"Are you ok, Mom?", Jan asked as she threw another pair of shorts into her suitcase.

"Oh, I'm fine. I think something blew into my eye."

Jan smiled, went to her mother and put her hands on her shoulders. "Mom, I'll only be gone 10 days. Besides, Sara said you and Dad could come too. They have plenty of room."

Carol wiped at her eye quickly. "That transparent huh?"

"Like brand new glass", Jan smiled and started packing again.

"I have this case coming up. Mario Juarez. The DA knows that young man didn't rob any liquor store, but he fit the description. The public defender wanted him to cop a plea. Sorry Jan, but that young man needs me."

"Well, I can't argue with that. Its good to do pro-bono stuff too. Just as long as I don't come home and the lights are turned off."

Carol laughed. "Jan, you should be ashamed of yourself. Money should not be a requirement to having good counsel."

Jan kissed her mother on the cheek. "I wish there were more lawyers out there like you, Mom. Then maybe you guys wouldn't get such a bad name."

"I can't believe you're talking to your mother this way. I bet you wouldn't say these things to your father."

Jan laughed. "Sure I would, but I have to wait until I get back to dig at him."

"When do you get back again?"

"June 26th at 9:25 p.m."

Carol shook her head. "I have no idea why you want to go to Mississippi in the middle of summer, but oh well."

"How much hotter than Maryland can it be?"

The Port of Casablanca was always busy. That was a problem for a small bulk freighter berthed there. Fifteen men had already sneaked onto the ship Riault. The ship was old, but it was just big enough to pass through the Panama Canal which made it useful. This ship was heading to Columbia to pick up another load of coca beans and coffee. 15 men had other ideas. Nine crates had been loaded onto the ship in the dead of night. Casablanca did a lot of business with US sea ports and the security had been raised to satisfy those in Washington. It was not good enough. With patients and planning they crates were aboard. The captain had hired extra men for this voyage. Most of them were more like marines than sailors, but there was going to be a lot of money in this run. The captain of the Riault used to have a regular call in New Orleans. He knew the unpredictable coast of Louisiana as well as any captain not in the US fleet. He would put these 15 men off right where they wanted. He didn't care what they were going to do once they got where they wanted to go. He only cared that he would have enough money to buy a cargo ship after this last run was over. He had another shipment aboard that was less desirable, but rich men had strange tastes. He tried to stay clear of the men who guarded the second shipment. They were below his personal standards for company. He would make sure they stayed in the hold, but he would deliver both shipments as he had been contracted to do. The captain looked out the bridge door as the harbor master's boat came along side. It was time to go. He said a prayer for safety and sat down.

Jan stepped off the plane and went to get her luggage from baggage claim. She waited patiently. Finally, her bags came and she put them on a rental two wheelers. She headed towards the glass doors. Then her phone rang.

"Jan, have you already landed?" It was Sara.

"Yeah, I just got my bags."

"Ok, great. We're pulling up now. We'll be in a Excursion. I wanted to make sure we'd have enough room. It's kind of a blue green. You can't miss it."

"Cool. I'll be waiting outside."

Five minutes later Jan regretted those words. Mississippi did have a different kind of heat. It was the sort of heat where the sun jumped on your back and decided to stay a while. Jan went back into the shade, but for some reason it didn't really help. The wind blew. It should have felt good, but instead it felt like sticking your face in an oven. Finally the big Ford pulled up. Sara jumped out as soon as it stopped.

"Jan!" Sara ran over and hugged her friend. "How was your trip?" She asked as the driver started loading Jan's bags in the back.

"Flight was good. Standing out here waiting, now that was rough. This heat it killer."

Sara frowned and looked up at the cloudless sky. "Its not even hot yet. Its only 87. We even had the windows down on the way over here."

Jan just shook her head. "Southerners."

Alisha's plane landed an hour after Jan's. Alisha surprised everyone and had packed relatively light. It only took four minutes to load her bags into the back. They left the airport and headed northwest into the Mississippi Delta. Jan looked out the window as the driver went down the road.

