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Chapter 4
Walter took his glasses off and looked at Ed, "How many generations does this go back?"
"Well, according to the analysis maybe at least four generations. Lewis' great-great grandfather could be my great-great-great grandfather."
Walter glanced at Sloan and then back to Ed, "So, that would make you what? Cousins?"
"Uhm…yeah, distant cousins. Lewis could be like my third cousin and Tara would be my fourth cousin…or something like that. I haven't sat down to chart it out yet. But according to this…Lewis and I have a common ancestry. We're a part of the same haplogroup."
"Well, for what it's worth, Ed, you did a great job. I think Ann would be proud with what you accomplished here. When we first started this sort of documentation wasn't possible."
"Thanks. One thing's for sure, I have a starting point...just didn't think it would've been me." Ed half smiled and it was more of a forced one than a sincere one.
Walter turned around and shredded the papers, "Ed, back everything up to disk and don't save any paperwork. If news of your relationship to Lewis got out, I have no idea what would happen."
"Walter, Tom found out that Lewis had him kill his own mother, I doubt he has any real sense of family bonding or loyalty," Ed remarked.
"That maybe true, Ed, but I'm not willing to take any chances. He's already shown his desire to turn you and this may give him more of an incentive to succeed next time." Walter glared at Ed and Sloan, "Try and keep this among us, okay, the less people who know the better."
"What about Darien and Tom…shouldn't they at least know?" Sloan asked.
"Oh and Claire, since well, you know..." Ed added with a hint of awkwardness in his voice
Walter took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He leaned back on his chair and tapped his pen on top of the desk. "Okay, that might be a good idea to let Darien and Tom know. Darien would probably find out anyway." Ed and Sloan smiled at each other. "I understand about letting Claire know, since you are under psychiatric treatment with her, she would need to know."
"Geesh, Walter, you make it sound like I'm nutso or something," Ed said feeling extremely self-conscious at the moment.
"Sorry, Ed, it's not personal." Walter smiled at Ed.
~*~
Ed stood in front of his family tree chart with the names that he knew of after speaking with his father. Darien and Hobbes stared at the chart with confusion. "This whole family tree business makes my head spin," Hobbes retorted.
"Tell me about it," Darien answered back taking a sip from a large cup filled with coke.
"What are you going to do?" Claire asked.
Ed shook his head, "Nothin' really. I have one match and that's not enough to state my case. I'm not even sure if my dad even knows his family ancestry. The only thing I can say is that my great, great, great-grandfather may have had say…two sons. From these two sons sprang two more families of the Tate bloodline and so on and so on."
"Oh, wait, so that means that Lewis may not be his last name but a first name."
"Yeah, his last name would be Tate, if he even uses his real name." Ed said.
"Oh crap…" Darien said apprehensively.
"But wait...explain all this to me again," Hobbes stated with a hint of confusion in his tone.
Darien rolled his eyes remembering what Ed had said in the Oval Office. Now he was about to hear it all over again. "Great, here we go again."
"Okay, uh…what I'm looking for in my tests is the UEP's in the DNA of the Y-chromosome. These genetic markers are passed down only from father to son and they mutate very rarely. This is how we're able to group descendants together in one haplogroup. A male who first shows the mutation is the paternal founding father of that particular group. What I found is that Lewis and I share the same UEP mutation that was handed down from the men in our haplogroup. I used this same technique to determine that Frank was not Kevin's father." Ed shrugged his shoulders, "they didn't share the same mutation in the Y-chromosome."
"Whoa…this is deep…so you're like related to this wacko?" Hobbes stated.
Ed let out a sigh, "Yeah, I am, and the weird thing is, he may not even know it." Ed looked around the room at the faces staring at him in bewilderment. No one knew what to think about this latest development and neither did Ed.
Walter sat up in his chair, "This result is to remain a secret among us. We don't need any word slipping out about Ed's findings. Do I make myself clear?" The group gathered in the room nodded in agreement. "Good," he glanced over at Ed, "Continue your work as if nothing happened. I'm sure you'll come up with another match."
Ed shifted his weight on his feet, "Wait, are you saying that you don't want me to include this result in my reports?"
