Finders Keepers Part 6
By Soltan Bey


      
        The drive to the airport was quite an adventure for little Roberto.  
Mama told him to be quiet and quit asking the nice Taxi driver all those 
question. He was still upset about not seeing his friends anymore. Papa patted 
his back and said a 6 year old boy like him was lucky as he didn't have that 
many friends yet. Mama said they were going to live far far away and didn't know 
if they would be back any time soon. She told him he would make new friends and 
he could still write and talk to his cousins and Uncles and Aunts. She even 
promised he might get a new computer if he behaved well and did well in the new 
school. 

    Mama held his hand while they walked away from the Taxi. There were so many 
people. It looked like a giant fair ground to little Roberto and he was glad  
Mama was so close to him. As they walked into the giant building, she called it 
the terminal, he looked up at his Mama and wondered how it was she was getting 
bigger in the chest than before. He wasn't sure but it seemed like maybe she was 
taller than he was used to, Mama's arms were even getting bigger than before. 
She told him she wanted to be stronger. Roberto supposed Mama must be very 
strong. She looked like the strongest Mama in the whole wide world.

    He waited patiently in the line with Mama and Papa while they talked about 
things he didn't much care about. That was because he was staring at the most 
beautiful woman he had ever seen. Even more beautiful than Mama!  She had 
entered the check in line behind them a little ways. She was a giant. She 
smiled at him and he blushed. Then she startled him by coming over and said 
hello to Mama and Papa. He found out her name was Alexandra Nichols and they 
would be living with her in the new place. 

    She asked Mama if she could get a closer look at him and she 
picked Roberto up. "My, your a big  little lad Roberto. Do you know
how to swim?"  

    He nodded. "I learned how to swim at the Y last year. I like to 
swim."  He decided mama wasn't the strongest woman in the world 
anymore because he could feel Alexandra's big arm pressing into him. 
She was a -lot- bigger than Mama. From way up here he could see the 
entire airport. 

  She put him down as the line moved along. "Well I want you to know 
Roberto, there is a nice swimming pool at the place we will be 
staying. Your going to have a lot of fun there. But I don't want to 
see you in that pool unless you have permission and someone is there 
to watch you, OK?"  

    Roberto wished she would pick him up again, but he was too big a 
grown up boy to ask for that sort of thing. "I understand Mam. Mama 
taught me not to do those things." He looked away and found something 
to capture his attention.

   "You can call me Andra if you wish Roberto. It is my nickname."

    "Ok, Andra." He looked around. "Are you going to the island all 
alone? I don't see your family."

    Andra smiled, "Well, we can't always bring family along when we 
grow up and go places. But you and I can keep each other company OK?"

    "Sure!" Roberto smiled. "I brought a book along to read. Mama said 
we would be flying for about eight hours. Nonstop too! She said once 
we left land there wouldn't be much to see out the window. I can't 
wait to see what it is like to fly. Have you flown before?"

    "Many times." Andra dug something out of her purse. "I brought you 
some gum.." She looked over at Lucy. "Is it OK for him to chew? It 
will help with the air pressure changes."

    Roberto already had his hands out. "I know not to swallow. I like 
that flavor to. It's my favorite!"  He noticed Andra waited until Mama 
said it was okay  before she gave him the gum. 

    It wasn't long before they were in the big jet plane and he was glad they 
were all sitting in the same row of seats. He found out they were flying what 
was called first class and the seats were very comfortable. Andra said she 
always flew first class now because she needed the extra leg room and that 1st 
class chairs were bigger than the others. Roberto caught his Papa looking at 
Andra's leg. He supposed Papa wanted to make sure Andra was okay and had plenty 
of room.  She sure was big. 

  Roberto knew better than to say he could see she needed extra room in the 
chair because her hips were so big. 

    He wanted to look out the window as they were taking off but he 
couldn't because he had to stay strapped in like when they were 
driving. But once they were way up in the air they let him take his 
seatbelt off so he could see what was below. The stewardess came by 
and told them he couldn't stand in the seat to look out the window so 
Andra moved over and let him sit in her big lap so he could see. 

    Eventually he became bored with that and became sleepy. Andra said 
it was because of the vibration of the engines. She asked if he minded 
sleeping in her lap and he couldn't think of a reason why that would 
be so. She was so friendly and he felt so safe and comfortable in her 
lap with her arms wrapped around him. Her breasts were like giant firm 
pillows and so warm. It wasn't long before he fell asleep. 
Occasionally he would drowsily waken when Andra was talking quietly 
with Mama or Papa but he didn't pay any attention to what they were 
saying. He was too comfortable for that.