The driver pulled off the Interstate and started down a state highway. A few miles past Yazoo City he turned off the highway and went over a bridge. There were some really nice houses on either side of the street. Some houses had 100 yards between them while others were within 100 feet of one another. Most of the houses were less than 10 years old. Jan could see some barns in the back ground, horses, some cows, and then finally soybean fields that stretched to the horizon. They drove though these fields forever.

"When are we going to get to your place. You said it was big, but we've been on this road forever."

Sara tapped the driver on the shoulder. He smiled a knowingly. "Clover Bottom is the name of the farm, and we've been on it since we crossed that bridge."

Alisha frowned. "That was a few fucking miles ago. Ohh, excuse my French."

Sara shook her head. "We came in from the east. The house is closer to the northern entrance. The house is just over here. Once we get past these trees you'll be able to see it. After dinner I want to show you guys something."

"I thought we were going to eat lunch."

"Sorry, I'm back home. I forget about the outside world. Dinner is supper and lunch is dinner. Don't ask me why, but you might hear someone else say it."

"Southerners", Jan said again.

"There's home!", Sara exclaimed as the Ford rounded the trees. Clover Bottom Mansion looked to be from a time warp. It was three stories tall with big white doric columns supporting a three leveled porch that ran around three sides of the house. The house was made from different colored bricks that went wellwith the white columns. Four gothic looking chimneys rose from the corners of the house. The slate roof looked old, but well kept. The main thing about the house was its size. It was huge. It cast an enormous shadow. The houses they had seen earlier were really nice. In Maryland they would have cost more than $1 million easy, but Clover Bottom Mansion displayed power like only an ante-bellum southern plantation house could.

"Man, this is like a fucking movie."

"How old is that house? Its not a reconstruction or something is it?", Jan asked without taking her eyes off the house and the activity around it.

"Oh, no", Sara began. "This house was built in 1847 after the original house burned down. They added on in 1859. It hasn't be altered on the outside since then."

"Do you keep the slave houses in the back?", Alisha asked with laugh.

Sara eyes flashed towards Alisha with a look Jan had never seen in them. "We don't joke about that sort of thing around here", she snapped. "Yes, my family used to own slaves, but that's the past. All those houses we passed before, those houses all belong to the decedents of former slaves here at Clover Bottom. If anyone can prove that they are a decedent of one of the black people who were enslaved here then they get land here on the farm and an interest free loan from my family's bank. Matter of fact the president of the bank is a black woman who's family were slaves here a long time ago. She just bought a house in Vale. We can't change the past, but we sure don't want to joke about it either."

"Sara, Sara, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean anything by it. I really didn't. I just saw the house and it looked like a movie, and..."

"Enough said", Sara cut her off. Her pleasantness returning. "It was a misunderstanding."

"Really, do you forgive me?" Alisha was as serious as she ever was.

Sara put her hand on Alisha's. "No need to apologize to me. I really shouldn't be offended. I mean we didn't pay the folks who built this house. Its just that my family's tried really hard since the end of the war to change the relationship with the black people who live near here."

"I've been all over the world", the driver, a black man named Roy, spoke up for the first time. "When I was in the army I went to Paris, London, Rome, Rio, Tokyo, you name it I've been there. I've been all over this country too. I was born here on Clover Bottom Farm. I've been to all those places, but I decided to come back here when I retired from Coca-Cola. William Hewitt and his father before him always treated me like a man. That was rare. I'll be honest. There weren't many white people here in Mississippi I would care to be around. Its a little better now, but I would kill for William Hewitt. He's a good man."

Sara squeezed Roy on the shoulder and gave him a tight smile. He patted her on the hand and finally pulled the big Ford to the front of the house.

Sara jumped out. Two young hispanic men and a white one went to the back and started unloading the luggage.

"Is it always this busy around here?", Jan asked.

"No, we're getting ready for the annual Barrel Bottom Ball. Its a fund raiser we throw. It takes days to get ready for it. The governor comes every year. Sometimes governors from other states come. A lot of Senators and Congressmen come. Ronald Reagan came one year, but I was too young to remember. George Bush came too, the first George Bush." Sara took a deep breath. "Well, lets go in. There's food inside."

"And air conditioning I hope."

