As far as I can sense, no one else is watching but let’s not be too obvious as to exactly who you are, Bridget O’Brien. I don’t see you wanting ...o be the guest of honor at an auto-da-fe.’ ‘Who, I mean, what,’ I hate stammering, but I had been caught completely off guard. I tried to pull myself together. I took a deep breath. I know its unnecessary, but the psychological influence of doing that is even calming to the undead. ‘Who are you and what do you want?’ ‘I am Robert, Roberto if you want. As much as I want him, I want what's best for him. Do you think you could make it work? The two of you?"Was she really giving in that easily? I wondered. He was her first, after all. I knew how she felt about that. All girls felt that way about the first person they made love with. I still remembered my first time. I wasn't in love with him anymore, but I'd always feel love for him. I thought about that. True, my first time was a few years ago, not a few months ago. If I really wanted Tim, I'd. I relaxed by going hunting and exploring further east. After climbing a long ridge I stopped to take in the view. It was a marsh that led down to a shoreline. Just within sight, to the south lay a river mouth. I traced out an old wagon track before I descended to approach the shore. A broad, solid rock ridge separated a nearly sterile salt marsh from the shore. I tasted the water both in the bay and in the marsh. I found both to be brackish--salty, the dead marsh even more so. I hunted clams. As Holly entered his inner office, Perkins told her to check for messages sent by some teachers via the principal’s office. He knew he had some “administrative” duties to handle today, on top of everything else. Holly cheerily said OK, and called Julie, the principal’s secretary. When she returned a few moments later, she had the “record book” and a sly smile on her face. Days like this usually ended with her going home with wet panties and a powerful afterglow. Dean Perkins was so good to her..