Title : Night Life
Author: YS McCool
Rating: PG-13
Date  : 7 August 1998
Series: Upgrade # 21
Warnings: Adult themes

Disclaimer: I do not own The Sentinel characters, nor do I
make a claim on them.  Established characters are the
property of Pet Fly Productions.  Original characters are
the sole property of the author.


                          Upgrade # 21
                           Night Life
                          By YS McCool


Jim reached over and stroked his wife's face.  Their two-
week honeymoon on Orion had gone by so fast.  "Did I tell
you how much I love you today?" he asked softly.

"Only twice, so I'm four short," Claudia replied, after a
slow smile.

Jim placed his vehicle, Rodeo, onto augmented flight.  He
pulled his wife into his arms and pressed her close.  "I
love you, Darling.  I love you so much."  They kissed.  

Claudia traced the lower lip of her husband with her thumb. 
"Are you alright?"

He kissed the top of his wife's head.  "Just missing our
house on the lake, the quiet, and having you *all* to
myself."

"I know what you mean."  She kissed his throat.  "Why don't
we plan to go there for our vacation?"

Jim brightened.  "You mean it?"

"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't."  She nudged him
playfully.

Ellison took control of his vehicle and entered an approach
flight to Cascade.  He was bringing his bride "home".  It
was a wonderful feeling.  "I thought that you would want to
go somewhere *civilized* and be pampered."

"That would be nice, but Orion is good for you and for us. 
I've never felt closer to you."  She tapped her head.  "My
psi talent is small, but since we married, it has really
grown."

Ellison nodded.  "Blair said that you could become my
secondary guide."

She shook her head.  "I would never want to try to come
between the two of you in that area."

Jim was solemn.  "You can't.  I don't know if I can explain
it, but you can't.  But there will be times that you may
need to reach me, and Blair may not be available."

She cleared her throat.  "Like our honeymoon night."

"That was not an overload," Jim said indignantly.  "At least
not a standard one."

Claudia laughed.  "I was *not* looking forward to calling
Blair and explaining the situation."

Jim snickered.  "Sandburg wouldn't have been embarrassed.  
He might have driven you insane with demands for a
*scientific* evaluation of our... predicament."

Claudia howled.  "My vocabulary would have been stretched to
the limit."

"So was I."  They laughed together.  It took them several
minutes to calm down.

Jim brought the car into an approach of their neighborhood. 
The vehicle, the same model as Blair flew, had been a
present from his new in-laws.  It was the first true car he
had ever owned.  It landed softly and silently in his
designated parking spot.

"There are a lot of excited heartbeats in the house," Jim
reported, as he exited the vehicle.

"Must be a welcome home party.  Pretend to be surprised." 
Claudia struggled her case out of the trunk.  "I had no idea
that I was packing ore samples."

Jim grabbed the luggage and left his wife to carry only her
tote bag.  "Let me, Love."

Doctor Ellison placed the strap of her tote bag over her
shoulder and walked toward the side door.  "I keep
forgetting I have a big, buff husband to handle all those
heavy things."

Jim followed.  "I also hold doors, open jars, hog the
covers, snore, and whine for pampering."

Claudia stopped with the doorknob in her grip.  She gave her
husband a look of consternation.  "Blair has spoiled you
rotten."

Jim grinned.  "Yeah, and he's not through with me yet."

They entered the house and found themselves the center of a
little party.

"What did you bring me?  What did you bring me?" Blair
clamored.

"Are you ever going to let me live that down?" Jim asked
tiredly.  

Sandburg had returned from a trip to Camelot just before
Maxine's wedding and Ellison had just *known* that Blair had
found something wonderful in the big market they had there. 
He had made a fool of himself, but it was worth it.  His
shaman had showered him with gifts for his furniture
restoration sideline.

"No."  Sandburg grinned wickedly.  "I just had to do it
once."

Jim pretended to search for slovenly relatives underneath
the furniture.  "I see you finally got all the family out of
the house.  There's not a scrap of tartan to be seen."

"Almost," Steve said.  "I'm still here."

Jim hugged his little brother and fake growled while Steven
kissed Claudia.  "Spending the night?"

"More like a couple of weeks.  I sold my old house and
bought the Dharma place, which is just two blocks over from
you."

"That's great," Jim said.  "It'll be wonderful having you so
close."  Really wonderful.  Steven had blossomed under the
attention of Jim's new family.

"I think so, but there is a residence gap between my new
house and the old one," Steve explained.  "I was going to
stay at a hotel, but Blair quivered his chin and that was
the end of that."  He shuddered.

"It was a blatant show of 'non love' on his part," Sandburg
asserted.  "He hurt my feelings."  Blair gave Jim just a
little hint of chin quiver.  It was almost too much.

"How do you resist him?" Steven asked his elder brother.

"I don't," Jim confessed.

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


"The design is quite pretty," Med-Tech Tanya Eastwood
insisted.

"Tea length, burgundy taffeta, with full skirts over
petticoats, and me wearing heels," Technical Supervisor
Merry Flynn complained.  "If I fall, I'm calling an
advocate."

"It's Shelly's wedding, and if she wants her bridesmaids to
dress that way, then that's the way it is."  Blair patted
the technician's shoulder.

"Meanwhile, I'm getting *no* work out of her," Merry
complained.  "Matthew calls every few minutes.  His mother
calls more often than that.  Her mother has moved to Cascade
for the duration.  Total strangers are begging for
invitations."

Sandburg sighed.  "Merry, Cynthia has one child, Matthew. 
She has been planning his wedding since he was in the womb."

Flynn glanced at the picture of herself and Doctor Franklin
Sandburg that now decorated her terminal when it was not in
use.  "I hope Frank doesn't have the big wedding bug, too."

Blair smiled.  "Oh, really?  Don't tell me that Miss 'Love
them and leave them' Flynn is finally ready to settle down."

Merry tilted her chin defiantly.  "Mother always wanted me
to marry a doctor," she explained to her sadly unmoved
audience.

Tanya wasn't buying the act.  "You've dated doctors before."

Merry grinned.  "Maybe mother always wanted me to marry a
Sandburg?"

Blair laughed.  "Why didn't you ever say anything?"  He
slipped his arm around her shoulders.  "I never thought I
stood a chance with you."  He shook his head sadly.  "The
plans I could have made," he lamented.  Tanya patted him in
support of his broken heart.