The inside of the mansion was more impressive than the outside if possible. The foyer was huge with a dual staircase. The floor was a fine pattern of different woods. One large chandelier hung over the center of the space. Oil paintings of Hewitt's past hung on the wall, but so did portraits of the current family.

"There's my painting!" Alisha pointed to Sara's portrait hanging on the right side of the large room.

"I told you I was going to frame it and have it hung. I had a frame made just for it. I told you I loved it."

Just then a man walked from a door behind the stairs. He was in his early 50's. He was not a big man, but he commanded respect with the way he moved. His sandy hair was neatly groomed and he wore a long sleeve oxford shirt with the sleeves rolled up slightly over gray slacks. Jan knew who he was as soon as she saw him. Sara looked a lot like her father.

"You must be Jan", he said in aristocratic Mississippian. The accent was unmistakable.

"Nice to meet you, Sir." Jan extended her hand.

"Nice grip. I know some politicians who wish they had a hand shake like that." He turned to Alisha. "And you must be, Alisha, the young lady who painted that wonderful portrait of my little girl."

"Yes, Sir", Alisha said almost shyly.

"Well, it is the best one hanging up here on these old walls. My son got jealous when he saw it."

"I can paint one of him too. I mean I think I have enough time. I might have to go get some materials and stuff."

William Hewitt laughed. "I'll let you decide that after you meet Charley."

"Call me Charles, Dad. I'm not a little boy anymore." Charles Hewitt III looked like a bigger, younger version of his father. He was only 15, but he was 3 inches taller than his father with the same sandy colored hair. He had light blue-gray eyes like his sister, and a good solid teenage build.

He walked up to Jan first. He had a look in his eyes that Jan had seen on many a teenage boy. She just smiled.

"Sara talks about you two all the time. Especially in the last couple of days, wouldn't shut up. I thought younger brothers were supposed to be annoying not older sisters."

They all shared a laugh. "Well, at any rate, welcome." He shook both their hands and went out the front door.

"That boy is going to be president or something when he grows up", Sara said after he was out of sight.

Lunch, was served on the east porch. Chicken salad sandwiches with homemade potato chips and lemonade. It truly was wonderful. After that Sara lead them back behind the house.

"I told you I had a surprise for you."

Three horses were saddled, warmed up, and standing in the shade beside the stables. Two of them were chestnut and another was black with a white spot on his head. All three were impressive.

Jan walked right up to the black one and rubbed his neck and shoulders before working her hand over near his mouth. She took some oats from the tender's hand and let the horse eat a few from her hand. "You're a big fella aren't you?", she whispered to the horse as she rubbed him.

"That's Horus"

Alisha went up to the smaller Chestnut mare. She smiled broadly as she too rubbed the horse letting her get used to her a little.

"That's Anastasia."

"Well, she is gorgeous. Aren't you girl?"

"I hope you don't mind riding English saddles."

"Kind of un-American, but I think we can mange." Alisha and Jan led their horses around by the reins for a few minutes before climbing on. Both girls were experienced riders. Jan had learned in the horse country of Virginia while Alisha had learned on the exclusive ranches of California. The three girls road well into early evening. Only building hunger brought them back. Sara showed them a lot of Clover Bottom Farm, but there was much more left to see. She would save some things for the next day.

The three girls loved riding around on the farm. Jan and Alisha had learned how to dress for the heat and to make sure they brought plenty of water. Charles came riding one day, but he was overseeing the installation of new irrigation towers somewhere to the south of the house in a soy field. The day before the Barrel Bottom Ball, Sara's dress had come back cut terribly wrong. She had to go to Jackson to the seamstress to get it fixed in person so it would be ready the next day. Jan and Alisha had decided to ride by themselves. They figured they knew their way around well enough.

"I'm glad you had them saddle the westerns today. Nothing against the English, but this is more like it", Jan observed as they rode the horses towards a grove of trees.

"I grew up in California. I'm an out west girl, but aren't you Virginians supposed to be more genteel and all that. You know all that steeplechase jumping and what not."

"Ha ha. Yes, I've done steeplechase, but I still prefer western saddles."

The girls knew there was a stream that flowed in a grove. Jan and Alisha had already finished all the water in one canteen and were working on their second. They figured the horses would need a drink too. They walked the horses into the trees. They got closer to the creek and heard noises coming from the creek. There was splashing and scraping. After coming over a small hill they looked down at the creek. It was about 20 feet wide and less than three feet deep with rocky banks.