............................... .....

    During a lull in the conversation Andra had time to think about the past
few weeks and her first encounter with Susan, the night she had been
seduced by forces she didn't understand. In all her life she had never 
considered bedding another woman, yet it happened so easily that evening.
That and the weeks following. For the entire time Andra was with Susan
she felt a strange attraction for the woman and it seemed everytime they were 
alone they ended up in loving embraces, for hours on end thruoughout the nights.

  During the days Susan would escort her about so she could meet many
of the other clan members and allowed Andra to ask all she wanted to know
about them.  Overall Andra got a good impression of the Elantra Clan but it
did have a dark side, though it seemed to be a dark side based on a honorable
system of justice. Justice as overseen and ultimately administered by Susan.

  It was during those inimate times Susan would get Andra to talk about her 
talents and it only seemed natural when Susan asked to have things done 
that  Andra gladly complied, within limits. Sometimes Susan would ask for things
that Andra felt a strong aversion to granting. Susan seemed to know not to push
to hard on such matters and they returned to love making. 

  It was during those love making sessions Andra's mind almost seemed to go 
blank, it was like a state of divine bliss. Afterward she felt so relaxed and 
tired. Then at some point after the post orgasmic bliss Susan would prompt Andra 
to talk of her capabilities and the Nan again. 

  It was only now that Andra was away from Susan and her mind was 
clearing that she realized the full import of what she had done for Susan.  
Susan now had a full compliment of Nan's, well almost full compliment. The 
set she had was not the same as Andras and could not interface with the host
at all, not at a conscious level, that was something Andra had refused to do. 
Andra remembered how upset Susan was over this but she never pushed so hard as 
to cause Andra to anger at the suggestions.

  Nontheless, Susan's Nan's were unlike the ones Andra had used in her body shop 
customers. Susan's Nan set would never die, they would keep working and 
performing their dutys as instructed by Andra. Susan had limited crude control 
over some of them and if she followed precise instructions they would perform as 
she desired within a limited mandate.   

  Andra shook her head, she supposed it would be okay, at worse all that would
happen is that Susan would just be in perfect health all her life and her body
would respond to stress like no other on earth, except for Andra's of course.
So what. Relax. Don't worry, she told herself.

  But there were some other things she had done at Susan's request that now made 
her somewhat nervous, now that she was away and had time to think clearly.

  Yes, now that she was away Andra realized how nervous Susan made her feel, 
there was something spooky about her. 

  She forced her concerns away with a slight quiet chuckle. She glanced at Lucy, 
maybe she shouldn't have involved Lucy and her family, but she felt alone and at 
the moment Lucy was the only person she fully trusted, well almost anyway.

  Months later she would come to remember this day with some sadness, for
the laff was one based on ignorance.


.................................        


    "Roberto, wake up. It's time to eat."  He learned what airline 
food was. It wasn't to good. Andra said even in first class it sucked. 
Mama gave him that look. He wasn't supposed to talk like that, but he 
knew sometimes adults did. 

    He was back in his seat reading his book and the time passed 
pretty quickly. Andra told him to come over and look out the window. 
It was the island! She pointed out things and showed him were the city 
was. "It is so small!" Roberto cried. "How can we land on that?"

    Andra's breasts vibrated against his shoulder as she chuckled. It 
was a most odd sensation. She almost sounded like a cat purring. "It 
is a small island. But not that small. There is plenty of room. You'll 
see."

    He had to go sit down and strap in again. Andra promised she would 
take some pictures for him to look at as they got closer so he could 
see what she was seeing. "But you don't have a camera!" 

  Mama shushed him. "Be quiet Roberto. She said she would take 
pictures. "  Mama and Andra shared an odd look. Roberto didn't 
understand adults sometimes. They said strange things. 

   Mama told him not to talk to any strangers at the airport and to 
not stray away. When the man at the the customs counter asked him if 
he was bringing in any contraband he didn't know what to say. The man 
chuckled. "I don't want you bringing in any strange insects. You sure 
your not hiding maybe a spider or something?" 

    "No sir. All I have is some gum and my book."

