels so good! Don't stop!"

HE went back to licking my pole as I relaxed in bliss. He was clumsy and uncoordinated, but he tried hard and had a tongue that would make the pope quit his job. His hands played with my nuts as his mouth teased my head.

"It's so big dad. I don't think I can take it all in my mouth."

"Just do what you want lad. That feels just fine."

"I want to do what you did."

"Just try, be careful of your teeth, their sharp."

He playfully turned his head and bit my shaft on the side gently.

"OH wow. Such wonderful torture!" I moaned. HE didn't get it.

He continued to lick my head for a while before bravely opening his mouth wide and sucking my glans into his hot little mouth. He sucked and kissed my manhood as I did his the night before, with care and love. It wasn't long before his bobbing head pushed me toward orgasm and he knew it. I clutched the sleeping bags and fought the urge to fuck his little face.

"I'm going to shoot baby!" I groaned as his mouth pleasured my cock in ways I never imagined.

HE didn't say a word. He just sucked and bobbed harder, sliding his tender tongue over my tingling tool with eager desire and abandon.

The first spurt caught him while he had my penis buried deep in the back of his throat. He mumbled in surprise and refused to take his head off as I filled his mouth to capacity with man cream. HE tried to hold it all and I knew from previous experience he didn't want to make a mess, so he tried to take my entire load without swallowing or spitting.

Soon the capacity in his small mouth had been reached and he had no choice but to swallow or spit. He gulped loudly and downed all my semen in one gut wrenching load. With his mouth cleared he continued to milk my tender meat for every drop he could as I floated back to earth. When I softened again he crawled back up to my arms and we cuddled in the glowing morning.

"How was that dad?" he smiled in bliss at me.

"Fantastic." I breathed.

"Really?"

"Really boy. WOW."

"BUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!" he cut loose with a very respectable belch that smelled like my sperm. "Excuse me!" He looked embarrassed.

"With the breakfast you just swallowed I'm not surprised!" I laughed loudly.

"Dad, will it hurt me?"

"What?" I turned over and began to stroke his hip.

"Your sperm, can it hurt me? Will I get pregnant?"

"No son. It is almost totally protein and won't hurt you in the least. You won't get pregnant because your not a girl. Thank god!" I smiled at him.

"Good." He laid on his belly and let me pet his back and rump to my hearts content as we slowly let ourselves wake up.

We quickly packed our gear and set out on the hunt again. Gregory stayed nude and rode in front of me on the horse as we tracked the Eagles north. I sketched out a circle that denoted their most likely hunting radius and we discussed a simple plan to search for them quickly.

We rode most of the day, both of us peering through binoculars most of the time hoping to spot the nest. We had no luck that day and grew exhausted in the late afternoon.

The next day we continued the search, neither of us having energy enough to play the night before, with things other than pleasures newly discovered, clouding our minds.

I made my daily reports and Gregory stayed nude. He even gave up dressing after he walked in on another reporting session without his pants on. After that he logiced that Mr. Hawthorne had seen him naked already so why not?

He sat in my lap the day he decided that, and talked with the powerful man.

"I figured you already saw me so why not?"

"Interesting logic lad. I must say, not many lads would have the gumption to go native the way you have."

"Thanks sir. I think."

"Don't worry child. I have seen many naked boys in my time. I musty also say you have a classically sculpted body. It would be a shame if your father let you grow up without recording that beauty."

"I have a few of Gregory with a bull elk that wandered in on him during his bath. I think you will be impressed sir." I explained.

"Good. Don't you worry about those bible thumping hypocrites. That boy is beautiful. If anyone were to say his body is obscene, then they need to get their heads out of their asses."

Our days bled together and we exhausted ourselves searching the range for the birds. We almost began to think we had imagined them. We took to daily reviews of the pictures to keep ourselves motivated.

Gregory took to applying his medicine on horseback as we found ourselves passing out the moment we hit the sleeping bags at night. He asked me to do it and I instructed him to as I didn't want to become distracted and fall off the horse. It was enjoyable watching him stroke himself for hours on end. He never brought himself off. He would tug and play with his little toy whenever he felt like it and I let him do whatever his little heart wanted.

The fifth day I noticed bear sign. First it was a bear turd. Then tracks. None too fresh. But large enough to alarm me. I didn't tell Gregory, I just told him I wanted him to stay within eye shot. HE didn't question it and complied willingly.

That night we made camp and I sat at the fire as my boy splashed in the stream before me. He hadn't had a stitch of clothing on in over a week and didn't seem to want to ever get dressed again. I sharpened my bowie knife to pass the time as the canned, or bagged rather, stew warmed up. I kept the .45 long colt Winchester rifle handy and my equally large six shooter at my side.

Gregory was playing frog catch with the local amphibians and I tried to relax. I could not shake the feeling something was watching us and I knew the animals were less than comfortable. I toyed with the idea of calling for pickup. The helicopter could be to us by sunrise.

I dismissed the idea. We were too close to our goal and Gregory would never forgive me for quitting at this point.

"DAD!" I heard my boy whisper in terror.

I looked up to see the largest bear in the universe standing on it's hind feet, towering over Gregory's tiny frame. The beast stood at least ten feet tall and it growled at my boy. Gregory would have messed his pants had he been wearing any. I prayed he remembered the lessons I told him about bears and hoped he would stand stock still.

My right hand reached the rifle as my left slipped the knife in my boot sheath. "Just stay still boy." I instructed. "Don't make any sudden moves."

"I cant move!" He whispered. "Help me dad!" HE was in absolute terror.

"I'm coming. Just don't panic."

"Too late." He fell over as he passed out.

His small frame splashed in the little stream as the bear came down on it's front paws. It held it's left leg up and limped a step closer to the boy. It obviously was hurt. Bad sign.

Very bad sign. There is nothing more unpredictable, and therefore more dangerous, than an injured animal. The bear took a hoping step closer to Gregory and I bellowed at it.

It looked me in the eye and returned the challenge, standing up once more. It made me feel insignificant as I strode closer with misplaced confidence. I chambered a round in the rifle.

The bear stood directly over Gregory's doll sized frame. I walked right up to the animal screaming at it to leave. Trying with all my might to look a hundred times bigger than I was. The boy floated on his back as I stepped up to him. I reached down and grabbed his thin arm and hauled him over my left shoulder. I had the rifle in my hand and pointed in the general direction of the bear's head.

The bear snarled and bellowed at me as I carefully stepped back out of the water. I prayed it would wander off and leave us in peace. I didn't want to kill it, but a voice in my head told me it would happen no other way. I challenged the territory of a wounded bear. It would attack. The only question was would it attack before I could get Gregory to a safe place?