Flynn sighed.  "You're such a flirt."

"I try to be good."  He batted his lashes.

Merry nudged Sandburg.  "Back to work, Romeo.  I have no
intention of having Jet shoot me in the thigh."

Eastwood laughed.  "It would be one of those wounds that
hurt a lot, bled more, and are hard to close.  Jet is a
Martian, and they take that kind of playing around *very*
seriously."

"I wouldn't have her any other way, because I would be just
as bad," Blair said.  He bent back over the strength
augmentation chip that had been removed from the recently
and violently deceased.  They had to testify that morning in
an extradition hearing for the survivors of the shootout and
arrest.  Time was short.  

"Try pathways, XXY444 to 580AHD," Merry suggested.

"I'm getting feedback," Tanya reported.

Flynn reduced power and switched grids.  The chip continued
to be stubborn.  "Narrowing pathways to XXY444 to 114AAB."

"That's too narrow," Eastwood interrupted.  "It needs to be
reaching at *least* 204HIW to modify hormone levels."

"I'd like to take the inventor behind a barn and whip them,"
Merry said as she widened the grid again.

The readings reached into the overload levels.  "It must be
a security protocol of some kind."  Tanya checked the
medical robot that was substituting for the human being who
would have been implanted.  "I detect no increase in
strength, pain reduction, or healing."

Sandburg pushed his hair out of his eyes.  "We're not licked
yet.  They would want these things to be repairable."  He
pulled out a low-level chip probe and pressed it against the
"patient's" head.  "Decrease power to the simulators," Blair
ordered.  "It's working."  The trio watched the diagnostic
equipment reveal the chip's secrets.

"What I want to know is where are they going to find all the
flowers that she's demanding?" Merry asked, continuing on
her earlier good-natured rant.  Flynn began adding notes to
the diagnostic readouts.  Her technical testimony had to
stand up to whatever expert the defendants put up to
question her as well as be easy enough for the jury to
understand.  "The church will be choked with them.  Everyone
in the official wedding party will be either wearing or
carrying them.  The wedding dinner, rehearsal dinner, and
engagement ball will all require mounds of flowers.  The
bees will go on strike."

"They better stay away from *my* garden," Blair warned. 
"Matthew is filthy rich, and he can afford off-world
blossoms."  He tapped in a sequence to record their medical
findings.  "It hasn't recovered from Jim's wedding yet."

"Did they pick that many flowers?" Tanya asked.  Eastwood
added the data collected to the medical and technical
databases.  Part of her job was keeping the law enforcement
community updated on the latest street intelligence.

"It wasn't the picking, it was the trampling from all the
guests at the reception."  He sighed.  "I still want to know
who told all those RO's that dress armor, complete with
armored boots, was appropriate wear for a wedding."

"They wore it at Maxine's bash, too," Tanya recalled.  "I,
however, blew two week's salary on a gown."

"And you were gorgeous," Blair declared and not for the
first time.

"And they would have worn dress armor at Simon's wedding if
he and Helaine hadn't decided to elope," Merry mused.

"Well, they better not wear it at mine."  Blair crossed his
arms.  "I think we can make it official.  Do I have any
dissension?"

"No," Merry and Tanya said in unison.

"Okay, people, we have a new chip on the streets.  Designate
this chip as B7HH, strength enhancement chip, code name 'Mr.
Universe.'"

Shelly Vinson breezed into the office with an enormous
sample book under her arm.  "You guys are here awful early,"
she remarked.

"We have a new chip on the street," Flynn reported.

Vinson dropped her burdens on her desk, and opened her
terminal.  She had sixteen messages from her intended,
Matthew Rosenberg.  "That's all we need," Shelly complained.

"What's the sample book for?" Tanya asked.

"Flooring.  Matthew and I have bought a house."  She opened
the book to the carpet section.  The samples were plush in
texture, subtle in color, and, no doubt, *very* expensive.

"Really?" Merry asked excitedly.  "Where is it?"

"Lazy Creek.  It's a two story Greek Revival sitting on four
hectares.  It's a vineyard and winery.  It even has olive
trees, antique roses, and apple trees."

"Goodness, prepare me a guestroom.  When do we get to see
it?" Tanya asked.

"Not for a while.  It's a mess.  The house is sound, but the
previous owners had somewhat bizarre tastes in decorations. 
There was a misguided attempt to 'modernize' it, but the
bones of the place are excellent."

"Congratulations," Blair said.  "Let's get our evidence
together, we have less than an hour to make it to court."

"Can't these criminals see that I have a wedding to plan and
a new house to redecorate?" Shelly complained.

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Steve Ellison turned away from his terminal and contemplated
going home, or at least where he was staying for the next
two weeks.  He sighed.  At thirty-seven he was a multi-
billionaire, reasonably attractive, pleasant, intelligent,
and so lonely his teeth ached.  The funny part was he hadn't
a clue he was lonely until he moved in with Blair, Jim, and
Claudia.

He was immediately immersed in the lovefest that was their
home.  Hugs, reassuring caresses, and general love pats
abound.  Steve couldn't make it through the day without
being hugged and/or kissed by somebody.

Just the previous evening, before Jim and Blair had raced
out to save the city from whatever it was, the two couples
had snuggled down in front of the fire, feeding one another
and just enjoying each other's company.  When Jim and Blair
had left, Jet and Claudia stayed in front of the fire.  They
worked on the upcoming Jet-Blair wedding, turning one of the
third-floor bedrooms into an office for the pediatrician,
and just talking.  Three years ago, they hadn't known the
other existed, now they were as close as sisters.

Steve had resisted their invitation to share the rug and
fire with them... for a while.  Afterwards he lay between
the two ladies, chatting and having a ball.  Then Jim and
Blair came home and reclaimed their rightful places.  He
could have stayed on the floor with the four of them, but he
felt so out of place.  Both Jim and Blair were nude and
purring from the massages their ladies were giving them, and
Steven, no fool, could tell where that was leading.

The businessman turned back to the screen.  "Come to The
Nightowl."  The invitation asked.  He had heard of the
Nightowl and was flattered that he had finally reached the
financial strata that such an invitation indicated.