    The man smiled at him. "Well you have a good time here Roberto. 
Welcome to Saint Martin. May you have much fun here!"

    "Thank you sir. I will." Roberto looked around at all the strange 
people and clung close to his parents. 

    The customs man eyed the group. "I will need your papers."

    Andra took over. "I am Alexandra Nichols"  She handed him a manila 
envelope that contained the paperwork for all of them. Inside were 
copies of their birth certificates, driver's licenses, and voting 
registration cards.She was the only one with a passport and visa.  
There was also another envelope which the customs man did not examine 
as of yet.

    "No passports for the others?" He saw they had none. "Well, it 
will take a while for us to check you in since you have no passports. 
The documents here will get you in fine but it takes longer without 
the passport. If you all will have a seat over there." He pointed. "I 
see your airline tickets are not return trip. As you should know our 
country requires all aliens entering our island to have either a 
return ticket or a forwarding flight ticket. You will have to 
purchase either a return ticket or a forwarding ticket before I can 
allow you in."  

    Andra cleared her throat. "Please have a look in that envelope."

    The man eyed Andra and suspected she would try a bribe. He half 
hoped she would, he could use the money. But to his disappointment the 
envelope contained a document from a certain island government 
official. 

    "Hmm, this is irregular. If you will just give me a moment to 
confirm. If this checks out your wait will be very short."

    Andra guided her group to the chairs. She spoke to Lucy and Raul, 
"Normally we could only stay for ninety days. That letter is from a 
close friend of the group I'll be working with. I'm sure we will have 
no problems."

    Within ten minutes the man returned and signaled them over to the 
counter. "Miss Nichols, I apologize for the delay. The letter is all 
in order and here is your temporary resident permit." He paused and 
looked at the others. "However the letter did not refer to  your 
companions." He waited. 

    "Lucy and Raul will be staying with me. They are my employees 
and will be staying with me at the Elan Villa, up near Lorient 
Bay.."

    "I see. Well  I suppose, given the nature of the letter, I can get 
away with granting your employees  temporary visitation permits valid 
for ninety days. If  they are to stay longer you will need to get 
permission from the same office this letter came from. I'm sorry but 
that is all I can do."

    Andra smiled. "That will be fine. Thank you."

  Within another tedious five minutes Andra had all the paperwork 
straight and the group found their way to the car rental desk. After 
all -that- paperwork was finished they headed out for the car, but not 
before being warned multiple times that on the island one drove on the 
-left- side of the road, not the right. 

    The car was one of those cute 4 wheel drive sports vehicles and 
they had plenty of room since they were traveling light. Most of their
baggage would be coming later via freight. 

    Raul, being the man, had to drive. "I will drive the car." He said 
with confidence only a man could muster. "I will have to learn how to 
drive backwards anyway, no?" He piled into the drivers side. 

    He waited for Lucy to dig out the map. Since it was the standard 
balmy weather one found in this portion of the Carib, it was quite 
comfortable, even though the car had been parked with the windows up.

    Lucy unfolded the map. "If we just head out that way we will find 
the main road I think. We only have to drive a few miles"

    They had landed on the north end of the island, the French side, 
at Grand Case Airport. Raul managed to get out to the main road ok and 
headed the car in the direction Lucy pointed. 

    The road wasn't quite as good as one would find in the US and Raul 
muttered some comments about that as they drove on. All of them wanted 
to sight see and there was plenty of interesting people and things 
gawk at. Colorful vendors along the road were trying to get them to 
stop and look at their wares.

   It  wasn't long when they left the highly developed area behind and 
entered a more sedate and natural terrain. Raul commented. "I can see 
why these four wheel drives are popular here, some of these roads look 
like nothing more than dirt trails." Indeed some were, ones that led 
off the main road. And in places the main road was quite bad. From 
most any vantage point of the island one could see the tall mountain 
peaks further inland and to the south. 

    Andra piped up. " Raul, pull the car over, there is something we 
need to point out to Roberto."

    After Raul had pulled over Andra had them all get out. "Roberto, 
see that tree over there?" She pointed. "The one with the red splash 
of paint on it."

    "Yes, is that one of those bad trees I read about in the book?"

  "Yes it is Roberto. I want you to get a good look at it. If you 
ever see one stay away. It could be not all like it would be marked 
with paint. I want you to remember what they look like, OK?" 

 "I'll try to remember." He said confidently. 

    "Do you remember what they are called?"

