Astarte Ch. 05

"She might hesitate, or suggest some other place, but she'd do it." He looked a bit embarrassed, confessing this to his mother.

"Prove it!" she demanded. "I need to see it happen, to make it all real for me. Please, Deon, do it, so I know this hasn't been some hallucination."

Deon looked at his mother, recognizing the signs of doubt and uncertainty. Her encounter with Astarte that afternoon conflicted with everything she knew as an engineer and scientist. Phenomena like the Egyptian goddess simply did not fit in her reality. To be confronted with an impossibility, even to someone as open as Kate, was disconcerting, to say the least. He raised his hand to catch Karen's eye.

She came to the booth, an expectant look on her face. "Karen, I'd like you to sit down with us, please." Karen glanced around the diner. "Astarte?"

"Don't worry, Gideon. Nobody will come in to disturb you," came the silvery voice in his head.

"Sit, Karen. If someone comes in, you can get up to serve them." The diner's owner joined her only customers in their booth. "Now, I want you to tell me and my mother the truth. Have you and I ever had sex before today?" Karen looked at him, shocked, shaking her head no. "Have you ever had sex with a customer, here in the diner?"

"What the hell is that to...no, never," she replied, suddenly compliant.

"Are you married, or in a relationship?"

"Widowed, ten years ago. No one steady. No sex in a couple of years. Don't meet many eligible, let alone attractive, men in this business."

"If I told you to get under the table and suck me off, what would you say?"

Karen turned to look at him like he was some sort of two headed slime monster. "I'd tell you to shut your filthy mouth and get your ass out of my diner. Is that all? I have work to do." She started to slide out of the booth.

"Karen, I want you to get under the table and suck me off."

Kate watched, fascinated, as the expression on Karen's face changed from disgust to a sort of dazed look. She was shocked when Karen looked under the booth and said, "There's not really enough room for me under there. Let's go to the ladies' room." She slid out of the booth and waited for Deon.

"Coming, Mom?" he asked as he slid out. He turned to Karen and continued, "After you get me hard, I want to screw you while you eat her, okay?" Karen responded by nodding and licking her lips.

"Deon, I'm not..."

"C'mon, Mom. You wanted to know if it was real. You need to see it in action."

Deon and his mother were sitting in the living room of the house in Hickory Heights. Kate was working on her third Johnny Walker and soda. "Shit, Deon! How can she be real? Everything I have studied and learned... everything! It all says she can't be real. First, she's fucking 3500 years old, trapped in some freakin' statue, which you just happen to rub the right way at the freakish right time. It just doesn't make any sense.

"And on top of all that, she has some kind of magical power. Magical power that isn't supposed to even exist. If she were real, I could accept the telepathy; that has sort of been demonstrated...

"What did she mean--Trust her?"

"I don't know. She's always saying it to me when she doesn't want to, or can't explain what she's going to do. A couple of times, when you seemed to refuse me pretty definitively, she'd just say trust her; she said she couldn't say more because I might be tempted to interfere and somehow change how things turned out in the future."

"Mmm, the whole time travel paradox sort of thing, in reverse. If you knew you were going to die of some disease for which there was a vaccine, you could take the vaccine and avoid the disease, supposedly avoiding death at that time. How would your continued existence affect the future?"

"Something like that. She said she can't change our fates, but there are things she can do to mitigate them. That may be what she means." Just then the phone rang. Deon went to answer it.

He returned in a minute. "That was Susie from the realtor's office. Apparently Mac is tied up with his client from this morning and can't meet with us today. She is going to put together a list of houses for us, and will show me around next week. I can choose three or four for us to look at when you get back."

"That's fine, Dee. I'm not in any shape to talk to anyone else right now, anyway. I think I need to lie down for a while. We can go out, or you can order us a pizza for dinner." She left the living room, with Deon's eyes following her as she made her way to his bedroom.

Kate sat at the conference table, impatiently tapping her fingers on her notes. Five of the seven people she was to train in the application of her latest hardware-software combination were present. The seven had been identified to her as the group from which the next corporate VP would be selected. All seven were senior managers, and, in smaller companies, would already have their VP appointments.