"Making even the dreams you didn't know you had come true,"
the brochure promised.  Whatever he wanted.  What *did* he
want?

He leaned back in his chair and thought.  For the first time
in his life, he realized that he was envious of his brother. 
Steve wanted what Jim had.  His brother was wrapped tight in
a cocoon of love and caring.  All Steve had was wealth,
power, and loneliness.

Who was he fooling?  He hadn't bought that house in Jim's
neighborhood because it was a good bargain.  He had
purchased it so that he could sit at the table that hosted
his brother's banquet and taste the crumbs.  It was so
pathetic.

He made a reservation.

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


"Not staying for dinner?" Claudia asked.  "I'm making lamb
chops."

"No," Steve responded as he adjusted his jacket.  "I'm going
out this evening."

"Where to?" the doctor asked as she leaned closer.  "I'm
asking strictly as a nosy sister-in-law."

Steve smiled.  He adored this woman.  "It's an exclusive
club called The Nightowl, a place of adult-style
entertainment."  He kissed her cheek.  "Don't wait up."  He
wiggled his brows.

"Sounds interesting."  She smoothed her brother-in-law's
lapels.

"That's what I heard, but I've never been before because
it's a private club."  Ellison smoothed his hair.

"Do you have your datapad with you?"  She checked his
pocket.

"Of course.  Crisis is this family's middle name."  He
headed out in his private car.


The club was in the center of downtown in what had once been
a federal building for an agency whose function no one could
remember.

He was greeted at the door by a pleasant young man who took
his ID and after the briefest delay, he was whisked in.

The place was gorgeous.  The sound of babbling water from a
freshwater waterfall, which dominated one wall, spoke of a
great deal of wealth.  He had fountains in some of his
buildings, but they were always saltwater.

A woman of obvious breeding and sophistication, dressed in a
New Rome style white toga, approached him.  She was of
medium height, with thick, long dark auburn hair and hazel
eyes.  "Welcome, Steven, we despaired of you ever coming to
visit."
                    
Ellison smiled at the elegant and lovely woman.  "I had
other priorities."

She put an arm through his.  "Of course, you did.  Now,
you've come here for yourself.  My name is Miss Kay.  This
is my place."  She led him to a table and presented him a
menu and wine list.  The manager swept away to greet other
guests.

The wine list alone had him in orbit, but after making his
choice, Steven found that he was no longer alone at his
table.

The other man was tall, but still shorter than Steve's 6'2,
muscular but still lean, with red curly hair, blue eyes,
dimples, and a wicked smile.  "You don't want to waste your
time here," he said in a husky voice.

Steve blinked, unsure of what the other man was talking
about.  "I don't?"

"No."  He leaned forward.  "Despite their beautifully worded
advertisements, they won't give you what you want."

Ah, a hustle of some sort.  Things fell into place.  "And
what is that?" Steve asked suspiciously.

"Me," he said confidently.  "Max Ryan, your dream man."

That was definitely not what he had been expecting.  Ellison
was flattered. The guy had to be about 25 or so, more than
ten years younger than himself.   He was gorgeous, but not
what Steve was looking for.  "Thanks, Max.  The name is
Steve, but, honestly, that's a road I've never taken."

"A virgin?  I *love* virgins."  He smiled, showing even more
dimple.  "Maybe I can run a few unicorns through the room to
test you."

The guy was probably a lot of fun to party with, but he was
really starting to embarrass Steven.  "I don't think Miss
Kay would appreciate the damage to her marble floors."

Ryan chuckled.  "I could afford it."

"I'm sure you could."  To just be sitting at the table
guaranteed that the other man was at *least* a multi-
millionaire.

"Prince Halifax, how wonderful that you have graced us with
your presence," Miss Kay said in a steely tone.  "Please
allow Beryl to escort you to your private room."

Beryl was a delicate looking woman with short curly blonde
hair, large blue eyes, and a wide mouth.  She all but lifted
Ryan out of his seat.

"Take it easy, you brute," Max hissed.  "We'll meet again,
Steven."

"Not in my place," Miss Kay assured the man.   She watched
him go.

"Prince Halifax?" Steven inquired.

"Riverworld," Miss Kay clarified, lest Steven think the
man's royal title was worth more than a few extra keystrokes
on a datapad.  "Normally, he doesn't make trouble, but he's
had more than his share of drink tonight, and I didn't want
him to become a nuisance."  The manager patted Steve's arm
in a reassuring manner.

Ellison looked at the rapidly retreating Ryan.  "Why did he
introduce himself as Max Ryan?"

Miss Kay smiled.  It was a professional smile that probably
meant that Ryan was a good customer, but not necessarily a
good person.  Especially, after having "more than his share
of drink."  Ellison could relate to that.  "That's his name. 
Prince Halifax is a title."

"Ah."  Riverworld "titles" were usually won in blood.  If
not by Max, then by his parents or grandparents.  More than
three generations of holding a title was unheard of on
Riverworld.

She sat down at his table.  "Mr. Ellison, do you know what
you want?" Miss Kay asked softly.

Steve thought about the question.  "That's what I've been
asking myself."

The manager waved her hand around the room.  "What The
Nightowl can offer is discretion and opportunity.  Everyone
you see is roughly equal to you financially.  Though some
are more equal than others."  She smiled, a genuine smile
this time.  "Here, you don't have to be guarded.  Relax and
take the opportunities that present themselves."  She
indicated two ladies sitting together.  One was a little
younger than himself, and the second perhaps a little older. 
They were both stunning dark-haired, dark-eyed, full-lipped
lovelies.  "You've drawn some admirers.  Would you like to
join them for dinner?"

Ellison felt a wonderful flutter in his stomach as both
ladies smiled at him.  "I'd like that very much."

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Steven stepped out of the Nightowl--happy, relaxed, and
sated.   Karen and her lady Genevieve had worn him out.  
Too bad they weren't looking for anything permanent.  He
sighed.  After years of avoiding anything that had the
*potential* to become permanent, here he was lamenting about
someone treating him that way.

"Hello, Steve.  Remember me?"  Max stepped out of his car.

Ellison was still floating on good feelings.  "Hi.  I'm just
heading home, Max."  He didn't have much stamina left and
was counting on his car to get him home safely before he
fell asleep.

