A/N: Thank you very much for the reviews and support! I hope my story continues to please you! Please continue to send in what you think/want to happen in the story! I love reading them!

And welcome all new readers! Enjoy!

(Miles)

THE DEVIL'S BARGAIN

How Murkoff Turned the Global Water Crisis into a Billion Dollar Revenue Stream

by Miles Upshur

May 9, 2013 2:19pm

ACCRA, GHANA

Nine-year old Akosua stands before the water-vending machine with its bright "ALSAB" logo, a few bills clutched in her small hand. You can still see the blank place on the machine's hull where the words "Freeflow Global Charities" was pried away last year.

She explains that 2 cedis (about $1) will buy her five liters of purified water, which her Cholera-afflicted mother desperately needs. But 17 cedis at the Worldfree Clinic would buy her mother the course of antibiotics that would shorten the disease' course and possibly save her life. It's a terrible choice for a child to make, and one facing more and more of the world's 1.6 billion inhabitants without access to clean drinking water.

More than a quarter of Accra's citizens buy their water from Wellspring Industries, either monthly through their taps, or directly from the ubiquitous, bright yellow Alsab machines. What few Ghanians know, however, is the hidden connection between Wellspring Industries, Alsab, Freeflow Global Charities, and Worldfree Clinics.

All of them are subsidiaries of the multinational Murkoff Corporation.

In an increasingly clear partnership between Western Capitalism and Third World corruption, the Murkoff Corporation has used its dozens of subsidiaries to open back doors into selling the source of life to drought-starved populations in Africa, India, and Southeast Asia.

Here's how it works: a newly-started charity, fueled largely by donations, establishes a water supply and sewage systems for communities whose well water has been rendered non-potable by industrial runoff. Murkoff gets the tax write-off for charitable spending, while their subsidiary Alsab gets the profits for building and installing the system. When the cost of running the system becomes too great, the charity (in Ghana's case, Freeflow Global) declares bankruptcy and abandons the project. Then Murkoff subsidiary Wellspring Industries (or another Murkoff shell company) steps in and offers the local government completion and maintenance of the project in return for the construction fee and complete deregulation of the water supply, allowing Wellspring/Murkoff to name the price of the population's water.

As Murkoff is also the owner of the three most active pharmaceutical manufacturers to the Third World, they'll profit nicely whether the locals choose clean water or cholera.

It's only the latest in Murkoff's near-century long history of playing both sides against the middle, maximizing profits at the cost of human rights. Whether licensing aggressively pollinating, genetically-modified rice with a built in "suicide gene" to India, flipping blood diamond real estate in Angola and Sierra Leone, or peddling amphetamines to the Nazis in World War II, you can't swing a dead cat in an arena of human suffering without knocking over a Murkoff piggy bank.

Water is fast becoming the new oil, an issue largely ignored by the developed world, by wealthy Americans and Europeans comfortable with their hot showers and iced drinks.

But earlier this year Murkoff subsidiary Heartland Springs Charity began construction of three Alsab-built water purification plants in Detroit.

Welcome to New World Water.

I sat back in my chair and read over the article I just wrote.

Of all the corporations I've come across, Murkoff takes the fucking cake.

Under the guise of a 'charitable organization', those bastards monopolize the suffering of innocent people to gain profit instead of actually helping them.

I'm sure they laugh about it at their fucking martini parties with the other white collared douchebags who don't give a shit about anything but their stacks of dough.

I received the tip back in January from one of the Worldfree Clinic nurses, said I should come down to Accra and check it out.

The memories still bring bile to my throat.

The Cholera outbreak was worse than I could've imagined.

Half of the people I came across were so dehydrated that their fucking skin turned blue!

And the air reeked of vomit and diarrhea, both well-known symptoms of Cholera.

It sickened me how this atrocity never would've reached public attention if she didn't contact me.

Murkoff is smart; they keep their dirty business off American soil because they know no one will care otherwise.

If it is not on our soil, it's not our problem.

Back aching from hours at the computer, I got up and stretched before lying down on the floor.

'This article isn't going to do shit to Murkoff. I need something to break the bastards. Something big enough to actually knock them down.' I sighed and rubbed my face. 'But what?'

I continued to lie on the carpet, wondering what the hell to do next when I felt something poke my nose.

I immediately cracked a smile and opened my eyes.

"I was wondering where my Honey Nut Cheerio went."

My 'attacker' giggled and poked my nose again.

"Daddy is silly." Ae-cha, our two year old, smiled as she crouched next to my face.

I have to admit, Short Stack and I made a good-looking kid. She had my light brown skin, her mother's smile, and two gorgeous green eyes. She also had thick, black hair that hung in her face and was so damn tiny that I felt like a redwood next to her.

I sat up and pulled Ae-cha onto my lap.

"I'm silly?" I laughed, tickling her sides. "I'm not the one who's still wearing my pajamas!"