The bear came to it's front paw again and followed me out of the water and into my camp. It gave up favoring it's paw and tromped the ground in anger.

"Gregory!" I barked. "Wake up boy!" I slapped his thigh and shook him violently.

"What?" He shook his little head and saw the angry bear. "AAAAAAAAAAA!" he wiggled out of my arms and hid behind me, trusting his daddy to protect him from the monster.

"Boy, don't panic."

"I already am!"

"Then get a fucking grip! I'm going to back up and get you in those thorn bushes. Hide there."

"What are you going to do?"

"Run like the wind lad."

"What!? You told me bears can catch people!"

"I have to draw him away from you. When he chases me you get the locator, up-link equipment, and the horse. Ride. Don't look back. Whatever you hear or see just fucking ride."

"I wont leave you dad!"

"You will do as I fucking say boy! IF you don't we both will be bear shit by dawn."

"But dad!"

We had backed up to the thorny bush and I shoved my heart and soul into it's harsh embrace. I heard him whine and cry as the thorns bit into his tender flesh.

"OK you sonovabitch!" I bellowed in challenge. The rifle snapped up to my shoulder as the bear pawed at me. I snapped of a round that sank deep into the wounded bears hurt leg and his paw grazed my shoulder. I could feel his claws as two tore my shirt open with several inches of my skin.

I bolted.

The bear followed me closely. I knew he was hurt, he should have run me down in a matter of moments. His injury and the bullet bought me time as I sought a path that would allow me passage but tie the huge beast up in brambles and tree branches. HE was a tenacious bastard, I will give him that. Whenever he fell off or seemed to loose interest I would pitch a stone at his head or try to get a clean shot at his eye socket. With the amount of flesh and fat on the bear, a heart shot would be tricky at best. A simple head shot was out of the question, the skull on a bear this size would deflect the bullet and only piss him off more.

Evening turned quickly to a bright night illuminated by a full moon. The bear hunted me and I led it on a merry chase through the woods. I grew exhausted and prayed I would get a clean shot soon.

My mind wandered to Gregory and worry consumed me. What if he was petrified and stayed in the bush? If he did the bear would return there and kill my baby if I let it live.

I grew weary as I climbed a steep hillside taunting the beast at the bottom. He steadfastly crawled after me as I dropped baseball sized rocks on his head. He could hardly see for all the blood covering his head and eyes. I could hardly see for exhaustion. I had a moment to rest as the bear tried to find a way to get to me and make me it's next kill.

Many wounded predators never ate their kill. Pain and suffering drove them insane and they killed in madness or in rage. I would most likely be one of those. A dead body in the forest, left to feed the carrion birds.

Looking down my heart froze.

The bear was gone. I had taken my eyes of him for a mere moment and it had disappeared.

Now it was my turn to feel terror. Not knowing where the animal was took the element of control away from me. I no longer led the bear, I was now hunted by it. Bears were infinitely better adapted at night hunting than a man was. I had no light or even a clue as to the nature of how bears hunted. If I had I would have something to work with. Now he was out there somewhere and I didn't know where.

Was he even hunting me any more? Did he turn his attentions to easier prey? Prey like one terrified little naked boy?

I scrambled off the hillside and looked around me in fear. Without control of the situation, even if it was just leading the monster away from my love, I was helpless. I bellowed tot he trees and the bear. My challenge was met with silence.

With my heart pounding I raced back to our camp. I tried to remember where it was and my experience in the wilds of the world helped me locate it again in the bright night. I didn't realize how far I had led the bear away. It took me nearly two hours to run the entire way back again. It was nearly midnight.

The camp was eerily quiet. I checked the bush and found it empty. The horse was gone, but the mules remained. I tore in tot he gear and found the computer, up-link and the emergency locator transmitter missing. "Good boy!" I cheered my son. He would be safe. There was no way the bear could catch him before the rescue team got to him.

I, on the other hand, was still alone and had no clue where the beastie was.

I sat heavily in the dirt and tried to think. I couldn't. My limbs were like lead and my mind refused to focus. I tried to stand and fell on my face in the cool dirt and grass.

The mules stirred in the calm evening. Their restlessness grew into fear. Then terror.

The bear was back.

I tried to bring the rifle to my shoulder, but the immense animal was on top of me before I could blink. His mouth bit deep into my left arm and I screamed like a woman as my arm snapped like a twig under the hideous pressure he applied.

My right hand tore my Bowie knife free and I back hand stabbed the bear in the left eye. It let me drop to the ground as it howled in pain. I landed hard on my left arm and howled as well. We both staggered a few feet apart and faced each other down. Blood gushed from us both and we circled one another.

I knew my life was at an end. I only hoped I could kill this poor animal before he suffered any more and hunted my boy down like he did me. The Mules had torn the picket line free and ran off in all directions as I tried desperately to keep from passing out.

The knife in my hand looked so small and useless. I dropped it and drew the hand cannon out of my holster. It would sit this monster back on it's heels if nothing else.

The darkness and my wavering vision made it hard to aim. The first shot detonated and the bear flinched away. He had heard my rifle a few times and still felt it's sting.

My first shot missed wide right. The second caught the bear between the eyes and it ricocheted off to the left. He shook his head and charged me, determined to put me out of his misery.

I stumbled back and he opened his mouth wide to bite my head off. My arm was still sticking out as he charged and it looked like he swallowed my arm as he bore down on me. Hand gun and all, my arm slipped down the bears throat. I almost freaked and jerked my hand feeling the recoil as I pulled the trigger. I panicked and jerked the trigger a dozen more times only to feel the recoil three additional times. The bear seemed to falter in mid stride then stumble over my feet and then collapse on top of me.

I lay there pulling the trigger in the now empty gun for several minutes, unable to get a hold of myself. I could not resolve myself to the fact that I was alive and the bear was dead.

The returning sounds of the forest told me I was alive finally. I let go of the gun and drew my arm out of the bears guts. It was slimy and smelly. But it felt a hell of a lot better than my left arm.

It took me two hours to drag myself out from under the bear. Another twenty minutes to get my arm to stop bleeding. From there I don't remember much until.

"DAD!" Gregory's beautiful form flew into my arms and I could finally collapse. "Your alive!"

"I'm alive." I cried in y boys arms as three strangers scooped me up and put me on a stretcher. I recognized the hot spring and could see a helicopter in the field below us. Gregory was still nude and throwing off the blanket a woman medic kept trying to place over him.

"Leave me alone and help my dad!" He finally stood up and faced her down in all his naked glory.