 Roberto struggled for a second or two. "Mankineal I think. I remember 
the book said they are dangerous to stand under because they rain 
poison, and they have poison green berries that can make you real 
sick."

  "That's right Roberto. However the proper name is  Manchineel tree, 
or in French it is le Manceniller. If you touch the sap or it rains 
sap on you it might even kill you. Especially a small child like 
yourself."  She paused. "I don't think there will be any near the 
villa compound, but we all need to be aware of that tree. There are 
other plant forms on this island that can be bad news as well. I'll 
want all of you to read up on them before anyone goes for a hike or 
something. "

    They all piled back into the car and headed further down the road 
and up a slight hill. Andra recognized the property. "There it is 
Raul,  that's the villa we will be staying in."

    Lucy let out a gasp. "Holy Mother, Andra it is glorious. I didn't 
expect something so beautiful."  

    Raul pulled into the entrance and came to a stop so they could all 
soak it in. 

    The villa was a colonial style two story done in white. It looked 
from this vantage to be shaped in an L configuration and there was a 
seperate bungalo off to one side. There was no garage per se but there 
was a carport big enough to cover six such cars as the one they were 
driving. At the moment only one vehicle was parked  there. The 
grounds between the main road and the villa was sparsely populated 
with a wide varitey of palms and shrubs. The lawn was well kept but 
looked like it needed water. 

    "It has a nice pool on the back side, between the house and the 
cliff edge." Andra quipped. "Roberto, I don't want you near that pool 
unless you have an adult watching you." Raul pulled the car to a stop 
under the carport.

    "Yes mam," Roberto said. He was becoming tired of Andra 
reminding him of the pool. She was a nice woman but she seemed to 
think he was slow. She almost sounded like one of his Aunts. Always 
telling him to do this or that and not do this or that. 

  Before they started walking toward the main entrance Andra called a 
huddle. "Let me handle the details and sort things out. You folks just 
play along for now." She turned to Lucy. "Remember what I said the 
other day?" Lucy nodded. "Well just remember we are moving in and 
taking this household over. The group I told you two about still owns 
it, but I'm calling the shots around here or they can go take a hike. 
In other words, they can't tell you to do anything. I do."

  She thought for a second. "I don't know if that is the maid's car or 
if Lorena is here. I didn't tell Lorena or the others I would be 
bringing anyone else along so there may be some hair pulling going 
on."

  Raul piped up. "What? They don't know about Lucy, Roberto, and I? 
Will there be a problem?" He didn't like surprises like this. 
Lucy had a sour look on her face. Diana should have warned them 
earlier.

    "No, not for you. I've got them were I want them. I would have 
told you earlier but I didn't want  you worrying about that during the 
trip. Trust me I know what I'm doing."
 
  "Will there be room for us?" Lucy asked."If they didn't know we 
would be along maybe we will have to find other quarters."

    "Oh, if there isn't room I'll make room." Andra joked. "This place 
the group uses for vacations and they leased it out to pay the bills. 
Right now it's empty. I think. Susan wasn't clear about that and I 
don't know if any of the group are here at the moment. It doesn't 
matter anyway. Room will be made for me no matter who is here."

    With that she walked off and signaled the others to come along and 
they walked along a stone walkway to the main entrance. Andra made a 
flourish and pushed the door bell button.

    Within a few moments a small black woman answered the door. She 
eyed the group with caution. "Yes?" she asked with a thick French 
Creole accent.

    Andra introduced herself . The woman's eye brows raised in 
surprise. "You are here early. I was told not to expect you for 
another week or two." She looked upset. 

    "Well, here we are. May we come in?"

    The woman seemed unsure for a moment then seemed to change her 
mind. "I suppose so. I better call Shelly and let her know you are 
here." She stepped back from the doorway so they could enter.

    Inside the main foyer led to a wide and tall roofed living room 
that was well lit by the sun shining through the shuttered windows, 
which were all immense. It was almost like being in a glass house. The 
living room had a grand view of the back yard which was mostly a giant 
stone lined area with a large swimming pool centered in it. 

   Scattered about the living room was furniture done mostly in a 
rattan style. On one wall was a giant projection TV screen. There 
floor was covered with a deep cushioned carpet, but  toward the end 
faceing the pool it  was done in a fine wood pattern. Anrdra 
supposed it would make an excellent dancing area. The entire living 
area here seemed to be meant to to host parties well.
A staircase off to one side led upstairs into a atrium like area. 
Hanging plants were here and there, hanging from fixtures in the 
ceiling.