I blew raspberries against her cheeks and was reward with her adorable laughter.

"Doraemon!" She proudly pointed to the anime character on her nightshirt.

"Yes, it is Doraemon. But it is time to wear daytime clothes so Doraemon can go night-night before you wear him at bedtime."

Ae-cha nodded, understanding my bullshit excuse in her childish mind, and sprung to her feet before pulling on my arm.

"Change clothes, Daddy, so Doraemon goes night-night!"

I laughed and stood up, letting her led me out of my office and into the hallway.

Shortly after Short Stack and I got married, we gathered up our savings and bought a farmhouse on the outskirts of Denver. It is surrounded by open fields and beautiful trees for Ae-cha to climb and run around in when she gets older. So in short, not too far from the city, but far enough to see the stars clearly at night.

And it is large enough for our family of four: Mommy, Daddy, Baby, and-.

The sound of paws pitter-pattering echoed down the hallway, and Ae-cha squealed when our Welsh Corgi, Annie, came around the corner at full speed.

"There you are, Cinnamon Roll Butt. Been sleeping in the laundry room again?"

Annie barked and leapt into Ae-cha's waiting arms, fuzzy tail shaking all the while.

This little fur ball came along while Short Stack was pregnant with our Cheerio.

I had a huge case I was working on, and she was heavily pregnant at home most of the time.

So, being the freaking awesome hubby I am, I brought Annie home from the shelter to keep her company when I couldn't.

Which wasn't often since I was basically glued to her side 99% of the time, massaging her feet and buying her whatever.

And shitting myself when she went into labor at three in the morning.

I composed myself two hours later when I held our baby in my arms and gave the remaining part of my heart to her.

My Short Stack and My Honey Nut Cheerio.

What a lucky guy I am.

*Bark*

And my Cinnamon Roll Butt. How could I forget you?

"Panda!" Ae-cha pulled a Taro Panda dress from her clothes basket and waved it in my direction.

"Alright." I replied from my perch on her Froggy beanbag chair with Annie nesting on my feet. "Can you dress yourself like a big girl?"

"Yes, Daddy!" She smiled, bouncing up and down. "First, take off Doraemon."

"Good." I reached over and picked up the discarded nightdress, cursing her mommy for giving her the same bad habit. "What next?"

"Put on clean undies!"

"Good, no one likes an itchy butt. And now?"

"Put on Panda!" She cheered, pulling the dress on and clapping. "Good, Daddy?"

"Very good, Cheerio." I smiled as she settled on my lap once more. "And now, it's time to brush your hair. But since you did such a good job getting dressed, Daddy will fix your hair."

Ae-cha gasped with a sparkle in her eyes before nodding vigorously.

I grabbed a hairbrush from the table next to me and began brushing my Cheerio's unruly hair, making sure to be gentle with the various tangles and knots.

Never in my twenty-nine years on Earth did I ever imagine playing hair dresser with a two-year old, much less my own, but I have to admit…it's quite fun.

Not that I'd ever admit that to anyone, especially Short Stack.

She would probably fawn over the scene and insist on taking millions of pictures before sending them to our parents.

"Where's Mommy?" Ae-cha asked, kicking her feet up and down. "Is she pooping?"

"No," I laughed as I started to braid her hair. "Mommy is at work. Remember, she plays the violin in that big building?"

"The castle!" She gasped. "Mommy is a princess!"

"Actually, you silly Cheerio, Mommy is a Queen."

"Queen?"

"Yes, she is the head of the house, so that makes her the Queen, and since Mommy is the Queen, that makes you the princess."

"Princess?!" She shrieked, cheeks pink with happiness. "Yay!"

I chuckled at her adorable enthusiasm and continued braiding her hair back.

After three years of being a househusband and two of being a daddy, I think I got this shit down like a pro.

If there ever was an "America's Next Top Dad", I would win in a landslide because no one knows the words to "Everybody wants to be a Cat" like I do.

"Alright, Princess Cheerio. You are done!" I cheered, tying her braid together with a ribbon.

"Yay! Thank you, Daddy!" Ae-cha twirled around and hugged me. "Playtime now?"

"Sure. What do you have in mind?"

"Hide-and-go-seek!" She chanted, bouncing up and down again.

"Alright, Jumping Bean. I'll count. Go ahead and hide." I covered my eyes and starting counting, hearing her scamper out of the room with Annie hot on her heels.

"Don't run down the stairs!" I called out.

"Okay!" She replied. "Keep counting!"

Twenty Mississippi's later, I rose from my perch and began my investigation of "Where the hell is my daughter hiding this time?".

No sign of her in the bathroom.

Nor the laundry room.

And she knows better than to hide in my office.

"Hmmmm!" I called out, approaching the stairway. "Where on Earth could my daughter be?"

I heard a giggle from beneath the stairs and leaned over the edge, catching sight of Ae-cha and Annie hiding behind my armchair in the living room.