"You hear that?", Jan asked.

"Yeah", Alisha answered still looking around. "There." She pointed to a cow trapped between a rock and a large fallen tree. The cow was trying to get out, but kept slipping and falling on its side. The waters only came near the young cow's neck, but the cow was starting to struggle.

"We have to get it out of there", Alisha whined. "Its so cute. Poor thing," The girls dismounted and walked to bank. There was no way they could get the cow out.

"We have to get that log out of the way."

"Yeah, but we still have to get the cow out", Alisha paused and looked back at her horse. "I  lasso it. Anastasia and I can pull her out."

"You can lasso?"

Alisha nodded. "Yeah, I can lasso. Can you get the fuckin' tree out of the way so I can pull her free?"

Jan looked at the waterlogged fallen tree. She shrugged her shoulders. "Let's find out."

Jan took off her shoes then waded into the chilly water. It actually felt good. She bent down and worked her hands under the trunk. The wood was slick under the water and she couldn't get to the very bottom because sediment had built up. She worked her fingers into a crack in the wood. She bent her knees, leaned in and started to pull up. She hoped her super strength would kick in at some point, but she couldn't feel one bit of it. Her regular strength would have to be enough. She took a deep breath, and made up her mind. She grunted. The tree started moving. Mud had built up at the bottom of the trunk. The suction made the trunk seem even heavier. Jan's feet sank down into the sandy bottom of the creek from the weight. Her body swelled with muscle as she strained to stand up. Every muscle in her back and legs flexed with raw power. The trunk left the ground with an audible sound as the suction was broken. Sweat rolled down Jan's face and neck from the heat and exertion. The tree was rising though. Jan's calves throbbed and flexed as she leaned in to get her arms further underneath. Her arms swelled and flexed as she worked to raise the trunk. Throbbing veins snaked up and down Jan's calves, quads, and hamstrings. They pumped more and more blood to the hungry muscles.

"Higher! Just a little higher!", Alisha yelled from the bank.

Jan took a deep breath and screwed up her face. The big tree trunk started to rise more. Jan's arms shook, but her muscles flexed harder and bigger. The tree was still rising, but slowly. Her shoulders were broad and swollen with ripped muscle trying to power the massive fallen tree up higher. They heard a small engine coming up from a distance. It got closer quickly.

"What are you all doing?", Charles yelled, jumping off his atv, and running into the stream.

"That cow is drowning", Alisha yelled

"Help me", Jan ordered through clenched teeth.

Charles went to Jan's left, wrapped his arms under the trunk and started pulling up. Charles grunted and strained next to Jan, who did the same. He leaned to his right and the tree rose a bit more.

"That's it!", Alisha yelled. She twirled the lasso over her head and let it fly. It went around the cow's head. Alisha wrapped the rope around the horn on the saddle. She urged Anastasia. The horse started walking. The cow thrashed, but finally came out of the hole and the water. Charles looked at Alisha get up to the cow and release the cow like a pro. The cow crossed the water again, this time without getting stuck. Charles looked over at Jan. He didn't want to, but he looked her up and down. Her body was so hard and so powerful. He knew Jan was in good shape before, but unflexed her body only hinted at the muscles she had.

"Ok we'll drop it on three", Jan said quickly. "1...2...3" The tree splashed back to the water as they jumped back.

"Well that wasn't so bad", Alisha said.

"Easy for you to say", Jan replied through deep breaths.

Charles looked at Alisha and Jan. His eyes lingered on Jan a bit longer than he would have liked. "I'm sure the cow appreciates it." Charles went back to his atv. "Just next time ask for help. I'll see yall later then." Charles rode away.

Jan tied her shoes together and put them over her saddle before climbing back on Horus. The two girls rode on after watering the horses like they had planned.

"Next time we find a trapped cow", Jan began, "you have to lift the tree."

Alisha laughed. "How the hell was I supposed to know your super duper strength wouldn't kick in."

"I told you that my strength is random."

"You lifted the tree anyway. You're a big amazon chic without the super strength. Those arms may not look like too much right now, but they swell when you want them to."

