Warlock of Omaha Cubed
Chapter 1: There is a time
It was the best of times. It was the most awkward of times.
On the good side, Tamar and I were married. The ceremony went so well.
In the Jewish faith, in modern times, the rituals of marriage are very similar to what everyone else does. The man gets down on one knee and asks the woman to marry him while proffering a large diamond ring. Assuming the woman says, "Yes," after a reasonable period of engagement, there is a wedding ceremony.
I had changed that a bit. Tamar, by her own description, was a two-hundred-year-old girl. As such, she likely had a more traditional view of how weddings should be done. The old way was to begin with what I had done when I gave her the ring, begin a betrothal. The betrothal is more than an engagement, but still not a complete wedding. However, it is more binding. To dissolve a betrothal, a divorce would still be required. Nowadays, the betrothal is typically done as part of the wedding ceremony. In Tamar's youth, it would have been how people became engaged.
I also made the conscious choice NOT to use a diamond. Diamonds are a very recent addition to the engagement ritual. Diamonds as engagement rings were a successful DeBeers marketing campaign. The idea of wasting a large sum of money on a diamond, a stone that is artificially rare, is very new. DeBeers keeps mountains of diamonds in vaults making them seem far more rare than they really are. If diamonds traded normally, they would likely only be semi-precious stones. This is compounded by the fact we live in an era when diamonds and other "precious" stones can be mass manufactured. Apple is working on making the screens of their devices from sapphire! In a few years the windows of one's home and car will be made of diamond. The idea that there is any long-term investment value for gemstones is laughable.
Still, if it would have made Tamar happy, I would have bought a great big chip of glass-like material for her. I had been buying synthetic sapphires for my lenses. It might be worth investing in a gem foundry. Then I could make Tamar a diamond as big as her head. Tamar, however, was born before the time when diamonds were considered part of the ritual, so she wasn't into it.
We had discussed it.
"I suppose it would be nice to be able to show the other girls a big rock, but then I would have to wear it. That would be a chore." She had said.
"Don't turn the stone down because you don't think I value you. If you want it, even a little, I wish to get one for you." I replied, worried she was only turning the diamond down to be polite, not because she didn't want it.
We resolved the quandary by Tamar letting me take her jewelry and shoe shopping. Anything she liked, she got, and she liked a lot. I was happy to pay for it. Malashock's, Borsheim's and Von Maur all had banner sales months.
Tamar also wanted a Glock 27, it would be less of a burden to carry around then her current carry. So, I acquired the gun, did my breathing on it while making sure I didn't increase the size in any way. That was a new challenge. When I had breathed on all my other guns, if I expanded them a few millimeters here of there, not a big deal. Tamar wanted to downgrade from her Glock 23 because this gun would be smaller and easier to hide while not giving up her svelte figure. Tamar knew the time it would take me to do this was a bigger sacrifice than a big diamond. Still, when I was done, I embedded a big, flawless, perfectly clear 3 carat synthetic diamond in the trigger guard.
Since the betrothal is part of the modern ceremony we had to modify the current normal ceremony, but that wasn't a big deal. Tamar and I didn't have a lot of family to invite so we invited the community and they came. Jake was my best man, Travis was my groom's man.
Tamar had Kelly as her Matron of Honor and Brenda, Miranda and Diane as her bride's maids.
One part of the ceremony was a bit awkward. In a typical Jewish ceremony, the father and mother walk the bride and groom down the aisle. Tamar and I both had no living relatives. My lawyer, Jim, and his wife took on the task of walking me down the aisle. The Rabbi's wife, Rebbetzin Kaitzman, walked Tamar down the aisle.
It was a beautiful ceremony. All my girls came. Holly came back from Guam again, she now had an awesome tan. Lina and Stacy also came. While Jake and Travis had thrown me a good time at the local Hooters, the girls all threw me a much more licentious party in the home theater as well. I would be cooling things down, but I also felt like the girls deserved fitting good-byes.
Tamar and I stood beneath the traditional wedding canopy and I signed the marriage contract and gave it to Tamar. Tamar walked around me seven times, marking her territory. We drank the wine. I smashed the crystal goblet.
Smashing the goblet is something we do to show finality and commitment. Also, to demonstrate, even in our happiest moment, that we remember that we remain in spiritual exile. That we remember the sadness of others.