"That's exactly what I'm telling you. Ed, no one needs to know about your relationship to Lewis especially the Government." Walter didn't want Ed in any more danger. It was enough that he was involved in this project. People on both sides would do anything to make sure he didn't learn the truth. And if Lewis found out or anyone else that Ed is related to one of the most wanted dominants then his life could be in danger more than it is already.
Ed shook his head, "Okay, you're giving me permission to lie to the President?"
"Why not, he does it all the time," Darien quipped as he munched on a bag of peanuts.
"I can't believe you said that, partner," Hobbes retorted.
"Oh come on, like what politician do you know that doesn't lie?" Darien answered back.
"You got a point there, my evolved friend."
"Word." Darien and Hobbes gave each other a low-five. Ed chuckled as he looked down at the floor. Tom raised a brow at the verbal exchange between Darien and Hobbes. 'We're not that different, even our own leaders have lied to us,' Tom thought to himself.
"If we all have an understanding about this situation then you're all free to go," Walter announced.
Ed walked out first and Claire grabbed his arm. "You okay?" She asked with concern. The others followed behind them but went in another direction when Claire asked her question.
"Yeah, actually, I am. It's kinda strange to know that I'm related to Lewis, but in all actuality it's such a distant relation that I don't care. I mean, I'm in no rush to go find him for a family reunion or anything like that. He's a dominant, one who trains killers…as far as I'm concerned, he's not family."
"Well, okay, but if you need to talk, you know where to find me," Claire gave his arm a squeeze.
"And I know where you live," Ed returned in a jovial tone. He stopped and turned to face her, "I'm going to come home early tonight and I mean that. How about we go out to dinner?"
Claire smiled, "I would like that."
"Good, then it's a date." Ed walked her to the elevator. He kissed her and watched as the door closed. He turned and headed back inside the lab to continue his research.
~*~
The big weekend arrived finally and the group of misfit agents, scientists and dominants were ready to attend two very special parties then the main event. It was time to introduce Tom, Mark and Shane to the old human tradition of 'The Bachelor Party'. They had heard about human traditions and how ridiculous they were. But nothing could have prepared them for the night they were about to have and Hobbes was in charge.
The men all met at Hobbes' apartment and he served them beer as they waited for Darien, who was typically late. Hobbes obviously irritated checked his watch for the umpteenth time, "Fawkes, I swear you'd be late for your own funeral…" He glanced apologetically at Ed when he realized what he said, "Oh…Tate…I'm sorry."
Ed shook his head, "Nope, it's okay, Hobbes. I didn't take it personally, but uhm…was I late?"
There was silence in the room for what seemed like an eternity. Ed causally took a sip of his beer. Hobbes and Ray finally started to laugh. Ed's father, Jonathan and Claire's father, James, didn't know what to make of Ed's remark, but in the end they started to laugh as well. Tom, Mark and Shane suddenly realized that Ed had made a joke.
Ed looked at the three dominants, "Relax guys, you don't have to walk on egg shells around me." Ed looked up at Hobbes when there was a knock at the door. All the men stood up as Hobbes opened the door. Eberts was standing there next to Darien and Darcy's father, Jacob. Hobbes glared at Darien, "It's about time, Fawkes."
"I tried, Robert, but Darcy was giving Darien…how should I say it…a threat."
Ray snickered, "I bet she did."
"Dominant women can be very…persuasive." Mark added.
"Territorial is more like it." Ed commented under his breath.
"So, is that why you chose a human female, Tom?" Shane asked.
Tom's brow curved, "Human females can be just as aggressive."
"Okay, so are we gonna talk about differences between human and dominant chicks or are we gonna party?" Hobbes asked.
Darien leaned back and hollored, "It's time to paarrtaaayyy!"
"Fawkes, not so loud, I have neighbors you know." Hobbes picked up the bottle of champagne.
Darien noticed two trays with glasses on them. "Hey, we expecting more people?"
"No," Tom answered.
"Then why the two sets of glasses?" Darien asked.
"Custom dictates that after a toast has been made to the bride that the glasses are broken thus preventing the glasses from being used for anything else again. It is considered bad luck for the marriage." Eberts answered in his usual confident manner.
Darien's forehead creased in surprise, "Ebes, you're a walking encyclopedia."
"Thank you, Darien…I think."