Ryan stepped up beside the businessman.  "The night is
young, and so am I."

Ellison laughed.  "Perhaps too young.  I have less than five
hours to get some sleep.  To tell you the truth, I'm going
to need every minute it."

Max placed his hand on Steven's shoulder.  "All work and no
play makes Stevie a very dull boy.  Let me take you back to
my place and rid you of that social stigma of virginity."

"I thought I was determined."  Ellison sighed.  "Look, Max,
I'm not saying that I'm not flattered.  I am.  But it's not
going to happen.  I may not know what I'm looking for, but I
do know what I'm *not* looking for.  Being with a man is not
who I am.  Sorry."  Steve headed toward the car.

"Do you know who I am?" Ryan asked, with steel in his voice.

Steven touched his panic button.  "You're the man I'm
walking away from."

Ryan attacked.  He was younger, a whole lot stronger, but
not as well trained.  Ellison held his own for a bit.  

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Jim heard the panic signal from his brother and bolted out
of bed.  He managed not to dump his wife on the floor, even
though she had been lying on top of him.

"Computer, locate Steven Ellison's signal source."

"14001 Goldwater Blvd," the computer reported.

Jim frowned.  "Downtown?  What's he doing downtown?"

"He went to a private club called The Nightowl," Claudia
reported sleepily.

"He hasn't reset, so it's serious."  He went into Blair's
room to find that the couple was already up and dressing.

"Where is he?" Jet asked as she covered her magnificent
figure with one of Blair's plaid shirts.

"A private club call The Nightowl," Jim reported.  "I've
never heard of it."  He stepped out of the way so Jet could
pass him.

Blair paused in his dressing.  "The Nightowl has a very good
reputation and top security.  So this must have happened
outside the building."

"Computer, has the location of the Steven Ellison signal
changed?" Jet asked.

"Elevation has changed, otherwise the signal remains
stationary," the computer reported.

"That means he's inside the building.  What do you know
about this place?" Jim asked Blair.

"It's a private club, one of four owned by Kay Winfrey, that
caters to the extremely rich.  They provide the space and
essentials for sexual encounters."

"Are you a member?" Jet asked.  If Jim had expected some
censure on Preston's part, he was disappointed.  But, then
again, this was a part of Blair's past, not his present or
future.

"No, but I've been invited."  Sandburg's handsome face took
on that look that meant he was having a "big think".

"Will we have any trouble getting in?" Jim asked.  Such
concentration on his shaman's part meant trouble.  He just
didn't know how much trouble.

"Big trouble," Sandburg reported.  "By the time we have the
legal pressure to get past their security, it might be too
late."

"What's your plan?" Jet asked, her voice full of confidence
in her betrothed.  

"We go in as two couples.  That won't raise any eyebrows. 
Jet, pick something tight and naughty to wear and have
Claudia do the same.  You two will be one couple, and Jim
and I will be the other."

"Okay," Jet responded, before she left the room.  Jim
blessed the fates that had placed Blair's heart in the hands
of such a sturdy and adaptable woman.  He hated to think
what a "high society" woman would have made of that request.

"Did you unpack those clothes Mario gave you?" Blair asked,
breaking into Ellison's thoughts.

Jim shook himself.  His brother was in trouble and the
Sentinel couldn't let him down.  Clothes?  What Mario had
given him at his bachelor party hardly qualified for the
word 'clothes'.  "I was only planning to let Claudia see me
dressed like that.  I would be less conspicuous nude."  He
blushed as he remembered the catcalls and propositions he
had received when he held up those wicked garments during
his bachelor bacchanal.

Blair smiled.  "I know.  Now, go put some of it on.  If you
have any trouble visualizing your look, imagine that you are
the plaything of a very wealthy and exacting man."  He
tapped himself.

Jim frowned.  "I would *hope* you would treat me better than
that, Chief," he said indignantly.

Sandburg rolled his eyes.  "Of course I would, Jim, but the
idea is for you and Jet to look *harmless*.  If you look
suspicious, they will do a full security sweep of the two of
you, and we'll never get in."

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Blair placed his hand on Jim's firm butt and propelled him
toward the door.  "Come on, Love.  Don't force me to be
stern with you."

"Yes, dear," Ellison replied meekly.  The big man batted his
lashes.

The doorman, who must have been used to seeing a lot, stared
open-mouthed at Jim's naughtier-than-bare outfit.  The shirt
was green and clung like skin to his impressive physique. 
His left breast was bare and sported a jeweled nipple cover. 
Ellison's pants were gauzy, layered, green, and left little
to the imagination.  His feet were encased in delicate
sandals that were clear and showed off his feet.  The shoes
made him look barefoot without Jim having to walk across the
cold parking lot without shoes.

The nipple cover actually belonged to Claudia, and Blair had
been surprised that his normally somewhat conservative
cousin owned such a naughty little bauble.  He was afraid
that Jim's nipple would have been too sensitive to wear such
a thing, but the nipple cover was padded with a soft gel. 
Ellison said that it was actually quite comfortable.

"May I help you?" the doorman inquired, never really taking
his eyes off Jim.  Ellison was brushing back his hair, which
had been teased to within an inch of its life, while
dripping "kept and expensive" signs at the doorman.

Blair placed his ID in the reader.  "This is my lover."  He
nodded toward Jim.  "My kinswoman and her lover."  He nodded
toward Claudia and Jet.  Claudia was wearing a dark blue
silk jumpsuit, opened wide on the sides from her armpits to
her ankles and crisscrossed with tiny leather straps. 
Again, Blair had no idea what his cousin had in her closet.  

Jet's outfit was a dark purple silk and satin harem outfit
that he had purchased for her for Chanukah.  "You don't need
their identification."  It wouldn't do for the man to
realize that despite their attire, he was letting two RO
enter the club.

"I'm afraid--" the doorman's speech was interrupted by the
placing of a one thousand credit note into his hand.  He
probably had never seen one before.  He swallowed.  He
glanced down at his reader, and his eyebrow rose.  "Please
enter and enjoy, Doctor Sandburg.  The Nightowl is honored
to host such a luminary."  The two couples entered the
exclusive club.  

"Lord, you can almost smell the money," Jet remarked.

"That's not all I can smell," Jim complained.