I had already started the process of cooling things down. I had let my Chicago attorney go. While she had never shown much emotion, just as I was letting her go, I suddenly sensed she had been thinking of making our relationship something more. Perhaps I was her back up plan, but I would be her back up plan no more.
I let Holly, Lina and Stacy know we would always be friends, but the sexy fun part was coming to an end. I was basically shutting the garret down. I was done fishing.
This was as much about Tamar as it was Brenda.
The pregnancy with Brenda was a tragedy.
"Weren't you on birth control?" I asked.
"Yes, but no form of birth control is 100%." She replied flustered.
That was true, considering the amount of unprotected sex I was having and the number of women I was having it with, that something like this hadn't happened before was already defying the odds.
"Are you going to keep it?" I asked.
"Yes." She replied, clearly worried I would disapprove.
"Do you plan to put it up for adoption?" I asked.
"No."
"You wish to raise the child?" I asked.
"Yes."
If I commandeered a few years of her life for consensual sexy fun, no harm done, but I had played in the garden and now there were consequences. The child might be part mine, but the body it was in belonged to Brenda, her decisions on this matter were final.
Brenda deserved better. She deserved a man who would love her to the exclusion of all others. Who would make her the center of his life. Who would father her children and be completely devoted to her and them. I couldn't be that man. I cared for Brenda deeply, but I would be marrying Tamar.
"We have to talk." I began with Brenda.
"Okay." Brenda replied.
"In the modern world, you could take that child and go where you wish. Maybe find another man if that's what you wish. Unfortunately, the child will be part of my world whether he inherits some of my gift or not. As such, he will be a target for some very mean customers. Do you understand that?" I asked.
"Yes."
"I will, of course, provide for you and the child." I said.
"Thank-you." She said.
"Do you know where you want to go? What you want to do?" I asked.
"Could I stay with you?" She asked.
"Yes. Of course." I answered. "But you would have to understand, I'll be married to Tamar."
"I understand." She replied.
We discussed the living arrangements for a bit.
"If you decide you want to be with another man, that won't change things in the sense I would still look after you and the child financially. However, I would expect you to move out." I said being a bit of a heel.
"I understand, but I don't want another man." Brenda answered.
It was wrong. I should have said something clear then, but it was convenient. I didn't want Brenda wandering off somewhere with my child and putting both her and the child in danger. If she stayed here because she was still infatuated with me, believing she would be some sort of second wife, everything would be easier.
I had to meet with Brenda's parents. Brenda was now their only child after their son's death in action.
We all sat down in the rarely used living room of the main house on my estate.
I began with, "You should know, I am a man of some means. Your daughter and her child will want for nothing."
The Father replied sternly, "We take that for granted."
The Mother then chirped in with the accusation, "We feel like you took advantage of Brenda. That you weren't honest with her."
How could I argue? I had been honest in the ways Brenda's Mother had thought I lied, but I had brought Brenda to myself with a seeming in the first place.
"Mom!" Brenda interjected.
"Please, I was having a serious relationship with both Tamar and Brenda. They both knew about the other. I had decided to marry Tamar before I found out about Brenda's condition. Even if I had known, I would have still married Tamar. I care deeply for your daughter, but the pregnancy was a surprise to both of us. I never promised to marry her. Once again, I will do everything I can to look after Brenda and the child." I replied.
Her parents were, understandably, not happy. I patiently accepted their berating and apologized repeatedly. Part of me knew I deserved their words because I was allowing the convenient option to occur. I could only hope they would mellow.
Jake's mom, Becky Black, came to our wedding. The home I had built for Jake and Kelly had a mother-in-law suite, so she stayed there. Then Becky decided to move here to Omaha.
"This is much nicer than a crummy apartment and lousy waitress job in Lowell!" Becky announced in my hearing.
Becky moved in and took to her new role as Grandma to Michael. She didn't loaf. She got a job working the breakfast shift at the Lodge, worked hard and looked after Michael in the evenings so that Jake and Kelly could both work dinner.
Our wedding reception was very pleasant. At first, I planned to have the reception at the Lodge. Unfortunately, it would have proven difficult to comply with Jewish religious dietary laws. So, the Lodge, sort of, catered the wedding at the Temple. Miranda, Kelly and Yumi threw themselves into the cooking with the Rebbetzin and the Temple ladies. It was possible to get kosher bison. It was a great meal. There was dancing. Everyone had a good time.