I woke up in a Canadian hospital. Gregory was there and Mr. Hawkins was as well. The nurses doted over my beautiful boy and I was lavished with comfort in the private room.

"Young man, you did a splendid job."

"We didn't find the nest sir." I informed him.

"But you led us right to it. Gregory took us to your camp. You weren't but three hundred feet from it."

"Your shitting me."

"No sir I am not. We have the birds in hand and are transporting them to the best facility there is."

"The bear?"

"Quite dead. The rangers dug your hand gun out of the poor creatures belly. It seems he got caught in an illegal bear trap. It had broken his paw, but he managed to escape."

"That far out? That's not likely."

"In fact it is. The beast was tagged and tattooed. The rangers said it was a couple hundred miles out of it's usual stomping grounds. Infection and broken bones drove it insane."

"Tell me about it."

"They said you can have it's hide dad!" Gregory informed me as he handed me a leather pouch. "The Indian guys gave me this. It's a medicine pouch!"

"Really? When did you se them?"

"They were at the hot springs before the helicopters."

"Wow."

"They told me they were hunting that bear cause he was hurt. They followed him all that way."

"They should get the hide, not me."

"They told me specifically that you were to take it Tony." Mr. Hawkins interjected. "Not many people have a Kodiak bear skin to hang in their den."

"Your shitting me. How big was it?"

"Thirteen and one half feet standing."

"Looked a lot taller alive!" Gregory informed my employer.

Gregory was dressed in a short pair of leg revealing shorts that didn't look to revealing, and a nice light blue T-shirt. Mr. Hawkins escorted me to a nice dinner at a wonderful restaurant. We celebrated a job well done and I looked forward to getting home for a real vacation with my son.

The night was getting long in the teeth and Gregory was dozing lightly in the booth next to me.

"Tony, I saw those pictures you took of Gregory with that elk. Those are absolutely incredible images."

"I haven't even had the chance sir." I was eager to see them and a little put out that he didn't let me be the first to see them.

"Tomorrow in my office back in Seattle lad." He toasted me and went on "I think you should consider doing more like those."

"In what way. It is not easy to find a willing wild animal to shoot a boy with."

"I meant nudes of Gregory. He is a spectacular boy. I meant it when I said it would be a shame to let his youth pass without recording him."

"Does he know you saw the images?"

"Yes. He viewed them with me. He is interested in doing more."

"I hadn't considered it really. Those were sort of spur of the moment."

"Including those several rolls of him at the spring?"

"Wellll 3;" I tried to think of an explanation.

"Don't try to explain. I was an artist in my youth. I know all about the creative moment and all that. He is a stunning subject and I would be quite upset if you didn't take advantage of such an opportunity."

"Sir. I just don't think the climate today is conducive to such works."

"Nonsense. We can discuss it all when you get to my office tomorrow."

In the man's office he had several easels set up with cloth covering them. "Tony, let's see your works. I took the liberty of having my own lab do these enlargements for us." He drew the cloth off the first image. The one with Gregory standing next to the Elk with his left arm reaching hi as he leaned his body against the elegant beast. He faced my camera like a boy proud of his body. The elk stared right through me in that image and Gregory's gaze followed. They both stood proud and tall next to each other as if they were meant to be there.

"WOW." I gasped in wonder.

"I like it dad!" Gregory hugged my right hand.

"I want to applaud your skill Tony." Mr. Hawkins smiled broadly.

"Skill nothing. That elk just wandered in and demanded to have it's picture taken, Gregory was there and the elk just let him pose with him like he wanted it to happen."

"Whatever Tony. This is going to be the cornerstone image in the gallery showing."

"Gallery?" I asked in surprise. No one told me of any such thing.

"HE wants to put your pictures of me in a gallery!" Gregory cheered.

"Duhunh?" Was all I could manage.

"I have three well known curators coming in today to look these over if you will allow me to. If they like them we can have you in galleries across north America by spring."

"Gregory, this means the whole world will see you naked."

"Not me. Just pictures of me." He explained in little boy logic. "But we have to do some with that bear skin."

I grinned at him. That would be no problem!

Chapter Two

"Nervous Gregory?" I asked my boy.

"Not any more than you dad." He held my right hand and squeezed it.

Behind us the gallery was darkened save a single spotlight that illuminated the center of the circular room. I would narrate the show from there in a short while.

Talk about being in the spotlight. The center of attention if you will. I hated that sort of thing.

Many of the guests were coming off as snobbish and stuck up. Most were interested in seeing what I had to show, and were very polite.

The lights in the main chamber dimmed slightly and the guests took up position by the ropes that separated them from the main gallery. I walked to the center of the room and stood under the harsh light. My black jacket and pants made me warm immediately. I could feel the air conditioner gently blowing on me as I tried to remember the speech I was to present. My left arm itched maddeningly under the cast that still covered my forearm. Two surgeries had been performed and I had the good fortune to expect two more to repair the damage the bear had inflicted on my limb.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I want to personally welcome and thank you for coming to the opening of my first gallery showing. To say the least, I am at a loss for words. I never expected this sort of response. This is a story if you will, a story of an adventure I and my son Gregory had. I think it brought us closer together and a bit closer to god."

The large screen behind me came to life with a slide of my son on horseback, at the edge of a cliff watching the sunrise. "This is Gregory for those of you who have yet to make his acquaintance. He is my son and my partner on the expedition you are about to share in." The show went on.

Slides flashed on the screen as I narrated our trip. Mostly of the country side and wild life we had encountered. I had included slides of the birds we had found to give them an idea of why we were a thousand miles from civilization. I was scared at the lack of reaction. Not a sound save scribbling of pen on paper as the critics made notes and the whispers of comments not meant to be heard.

Soon we came to the highlight of the show. "This day was incredible. Gregory was bathing in the hot spring while I was lounging around, relaxing before we continued the hunt for the eagles. Imagine being in a place where the animals had absolutely no fear of man. Never saw one, been hunted, they still reign in their land. We had, as you have seen with the squirrels Gregory fed as well as the rabbits and such I have shown you, they are perfectly willing to walk right up to our camp and inspect us." I took a deep breath. "I looked up and saw this." The screen snapped to a profile of the great elk, standing majestic and aloof in his kingdom. The room fell silent or a moment. I let the rest of my narration go for the moment as the slides slowly flashed before us all. The sequence showed the elk approach the spring with Gregory in it. Then the boy holding up a sprig of grass for the elf to take. Gregory standing up to stroke the great animal's snout in all his god given glory. Then Gregory and the animal from several angles.