Claudia opened her compact, checked her face, and scanned
for Steven's signal.  "Upstairs, sixteen floors," she
reported.  Overlaid on the mirror of the compact was an
outline of the building and a glowing red dot that indicated
where Steve's signal was coming from.

"Doctor Sandburg, it is an honor to finally have you here. 
My name is Miss Kay, and this is my place," an auburn-haired
woman announced.

Blair kissed the woman's hand, then immediately placed his
arm around Ellison's waist.  "This is my lover, Jim, my
kinswoman, Claudia, and her lady, Jet."

"Welcome," Miss Kay greeted.  "I must say that I am a big
fan of your work, Doctor Sandburg.  Your last book is
absolutely fascinating."

"Please call me, Blair, Miss Kay.  I am here to experience a
wonderful diversion.  In fact, I was to meet a man here. 
Someone to make a lovely bookend with my toy."  He squeezed
Jim's butt.  "His name is Steven Ellison."

"Oh, yes.  Mr. Ellison was here.  He played with two ladies,
and I thought he had left for the evening."  She frowned.

"What's wrong?"  Blair asked.

"It's nothing, really.  There was a member who took a strong
liking to Steven, but Mr. Ellison was not interested."

"What was her name?" Jet asked.

"His name, but I can't give that to you."  The manager
spread her hands apologetically.

"Kay Winfrey," Jim began in dangerous tone.  "Steven is my
brother.  He hit his panic button.  Where is this man who
expressed an interest in my brother?"

Winfrey gasped.  "Mr. Ryan has a private suite on the
seventeenth floor, suite 1704.  I'll send security up there
for a discreet look."

"You can send them for clean-up," Jim growled.

The party hit the stairs.  Claudia kept up for the first
eight flights, but after that, Jet carried her.

"How can you do that?" Claudia asked when they made it to
the seventeenth floor.

"You don't weigh a thing, dear." Preston put the other woman
on her feet.  "I've carried injured officers in full body
armor a lot further, and under fire."  Jet petted her
friend's shoulder.  "Carrying you was like a vacation."

"You can see why I love her so," Blair whispered.

"He's this way," Jim reported.  "I can hear him."

                            . . . .

"Don't touch me, you freak," Steve spat.  "Help!  Somebody
help me!"

"I don't understand you, Beautiful.  I'm young, titled,
handsome, and rich... what's the problem?"

"I don't like people who beat me and tie me down," Steve
growled.

Ryan chuckled.  "You will."

                            . . . .

Jim waded into the guards at the doors.  The ex-Ranger
didn't care how he was dressed, how big the guards were, or
how badly he was outnumbered.  All he cared about was his
little brother was inside that room, hurt, tied up, and
frightened.  "I'm coming, Stevie!"


Jet Preston could hear Steven Ellison's pleas to his
tormentor, and her Martian soul was offended.  She liked,
hell, she *adored* Steven.  No one was going to harm a hair
on his pretty head while she was breathing.  The guards who
had piled onto Jim suddenly found themselves with a new
enemy.


Claudia ducked under an eighteenth century English-made
sideboard when the first guard flew past her and landed in
an unsightly sprawl.  She thought Blair might join her, but
she was wrong.

Jim started beating the four mutant guards trying to get to
his brother.  Then Jet jumped in, and the balance of the
fight seemed to shift to the good guys.  Then a guard pulled
out a stunner.  She was about to apply it to Jet when Blair
kicked the woman under the chin.  When had he learned that?

The female guard staggered, and Blair finished the much
larger guard off with several quick blows to the chest.  Jim
tossed another female guard down the hall, and Claudia was
glad she had decided to get under some cover.  The volume of
the violence was staggering.


Jim kicked the door off its hinges.  Steven was tied to the
bed.  He was almost naked, badly bruised, bleeding, and
begging the red-haired man to leave him alone.  The young
man was cutting the last of Steve's shoes off with a knife. 
The Sentinel lost it.

"The more the merrier," the stranger mumbled.  He reached
for something.  Whatever it was, he never got to it.  Jim
broke the bastard's arm.  Ellison was going to kill him with
his bare hands.  It was the only thing on his mind.

"Jim, Jim.  Listen to me."  The Sentinel tried to ignore the
siren call of his teacher's voice.  "Let him go, Jim.  He's
not going to hurt anyone else.  Let him go."  

How could Jim let this monster go?  How could he let this
*thing* live?

"Jimmy," Steven called.  "Let him go.  I need your help."

"James," Claudia whispered.  "Don't kill him, Love.  Let him
go, my husband."

The Sentinel released the throat of the man who had dared to
hurt his little brother.  He was alive, but barely.  Another
minute and he would have died.  Just as he deserved.

Jim rose to his feet and walked over to his brother's side. 
He tore away the restraints that held Steven to the bed.  He
inspected where each strap had cut into his brother's flesh
to reassure himself that he hadn't lost Steve.

Around him was chaos.  He let Blair handle it.  Sandburg was
the diplomat of the group.  Jim had other priorities. 
"Stevie, I could have lost you."  He hugged the smaller man
to his chest.

"I knew you would come for me," the younger Ellison
whispered.

"Always," Jim assured him.  He stroked the smaller man's
head and whispered softly.  "You're my brother, Stevie, I
love you."

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Steven had never been spoiled before, and he had certainly
never been the prize in a "spoiling war".  He could learn to
like it.  

After his sister-in-law had treated his wounds, his
statement was taken by a couple of grim-faced RO who kept
calling Jim "Lieutenant" and looking around for something
left that they could damage.  Jim never let go of his hand
while Steve had to recount his ordeal.  After that, the
guards, the doorman, and Ryan were arrested.

Once back at the house, he was helped to his bed and
spoiled.  He didn't go in to work.  It was the first time he
had taken an unscheduled day off in over three years.

Steven sat up and grabbed his hand cannon from behind the
headboard when he heard someone coming into his room.  He
had been ready to blow a hole in... Ryan.  He had feared
that it was Max Ryan, but it was Blair.  Sandburg had never
looked better.

"Hello.  Are you up for some lunch?"  Blair held up a tray
laden with food like a shield.  He stood in the doorway
until Ellison returned the weapon to its holder.

"Lunch time already?"  Steve hadn't thought about food for a
while.  He was too busy licking his wounds, as it were.