Darien noticed that Hobbes was about to open the bottle. "Uh-oh…look out!" Darien said as he covered his head. The cork popped and hit the ceiling sending the cork flying across the room and landing safely on the floor. Everyone covered their heads with their hands.
"All right there hairball," Hobbes said as he poured Darien's glass and then the others. "Okay, Fawkes, Tate, since you're the grooms you need to make the traditional toast to your brides-to-be."
All the men held up their glasses. "To Darcy, to her health and for the great woman that she is," Darien announced. They tapped their glasses together as they said "To Darcy" in unison and drank. The glasses were wrapped in cloth and broken.
Another round of champagne was poured for Ed's toast. Again they held up their glasses. "To Claire," Ed paused, he became serious for a moment. Everyone looked at him. The dominants in the room could sense the emotion building up and Darien put his hand on his shoulder. Ed glanced at him and smiled. He turned his attention to everyone and continued, "Uhm…I never knew that I could love someone as deeply as I love Claire. So, I propose a toast to her health and the strong steadfast woman that she is."
A chorus of clanking glasses and the words, "To Claire," echoed around the room. Just as before, the empty glasses were wrapped and broken.
Hobbes had promised Tom, Mark and Shane some good clean fun and camaraderie for their first bachelor party. That was something that dominant men were not used to. This was going to be a great learning experience for them and they looked forward to it. Hobbes had explained the tradition of the bachelor party and Tom found it an intriguing custom. The groom celebrates the end of his bachelorhood, but still acknowledges his loyalty to his friends.
"Time to go," Hobbes announced. They grabbed their bags and headed for a night of fun at Pala Casino, Resort and Spa.
~*~
The ladies had gathered for their own bit of fun at Irene's in Laguna Beach. In the morning the brides, mother of the brides along with the mother of the grooms will go to a local salon and get ready for the back-to-back weddings. The two beachside ceremonies will take place at the Montage Resort later on in the day. But first, it was time to party and enjoy some good laughs. The house was decorated with the typical Bridal Shower decorations. Since it was a party for both Darcy and Claire they used the traditional pink and white colors.
All the guests had arrived and the drinks started to flow. Claire looked in her glass and nearly spit out her drink. "What's the matter, Claire?" Sloan asked innocently.
"Well, I've uhm…got penis shaped ice cubes in my drink." Claire stated as she examined the contents of her glass. "Oh my, even the straw is male shaped."
Sloan smiled wickedly. "I do too," Darcy exclaimed. A chorus of "Me too" and "So do I" echoed around the room. "I hate to see what she brings out next," Claire stated as Sloan brought out penis shaped hors d' oeuvres. The women started laughing and quickly snatched them up. After the women were done snacking, Sloan started the party. She pulled out the box of goodies and asked everyone to join her at the table.
"Can we bring our drinks?" Claire asked.
Sloan chuckled, "Of course, Claire." When everyone was seated, she began to explain what they were about to do. "Okay, this is not a game, but something I thought would be fun. You know how we're always getting the bride-to-be sexy lingerie but we never get anything for the men. Well, that's about to change." She dug into the box and started to toss packages on the table.
Irene picked one up and started to laugh, "Oh my Lord!"
"Yep, that's right ladies, we're going to make thongs for the grooms."
Darcy's mother, Katherine, started to laugh and dug into the pile to find something interesting. She discovered the tuxedo thong with the ball and chain attached to it. "Okay, I got mine!" She announced enthusiastically.
"I'm in trouble," Darcy commented.
"No, that husband-to-be of yours is," Katherine retorted jokingly. The other women started to laugh.
Sloan handed Darcy and Claire their pre-arranged packages. "The brides have already selected a combo package. Darcy has selected the brave/squaw Indian thong set and Claire selected the Tarzan/Jane thong set."
Irene nearly spit out her drink. "Oh my!" She could barely hold in her laughter. "I wish my bachelorette party was this much fun." Irene looked for hers and she started to laugh, "Oh, this is just too funny…but I don't think it's long enough…oh…" Irene turned red as she blushed deeply. "That didn't come out right," she said trying hard to hold back her laughter.
All the women leaned their heads back and started to laugh. Katherine looked at Irene with tears running down her cheeks, "I think that's for Claire to decide."