    Andra and the others took this in with various oohs and ahhs. She 
turned to the small black woman, obviously a house keeper. "Shelly? 
Susan didn't mention anyone by that name to me."

    The woman raised her wrinkled hands in a plea like fashion. 
"Miss Estanta." Andra estimated the dark skinned woman was perhaps 
fifty years old. She could see the woman was in good shape from years 
of hard work. 

    Andra nodded, "Yes, I know that name. Lorena Estanta, she is the 
care keeper of this and some of the other properties, isn't she?"

    The woman nodded. "Yes, and I need to call and tell her you are 
here." She looked them over. "Please make yourselves comfortable. If 
your thirsty there is bottled water and canned beverages in the 
kitchen. If your hungry I'm afraid there isn't much in stock as I 
haven't stocked it yet, I wasn't expecting you so soon."

    "Thats ok, err, What is your name miss?" Andra asked.

    The woman bobbed her head, "Marie Shunea, mam."

    "Well Marie, you make that call if you need to and we will have a 
look around in the meantime."

    "Thank you mam." Marie disappeared down a hallway and into one of 
the rooms. 

    Roberto had already been exploring against his mothers wishes and 
found the kitchen first. "Mama, this kitchen is as big as our living 
room was!"  He said excitedly. "Come look mama!"

    His excitement pulled  them all in that direction, and 
it was quite impressive. Lucy saw  a large 5 gallon water dispensor. 
"I suppose it's best to drink that rather than the tap water, based on 
what I read." She found some glasses and they were all sharing a drink 
when Marie returned.

    "Miss Estanta wasn't in so I left a message." She looked 
flustered. "I better show you around, though usually it is Miss 
Estanta that shows new guests around the property when it is leased 
out. I'm just the maid."

    Andra smiled, "Well that means your probably more qualified than 
Miss Estanta is."  

 Marie smiled at the complement.

    For the next fifteen minutes or so Marie showed them around the  
place. She started by leading them up the broad staircase and up 
to the second floor. There was a long wide hallway  
which was had four pairs of opposing doors that led into huge 
master size bedrooms, Each equipped with a full bath, and even 
came with a bidet.  Marie was used to American's and their savage 
ignorance of proper toiletry training and explained what to use 
the bidet for. 

    Lucy and Andra thought that was a great idea, and Lucy said she 
couldn't wait to test one out. . Raul shook his head and decided not 
to share the joke he had just thought of. He didn't want to have Lucy 
punching him in the belly in front of Andra. 

 A fifth master  bedroom was located in the other wing of the L shaped 
villa and it faced the large atrium like area. A spare room that was 
mostly empty and of the same size as the others  was directly opposite 
of the fifth bedroom, seperated by the large atrium area.  

  The bedrooms along the back of the house had large sliding glass 
doors that led to a sun deck that doubled as a covered patio for the 
back of the house. The deck was perhaps some 12 feet deep and wrapped 
around  all of the back of the L shaped villa and along one side. At 
the end of the main hallway another door led to the deck. 

  It appeared none of the bedrooms were in use and Marie confirmed 
none of the group were here and that the last user of the house had 
been a rich couple ( of course) that had rented the place for a month. 

  Back downstairs there was a good sized exercise room  that had some, in 
Andra's view,  not very impressive equipment in it, but that would soon change. 

  There was a sparsely furnished den - library  room that was meant to be a 
place to be used as one wished. The selection of books was somewhat impressive, 
two entire walls were dedicated to book shelves, and the occupancy rate was near 
capacity.  Andra decided it would be an excellent communications and study room.  
The main living room area led into a well appointed dining room. The dining 
table could seat twelve adults with ease and with some added panels could seat 
more.

   Outside,  on the rear deck was another bath, this one containing a shower 
,toilet, bidet,  and smartly designed sink . Around the pool, which measured 
perhaps some 45 feet by 20 feet there were five umbrella tables, which at the 
moment were missing the umbrellas and chairs. Marie explained they were in the 
storage shed when no one was living at the villa. There were more tables stored 
in the shed as well.

   The pool looked quite deep on one end. Roberto obviously was 
thrilled by it and looked like he wanted to jump in right away. He 
managed to pull away from Lucy and wandered over by the far ledge 
of the back patio. "Mama, look!" He cried pointing down .