What Kate knew they didn't was that the VP of the smallest, but most profitable division, had revealed his decision to retire at the end of the next fiscal year, thirteen months in the future. Additionally, she was being asked to assess each of the seven for their ability to grasp and apply the management tools the software provided.

The training session was scheduled to begin at ten. It was quarter past. The lowest paid of these managers cost the company $150 an hour. Just as she was about to get up and lock the door, it opened and the two missing trainees entered the room, each with a cup of hot coffee and a donut on a paper plate. Kate looked down at her notes. "Harry Bonesteel and Richard Hardin. Is that correct?"

"That's us, honey. Wow! Gary didn't tell us about you, or we would have been here earlier," commented the larger of the two men.

Kate pointedly ignored the comment. "Okay, ladies and gentlemen, let's get started. We have a lot of material to cover, and not a lot of time. Normally, we would break after an hour to stretch your legs and relax your minds. Since we are starting late, we will have to forego that break.

"We will break for lunch at noon, to restart promptly at one. I will warn you now; at one o'clock, the door to this room will be locked. I am sure those who attend will be willing to share the information we cover. After all, you are all after the same promotion, right?"

"Now, now, little missie, there's no need..."

"Apparently there is, Mr. Bonesteel. You kept your colleagues and me waiting for a quarter of an hour, and you are continuing to hold up this training. Either sit down and pay attention or leave." Kate's voice was as hard and cold as polar ice.

Harry Bonesteel's face turned crimson. Both embarrassed and angry at being chastised in front of his peers and competition, he was on the edge of exploding. Looking for support, he glanced at the other men in the room and saw only smothered mirth or faces turned to avoid his look. Without another word, he sat, cursing Kate under his breath.

Kate started her presentation with no further notice. The other future executives quickly grabbed pens and notebooks and began taking notes. Harry sat back in his chair and watched the attractive blonde as she prepared his fellow managers to use her new software to compete in the global economy. For the next hour and forty five minutes, she engaged her audience in a give and take presentation showing them how to apply and adapt her work and methods to their unique situation.

Just before noon she said, "we'll break for lunch now. Go take some time to decompress. Try not to think about what we covered this morning. Have some lunch and take a walk. I will remind you, I'm locking the door at one sharp. That is the company's rule, not mine, but I agree with it.

"Mr. Bonesteel, may I have a word with you?"

When the others had cleared the room, Kate looked at the large man. Harry was an inch or so over six feet tall, and weighed close to 225 pounds. He prided himself on being the same weight as when he played linebacker in college. Unfortunately, now, fifteen years later, the muscles were soft, flabby with fat.

Kate glanced down at her notes. "Harry Bonesteel, age 37, married, 2 daughters, BS Mechanical Engineering, MBA, Senior Manager at 30, one of youngest in company history. Currently manages new product development in bio-mechanical engineering division.

"Obviously, you are not a stupid man, Mr. Bonesteel. Stop acting like one. Come back this afternoon ready to engage yourself in this process, or don't come back. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Dr. Davies," he replied, emphasizing the word 'doctor' so it sounded like a sneer. Kate flushed with anger, but bit her tongue.

"That's all. I would advise you to be on time. The user agreements for all my software allows me to limit, for any reason, with no need to justify it, who has access to computers using any of my software. At the moment, there is not an operating system out there which doesn't rely on software I have designed. Think about it."

"Big Whoop! How do expect to be able to enforce that? Computers are everywhere today."

"I don't have to. If I should decide to exclude you from using my software, a notice would be generated which would appear on every mainframe, PC, and laptop in the world. Any company you might be working for would be informed that if they allow you access to any of their computers using any of my software, their licenses will be immediately revoked and my software disabled, essentially shutting down their business. Just the threat of that happening would be enough. You could still work for them; just without computer access."

"Don't get mad, get even, huh?" he replied, his face expressionless.

Kate smiled, everywhere but her eyes. It was not a smile you'd want to see in an opponent. "Something like that. Have a good lunch Mr. Bonesteel."

Everyone was in their seats by five of one. Kate locked the door and started. "This afternoon, you will be brainstorming, suggesting applications and adaptations of the material covered this morning to your individual and peculiar situations. Each of you will be given a half hour to present a problem and lead the discussion, getting input from your peers. Through the week you will be given opportunities to review, work on and implement ideas generated today.