"What is it?" Claire asked.
"The elephant one…" Irene held up the package and the women couldn't stop laughing.
Claire took it from her and opened it up. "You know, I think you're right, it's not long enough…" Claire added after examining the length of the elephant's trunk.
"Oh my God, we're in for quite a night," Sloan said as she desperately tried to get herself under control.
"What else you got there?" Gracie asked as she rummaged through the packages.
"Well, there's a peacock that you can put feathers on."
"Oohh…I like that one…where is it?" Gracie scanned the scattered mess on the table and found two of the peacock thongs. "This is going to be fun," she announced, "I'm going to make one for both of them."
Claire's mother, Victoria, hunted through the packages before she found one that she liked. "The kilt one is adorable," she said as she opened the package.
"So, I guess we'll really find out if men do wear anything under those kilts," Darcy snickered.
"Historically speaking, they didn't wear anything," Claire said amusingly.
Tara wasn't sure what to make of all the jovial discussion. She suddenly realized what she had been missing in her life, fun. It wasn't something that she was used to. Dominants were raised in a firm environment, it was necessary for survival. But now she knows it was all lies, everything that her father had told her was all lies. Humans and dominants have a lot to learn from each other and their true survival was in co-existence. She smiled as she reached for a package.
"Which one are you doing?" Darcy asked sensing the emotional revelation that Tara just had.
"I'll make one for Ed and Darien too…hmm…this cobra one is interesting…and so is the mesh one with the chain…it's so…revealing…" Tara noted as she stared at the male model wearing the mesh thong that didn't leave much to the imagination.
"Ed is going to have a fit," Claire giggled as she put together the front flap for the Tarzan thong.
~*~
It took the men nearly an hour to get to the casino and spa. They checked in at the front desk to get their rooms. Ed and Darien were going to stay in the Grand Suite. The other men would stay in the Deluxe Suites.
Darien and Ed walked into their room with the bellhop following behind them with their luggage. "My God!" Ed exclaimed.
"Whoa…just think, I used to rob places like this," Darien turned and looked at the bellhop, "But not anymore of course, I work for the Government now. So I steal legally…kidding… you get it? Government…steal…"
Ed was already across the room and looking at the French doors leading into the bedroom area. "Darien, check this out!" Ed sounded like a child discovering something for the first time.
"Be right there," Darien gave the bellhop his tip, "Thanks."
"If you need anything, just phone the front the desk."
"Will do." Darien waited for the bellhop to leave and then followed the sound of Ed's voice. "Wow…this is like the Presidential suite."
"Tell me about it, we've got a Jacuzzi bathtub, and check this out," Ed pointed to the shower, "…two people can fit in this shower…look…two shower heads and a separate body wash…"
"You know what would make this room perfect?" Darien asked.
"The girls?" Ed answered.
"Yep, cause taking a shower with you is not on my list of things to do while I'm here. Nothing personal."
Ed laughed, "Like wise. I'll have to bring Claire here. She'll love it." Ed said as he rushed passed Darien to check out the rest of the suite. As Ed entered the living area, there was a knock at the door and the sound of Hobbes' voice, "Hey, you two, open up."
Ed opened the door and let the other men enter. Hobbes whistled, "So, this is the Grand Suite…very nice."
Darien came out of the bathroom, "Hey, Hobbesy, check this place out. We've got a wet bar and a mini bar."
"You would notice that," Hobbes retorted. "Well, we can either stand here or go down stairs and start this party."
"I vote for going downstairs," Darien stated.
"Me too," Ed added.
"Hold on twin peaks, you've got to wear something first."
Ed and Darien shot each other worried glances. Hobbes pulled out two badges and handed them to the bewildered men, "You've got to wear these."
Ed and Darien studied the Spin for a Dare pins. Ed looked at Hobbes bemused, "All the dares say 'show me your boobs'."
"That's right, my friend. And you're not allowed back up here until all these beads are gone," Hobbes pulled out two pre-pared strands of mardi gras beads. He put them around the grooms-to-be necks.
"I like this game," Darien mused as he examined the colorful beads.
"If I were you, I wouldn't tell Darcy," Ray added.
Ed and Darien amused by their new task of getting rid of the beads, headed out of the room. Darien turned to Ed, "At least he's not making us wear that ball and chain thing." Darien felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Hobbes standing behind him.