    "Roberto, get off that right now!" Lucy yelled. He had crawled up 
on a short stone wall,  that was perhaps four feet high, and 
lined the back of the property.  Off in the distance one could see the 
blue of the ocean. He got down from the ledge right away but kept 
jumping up and down so he could see over the top.

  "Roberto what are you doing? Lucy chided as she walked over to see 
what the fuss was all about.

    "Mama, there are people walking around down there without any 
clothes on!" He said with a grin. 

    Lucy cast her eyes  out where he was pointing. Sure enough there 
was a narrow strip of sand down below, perhaps a drop of some sixty 
feet from the hilltop villa. On the beach, at a distance of about two 
hundred yards to the north,  were a number of sun bathers, some with 
standard beach wear,  some women going topless, and one who 
appeared to had decided to forgo all clothing.  A few men were about 
the beach in similar modes of dress, or undress.  

    Lucy laughed. "Well, if I had know about this maybe I would have 
insisted you two boys stay at home." Some of the girls down on the 
beach were real lookers. At one time Lucy would have felt intimidated 
by having to compete with such. But no longer. She smiled at the 
thought. She could strut down on that beach and if there were any lech 
types about they would all be looking at her and no one else. She had 
no doubt!  Well, unless Andra marched by that is. She chuckled at that 
last thought.

    Raul and Andra came over to see what was up and they all had a 
laugh. "We have quite a view here , no Lucy? " Raul prompted. "I think 
I will set up a chair here for when I need to relax after a hard days 
work."

    Andra guffawed at that. Lucy put her arms up and curled her 
fingers as if she was about to attack Raul. "You do and you won't have 
eyes to see with, my Raul." 

    Raul ducked his head. "Well, I'm glad Andra didn't tell you 
everything. I would hate to have missed this!" He kept his eyes on the 
beach below.

    Andra decided to pick poor Roberto up, who was still jumping up 
and down to have a look see. "To be honest, I didn't know. I knew 
there were some nude beaches here on this island , but didn't know we 
would be living near one." She ignored Lucy's disapproving look as she 
held Roberto so he could see. 

    Marie had followed them, "That is Lorient Beach Resort. Those 
small  chalet's,  there along the side, are one of the properties 
managed by Miss Estanta."

    Andra found that interesting. She counted some thirty bungalow's . 
There appeared to be three size ranges, ten of each. There was a large 
swimming pool in front of them and some tennis courts off to one side. 
A elegant Carib style restaurant faced the beach. Quite a major 
investment from what she could see. Many millions of dollars.

 "Marie, I'm curious. This villa , how often is it leased out every 
year?"

    Marie replied, 'Not very often. Perhaps ten weeks a year. 
Sometimes less, sometimes more. "

    "Amazing. What does it cost to lease?" 

    "Well, I don't really worry about that sort of thing so I don't 
really know for sure.  But  I understand this property leases for 
between 9,000 and 15,000 American dollars a week, depending on the 
season."   

    That was almost enough to get Rauls attention and he and Lucy 
shared a look of shock, but they kept their mouths shut. Roberto 
didn't understand money and was too interested in the nude  bathers 
below. 

    Andra put Roberto down. "Well I think we've had enough excitement 
for the moment. Roberto you better do what your mama says. Don't get 
up on that ledge or you may fall." She sighed.and looked at Lucy. "I'm 
afraid this place wasn't designed with young children in mind. Were 
going to have to watch him. It's quite a steep drop from here to the 
beach. That pool really has me worried too."

    Lucy nodded. "Roberto usually does what I tell him, but I've never 
had to worry about him drowning or falling from a cliff before. Our 
back yard , the most dangerous thing in it was perhaps stepping in a 
fire ant nest ."

    Roberto pouted. "I'll be careful. I promise."

    Raul clamped a hand on his boys shoulder. "Roberto, I think we 
will have to set a rule for you until we know more about this place." 
He turned the boy around. "I don't want to see you beyond the edge of 
the covered patio by the house unless one of us is out here to watch 
you. You understand?"

    "Yes Papa." 

    "And if I ever see you on that ledge again you will be seeing the 
strap. You understand? I mean it. If  you ever get on that ledge it 
will be the strap."

    Roberto grimaced."I don't like the strap."