I took Tamar to Israel for our honeymoon. I used one of the private jets I had access to, a G6. It was nice to get away. We had a private tour. Our guide, Asael, took us around in a nice van. We saw all sorts of places that were beautiful like Baniyas, Ein Gedi and Mitzpe Rimon. We saw historic places like Gamlat, Ceasaria and Masada. We saw places from the bible like the Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb and the Western Wall. I saw some ugliness when the Muslims rolled their small children in front of our van in Hebron in an effort to get us to run them over.
"If I run one over, then they will say I did it on purpose. Make a big incident. Claim we did it on purpose. People back in the rest of the world would not believe they did this to their own children." Asael explained.
It was insane and right before our eyes. Even before my eyes I could not comprehend how people could do that with their own children.
Author's Note: The above is based on my personal experiences and reflects a real and authentic event.
Tamar bought me a prayer shawl in Tzefat. I bought phylacteries in Jerusalem. Israel is known for its many fine jewelers and Tamar had but to point to get anything she wanted.
After we toured for a couple weeks, I paid Asael and sent him on his way. He left us in Tel Aviv and we hung out on the beach for a week.
"I want you to remember what I looked like in a bikini before I show." Tamar explained.
We stayed at a fancy hotel on the beach. We broke their bed. Twice. If Tamar hadn't been pregnant before we went, she would have been now.
We flew back to our more normal life.
Tamar moved out of her cottage and into the Master suite. Tamar would also remodel and keep one of the eight suites I had kept for college girls, so she would have a private space.
The cottage was expanded from a one-bedroom cottage to a two-bedroom home with a much more substantial kitchen and much larger bathroom. We also added a one car garage. I made sure the plumbing would be ready for a second bathroom to be added at a later date. I also made sure the cottage had top of the line furnishings and quietly picked what Brenda wanted.
When the cottage was ready, Brenda moved in from her college girl suite. By then, Tamar and Brenda were both showing.
Diane graduated. She had a position as the Grounds Maintenance Director at a golf resort in Idaho. I cleared all student loans. I also gave her a Visa gift card with some cash on it. Lastly, I gave her the oldest of the house Subaru Foresters. We spent one last night together and I sent her on her way.
I would not be refilling the larder, so to speak. We had Novi who was more than capable of doing all three jobs and more. Novi had no trouble taking over grounds maintenance.
I was slowing down, but Kaylee and Yumi both had two more years on their programs. So, I continued to enjoy their company. However, when they graduated, that would be it. They did now dress more conservatively around the house. When I went to them, it was quietly in their rooms.
Novi had a particular game she liked to play. When others were around, she would wear a very conservative maid's outfit. When it was just the two of us, she would magically change the outfit into a black fishnet two-piece thing which she knew was the outfit I had found Stephanie most enticing in all those years ago. In truth, since Novi's fishnet outfit held nothing back, it was probably even more daring. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't used her gifts again.
Still I was slowing down.
I talked to Tamar quietly in our bedroom one night. "You're being so understanding about all this. I have been getting rid of much, but I still have girls around, Novi's joined the household and Brenda is essentially becoming a second wife. All in front of you. Tell me how you really feel. If you say to get rid of them all I will."
"Husband, I would be lying if I said I was happy about all those things. Yes, I would like you all to myself. However, I am very aware that for most of human history, a man, particularly one of means, would have many wives. It was a biological necessity driven by the much higher mortality rate of men than women. Yes, by the time I was born in Vienna, the world had already changed enough so that was no longer normal. However, 200 years ago, one could still look over one's shoulder to the recent past when it was normal.
"If I was a twenty-year-old child, I would probably have a hard time sharing my toys. I'm older now. I have a longer view of things. Men who are truly desirable, a woman should expect to share. I'm sure I could go out right now and find a dozen men who would commit themselves absolutely to me, none of them would interest me as much as the tip of your pinky.
"My own Father, he was a paragon of many virtues, but I know, and if I know my Mother certainly knew, he had two other women in Vienna with children. He also kept a steady flow of attractive young maids, not unlike you, though perhaps a bit more discreet, flowing through the home and used them as a convenience. Though to give you credit, you have been getting more discreet with the maids and I have no desire to go back to doing the housework.