"I almost did," Hobbes scooted in front of the tall men and quickly made his way to the elevator.
~*~
The ladies finished with the thongs and went on to their first game. Sloan rolled out a poster with a guy on it with a bull's eye target on his private parts area. All the women started to giggle.
"Can't have a bachelorette party without Pin the Macho on the Man game now could we?" Sloan passed around the 'machos' and explained the rules of the game. "The person who gets the 'macho' in the right place or close to it wins. "The Brides will go first." Sloan put the blindfold on Darcy and spun her around three times. Sloan guided her to the poster. She repeated this until everyone had a chance. Most of the 'machos' ended up in unusual places and everyone shared a good laugh at how odd the man looked with 'machos' pinned to him in every place imaginable. Claire won the game by getting her 'macho' pretty close to the right the spot.
Sloan brought out the next game. "I think I need another drink," Claire stated as she got up and opened up the ice bucket. It was filled with penis shaped ice cubes. Claire burst out laughing, "Sloan! You went a little crazy with these ice cubes," she held one up by the ice tongs.
"Well, this is a bachelorette party." Sloan hung two paper plates from the ceiling. There were holes cut in the middle of the plates. "Okay, now, we're going to play Pecker In the Hole game. Here's the object…" she held up one of the male shaped pop guns and sprayed it with vegetable oil to lubricate it so that it'll work easier. "You have to squeeze the testicles…"
"Sloan, please, we're not in med school. Call them 'balls' for crying out loud," Darcy retorted. Everyone started to laugh hard. It took the ladies a good ten minutes to calm down for Sloan to continue.
Sloan's face was a deep red color as she gripped the penis pop gun in both hands. "Okay, so you squeeze the…balls…as hard and fast as you can like this…" Sloan illustrated the directions. Giggles could be heard along with a 'ouch' here and there. Suddenly the shaft of the gun popped off and flew across the room. Laughter broke out again.
"If I did that to Ed his eyes would pop out of his head," Claire stated as she laughed and wiped the tears from her face. That comment only made the hysterics worse. Sloan feared that they may never get to play the game.
~*~
Ed headed straight for the poker table. Darien went over to the 'craps' tables with Mark and Shane, while the others tried their hand at the slot machines. Hobbes and Tom made a discreet exit and headed back up to the Grand Suite where the real party will take place.
After a few hours the rest of the party headed upstairs to help Hobbes and Tom decorate the room. Ed made out like a bandit at the poker tables and decided to head to one the café's.
Darien came in and found Ed sitting alone at one of the tables. He sat down and studied Ed for a moment. "For someone who was like 'Maverick' at poker you sure do look depressed."
Ed smiled and looked into his beer before taking a sip. "I'm just in deep thought."
"I can tell. So, what's eatin' ya?"
Ed let out a long sigh, "When I was at Copeland's encampment he wanted me to join him in what he was doing. I told him that I could never betray my friends or my species. He said that the scientist in me wouldn't be able to resist." Ed paused and then continued, "I never told anyone this but there were two reasons why I needed to escape, one was to get word to Walter about what was going to happen and two…because I knew that Copeland was right…" he looked up at Darien serious for a moment, "…the scientist in me wasn't going to be able to resist."
"You can't beat yourself up over that, Ed. It was a long time ago and plus you stopped him."
"Yeah, but it's happening again. Darien, I don't know when to shut the scientist in me off."
"Maybe you're not supposed to. I mean, it's what keeps you seeking answers isn't it?"
"I guess so, but where do I draw the line?"
Darien searched his friend's expression. Something was bothering Ed and he wasn't about to read his mind to find out. "Okay, so are you going to dance around the subject or are you going to tell me what's bothering you?"
"Alright, here goes. With the babies I have an opportunity to study a first generation of dominants after the parents were converted." Ed looked at Darien and studied him for a moment. He looked away, "I'm sorry, Darien."
Darien shook his head as if in agreement, "It's okay, Ed. Remember, I grew up with a scientist. I know how you guys think."
"You know I wouldn't do anything to harm Darcy and the babies, it's just that…" Ed stopped in mid sentence and started to vehemently shake his head, "No, I won't. I won't even ask. Forget I even said anything."