The gallery was silent as a tomb. I smiled as the show continued in silence. I glanced at the young intern that controlled the slide machine and nodded my head as the last slide finished. He pressed a button, and the screen went dark as it lifted into it's housing in the ceiling.

"This, ladies and gentlemen is proof that God does exist." A spot light shattered the darkness to illuminate a full sized enlargement of Gregory standing next to the elk leaning on the great animal as if it were his best friend. Both looked at the camera with absolute confidence and pride in their bodies.

Gregory appeared out of the darkness and stood to the other side of the elk in the picture. The contrast was striking. One side was a boy, nude and facing the camera with confidence and pride. On the other side stood the same boy dressed as I was, in all black, just as confident and proud. I asked Gregory to do this so the people could see the picture was true to life in size.

I then went into the rest of my narration on how the bear attacked and our adventure in the chase and fight. I flashed back to the whole thing and found my voice faltering as I shook in renewed terror and pain. Fear of loosing Gregory assaulted my mind just as it had those many months ago. I broke into a sweat and my throat was tight.

A small hand slipped into mine and I felt complete again. I looked down to see my son hugging my arm and looking up to me with concern. I smiled at him and wiped the tears from my face.

Another spotlight came on illuminating the beast that tried to eat us both. The crowd gasped as my son and I stood next to the hide of the bear. It dwarfed us both and everything in the building.

"This ladies and gentlemen was the serpent in our Eden those many months ago. The devil to the angel who is my son. This one creature cemented my beliefs and love for my son. We all have our demons to face I only wish they all were so solid as this." I took a deep breath and announced. "The show is now open, please view the many more images we have for you to see and enjoy." The ropes came down and the people flooded the room to see the eleven by fourteen prints of my son that papered the walls.

I tried to gauge the feeling the people were getting from my show. Some loved it, many were critical and hard to judge. A few complained that it was nothing. "No social message." Was their comment, not meant for my ears, as they poured praise to my face. I took it all in stride and let them be two faced.

"Tony, don't let them get to you. Today they want prostitutes and drug addicts to have some social statement, tomorrow they want nudes and fuzzy critters." Jules, my attorney's new husband greeted me with a glass of champagne.

"Screw them." I mumbled around my drink.

"My sentiments exactly."

The show went on and both I and Gregory fielded questions of every sort for over an hour until my most dreaded demon blew through the door.

"Tony, you son of a bitch!" She screamed as she slapped me in the face.

"Hello Debby," I said calmly as I inwardly wished to cave her skull in.

"Champagne?" I handed her a glass.

She slapped the expensive drink out of my hand and tried to punch me in the face. I grabbed her small fist and held it tight. "This is not the time nor the place for your silly tantrums woman."

"I want him arrested!" she screamed at the police officer behind her.

Gregory slipped between us, "Why? He hasn't done anything!"

"Gregory, go to the limousine."

"NO!" He stood his ground.

Her hand cocked back and I grabbed her arm. "Remember my promise bitch!" I growled in her face. She faltered for a moment.

"You think you can make pornographic pictures of my baby and get away with it!?" She spun on the police man and the suit next to him. "I said fucking arrest him!"

"Ma'am, we will handle this. Sir can we speak someplace privately?"

Another officer tried to take Gregory's hand. "Gregory, go with the officer." The detective instructed my boy.

"Excuse us!" My attorney and her husband appeared next to us. "We are his attorneys, what seems to be the problem?"

"We should speak in private ma'am."

"Screw that. Anything you have to say could not possibly be worse than what this slut has accused me of just now." I held Gregory close to me tightly.

"Sir let the boy go." The officer trying to take Gregory commanded.

"Eat a bug." Gregory spat. "I am staying with my dad."

The whole situation grew tense and ugly as Debby screamed and threw a tantrum, Gregory gripped my waist like a drowning man would a piece of wood. Julia and Jules tried to keep the scene civilized. The police milled around and looked at the pictures while the district attorney argued with my lawyers.

"ENOUGH!" I bellowed. "The show is over! I'm sorry ladies and gentlemen, as you can see this is just getting to far out of hand. Please come back again, we will see to it you each get a special invitation. Thank you and have a good night." I put the show to bed with authority apparently, the gallery was empty within five minutes.

Debby finally snapped at the lack of my arrest and started tearing the pictures off the walls and ripping them up. "What are you doing?" The curator screamed at her.

"I wont have these filthy pictures of my baby on display!"

"Officers, arrest her." He calmly pointed to her. "The charge is, destruction of private property, disturbing the peace, and restriction of trade."

Now the cops were wholly confused.

"Tony," Julia came up to me, "They aren't sure if you broke any laws or not. They want copies of all the images and negatives to review."

"Screw that. They can have prints and contact sheets only. If they get the negatives there is no telling what could happen to them. If they want they can compare the negatives to the contacts, in my and your presence. At no time will they get possession of the negatives."

"They want to interview Gregory."

"That's OK as long as your there. He likes and trusts you."

"Agreed. Also they want him to go with his mother until this is straightened out."

"Over my dead body."

"Tony."

"NO. My mother can take him. Hell even foster care would be better. If she gets him I wont ever see him again. She will take him to Italy with what ever his name is and I wont ever see him again."

Julia went back to the DA and talked with him a moment. Debby continued her tantrum and tried to destroy more of the pictures. When the curator interceded she belted him and was immediately cuffed by the cops.

Gregory was nearly in tears and shaking like a leaf.

Scooping my angel up I sweet talked him a bit while cradling him close. "Don't worry baby. We are partners, remember? If a god awful bear like that beast couldn't keep us apart, you think your mother can?"

"I hate her!" He sobbed in my arms.

"No. Don't hate her. Hate what she does. She loved us in her own sort of way."

"Don't you hate her?"

"Remarkably, no. I pity her."

"I cant help it daddy! I just hate her so MUCH right now I cant do anything else!"

"Then just hug me and hold me Gregory." I sat down and let the lawyers figure out what to do.

"Dad, I don't wanna go." Gregory grumbled.

"Come on now. You go with grandma for a few weeks until this whole thing is sorted out."

"Will you visit?"

"Every chance I get. Now be good, don't cause any trouble, and write me every day."

"Same to you." He hugged me close and I could feel his tears on my shoulder.

"Tony, dear. I cant believe she is pushing this so hard."

"Mom, I think she's gone off the deep end. What ever her reasons, I just want to be certain to keep Gregory."

"Well, I was certainly surprised when you appeared on my doorstep with him in hand."

"I wish I could have done it sooner. But we had to leave when we did and I didn't want to tell you I had him the make you wait all that time before we visited."

"Well, I did always say that job would be the death of you. But I didn't think it would be by getting eaten by a bear. Now you go take care of business so your boy can come home."