"Take ten minutes now to generate a list of up to five problem areas where you want help or think this new system might be of help."

As soon as the discussions got started and his peers began contributing, Harry felt like he was shut out of the group. His refusal to attend to the material in the morning made it impossible for him to contribute any thing of substance.

Kate monitored the contributions of the individuals in the group. Each time Harry opened his mouth she hoped something good would come out, but knew it was hopeless. She was not surprised when he lingered during the break.

"I,uh,mmm, I have something I have to take care of this afternoon, some family stuff. I'll see you in the morning."

"If you say so, Mr. Bonesteel. Door's locked at ten. Don't forget." Kate felt the same sensation in her head she had when Astarte addressed her in the museum, but instead of Astarte talking, there was a sense of foreboding.

The next morning, at five after ten, Kate sighed and looked at Harry's empty chair. Turning to one of the men at the conference table, she asked, "Greg, would you lock the door please?"

Greg had just sat down when there was a pounding on the door. Kate went to the intercom. "Mr Bonesteel?"

"You know it is. Let me in."

"I'm sorry, Mr Bonesteel, Harry. We waited until five after for you. If you want, you can join us this afternoon. We'll be discussing yesterday's output."

"Bitch," he hissed. "You know that won't do me any good without this morning's material."

"Frankly, Harry, based on what I saw yesterday afternoon, this morning's material won't make a lot of sense to you either, because of your refusal to engage yesterday morning. I really am sorry. I have to go now," and she clicked off the speaker.

Kate began her presentation as she headed away from the intercom. Behind her, she heard a loud thump as something hit the door. Outside, Harry Bonesteel was standing with his head against the door, livid with rage. He was muttering to himself, barely audible, "That fucking cunt. What right does that bitch have to keep me out of her fucking precious class. The fucking bitch! Probably gay as a five year old's birthday party, or an old maid, with a cunt as dry as the desert. Bitch! If I had her here, I'd show her! Shove my meat so far up her ass, she'd think she had a sausage sandwich in her cocksucking mouth. That's probably all she's good for, with her sandpaper cunt."

He slammed the door once more with his fist, startling the people inside the room. Walking away, Harry began to consider the effects on his career of being closed out of the in-service training. He realized he had royally buggered himself by blowing off the previous day's training. Without it, he had removed himself from contention for the VP seat he had been working toward.

"Fucking whore bitchcunt!" he swore to himself, blaming Kate for his situation. "She should have made me participate. Just 'cause I called her honey, she got a burr up her twat and got mad at me. She wanted me out of there. That Bitch! I'll get her. And when I do, it'll be fuck city for her."

Kate dismissed the class at four forty that afternoon. Dick Hardin lingered after the others had gone. "Dr. Davies, Kate, be careful about Harry. He has an awful temper, and has been known to take offense at trivial things. He also has a get even hard mentality sometimes."

"Get even hard?"

"One time in college, during a home game, an ump called a penalty on Harry that set up the winning touchdown for the other team. The next time we played at home, the ump was working the game. During an early play, seemingly by accident, Harry ran into the ump and broke four of his ribs. He got removed from the game, but maintained it was an accident and was back on the field the next week. So, just be careful."

"Thanks, Dick, I will."

Kate finished packing up her bag , loaded it on her stewardess' trolley, and walked to the front entrance of the building. Looking through the sign in sheets for the day, she shook her head and laughed. "How do you keep track of all these people?" she asked the security person.

"Sometimes," he laughed, "we don't, but folks are pretty good about signing in and out. You have a good day, now." When she was done, he picked up his clock, saying, "Well, time for my first round. Gotta shoo out all the late stayers. Got word the cleaning crew is putting in some extra time tonight and needs the building empty."

"Good night," she said, with a smile.

The guard's first stop was at a station directly in line with the front door, at the end of a short corridor. As he inserted the key to record the stop, he glanced at the front entrance and saw Harry Bonesteel leaving the building, just about 30 seconds after Kate left.