"If not you, then who?"
"What? What do you mean?" Ed asked not sure what to think of Darien's question.
"Look, I may not be as smart as you or Claire but I do know how scientists can be. If Limo Lady was still around do you think she would hesitate in wanting to run tests on Darcy and the babies? Heck no, she would jump at the opportunity."
"There's a big difference between me and her, Darien."
"That's my point." Darien leaned forward on his chair, "Look, I know that even Walter might be dancing around with the same idea and frankly, I know that you need answers."
"Darien, I'm not…won't turn your family into lab rats."
"I know you wouldn't do that. But think about it, what do you really need to know?"
Ed let out a sigh, "Well, for starters, if one of the babies is a female then I can run a test to see if she's born with four uteruses."
"And how would you do that?"
"Oh, it's very painless; an ultrasound is all I would need to do."
"Okay, then what?"
"See what tendencies they have as they grow, like…violent behavior, how smart they are, and keep documentation during their developmental years to compare with human children of the same age…those sort of things."
Darien pursed his lips together. "Would you need to run these tests in a lab?"
Ed moved his head in a negative motion, "No, not really. Sometimes your best results are in surroundings that are normal for the subject." Ed stopped and became annoyed with himself, "Listen to me, I'm acting as if the research has started already."
"Look, Ed, you want to learn more about dominants and their origins, right?"
"Yeah."
"When will this opportunity come around again?"
"Only if Darcy becomes pregnant again."
"There see, and there's a fat chance of that happening again. Look, I trust you more than I would anyone else. Let me talk to Darcy and see what she says."
"Thanks, for understanding. It would really help in my research and answer a few questions." Ed said as she took another sip of his beer.
"It's cool. And here I thought you were nervous about tomorrow."
"I am nervous about that." Ed said.
"You're not getting cold feet are you?"
"What? Oh, no. Just nervous."
Darien took a look at Ed's 'spinner' pin. "So, ah…anyone spin your pin?" He hoped to lighten Ed's mood up a bit.
Ed looked down at his shirt, "My God, I forgot I had this on!" He shook his head, "I can't believe Hobbes…well, yes I can."
Darien chuckled as the waitress came over. "Sorry I took so long…" she stopped when she saw Darien and then glanced at Ed, "Twins! How nice and getting married too I see."
Darien glanced down at his pin and smiled embarrassingly, "Yeah."
"I'm sorry if this offends you, but it's all part of the 'bachelor's last night out' game I guess." Ed said sheepishly.
"Not offended, but may I?"
Darien looked at her and realized what she wanted to do. "Nah, it's okay, you don't have to."
"But your twin said it's all part of the game, so I might as well play." She bent down and spun Darien's pin and then Ed's. The arrows landed on 'show me your boobs'.
"If you two boys wait I'll pay my debt. Besides, I want to have one of those mardi gras beads around your necks."
"But all the dares are the same, you really don't have to." Ed felt Darien kick him under the table. "Ow, hey!"
Darien glared at Ed, "You said it, bro. It's all part of the game. Besides if we go upstairs with all these beads Hobbes will shoot us."
"Oh, I'm sorry, would you like a drink?" The waitress asked looking at Darien.
"A beer, same as what he's having," Darien answered as he pointed to Ed's drink.
The waitress smiled at Ed, "And can I get you another one?"
"Yeah, I have a feeling it's going to be a long night," Ed retorted annoyingly as he rubbed his sore leg.
Ed was right; it turned out to be a long and interesting night. They ended up having just about every waitress and other ladies come over and spin their pins. By the time Darien and Ed made it back upstairs to their room, all their beads were gone. When they opened the door blown up brightly colored condoms were everywhere. "What in the…" Darien was interrupted by Jacob, Jonathan, Ray and Shane making noise with their party favors. Hobbes had a water gun shaped like boobs and he squirted Darien and Ed with it. Eberts, James, Tom and Mark pulled on poppers and streamers sprayed into the air covering the shocked grooms.
~*~
Sloan brought out the cake and unlike the other things, this was not in the shape of the male anatomy. This cake was round and had four doves on it with wedding rings between them, under one set of doves were the names, Darcy and Darien. The other doves had the names, Claire and Ed, written underneath. There were also silver candy pearls decorating the cake. Claire and Darcy nearly started crying when they saw the cake.