"Gregory, the house should be done by the time this is over with."

"Really? I hope it isn't."

"What?"

"If it is it means we wont be together for a long time."

"I see. Then, here's to living in a one bedroom apartment."

I left my son with my mother in her huge house in the countryside. He would love playing in the fields and with her small herd of various farm animals. We arranged for him to enter a semi private school nearby. He would go there in the days, and return to the house after school by bus. I explained the concerns I had about Debby snatching Gregory to the school and they assured me they could keep him safe. Mother's farm was closer to an estate with a fence around it and a couple nice vicious guard dogs to keep her and my boy safe. Mom knew about the show and had no problems with him having naked time if he wanted. Hell she let me when I was little.

I returned to my office and home to drink myself stupid.

The days turned into weeks and I visited my boy every chance I got. The district attorney insisted I not be alone with Gregory and my mother agreed to that. When I arrived she let us wander off and play in the hay barns I explored as a boy. We went swimming in the creek near the house and I continued my photo study of Gregory. We agreed to forgo any nudes until the investigation was over and Gregory surprised me by having my mom buy him three pairs of bikini style swim suits. Hey, he wasn't nude. J

I was flooded with orders for the photographs that caused such a stir and had to patiently send letters back to each sender explaining the delay in receiving their prints.

A major art book publisher was trying to woo me to let them produce my first book and were growing increasingly agitated that I would not release the photographs until the investigation was concluded.

The investigators demanded that Gregory be seen by a doctor to look for signs of sexual abuse. Gregory told them flat out he wouldn't let anyone but his own doctor do it.

The investigators wanted a second opinion when the results came back clean and my attorneys told them what Gregory had, `eat a bug'. Soon the whole thing grew old and frustrating as the prosecutor, desperate for a conviction, continued to badger me and push for me to accept a plea agreement.

"Tony, if you are convicted of exploitation of a minor, production of child pornography, distribution, and child sexual abuse, you could spend at minimum, twenty to twenty five years in jail. Take this agreement and you could be out within ten."

"You haven't got beans." I spat. "Not a single one of those pictures is pornographic in the least. It has long been established in this state that simple nudity is not pornography and thus, simple nudes of my son are NOT child pornography. You have spent three months trying to gather enough evidence to convict me. Now that you realize you can't you want to bully me into accepting a plea bargain. Why don't you spend your time trying to put real criminals away?"

"These are serious charges Tony."

"Seriously bullshit." Jules interceded. His wife was dealing with another case at the moment. She was seeing her doctor. She was expecting a baby boy and girl in two months. "Here is a copy of what the Judge is going to get in the morning. We are demanding this go to the grand jury immediately. If you have a case you can present it there and we can get on with it."

"You wont get it."

"Let the judge decide."

"See you in chambers in the morning."

We left to meet the expectant mother for lunch.

I waited outside the judges chambers for over an hour while the lawyers argued their point to the woman. The district attorney felt confident that getting a woman seated to hear the case would give him an advantage.

Julia and Jules were convinced it wouldn't matter. Either way I was still nervous.

"Tony, please come in." The Judge opened the door for me.

I walked in and sat with my attorneys and looked the judge square in the eye. "Good morning your honor."

"Good morning. Let's cut to the chase. Would you be willing to have me review the evidence and make a summary decision as to whether this should go to trial?"

"So instead of a grand jury, you would make the decision after reviewing the `evidence'?"

"Yes. It would save a lot of time and money this way. My decision would not be a verdict in any way, just a decision as to whether there is enough evidence to warrant it taking up valuable trial time and space."

I glanced at Jules on my left, he nodded, Julia did the same to my right. "Sounds good to me your honor. Anything to get this nonsense over with."

"Fine," She glanced at her calendar and looked up. "Thursday of next week then, eight in the morning people."

"Your honor," the district attorney interrupted. "about our witness, Gregory?"

"Your `witness?!'" Julia spoke up.

"Yes, I intend on putting him on the stand."

"Over our dead bodies." Jules stood up.

"Excuse me, this is still my office here." The judge interrupted. "Mr. Shaw, why would you need to put the boy on the stand?"

"He is a crucial witness in this case, he is the victim after all."

"Your honor, the primary point of this is to determine if the pictures the district attorney are claiming to be pornographic, actually are. Nothing more. You can make that determination without questioning Gregory."

The judge reclined in her chair and looked at us all. "True Julia, however I do feel it necessary to get all the information I can. Mr. Shaw, you will not be questioning Gregory."

"Good." I let slip.

"I will." The judge looked at me like I had just snatched the last cookie from the cookie jar. "Just give me a list of questions that you want answered and I will decide which ones are appropriate to the case."

"Your honor, we would request the boy be questioned outside the presence of his father."

"Why?" I growled.

"Put that attitude in your pocket." The judge chastised me. "It is standard procedure. Anytime a child has to testify in a case that involves possibility of sexual abuse, we separate the child from the defendant. This is to protect the child."

"After all we have been through, my son knows how to protect himself. He will tell the truth. He loves me more than I deserve."

"That could also be a problem. If he feels your watching he might not be completely honest, either out of love or fear."

"Fine." I conceded their point.

"Have your witness list and evidence here tomorrow." We left her chambers and went to lunch.

"Tony, your not eating."

"I'm not hungry Julia."

"You haven't been eating much at all have you?"

"Nope."

"If you don't take care of yourself you wont be of any use to Gregory."

"I can't help it. I'm so sick with worry I cant stand it. I miss my boy."

"Soon Tony. Very soon." She hugged me close.

"Guys, call Doctor Fredhiemer, have him at the courthouse Thursday."

"Why?" Jules mumbled around some pasta salad.

"Other than he was the one who did the initial checkup on Gregory he also can testify to a condition he has." I went on to explain the condition and treatment. I left out the fact that I was the administrator to Gregory's medicine for the time of our expedition.

"That would be helpful. How will Gregory testify to that?"

"I have no idea. I'm just worried that if he brings it up that there will be further delays if the doctor isn't there."

"Good idea. Have Gregory in our office Tuesday. We can go over the details then."

Thursday morning came. I sat on the bench outside the judges office and let the lawyers argue inside before it all started.

"Dad!" I heard my angels voice as he came tearing down the hallway, past a `no running' sign. Scooping him up I hugged him for all I was worth. "I missed you so bad Greggy!"

"I missed you too. When can I come home?" He looked me straight in the eye.

"Today will hopefully be the last day. If not it could be a lot longer."

"NO! I want to come home NOW!" He whined. "I like it at grandma's place and all that, but I want to live with YOU."