He shook his head. While he didn't especially like Harry, he also didn't actively dislike him. He though Harry was a bit of a womanizing ass, talking down to every one, especially the women who worked in his department . His sister-in-law had once worked there. She said Harry had a problem keeping his hands to himself; consequently, there was a huge turnover in the female staff.

When Kate exited the building, there was a 1970 powder blue T-Bird waiting in the passenger pick-up zone at the end of the sidewalk. She saw it was Dick Hardin at the wheel and stopped to admire the car. "My husband had one of these when I met him," she told him. "I think it was part of the reason I married him," she added, laughing.

Looking past her, Dick saw Harry start running down the walk, toward the car. "Kate, you better leave, now!" he said, alarmed.

"Wha..." she said, just as she felt two sharp blows, just above her waist, on each side. Suddenly, she lost her ability to take a deep breath and to talk. Harry jerked open the rear suicide door and pushed her into the car, face down on the back seat.

"Get that little trolley of hers" Harry ordered Dick. "We don't want to leave any sign something happened to her.

"You, cunt, just behave, and nothing too bad will happen to you."

Kate felt more than heard Astarte talking to her. "Kathryn, you must trust me now. Your life depends on it. Relax and submit. Stronger powers than mine have put this in play. I cannot cancel what is about to happen to you, but if you listen and do as I suggest, I can diminish the effects so that you are not seriously injured." Mentally, Kate sighed, knowing what was to come, and nodded.

"Harry! Have you lost your fucking mind? What the hell are you up to?"

"Shut the fuck up, Dick! Get that trolley and get in the car and drive. By the time we get where we're going, she'll be beggin' for it."

"For what? You're planning on raping her? You know what that'll mean?"

"It'll be our word against hers. Now get moving. Take us up to the bluffs."

Dick heard Harry''s zipper. "Shit, Harry, if you can't wait, at least leave her skirt on. I don't want any cum or pussy juice stains on those leather seats."

"Christ, Dick, what kind of wuss are you. Here we got the juiciest cunt you've ever had and you're worried about some stains. 'Sides, I ain't gonna fuck her yet; just showing her what she's got to look forward to."

Dick took a chance and glanced in the back seat and almost laughed out loud. Harry was sitting with Kate's head in his lap, his six-inch erection pointing at her face. What was comical was that Harry's dick wasn't much thicker than Dick's thumb. "Guess what they say is true," he thought, "big and tall doesn't mean not small.'

In the back seat, Harry's hand found its way up Kate's skirt and under the front gusset of her panties. He grabbed them by the crotch and pulled them down her legs with a quick jerk. When they were off, he ran his hand back up her legs, tickling them on the way. He looked down at her face. Her eyes were closed; her jaw, set; her expression, grim but resigned. He pulled her face to his cock so her lips were touching it. Her mouth and eyes stayed closed, eliciting an evil laugh from Harry.

"That's okay, bitch. Before this night is over, you'll have eaten a mile of my ramrod and drunk a gallon of what comes out of it." He didn't see the small smile she made in answer.

By this time, they were away from the city traffic and started on the road up to the area referred to as the bluffs. On the other side of the river from the town, rising from the river bank, like a set of steps going up to the top, was a series of cliffs, just short of a half mile at the highest point, Harry's destination. It was a ten-mile drive from the city line to get there. With traffic and road conditions, it took them nearly a half hour.

As soon as they were clear of the city and traffic, Harry reversed Kate's position and pushed her skirt up to her waist. Positioning himself between her knees, he focused on her face. She maintained the same grim expression, but made no attempt to struggle or resist. He spit in his hand and lubed up his cockhead with it, then ran it up and down her slit. Neither her expression nor her demeanor changed. He shoved his cock in her. About half of his staff made it in the first try. Except for a wince of pain, there was no response.

"You fucking bitch," he growled, "I'll make you..."

"Harry, we're almost to the top; where do you want to go?"

"I don't give a f...go to the Marina park," he ordered, referring to a clearing across from the largest marina in the area. "And now, you, bitch!" he rumbled, and began slamming his hips into hers.

The anger, the hate-lust, the knowledge that he had his nemesis vulnerable, under him, all combined to fuel his excitement. It took Dick two minutes to get to the Marina park. Harry was done and pulled out by then.