Jan laughed and slapped at Alisha who moved out of the way. "Let's just get back."

They rode on for a while. "I think Charles likes you", Alisha said all of the sudden.

Jan looked over. "I figured that out all by myself. I haven't been away from boys that long."

"Just had to say it. He's pretty cute."

Jan shook her head. "We're 18 now. Charles is jail bait."

"I didn't say sleep with him."

Jan just smiled.

Alisha smirked and looked down. "Yes"

"What?", Jan asked.

"Yes, I did have sex as soon as I got back home. You haven't asked, but I knew it was bouncing around in you head. I called a guy from high school. We had done before. It wasn't all that great. I mean the sex wasn't bad, but I just... I don't know, I didn't have the same drive as much as I used to. Didn't get as much out of it as I used to."

"Think you're cured?"

"Probably so. I guess my mother was right. It was just a phase. Doesn't mean I like sex any less. Just that I don't need as much of it."

Jan laughed. "Young men everywhere can come out of hiding."

Alisha slapped at Jan.

Jan and Alisha were invited to the Barrel Bottom Ball and sat at the same table as the governor of Mississippi and the first lady of the state. Jan had to defend Maryland, but Alisha had no chance to defend California against people who almost thought it was part of any other country. She finally broke down and told them that she was born and lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan before her father hit it big in the movie business. The dance was great too. The Grand Room at Clover Bottom was the equal any fine hotel ball room. Jan couldn't help but glance at Charles a couple of times. Sometimes for a moment he looked so grown and handsome in his tuxedo, and other times he looked like a 15 year old boy. Jan wasn't much older, but 3 years made a big difference. She caught him looking a few times, but Charles wasn't the only one. Jan didn't mind people looking as long as they didn't touch.

In the days after the ball, Sara took her friends all over the farm and on to some neighboring farms. They took trips to Vicksburg, Yazoo City, Rolling Fork and other small towns in the southern Delta.

After dinner one night Jan went outside for a walk in the night air. Charles came from the other way. She smiled as they were about to pass each other, but he stopped her.

"I'd like to thank you", he said in a tone that seemed much older than his age.

"For what?", Jan asked after taking a sip of her iced tea.

Charles took a deep breath. "I don't know what you did to get my sister out of her shell, but I thank you. I wasn't sure if she would ever be the same after Mom died. She didn't laugh, she didn't joke, she didn't even use her ability. You know about that don't you?"

Jan nodded.

"Well, I kind of like having a sister that's different. I can't talk about it to many people, but its cool. When I was little, I was scared to go to school. She would talk to me during the day from time to time just to make sure I was ok. I grew up with it. Then she stopped. It's just good to have my sister back."

Jan didn't know what to say. The young man was so sincere. She decided to change the subject for a moment. "You know, for a minute there I thought you were going to hit on me."

Charles laughed. "The thought has crossed my mind. Like every other minute, but it would never work. Long distance relationships always end badly. Sorry to disappoint you."

Jan had to laugh. "I'll tell you one thing. You don't lack for confidence."

"If I were a few years older, I'd have a chance. At least I think I would. You seem like a woman who needs a strong, confident man. Its just a shame."

Jan shook her head. "As for Sara, she just needed a reason to come out and open up. I didn't do anything special, except ignore her shyness."

"Mind if I walk with you for a bit?"

"Not at all."

They walked back away from the house towards the two story garage. "Sara told me you got her working out. She looks stronger, more fit. I've been working out for a couple years. I think I have a chance to play college football. Dad thinks its stupid, but I got the size gene from my mother's side."

"Well, Sara, Alisha, and I kinda started working out together."

"No way! You don't get arms like that working out for a few months." Charles stopped, pulled up his sleeve and flexed. A nice tight ball of teenage muscle rose up complete with a vein snaking over the peak."

"Not bad."

Charles put his arm down. "That is two years of work." He pulled up his shirt and flexed his abs. He had a good six pack too. Jan nodded. "I've been doing 1000 crunches a day without fail."

"You haven't been doing all that workin' out just for me. We just met a week ago."

"I've been doing it on the off chance that I met someone like you and now here you are and you're friends with my sister and too old on top of that." Charles smiled broadly.