"I know baby." I hugged him again and sat on the bench

"Dad, are you sick?"

"No honey, just tired."

"You are sick. You haven't been eating have you?" He stood in front of me and put his fists on his hips.

"No. Not really."

"Tony, please come in, and bring Gregory with you." I saw the judge at her door.

The judge listened to arguments and looked at the pictures again while questioning Gregory about each one in turn. She was a sly one as she slipped he questions about his feelings and thoughts into it. She had my son at ease almost immediately. He answered with confidence and pride as all the images that were in the show came up.

"I love my daddy. He loves me. He NEVER did anything naughty to me."

"Gregory, the prosecutor has said your father may have touched you in your private place. Is this true?"

"Nope." He lied through his teeth.

"Has anyone ever touched you there?"

"Yes, Doctor Fredhiemer did."

"Can you tell me about it?"

Gregory explained his condition with amazing clarity and his vocabulary impressed the judge.

"Gregory, how did you feel about it?"

"Embarrassed. Up till then no one ever touched me there, and mother made it quite clear that even talking about that part of my body was nasty."

"She did? How do you feel about it now?"

"That first time wasn't as embarrassing as when Doctor Fredhiemer had too look up my butt." He blushed. "Why did he have to do that?"

"To see if anyone had hurt you there."

"Who would want to hurt my butt?" He asked wholly confused.

"We can go into that later Gregory." She changed the subject and finished up with Gregory as fast as she could.

He moment he was gone with my mother the prosecutor exploded. "I thought he was to be questioned separate from his father?!"

"Pipe down mister!" The judge replied. "I saw those two on the bench outside. There is no way that boy is afraid of the defendant. Also, based on the medical evidence, there has been no reason to believe he was molested. I read his initial statements and decided the boy would be more comfortable with his father present than without. This is MY court, don't ever forget that."

We got on with the rest of the rings to be jumped through and left the judge to think about it all. I took my crew out to lunch at an expensive restaurant and ate till I couldn't move. It was the first time in months I had an appetite. Everyone seemed jovial, but I still worried. You could never count on anything until it was in hand, signed, notarized and witnessed.

"Tony, relax."

"You relax." I mumbled at Jules. "You get paid either way. I'm the one facing trial."

"No, your not. I am willing to stake my professional career on the fact that you wont."

"If I do will you represent me for free?"

He smiled and thought about it for a moment. "Yes."

"I will remember that." I sipped a glass of wine. Hopefully my last for a long time.

"I have made my decision. Based on the evidence presented and the witnesses brought before me I have decided that there is NOT enough evidence to press forward with a trial."

I almost passed out.

"Also I can see no evidence to warrant the investigation that has been conducted. District Attorney Romley, all I see is a horrible waste of resources, time, and money. I don't know what could have possessed you to drag this investigation out this long in the first place besides perhaps your own political aspirations. Convicting this man of all those charges would have made for a significant feather in your cap, and that is inexcusable. How many other trials could you have completed in the time you have wasted on this ONE? I think you owe the defendant and the people of this state an apology."

"I wont apologize for doing my Job your honor. I truly believed in this case. If I had any recourse I would appeal this decision and go ahead with a trial."

"Well you don't. So eat crow and get out of my office."

The party was a screaming success. Every image of Gregory was replaced on the walls of the Gallery and all our guests invited back. The press swarmed us and we laughed and enjoyed ourselves immensely.

"Tony, I just had word, Debby is on a plane to Italy with her new husband." Julia appeared at my shoulder.

"How do you know?"

"Detectives I hired."

"To watch her?"

"Yup. She hasn't made a move without me knowing exactly what and where."

"Good. She is gone and we can get on with our lives now."

The trial had done nothing but advertise my show and orders kept pouring in. I hired a pair of interns to help produce all the images required to fill the orders. I set a limit of fifteen hundred sets of prints for the actual photographs, and agreed to sign another fifteen hundred leather bound editions. The hardback coffee table edition would hit the stores in six weeks and there were several places sold out in advance.

Needless to say, I was overwhelmed. The newspapers carried it as a win for artists, but never printed one of my best images. The art magazines were perfectly willing to print my hallmark image of Gregory and the elk on their front cover.

Gregory and I drove up the long driveway to our new home. I had chosen a place outside the city and nestled in the wooded countryside. Huge old growth forest surrounded our home and allowed total privacy. I even got a four really nice, mean dogs to guard it for us.

"Dad?"

"Yes son?"

"Is THAT our house?"

"Yep." We drove up to the garage and parked inside. I had designed it based on a castle. The exterior was stone and all the windows were arched. The four corners were shaped like parapets and looked like towers on an old castle. The front door was nestled in a huge wooden facsimile of a draw bridge. The ivy had yet to grow but would soon cover much of the stone exterior.

"This is so COOL!" He bellowed as he ran around the inside of the large building.

I had set it up like a cabin in the woods. Wood furniture and such. A large fireplace adorned the north wall and the bear skin rug lay before it covering most of the floor. The upstairs opened up to a balcony that circled the living room and looked down into it. The bedrooms upstairs were spacious and bright. The basement held a large studio and darkroom.

Outside I had a pool installed with a hot tub. A nice orchard and garden had just been completed and we would await the new growth with spring in full swing.

"How much land is there dad?"

"Forty acres."

"Wow. We cant afford this!"

"Yes we can. Originally there were eighty acres I inherited from my father. I had to sell off half of it in the divorce. I kept the best part for you. I took the money from my retirement account to build the house."

"You shouldn't have done that dad." He looked at me sternly.

"I figure the money we will make on this show alone will replace that. Plus they want us to sign for another show and book."

"What kind?"

"You. The plan is to do an extensive studio shoot and then some nature type stuff. I also have another job lined up to Australia."

"Australia? I always wanted to go there!" He jumped up and down.

"Yup. There is a game preserve there that wants me to record all their animals in their habitats. Nice, easy, no hunting for weeks. We can set up in a cabin in the preserve and come home every night almost."

"Way cool!"

"Sterts in August and I have a tutor all set up."

"Tutor?"

"Yep. Can't have you going for that long without some schooling."

"Who?"

"Why Grandma of course!"

"YAY! She's SO cool dad. She even like Aerosmith!"

"I know. It was so weird growing up. My parents loved rock and roll as much a s I did. I never could relate with the other kids in school that complained about their parents being old fashioned."

"They didn't believe me when I told them Grandma liked rock and roll."

"Their loss. Lets go swimming!" We raced to the pool and jumped in, clothes and all.

As we lay on the bear that tried to kill us, Gregory stared into the fire and sighed deep. "I'm so glad it's all over Dad."