"Sloan, this is beautiful," Claire stated.
"Yeah, perfect, Sloan." Darcy added.
"Let's have a toast shall we before we have the cake," Sloan said. Champagne glasses were passed around and the bubbly liquid poured, except Darcy had a non-alcoholic beverage. "Okay, I'd just like to say to Claire and Darcy, break a leg…oh wait, that's in acting. Okay seriously now, to Claire and Ed, Darcy and Darien, happiness and health." They clanked their glasses together. "Uhm, I would just like to say that I've known Ed for a very long time, we went to school together, worked together, cried and laughed together. He's been like a brother to me and I can't think of anybody better for him then you, Claire. Since he met you, he's been the happiest I've ever seen him. Thank you for getting him out my hair…" There was laughter around the room.
"I'll drink to that," Irene stated. She turned to Claire and hugged her. Victoria then hugged Claire and then Irene.
"Darcy, I've only known you and Darien for a short time, but I have to say, that you two were literally made for each other. But I do know that Darien's life has been tougher than we could ever imagine. When you came into his life, you sparked something in him that has been dormant for a long time, a reason to love again completely. Thank you for turning his sorrow into joy."
"Here, here!" Claire yelled out. Madeline and Aunt Celia got up and went to Darcy, the three women hugged.
"I wish his mother could be here, I know that she would love you as a daughter," Aunt Celia then kissed Darcy on her cheek.
Katherine smiled. She knows what her daughter went through and Darien for that matter. How their humanity was taken from them. She would be forever thankful to Darien for bringing her daughter back home to her and she welcomed him as a son. She got up and went to her daughter and hugged her tightly. She then hugged Aunt Cecilia and Madeline.
Claire and Darcy were pulled away from everyone and they cut the cake together. Sloan brought out the coffee to go along with the cake. When everyone was nearly done, Sloan slipped away and retrieved the last game for the evening, a penis shaped piñata.
"Now that's what I'm talking about," Gracie quipped when she saw the piñata. "Where's that stick?"
Each woman took turns at the piñata while Sloan played, Girls Just Want to Have Fun and Denise Williams', Let's Hear It for the Boy.
~*~
The following morning, Hobbes knocked on the door and used the card key to get inside. "Rise and shine sleeping grooms, it's time for Ed and Darien's big adventure!" Hobbes announced.
Darien rushed to the living room and tripped along the way. Ed glanced up from the bed and smirked, "Very graceful."
Darien glared back at Ed and opened the door, "Hobbes, do you realize what time it is?" He spat out while running his hand over his forehead.
"Yes, it's time for the Grooms to get ready and then later on spa treatments with your brides," Hobbes said as he pushed his way passed Darien. "I can't help it if you two drank all night to get rid of those beads."
"What?" Darien countered still half asleep. Ed sat up on the bed with a confused expression.
"You heard me," Hobbes retorted as he grabbed a banana from the complimentary fruit basket.
"Yeah, and I thought you said something about spa treatments?" Darien said as he grabbed the banana from Hobbes' hand.
"You didn't know? It goes along with the package…couples are treated to a spa treatment. It's in the brochure, Fawkes. It'll take about two and half hours."
"Awesome," Ed said as he hopped from the bed. "When do we go?"
"I believe that'll be tomorrow, but first you two need to get married...well not to each other of course, but to you know, Darcy and Claire." Hobbes shrugged his shoulders and tried to hide his embarrassment.
Darien rolled his eyes in frustration. "I know what you meant. Now tell me, what does this spa include? Not a mud bath I hope."
"Mud baths are great," Ed stated matter-of-factly.
"You're kidding me right? You've taken mud baths?"
"Sure. Haven't you?"
"Okay, you know, the more I get to know you the more you don't act like a scientist. Now the next thing you'll tell me is that you sun bathe in the nude."
"Of course, don't you?" Ed asked as he grabbed a handful of grapes and walked off to order room service.
Darien stared off into another part of the room contemplating Ed's sudden revelation about himself. Hobbes shook his head, "You know, he does act more like a lifeguard then a double D."
"Yeah, well, the next time I go over to his house I'll remember to call first."
TBC…