They turned and started back towards the house. Then Jan stopped him. "How long have you liked girls with a bit of muscle?"

Charles stopped and frowned before answering. "Don't know. I'm 15; I like most girls, but there's something about a girl who's athletic." Charles shrugged his shoulders.

Jan looked around. "Can you keep a secret?"

"Yeah", Charles answered slowly and leaned in close for Jan to whisper something. Instead she raised her arm and flexed right in his face. The fabric of her sleeve stretched tight against her expanding biceps. Her arms normally had good shape, but when she flexed they just blew up with muscle. She pumped it a couple of times making the fabric stretch to the max.

"Go ahead and touch it." Charles looked at her. "Hurry before I change my mind." Charles reached up and put both his hands around Jan's arm. Her triceps looked great the way it filled out her arm. She pumped her arms a couple of more times making the muscle swell under his fingers. She let her right arm down and flexed up the left. It bunched up and flex to a jagged peak as she pumped it a couple of times.

"Wow", Charles exclaimed.

Jan put her arms down and looked around. She slowly lifted her blouse. She only pulled it up halfway, but it was enough. Jan flexed her abs. Deep ridges formed between her muscles as she twisted her hips a bit to show her obliques. Charles touched them gently a couple of times before Jan put her shirt back down.

"That was amazing."

"You like that. Watch this." Jan put her legs apart bent down a little and started flexing her right arm. The muscle rose up like a growing mountain under the fabric. It was big before, but now it grew and grew. She pumped a few times and then held the flex. The double headed biceps was visible through the white fabric and it seemed to be getting bigger, thicker, more powerful as Charles watched. So did her shoulders, traps, and lats. Her blouse that had fit just a moment before was now straining at the buttons to contain Jan's flexing body. Even her legs were flexed stretching her skirt. Her entire body radiated power and seemed to get denser and bigger. Jan frowned as she concentrated. Her bicep got harder and harder as she poured more into her flex. Her arm started vibrating. The sound of tearing fabric started. The tear started at the triceps, but another one started on top just at the massive peak. Jan took a deep breath and squeezed harder. The tear got bigger and bigger as Jan's peak ripped through her sleeve. Finally the entire head of her bicep was visible. A thick vein ran across the bicep feeding the other veins. Her arm was red and pumped. It looked so massive and so strong. She twisted her wrist, her bicep exploded with massive peak causing the tear to go all the way to the shoulder. Finally she let her arms drop.

"I hope you liked that. I ruined a nice blouse."

Charles' eyes were wide in awe. "Most amazing thing I've ever seen."

Jan smiled and patted him on the head. She flexed her arm right in his face one last time. Charles reached up and squeezed it hard, but his fingers couldn't begin to dent the hard muscle.

"Good night, Charles", Jan yelled back as she walked back into the house with her ruined sleeve rolled up.

"Good night, Jan." Charles started back towards the house. "Oh, its going to be a good night", he said under his breath as he headed to his room.

Jan, Alisha, and Sara were planning on making the most of their last two days together. They were planning either a trip to Memphis or New Orleans. Jan had always wanted to go to Beale St., but New Orleans won. They were chartering a plane when Jan's phone rang. She opened it without checking the id.

"Hello"

"Miss Caufield, this is Martha Worthington."

"Yes, if its about that thing a month ago..."

"Has nothing to do with that. You can do that a dozen times I wouldn't care. This is about something much more serious. We have an emergency mission."

"Yes Ma'am. Instructions?"

"There's going to be a van at the main gate of the Hewitt farm in an hour. Get whatever gear you, Sara, and Alisha have with you and meet that van."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"They'll have your instructions. Good luck."

Jan closed the phone and went to Alisha's room.

"Stop packing. Ms. Worthington just called me. We have to meet a van in an hour. Says we have an emergency mission. More instructions on the way I guess."

"Well damn. I've never been to New Orleans."

"She said bring whatever gear we have. The only thing I brought was my gun."

"Same here", Alisha began, "I have presidential permission to carry it wherever I go. So I take full fucking advantage."

"You want to tell Sara, or should I?"

to be continued...

Check out the conclusion of Working Vacation online now!