"Definitely."  The younger man placed the tray across
Steve's lap.  

The tray held a large overstuffed sandwich, a salad, a bowl
of soup, nectar fruit, iced tea, and potato chips.  The
calorie count was staggering.  "Trying to fatten me up?"

"You need your strength."  Blair sat down in the chair
closest to the bed.  "Do you want to talk about it?"

"What's to talk about?  I was jumped and rescued before it
reached the final stage."  He had been beaten, but thank
God, he hadn't been raped.  Ellison pushed aside that
thought.  There was no use on dwelling on what had not
happened.  Instead, he tasted the soup.  It was delicious.

Obviously unwilling to pass up a lecturing opportunity,
Sandburg continued.  "Okay, why don't we talk about why you
were there?"

Steve casually blew on his soup.  "I'm a grown man, Blair. 
Translation--I don't want to dwell on it."

"No one's saying you are not of age, Steve.  What I'm
talking about is why you felt that you had to go there. 
What were you looking for?"  

When Ellison had first met this man, he thought that Jim
would be wrapped tight around the smaller man's finger
pretty quickly.  There was something about Blair's intensity
that was just irresistible.  Then he thought that Jim had
somehow managed to do the wrapping, because Sandburg treated
him like he was sacred.  

Now, he realized that Blair only let Jim think he was
wrapped around the older man's finger.  Sandburg was in
charge.  Verdict?  Tell him the truth rather than wait to
see what kind of mind games he would put Steve through to
drag the truth out of him.  Or worse, he could quiver his
chin.

"A good time," Steve suggested.

Sandburg leaned forward.  "Did you find it?"  The green eyes
were intent and intense.  

"No," Steve admitted.  

With triumph on his face, Sandburg smiled.  "Because you
were looking in the wrong place."

It was time to go on the defensive.  "Have you ever looked
in the wrong place?"

"For a couple of years, the wrong place was the *only* place
I could be found."  His face was thoughtful.  "I believe
Mario tagged me as *wild*."

Steve was not that surprised.  He had cold showered himself
through Sandburg's opus of sexual obsession and exploration,
"A Passion for Pleasure," that was thinly disguised as an
academic pursuit.  No one wrote like that just from the
vantage of an observer.

There was one thing he *had* to know.  "Did you live chapter
8?"

Blair smiled.  "I wonder what a psychologist would say about
you zeroing in on that particular chapter?  But to answer
your question, yes, I did."

Oh, man.  He pushed those images of Sandburg right out of
his head.  "Top or bottom?"  Did his voice squeak?  He
cleared his throat and had a sip of tea.

"Both," Blair confessed.  "I had to understand both sides to
write about it."

Steve beat down those images again.  How did someone live
through that and still look as innocent as Blair did?  "What
does Jet have to say about all that?"  This should be good.

"Jet is a Martian.  My past is just that."  He touched the
older man's shoulder.  "I learned some things about myself
through all that.  Did you learn anything?"            
     
Steven was quiet as he finished the chicken soup.   "That
Jim has some *really* interesting clothes in his closet."

Blair laughed.  "Besides that."

"Promise you won't tell Jim?" Ellison asked softly. 
Exposing one's soul was strictly verboten during his
upbringing.  It wasn't military.  A good soldier was loyal,
smart, and soulless.

Blair touched the older man's hand.  "Anything you tell me
would be in the strictest confidence."

Damn the man for working himself into Steve's heart and his
confidence.  Ellison took another sip of his tea and
prepared himself, as if he could, for his first true heart-
to-heart.

Steve's voice dropped and the words that he thought he would
never speak came out.  "I'm jealous of my brother."

"In general or something in particular?" Sandburg asked with
no sign of censure.

Steve waved his hand around the room.  "This place.  Not the
house.  There are nicer houses.  I know, I've owned them."

"Hey," Sandburg protested.

"You *know* what I mean.  I'm not jealous of the house.  I'm
jealous of his *home*.  His wife, his best friend, his
extended family--the whole package."

The doctor gently stroked the taller man's fingers.  "Did
you think you would find all that for yourself at The
Nightowl?"

"No, but I thought I would find a nice diversion until the
rest came along," Ellison confessed.

Blair sighed.  "Steve, if I had waited, Jet would have
slipped through my fingers.  You can't go shopping in the
balloon store and be amazed that all they sell are
balloons."

"Is this where you set me up with one of your Sandburg
cousins?" Ellison asked suspiciously.

"No," Blair said firmly.

"Am I not good enough for them?" the executive asked in a
hurt tone.

Blair released the older man's hand.  "Steve, you met them
all at the reunion, and you didn't click with any of them. 
I can take a hint."

Ellison tried the sandwich and discovered that he liked it. 
He was halfway through it before he noticed that Blair was
still sitting there.  "Don't you have to be at work?"

"It's Saturday, Steve.  Unless it is an emergency or we are
in pursuit, I don't work on Saturdays.  Or Sundays for that
matter.  Saturdays are for me and Sundays are for family." 
He leaned forward.  "This is your family, too."

The businessman was surprised.  He was considered one of the
family, not just someone riding on Jim's coattails?  "My
family?"

"Yes.  Jim is Claudia's husband, and you are her brother-in-
law.  That makes you part of the family."  He smiled.  "I'm
afraid that you can't escape us."

Steve laughed.  "I just had this image of being stalked by
the lot of you.  It's kind of funny.  Franklin would insist
on passive tracking, Jasmine would insist on the blood and
guts method, and Claudia would try to maintain the peace."

Blair laughed.  "You were paying attention."

"Your family is a little too interesting at times."  The
businessman went back to his meal.  "What kind of damage are
we going to have to pay for?"

"Miss Kay is *insisting* on paying for all damage and your
medical bills.  If her doorman hadn't let Ryan carry you
back in--"

"Then he would have taken me somewhere else," Steve
finished.  Even though it was a private club, some members
could be more private than others.  By having rooms in the
club, he could take his captive up the private elevators,
well out of sight of the rest of the patrons, staff, and
even Miss Kay herself.

"She's worried about your well being, not to mention the
damage to her club's reputation."  Blair refilled Steve's
glass.

Ellison sighed.  "Is Jim looking at any trouble for nearly
killing Ryan?"  His brother had throttled Max, and damn near
killed him.  If Claudia hadn't reached him, Jim might be
facing murder charges.