    "I don't either and neither does your mama. But I want you to know 
how serious this is. You don't get on that ledge. No strap. You stay 
away from that pool too." He patted Roberto's head. "Maybe you and I 
can swim later today if we have time."

    Andra shooed them all back in the house and decided they better 
pick out some bedrooms so they could concentrate on other things. 
After a bit of discussion they decided Raul and Lucy would take up 
residence in two of the master bedrooms at the end of the west wing 
and little Roberto would get the one across the hall from them. He 
looked silly sitting on the giant king sized mattress, but it would do 
for now. Andra took the one at the far end , the bedroom that faced 
the staircase and atrium. 

   Later, when Raul and Lucy were alone in their bedroom unpacking 
suitcases and changing into some fresh clothing  he wondered why 
Andra gave them two of the master bedrooms. "Arn't we going to be 
sleeping together anymore?" Raul asked. "We don't need two rooms." 

   Lucy patted him. "I didn't hear you say anything when Andra told us 
to take them."

    Raul shrugged. "Well, I wasn't thinking then. It seems silly to me 
though. Unless you and she have decided we shouldn't sleep together." 
He frowned at the thought. "Is that what is going on?" 

   Lucy laughed. "No silly. She just wants us to take up the space. 
It's all part of  the plan. Of course you and I will use one of them 
as our bedroom. We can use the other room for something else."

    "Ah, Well I don't know all the plan I suppose. Whatever." He 
chuckled. "Roberto will sure have enough room. Look at him! He thinks 
that giant bed is a trampoline!"  

   Lucy ducked her over so she could see across the hall. "Roberto! 
Stop that right this instant!" 

    Lucy sighed. "I hope Andra understands how much work it is looking 
after a child. I don't know what she will be having me do each day. 
One of us will have to look after him when the other is out doing 
chores, or whatever, for Andra."

    Raul shrugged. "I suppose I will. I don't see that much that needs 
to be done around here. There is a maid here already. Don't worry, 
we'll figure it out as we go. She understands." He gave Lucy a hug.

  After a short bit of reflection he continuted  "From the way she 
treats him I don't think we have to worry if we are both out. I think 
she likes children and would enjoy tending him."

    Lucy smiled. "Yes. Though she better not let him look at all those 
nudists to much. I notice she didn't seem to mind that at all. I don't 
like it."

    "Ahh, Lucy. I didn't mind it either. I think you worry to much."

    She punched him in the belly. "You spend to much time out there 
Raul, your going to have a very sore belly!" 

    "Okay! Okay! I get the picture!" He rubbed his gut. She sure packed a 
mean punch these days. Her arms were getting bigger and it wasn't fat 
either. Not only that but he swore she was a good inch taller than 
she was a couple weeks ago.  "I think I'll take a shower before I 
change into these new clothes."

    .............................

   An hour later Raul and Roberto were in the pool, Andra and Lucy 
were sitting in lounge chairs not far away watching the action. 
Andra kept her eyes on the livingroom. Marie had just left to get 
supplies for the kitchen. Andra walked over to the deck radio and 
turned the volume way up,  much louder than was needed.

Andra motioned Lucy over to sit closer so they could talk without 
yelling. 

 "Lucy, I think Marie is a problem area."

    "How so?" 

    "You recall how she first referred to Miss Estanta as Shelly? 
Shelly is a nickname. Quite unusual for a maid to refer to her 
employer by her nickname."

    "I call you by your nickname."

    "Yes. But I expect you to call me that. I noticed she stopped 
refering to her employer by the nickname almost immediately, as if she 
wasn't supposed to do that. I may be wrong but I bet she and 'Shelly" 
have been friends for quite some time."

    "Yes, perhaps so. But what is wrong with that?"

    Andra chuckled. "Nothing! But remember what I told you about this 
group. It is a tight knit community. I wouldn't be surprised to find 
out if maid Marie is a member of that  group. If she is I, want 
you to be aware of it."

    "Ah, I see what your driving at. Yes. I will assume she is one of 
them and act accordingly."  She paused. "Andra,  why did you turn the 
radio up so loud?"

    Andra shrugged her big shoulders, "Just paranoid. This place may 
be bugged. Probably is. I don't want to take any chances.." She 
sighed. "It's going to take me weeks to secure this place to my 
satisfaction." She looked hard at Lucy. "Until then I want you to be 
careful what you say to me or your husband. You know the topics I want 
you to avoid. Just act like a couple of vacationers for the time 
being. Relax. If  you and I need to talk about something they don't 
need to hear then we will have to come out here and listen to the 
radio. The same thing applies if you need to talk to Raul about 
something that may compromise the reason I brought you here. Got it?"