I smiled at his nude form and kissed his forehead. "When I thought about maybe loosing you I wanted to die."

"Me too. Grandma tried to make me feel better but nothing helped."

He looked deep into my eyes and asked. "Are you mad?"

"About what?"

"I lied to the judge."

"Not really. I just wish you didn't have to lie."

"Me too. You haven't done anything bad, so why should they want to put you in jail?"

"Because they can't understand." We laid back in each others arms and slept.

With the next day being Friday I called the school and told them I would be keeping Gregory out that day. We just spent our day being lazy and eating pizza. He didn't consider getting dressed in the least as the day drew on. I had put on my clothes to get the mail form the box by the road and hadn't bothered to take them off.

"Dad, wanna take some pictures?" My angel asked in the early afternoon.

"Sort of christening the studio?" I asked with a grin on my face.

"Yea!" He ran his well formed backside down the stairs with me in hot pursuit.

I still didn't have all the props I wanted, that would have to wait until I had some more money. I spent way too much finishing the house. Still we made due and I had four rolls of film of my angel. He made a show ofd his flexibility and agility. He had been in gymnastics since he could walk and he was happy to show off. I gave him some strips of cloth and he played with them as he showed me his body and let me record it.

We went to the living room and I shot a couple more rolls of him on the bear skin. Then a couple in the pool and orchard. I didn't expect any of these to turn into masterpieces, but I certainly was glad to have them for my own album.

About seven in the evening my mother popped in and Gregory greeted her in all his glory. Not the least bit bashful.

"I see you have made yourself comfortable Gregory." She teased.

"Yup!" he was so proud as she hugged him close.

We ate dinner, I made my little man get dressed for the meal at the dinner table. Then sat around talking.

"Tony, the district attorney has been seeing my friends."

"Still?"

"Yes. I think he is trying to build another case. Why on earth I don't know."

I picked up my phone and called Julia. "Julia, the district attorney is still harassing my mother and her friends."

"Not for long he isn't! That son of a bitch is going to regret he ever saw us." She ranted.

"Julia, take it easy! If you get all worked up, you will pop those kids out too early."

"I am not getting worked up!" she bellowed in my ear.

I heard a heated discussion and Jules took the phone. "Tony, we will file a complaint and restraining order against him and his office first thing in the morning."

"Good. The case was decided and he's still harassing us?"

"Yes, I know. It just does not make any sense. But let us handle him."

"OK. Would it be all right if my dogs ate him if he comes on the property?"

"Only if he does not have a search warrant."

"Cool beans. Jules, point out to him that he's shit out of luck now. We moved out of his jurisdiction. We no longer live in the city or that county any longer."

"True. I will point that out to him and hopefully he will just go away."

"Good. Can I invite him to dinner?"

"For you or the dogs?"

"Can I plead the fifth on that?" I smiled with evil intent.

"Just let us deal with him." Jules laughed.

The weeks fairly flew by as I worked like a madman while Gregory was in school. He took a lot of teasing and cruel jokes and innuendo thrown at him by the other kids. He stood proud and tall as they made some joke about him being a porn star and told them, in front of the school assembly to `eat shit, fuck off and die'." He got a week's suspension for that and another week of grounding by me. He would stay inside his room except for meals and not come out. I took his radio, television and phone cable off his computer. He threw a fit and I let him fuss and fume until dinner when we sat down.

"Gregory, I know what you mean. They pushed you too far and you got mad."

"So if they were wrong, why am I being grounded?"

"Because, your better than that. You are too smart to come up with some lame reply like that to them. It is sinking to their level and I wont have you becoming what they are."

"What could I do?!"

"I know you wanted to punch them in the nose, you didn't and I'm proud of that. But you have a vocabulary greater than most adults. Use it. You could have said exactly the same thing with different words."

"Like what?"

"Hmmm." I had to think. "You said `eat shit, fuck off and die'. How about you tell me?"

That was a mistake. We spent the next hour coming up with swear words and alternate, more socially acceptable, phrases. And laughing our asses off.

In the end he accepted his punishment, mostly because I would not let him out of it, and I went back to a form of exile once more.

Gregory almost relished his incarceration. He spent the entire first week naked and loving it. He would lay on the floor in front of his window sunning himself in the morning light while reading his books. Then he would do his homework and let me check it. He got far ahead of his class in his school work and relished going back to school.

The first day he handed in a pile of work and then stood in front of his class and apologized for using such vulgarity in their presence. He then passed out passes to the Gallery. Executive passes I got from the curator. They allowed the bearer as many guests as they wished, and entitled them to a free catalog of the images in my show. I had them dated for the weekend following Gregory's release from restriction. The passes had no indicator as to what the show was, just that it was a special showing specifically for them.

We grinned at each other as the gallery filled again with my son's classmates and their families. The Viewing area was pitch black.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you all for coming. As many of you know, my son arranged this show as an apology to his classmates for the use of some particularly ugly vulgarity." The seats before me were filled to capacity as I narrated my show. I altered it slightly and let the nudes of Gregory slip to the last as the show continued.

I felt a bit more satisfied with the crowds response as they were more impressed with my work than the critics were. A cute picture of my son feeding a squirrel received much higher praise than the `critics' gave.

The show continued to the Bear and our rescue. The response to the immense animal that adorned the wall was gratifying. I explained our purpose of the expedition and showed them the first in a new series of slides featuring the two eagles.

Then I got to the part I loved most.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Many of you are aware of the nature of the recent court case against me. I was accused of taking pornographic images of my son. Well the case was thrown out after the judge reviewed the entirety of my collection of photographs. I now present them here for you to view and make your own decision. Before I open the main gallery I will warn you some of them do contain images of my son in the nude. I urge you all to view them before making your minds up. The art of the nude has long been established as the highest form of art there is. In the past mostly people have sought to capture the beauty of the human form and I have done no less. None of my images are sexually explicit or suggestive in any way or form. I know that the majority of you have allowed your children to view nudes before. I know this because Gregory's class took a field trip last month to the museum of art history, which contains numerous works of art, including a large number of nudes. If what I understand is true, the whole class went save one or two children. If you do object to this then I wont be offended if you choose to leave at this time."

The audience rumbled with conversation as they talked among themselves. I notice no one left. "Then if that is decided. I will continue with the slide presentation then open the gallery floor."

The audience `oohed and ahhhed' as the slides of the elk shattered the darkness. Then the one of Gregory, still deep in the water, with the elk looking down on him came up and again the crowd voiced their amazement.