"Still even if none of this was the case. Brenda was pregnant before you asked me to marry you. I appreciate you saying you would push her out if asked, makes me feel valued. However, I understand the practicalities. That child needs to stay here. Whether he inherits your gifts or not, he will be a friend and protector for our daughter his whole life. I can't deprive her of that, she is now the most important thing.
"Anyway, I have waited for you for 200 years, I can be patient. Brenda will be gone soon enough." Tamar explained.
"She'll be gone, what do you mean?" I asked. That had sounded threatening, like Tamar was planning or knew of a plot against Brenda.
"She's in her late twenties. Fifty, sixty years from now, she'll probably die of old age." Tamar said.
"Oh okay." I answered.
Having two pregnant wives should be a challenge. However, I sailed though. I had Novi for the midnight demands for corned beef and ice cream. I did attend lamaz with both. I read to both of their stomachs. I did participate in both deliveries.
Tamar gave me a beautiful baby girl who we named Yael at the Temple in the traditional ceremony. It turned out that Yael had been both my mother and Tamar's mother's name. Yes, we had checked when we found out. They were different women.
Brenda gave me a strong son, Caleb. That led to another conversation.
"I'm not sure if I want to convert to your faith." Brenda began clearly very nervous.
"Please, do not convert to please me. You should only convert if you feel a true calling to it." I tried to calm her.
"I know you want to raise Caleb in your faith." She said.
"I do, but that doesn't mean you must convert. Also, I only wish it if it's okay with you?" I answered.
"Yes, it's okay." Brenda answered.
With that, we went forward with Caleb's bris. If he chose not to be in my faith, it would mean nothing. If he did, then it would be a convenience to have that "under his belt."
I know having a newborn in the house is a major challenge for many families. The baby wakes up constantly, diapers need changing, there is endless laundry and cleaning. However, we had Yumi handling food and Kaylee handling housekeeping. Both girls also enjoyed holding and helping with the babies. A lot. We also had Novi always ready on hand. On top of that, Becky started coming over all the time, often bringing Michael. She had found out that Yael had no grandparents and that Caleb's remaining two grandparents were choosing to be stand offish. They had been very unhappy when they found out Caleb would be having a bris, not a christening.
Becky became the "Bubbe" for both babies and showered them with bottomless love. I was really grateful for that.
Tamar had put her job on indefinite hiatus.
"You know you could just quit that job. I could give you more money than you could ever likely spend." I said trying to understand why she didn't just quit.
"I might, and I might let you, but I enjoy it." Tamar replied.
"You enjoy it?" I asked not getting it.
"It makes me feel useful. The gift I inherited makes me an excellent courtesan or spy. This job lets me stretch those muscles a bit. There is the thrill of the hunt and the satisfaction of the kill. All in the service of some good cause." She explained with a contented smile as Yael began to nurse again.
"Well, let me know." I said a bit frustrated.
"I will." She replied.
It had actually made sense. I'd spent so much of my life chasing women, I'd gotten used to it. It wasn't so much the favors of any particular woman I desired, but the thrill of the chase that was the hardest thing to give up. When I was out and about, when I saw an attractive woman I desired, I'd still find myself, balancing and re-balancing the odds, figuring out how I would approach.
Brenda had managed to have the baby during summer recess. She had one more year to go. When she went back to classes, Tamar would watch Caleb. That meant Brenda had to go through the whole breast pump thing and I got to feed him sometimes. Though feeding Caleb was a popular activity, so we all would vie for the pleasure. Tamar was an amazingly good sport about everything. I never detected the least resentment that I functionally had a second wife and a child by her, essentially living under the same roof.
So, I did a great deal of holding of both babies. I changed diapers. I changed clothes. I put them to bed. I didn't do a lot of feeding or bathing, both Mothers were breastfeeding and both mothers liked to bathe their babies. In fact, they would often do it together in the same tub. However, with all the help, I could hand the baby back whenever I felt like it and go to my forge, shop or just watch some video. With Kaylee, Yumi and Novi around, it wasn't like I was lacking for opportunities for release. I was hardly suffering. In fact, I was enjoying the peace and quiet and the feeling of Fatherly contentment.
Even the bad dreams had slowed down.
Other things changed too. Lots of things that seemed so important and exciting before I was married and a Father, were just let so. Going to performances, shows and receptions were just less appealing. Not just because they were no longer opportunities for meeting women.