    "Sure, or we could go for a nice walk eh?" Lucy kidded. "It would 
be nice to go look around."

    Andra nodded her head. "Yes, this place is fantastic. Going for a 
long walk would beat listening to this crap anyday. Good idea!" 

    Andra got up and turned the radio off. "Well, that works. Good 
sound system."  She stretched her big frame out and yawned. "Well, I 
think I'll take a quick nap. Jet lag got me." She eyed the others. 
"You folks just kick back and relax for the next couple of weeks. Think of 
this as a vacation. I don't think things will start hopping till then. 
Let me know if you decide to go out for a trip or something ok?"

    Lucy smiled, "Sure thing Andra, just like family okay?"

    Andra smiled back. "That's right lil sis. You got it."  She turned 
and walked back toward the house. She turned her head over her 
shoulder. "Don't forget your diet, Marie should be back with the 
list I gave her later on." 

    
   When Andra was gone Raul shucked a handul of pool water at his 
wife. "What diet? You've been eating like a pig for the past two 
weeks!" 

    Lucy decided it was time to join Raul and Roberto in the pool. 
Maybe show Raul how hard it was to breathe with his chest  trapped 
between her legs and his head stuffed underwater. 

 ....................................


    
       Marie cursed in her native French Creole. Shelly still wasn't 
in and she left another message on her service. She cursed again when 
she tried to contact Susan and left message there as well. "Well I 
guess they are all busy and it's up to lil Marie to guess and fill in 
the blanks." She muttered to herself.  

    That Alexandra woman wasn't supposed to show up for another two 
weeks and the house wasn't ready. Sure it was clean  and neat as usual 
but the special preparations Shelly had told her to do hadn't been 
completed. Marie hadn't  had the time to get them done! Now that that 
woman was here how was she supposed to do it? She didn't know how she 
could. The woman or her friends, would see her. And that was another 
thing. Shelly hadn't said anything about a whole family coming! It was 
just supposed to be Alexandra. She sighed and tossed her cell phone in 
her handbag in disgust. "I'll just be a good maid and get the damn 
groceries."  She locked her car and walked into the store.

...........................


        
    Late that night, after the Gomez's had gone to sleep and Marie had 
long since left to go home, Andra walked around the house humming a 
happy tune to herself. As she covered every square inch of the bottom 
floor she would occasionally stop and wave her hand in the air next to 
an object or wall area that seemed to catch her interest. Then she 
would touch a finger to the exact spot she wanted and walk away to 
find another place of interest. Once she found all of the interesting 
spots she went upstairs and repeated the process in all the rooms 
except the ones the Gomez family were sleeping in. Tomorrow sometime 
she would get to their rooms and do the same thing. 

    After she made sure the outside of the house was treated in the 
same fashion she slid upstairs and found her way to bed. 

  She had lied to Lucy about the bugs. Lied about not being sure. She 
had detected a number of them as soon as she entered the house. 
Listening devices. Tonight she had pinpointed every single one and 
dealt with them. By tomorrow sometime each and every one would be no 
longer functional and nothing more than so much dust. Even the 
optical stuff would be munched. The special nanites she had crafted 
to do the job would only travel up the connecting wires a few 
centimeters before consuming themselves. Andra didn't believe in 
letting the nanites running amok! That could be embarrassing.

   No, lying to Lucy fit the purpose. She wanted Lucy to get used to 
the idea of thinking in a certain way.  Nor did she want to bother 
explaining to Lucy just how it is her employer had detected the bugs 
with no external sensing equipment. Andra chuckled. No, Lucy, at this 
stage, didn't need to know that Andra  had equipped herself with, 
among many other nifty things,  an mirco miniature electronic sensing 
array that spooks world wide would their left nut for, . No, make that 
-both- nuts.  Not even 'passive' devices could get past her as she 
could emit signals to activate such and detect them, if she was close 
enough anyway. Her emitters were by necessity and design rather weak.

   Andra drifted off to sleep on a bed fit for a queen, one big enough 
to contain her 6' 5" frame with room to spare, looking forward to a 
most pleasurable and interesting  future in paradise.



....................