"No.  The justice system takes a dim view of rape and isn't
overly concerned over the condition of the rapist when they
are caught in the act.  On Mars they can be executed on the
spot."  

Sandburg, despite his stated pacifist ways, took a dim view
of someone hurting the people he loved.  It was both
wonderful and a little daunting to realize that he now fell
into that category.  Steve remembered the way the doctor had
beaten the terrorist who had kidnapped and hurt Marcus.  But
Ryan was titled and therefore connected.  "Miss Kay said
that he was Riverworld royalty."

"So?"  Blair crossed his arms and his normally warm eyes
were flinty.  "There is *no one* on Riverworld who wants to
deal with me."

Amen to that.  Ellison's business connections had said that
there was a new word making the rounds on Riverworld--
Sandburged.  If your enemy so royally screwed you that your
only out was to kill yourself and spare your family from
starvation, then you had been Sandburged.  But Wallace had
only been a Warlord, powerful, but still not royalty. 
"Could there be trouble?" Steve asked seriously.  He hated
to think of the House of Sandburg going to war over him.

"Nothing we can't handle.  Riverworld takes a dim view of
rape, also.  It seems Ryan is on the outs with The Powers
That Be on his homeworld."  Blair peeled an orange and urged
the thick slices on Steve.

Ellison accepted the slices and nearly laughed when Blair
felt his forehead for signs of a fever.  The man had enough
equipment in the house to be an accredited clinic, and he
was feeling Steve's forehead with his hand.  But there was
something to be said for the human touch Sandburg so
obviously still believed in.  

"I just don't understand the guy," Steve said after Sandburg
completed his examination.  "There must be thousands of
willing people, why was he so obsessed with me?"  He
shivered when he thought about what had nearly happened to
him.  Thank God for his family.

"You said no, and he wasn't used to hearing that," Sandburg
said simply.  "I've dealt with his kind before.  If you had
demanded to go on your back for him, he would have left you
alone."

"What kind of sexual satisfaction can you get with someone
who doesn't want you?"  Steven set his tray aside and
settled back into bed to finish his orange.

"It was never about sex, Steve.  It was about power."  He
ruffled the larger man's hair.  "You're safe now."  Blair
kissed him on the forehead, grabbed the tray, and left.  

Steven roused slightly when Jim, Maxine, Jet, Jasmine,
Franklin, Robert, Claudia, Marie, Esther, Simon, Daryl, and
Helaine all peeked in on him.  He smiled when he heard the
"fight" over who would get to sleep with him that night so
that if he woke up, he wouldn't wake up alone.  

The men, though they all volunteered, were immediately
eliminated.  Waking up to a man, even a relative or loved
one, might do more harm than good.  The women discussed the
situation, and Maxine won.  Steve could sleep soundly with
her beside him.

It was late afternoon when he decided to get out of bed and
walk around the grounds.  He found a young woman, who he had
once been introduced to, working on the patio.  Her name was
Brandy Hunter, and she was employed as Blair's overworked
research assistant.  She was earnestly working on her
terminal, while trying, with little success, to ignore three
Guardian pups at her feet.

The smallest one, a female, Steven guessed, pushed a large
ball up against the young woman's long legs.  

"I'm working, you guys.  Don't you want your trip to go
smoothly?"   The little female bumped Brandy's legs with the
ball again and whined.  The researcher sighed.  "If you guys
end up with delays while picking up other Guardians, it'll
be all your fault."

With that Brandy turned off her terminal, grabbed up the
ball, and rushed out onto the lawn with the pups in close
pursuit.  Steven took a seat at the table and watched.

If there were rules to the game, he didn't see any evidence
of it.  The ball was thrown, pushed, bumped, rolled,
tumbled, and whatever else they could manage.  Brandy ended
up on the ground, laughing her head off.

Jim cleared his throat, made sure that Steve saw him, then
placed his hand on his little brother's shoulder.  "Hey,
there."

Steve smiled.  "Hi."

"What's the object of the game?"  Jim had a seat.

Steve watched the game for a moment.  "As far as I can tell,
it is to tickle Brandy with your fur and steal the ball."

"Sounds like fun."  He touched the younger man's hand.  "How
are you feeling?"

"Physically fine.  Emotionally... a little shaky."  Steve
laughed nervously.  He was surprised that Jim wasn't
disgusted with him.  Ellisons were supposed to clamp down on
their emotions, not let them run roughshod over you.

Jim hugged the smaller man tightly.  "I'm so glad we made it
in time."

"So am I," Steve confessed.  "Is this where you ask me what
I was doing there?"

"No."

"No?" the younger Ellison's eyes widened.

"No," Jim said firmly.  "All I care about was that I was
able to get to you in time."  He sat back and looked into
his brother's eyes.

"You have changed," the businessman declared.

"Steve, you're a grown man.  If that club was where you
wanted to be, then I have nothing to say against it.  I
mean, I can hardly talk.  I would hate to admit now to the
kind of *recreation* I use to indulge in after a long
mission while I was a Ranger.  The more unique the better."

The younger Ellison watched Brandy make a semi-successful
dash for it from the pups.  They tangled her feet; a
valuable skill in bringing down large game, and harmlessly
pounced.  The Guardians laughed.  He had no idea that they
laughed, but there was no mistaking the sound.  It was
laughter.

"I won't be going back," Steven said, breaking the silence
between the brothers.

"You're not likely to come across another Ryan there," Jim
encouraged.  

"It isn't because of him.  The whole thing just wasn't what
I want at this time in my life.  Don't get me wrong, I
enjoyed those ladies' company immensely, but it's time to
get more serious about my personal future, not just the
future of my businesses."

Jim looked around as Claudia came out of the house, piled
into the fray and, for a moment, evened things up between
pups and humans.  Two large adult Guardians gazed at the
melee, huffed at each other, and took up residence under a
shady tree.

"Should we rescue them?" Steven asked.

"The puppies or the ladies?" Jim asked sincerely.

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Jim sighed before entering HQ.  He already knew that he
would be the center of conversation.

"As God is my witness, he was more naked dressed than if he
were nude," Angel Del Rio said.

"Did he look good?" Amber Hikawa asked.