Tip toeing down the stairs, I got on my knees and crawled to the front of the armchair, making sure she didn't spot me.

"Oh dear!" I sighed, throwing my voice. "If I can't find my Cheerio, then I guess all of her stuffed animals belong to me now!"

She gasped and crawled out from behind the armchair.

"Aha!" I jumped in front of her, causing a squeak of surprise to come out of her. "Looks like I win!"

"Daddy! You cheated!" She puffed out her cheeks and stamped her foot, the spitting image of her mommy whenever I pissed her off.

"How did I cheat?" I snorted, puffing out my cheeks too. "You came out of your hiding place on your own."

"Nuh uh!" She shook her head. "You cheated! Mommy said cheating is bad!"

"And Mommy is absolutely right." I patted her on the head. "Daddy is a bad person, isn't he? Should he go into time-out?"

"Yeah!" She instantly perked up. "Go to time-out!"

'I love how you perfectly imitated your mommy right there. Looking forward to your teenage years, Ae-cha.'

"Alright," I sighed, going to the corner and sitting down facing the wall. "Daddy is now in time-out."

"Good!" Ae-cha giggled. "And you stay forever."

"Alright," I laughed, wondering how long forever would last.

A moment of silence soon followed.

I listened to her pace around, while Annie pattered over and settled on my lap before falling asleep.

Soon the silence was broken when Ae-cha started poking my back.

"Daddy, I am hungry."

"Well, Daddy can't do anything. He is stuck in time-out forever, remember?"

"But I'm hungry, Daddy!"

"Then go make yourself some food, Cheerio. Daddy is not making you food anymore."

She whimpered, and I felt my heart break little.

"Well," I cooed, turning around. "if you end time-out, I can make you some Mac n Cheese."

"Mac n Cheese?!"

"Yup."

"Time-out no more! Time-out no more!"

"Alright!" I scooped Annie into my arms and hopped up. "Let's go make the warden some lunch, Cinnamon Roll Butt."

"Yay!"

Ten minutes later, I sat next to Ae-cha at the dinner table and watched her clumsily scoop the Mac n Cheese into her tiny mouth, her cheeks stained with the golden delicacy.

"Why is my Cheerio such a messy eater?" I chuckled, halting her movements to wipe her mouth with a napkin.

"Yummy!" She smiled, waving her arms around. "Want some, Daddy?"

"Really? Why thank you." I opened my mouth and let her smear her cheese covered spoon across my face. "Wow, that was delicious. Thank you for sharing that with me."

She smiled and nodded, pleased with her 'good deed'.

Annie was settled next to my chair, a doggy bone in her mouth.

"Can I try a bite, Cinnamon Roll Butt?"

The fur ball growled when I tried to take the treat from her and scooted to the other side of the table.

"How rude, Annie. You're in time-out, young lady."

"Hehe, Daddy is silly!"

"I'm silly?! You and the butter licker are the only silly ones I see! Neither of you can keep your food in your mouth!"

Ae-cha covered her face and laughed, thus making it messier by the second.

Then she hopped off her chair, crawled onto my lap, and stared at me with her big eyes.

"I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, Ae-cha." I smiled and kissed her on the nose.

"Love Mommy too?"

"Of course I love Mommy too. You and Mommy make Daddy very happy."

'Why go then?" She tilted her head to the side, nothing but pure curiosity in her gaze.

"What do you mean? I'm right here." I held her tiny hand to my face. "See, Daddy is right here."

"Then why leave?" Her green eyes dulled as she clung to my shirt. "You went bye-bye. That made Mommy sad."

Because of the outbreak and the possible risks, I ended up staying in Ghana for three months instead of two weeks.

I knew it hurt Young-ja and Ae-cha, but it hear it from my daughter's mouth so plainly, it shattered my heart.

I gathered my baby into my arms and held her tight.

"Daddy has an important job. He wants to help the world, so he has to go away sometimes. But know this, Daddy is always come back you and Mommy. Always."

"Promise?" She held her pinky up with teary eyes.

"I promise, sweetheart." I locked our pinkies together. "Nothing will stop me from coming back to you."

Nothing.

Not even death.

A/N: The article Miles types in the beginning is from the Red Barrels website. They published it to better explain why Miles hates Murkoff, and I decided to put it in! If you want the link, please send me a message, and I'll hook you up! Thank you to lokiAU10 and silkyterrier34 for their name suggestions! Since both of you were so kind enough to supply me with names, I used both of your lists to name the two new characters. LokiAu10 was Annie's, and silkyterrier34 was Ae-cha's. Thank you so much! And now, the Mount Massive saga has started! Please send in what you think will happen or what to happen! I love reading them, and~ if I really like it, I may use it in the story! And I based Ae-cha's conversations off the two-year old I care for at the hospital. See you guys in the next chapter!