Silence fell as the image of Gregory stepping out of the water to feed the elk came up. Some children snickered and Gregory stood proudly by my side. Then the last slide went dark and the audience was enveloped in darkness. I had yet to show them Gregory in a picture that showed his privates.

"Now audience, this is proof that god does exist." The spotlight illuminated the full sized image of Gregory with him standing on the opposite side of the elk in the image.

It was greeted by total silence.

I walked to the front row and pointed to my son and the picture. "Tell me if that is in any way pornography." I challenged the audience.

"Mommy, I see his peepee!" One little girl, perhaps five, announced.

"Yes you do." I said as I knelt in front of her. "What else do you see?"

"Gregory."

"And?"

"A big moose!"

"Is it a good picture?"

"I like the moose!"

"Is there anything you don't like about it?"

"He's naked."

"Is that a bad thing?"

She glanced at her mommy who smiled at her. "I guess not."

I opened the gallery and let the people see what I had to show. Gregory stood by my side and smiled the whole time. Not many little boys have their entire class staring at their naked body.

Some people expressed their opinion that it was not good to take naked pictures of kids to me. Some were impressed with the images. Three families asked if I could do some of them in the nude. Gregory and I agreed to do them.

None were offended, all were polite, and best of all, no cops came to interrupt us this time.

The best thing to come out of it was that the teasing and ridicule my son endured was reduced significantly at school. Some of his school mates who were not in his class still teased him and he calmly ignored them. Soon their fun in trying to get him angry and in trouble again waned and they let him alone.

That night Gregory and I sat in the warm embrace of our bathtub and washed each other gently. We hadn't taken pleasures in one another at all since he came home. Both of us were simply swamped with our lives.

Gregory had joined swim and gymnastics teams. He had after school workouts four nights a week and I worked from the moment he was on the buss to the second he came through the front door.

"Dad, can we do it tonight?"

"You want to?" I ran a soapy hand over his chest as he lay back against mine.

"Yea. We haven't done it in a long time. I miss it."

"Have you been keeping up with your treatments?"

"Yes. I don't want to have my penis cut." "Good. We can play some then I think." My throbbing member rose up between his legs to brush his own pulsing tool.

We dried off and I carried him to the rug. I felt it appropriate that we do it on the beast that tried to tear us apart. I got out the baby oil and gave Gregory a full body massage as he groaned in pleasure under my ministrations. When I finally got to his penis, I slipped my slick hands over his tiny mound toward his boyhood and he moaned loudly in expectation.

The moment I took him in hand he shuddered and grunted as his pole pulsed in my huge hand.

"Did you 3;"

"Yea." He frowned.

"Don't worry lad. It happens. You got so hot in waiting it just happened. Now I can settle down and give you a nice long one." I stroked and petted his tool gently as he relaxed in my tender ministrations.

I brought his little body off three more times before he was satisfied and I let him tend to my own situation.

He oiled his hands up and gave me a massage in return for the one I gave him. He slid his whole body up and down mine as he ran his hands over my chest. "Your skinny now dad. Not like you were." I had lost far too much weight and now my bones stuck out from my chest.

"I know baby. Now things are back to normal, I can relax and get healthy again." I let him rub me all over as I did him. He didn't slick my pole up like I did his, he gently lifted the rigid meat off my abdomen and lowered his mouth to it greedily. I had to struggle to not shoot the second his tongue touched my head. Instead the moment I felt his mouth engulf the tip I blew my load inside his hungry orifice.

"You did it too dad!" He pointed out.

"I missed you so bad I didn't think I could wait this long, much less as long as I did."

"So now I get to take my time and do you good like you did me." He lowered his head and kissed my rod to attention again.

We took turns sucking and stoking each other until nearly midnight and poor Gregory passed out in my arms. He had at least six orgasms that night and I managed three.

I lay there watching him sleep in the night as the flames from the fire illuminated his perfect body. I slipped out and grabbed my camera and shot a full roll of film of my angel sleeping. He was an active sleeper and would roll over frequently when alone. When in my arms he slept like a stone, stock still and unmoving.

Come dawn he woke up to find me sitting over him stroking his soft rump and horny all over again. Without a word, he sucked my penis into his mouth and brought me off again. I returned the favor and we ate our breakfast in the nude.

The School year went on and I struggled to make each of Gregory's swim and gymnastics meets. He looked so good in his shorts or speedoes I couldn't stand it. I brought my camera to every event and recorded my son and his friends in detail. I found many parents wanting copies of the pictures for themselves and made a nice side business in selling the shots. DA. Shaw suddenly lost interest in me and my family. Apparently The mayor of the city was on the guest list for the second show and I didn't know it. She loved the whole thing, from the squirrels to the nudes. She got wind of Shaw's vendetta and interceded. He felt having her on his side was more useful than my conviction.

My agent was needling me to get a start on my next project and I had fun tormenting him. I referred to `artistic muse' and motivation. Like I didn't have enough of that sitting in my lap during the evening news?

Julia's spy's reported that Debby was happily spending her husbands money in Europe while he was in the middle east. I smiled at the thought of him dumping her in Italy. No money. No friends. A woman in Italy fighting a divorce from her powerful husband. I thoroughly expected a call from her the moment he threw her out.

Two days a week the grounds keeper or the pool guy would show up to tend the grounds. Twice a week a house keeper would come to care for the house. She was stunned by the images of Gregory I had hanging in my living room.

"How can you put your son on display like that? Doesn't he get embarrassed?"

"He suggested it. In fact, he had to convince me to put his picture in a show at a large gallery in town."

"Was that you I heard all that about?"

"Yup."

"My god. I thought, from the way the newspapers presented it, that you had made some sex pictures and were trying to pass them off as art."

"I leave that determination up to you." She decided that I wasn't the monster some made me out to be.

By the time summer broke and I had my son with me all day long, I had my interns trained enough to be confident that they could handle the printing process alone. I would make the original prints, give them the exposure notes and let them go. This left me the time to shoot Gregory in my leisure and deal with the business end of life.

The day finally came for us to fly to Melbourne.

Gregory checked and rechecked his suitcase ten times an hour. Mom was waiting patiently in the den. She worked at length with Gregory's teacher to come up with a study plan for him. Most kids still had a full summer off, but Gregory would only get three or four weeks between sessions. For the most part we would be gone the entire break and the first month of the coming session. Mom, was a retired teacher herself, so she knew her stuff.

Lou Anne and Thomas were talking with me in the office. I had given them the house keys and set up the guest bedrooms for them. They would live here and take care of the place while we were gone. They had full run of the studio and darkroom for their studies and I also left them enough work to keep them busy.

The cab pulled up and we were on our way around the world.

The End