On the other hand, Michael came around more. Becky would be around mothering the babies and the Mothers. When he got back from school, Michael would walk himself up from his house.
I didn't invite Michael, but one day he found me working on the Forge. My first instinct was to tell him to go away. Instead, I brought him in and showed him some basics. By the end of the afternoon, he had managed to bang out something that was shaped like a heart, if you looked at it from the right angle, sort of. I put a magnet on the back and he gave it to his Mom. On a later visit to their home, I noticed the 'heart' was attached to the hood above the stove. I was gratified.
After that, Michael came to hang out frequently. I had to make sure he'd completed his homework, though if he hadn't I would stop to help him finish. Then I would show Michael various things I enjoyed, like noodling with the cars. The high point was when I taught Michael how to use a CNC machine and he made himself a rocket jet toy. He dug that. His parents were excited he was learning real technical skills and math. They were also happy they wouldn't have to pay $89 for the rocket jet toy. I just enjoyed hanging out with him and seeing him grow and develop.
I was at the taco bar again. I'd missed the cheap, but good tacos. Then Kinky walked in all by himself. That was so weird, I hadn't seen Kinky for such a long time. I should have been angry. Instead, I was afraid. He walked up to me and all I could do was sit there. Then he grabbed me by the head. I couldn't seem to resist. I awoke. 4:57 am, I turned off the alarm before it bothered Tamar or Yael. No getting back to sleep after that.
I did my morning ablutions and then had my breakfast, expertly presented by Yumi. I might have taken Yumi back to her room, but I was meeting with Novi.
Novi had continued my lessons.
"There is, for you not me, an endless sea of things human mages have learned to do with their magic. No human could hope to master them all, even in an extended lifespan. In our lessons, we can pursue different disciplines as you wish. However, there are a number of basic things any human mage would be expected to have mastered, many of which you have not. I recommend we start with those." Novi had said at our first lesson.
I had agreed and lately we had been working on being able to move things with magic. Yes, I had mastered the Jedi trick of getting something to jump into my hand, but that was hardly even a beginning. I was getting better, using my axe as a focus I was finding I could grab something and throw it.
The lesson ended. I washed up again and found myself some lunch in the kitchen. There was a big smoked meat sandwich on a roll of nice crisp bread. I ate and enjoyed.
I went to the forge and began to bang on the new chest plate I was trying to create. I currently had two serious forge projects I was playing with. I still had the Ulfberht sword I was trying and failing on. I also had decided to make a breastplate. I'd had a lot of breastplates. The last one had been shattered. I had a new one, but I felt I could do better. In material theory, steel is not a good choice for modern armor. It was still used, but there are materials like ceramic and CFRTPCs which were just better. There was also a sort of metal foam that looked very promising, but not yet ready for prime time. Still, after I produced my new axe, I had realized that forging the metal could allow me to pour in all sorts of new magic. In addition, it would make an excellent stab protection layer. Working on a forge is hot, hard work. So, I was wearing loose six pocket pants, slippers and a leather apron.
It was a nice Fall day. The air was just starting to have the faintest bit of the crispness of the season. I had just opened the door to my forge to enjoy a bit of free air conditioning. I paused for a moment to enjoy the cool air and take a long deep breath.
Then something nasty and arachnid and about the size of a large dog started burrowing out of the ground. My axe was in arms reach. I grabbed it, reached out and used magic to pull a piece of molten steel about the size of a walnut out of the forge and fling it right into the creature. It let out a very unnatural and unpleasant scream, then died.
Then it melted and vanished. There was still a piece of red hot, rapidly cooling steel resting on the broken turf.
*** And now a word from our sponsor! ***
Please imagine a chorus line of attractive, scantily clad, very fit high steppers in the gender of your choice!
This writer, like the story teller in the market of old, now has a hat out hoping for a small gratuity. There is no obligation and I'm grateful you took a moment to read. However, if my writing has found favor in your eyes, please take a moment to go to:
Pay
Pal
.me
/hemaccabe
and throw in a little something, a dime, a quarter, a dollar, etc.
While I love to write, I do have a spouse and a child and a job and many other claims on my time that don't understand why I would spend so many hours banging on a keyboard. A small tangible return would help smooth the way to allow me to provide many more stories.
Please help. Thank-you.