"He could have charged just for the privilege of looking at
him," Del Rio said sincerely.  "The way he stood there.  So
commanding and assured.  It gave me chills."

"Now that's love.  Jim Ellison, Mr. Straight and Narrow,
dressing like that to get in and rescue his brother," Brown
asserted.  "You've got to admire loyalty like that," he
added proudly.

There was general agreement on that statement.  Ellison
strolled in and found his desk awash in gifts--flowers,
fruit baskets, and chocolates.  He looked around the office. 
His fellow RO tried to busy themselves, while still watching
him.

The gifts were actually quite nice.  The naughty and
anonymous notes on his terminal were amusing.  He smiled. 
"You can't afford me," Jim announced.  Before the echo died
down, Rafe placed a bucket on his desk that read "Collection
to buy some of Jim's time."  Money was added liberally from
his fellow officers, with the exception of Brown.

Jim pouted.  "I'm not worth your money, Henry?"

"I just found out how much college will cost when Vicki's
ready to go."  The big man winced.  "I'm kicking myself for
refusing to let her model for baby products."

Jim knew Blair had started a trust fund for Victoria so she
could attend any college she wanted, but he wasn't supposed
to tell anyone.  "You're right, save your money."  He turned
to his terminal.

"So, Lieutenant, where did you buy those clothes?" Amber
asked.

"They were a wedding present from Mario.  For some reason,
he thinks I'm a stiff."  Jim chuckled softly.  "He also
thinks that my body was, and I quote, 'meant to be
displayed,' or so he says."

"Oooooh," Amber and Angel moaned together.

"Do you wear them often?" Jason asked, with a leer.

"That was the first time."  But not the last if Claudia's
reaction was any indicator.  She had actually bowed to him
and declared herself unworthy of his attention.  After Steve
had been rescued and settled for the night, he had proven to
her just how worthy she was.

Ellison grinned at the memories.

"Don't you people have work to do?" Banks asked.  Everyone
in the office found something to do before their captain
found something for them.  "Jim, wasn't Blair supposed to
come in with you?"

"Sandburg had an emergency this morning.  He said that he
would be here as soon as he could.  Is something wrong?"

"Yes, Helaine is craving some dish he served.  I never
tasted it, so I can't duplicate it.  If I love her, and I
want our child, then I'll find the recipe and have it on the
table tonight."  He sat on Jim's desk.

Ellison's eyebrow rose.  "When did this start?"

"Two days ago.  She woke me up.  I was expecting a little,
you know, round 3.  Or was it round 4?"  Simon thought back.

Jim knew all too well how much Helaine *craved* her husband. 
"Frisky?"

"You don't know the half of it."  He smiled. "The next thing
I know, I'm slaving over the stove."

Jim grinned.  "Do you have to cook each dish?"

Simon nodded.  "So far."

"I went through the same thing," Henry said.  "Leslie
developed a desire for egg and cheese recipes--omelets,
quiches, and the like.  I don't know what I would have done
if Rafe and Hikawa hadn't helped me."

"What does Helaine want?" Jim asked.

"The more exotic the better."  The captain held up a reader,
which was loaded with "Recipes From All Over The Human
Sphere."  He flipped through the index.  "I fear the next
request."

Several terminals beeped.  Jim recorded the particulars of
his case.  "Let's roll, Maxine."

"Don't forget the sergeant's exam tomorrow. The following
people--Rafe, Foley, Hikawa, Phillips, Astor, Brown, and Del
Rio, are scheduled," Banks called.

                  ====<><><><>===<><><><>====


Steven looked around the terminal for Blair.  Where was the
guy?  Just as he was about to call the house, Brandy Hunter
ran up to him.

"Hi, Mr. Ellison.  Blair had three emergency surgeries
stacked up, and he asked me to take his place," the young
woman reported.

Oh, Lord.  That meant that there were injuries during an
arrest.  "Jim?"

"No he wasn't hurt, but apparently it was quite a
firefight."  Her voice was steady, but her eyes were sad.

"Anyone I know?"  Steve braced himself.

"Amber Hikawa was injured but will recover fully.  Craig
Phillips didn't make it," she said sadly.  "There was no
chance to save him."

Craig was two years younger than Steve.  He had been
introduced to the man and his wife while they were helping
repair Blair's home.  It made you think.  "It's a dangerous
job.  How's his wife?"

"She had to be sedated."  Hunter grimaced.  "It'll have to a
closed-coffin funeral."  The couple started toward the ship
where the Guardians were waiting to be escorted to their new
life on Orion V.

"Brandy, could you do me a favor?" Ellison asked.

"Sure."

"Call me Steve," Ellison asked.  The age gap was bad enough. 
The forced formality made it much, much worse.

She smiled.  "Okay."  Here was a woman who needed to smile
all the time.

Steven needed to let Brandy know how things would go on this
trip, his third to Orion since they started taking the
Guardians there.  "Since this is your first escort trip,
I'll warn you.  Have your sense of humor ready."

She laughed. "I've already been warned."

"There's knowing, and there's knowing."  He opened the door
to their transport that would take them up to the main ship. 
Five adult Guardians were strapped in and quiet.  The nine
puppies worried their restraints, complained, whined, and
whimpered for their toys that were just out of reach.  Their
large eyes were tragic as they contemplated the abuse to
which they found themselves subjected.

"Oh, Goddess," Hunter moaned as she took her seat.

"This is nothing," Steve warned.  "Wait until they are loose
on the ship and want to play with things.  Some of them
managed to flood a cabin with bubbles."

Brandy laughed.  "You're kidding."

"No.  That's not the worst of it," Steve continued. 
"Somehow they managed to make it into one of the flight
simulators, and dozens of them, dizzy and disoriented, were
milling around down there like drunken Rangers."

Hunter howled.  "I guess that taught them."

Steve shook his head.  "No, because the very next day there
was twice as many of them having a go at it."

Brandy laughed until she had tears in her eyes.

Steve liked her laugh and enjoyed her smile.  "Tell me about
yourself, Brandy.  With that accent, you must be from the
Southern U.S."  

It would be a pleasant trip.

                      -- End Chapter 21 --


Next  Upgrade # 22 : Friends in Need.  

Strength-enhanced criminals are ruling the streets of
Cascade, and the RO gain assistance from an unexpected
quarter.