I’ll be just fine here,’ he smiled weakly. *** Sleep was even harder to come that night. Esther tossed and turned in her double bed. Her mind fill...d with the stories that they had shared. She had known so little of the past few years of her son’s life. She always thought that he was trying to protect her from the harsh realities of his three tours of duty in the Gulf. This evening had filled in a few of those gaps. She in turn had shared stories of Tommy as a boy with his closest friend. A man. Just wanted to make sure. I know perfectly well that there are ways for a man and a woman to physically express their love without intercourse,” she said.“Mom, this is so embarrassing,” I replied.“Nothing to be embarrassed about,” she said. “It’s perfectly natural. I’m relieved to know that you are being responsible. I do ask that the next time you two want to be intimate that you go to your room and close the door,”“Mom, I couldn’t do that,” I retorted, “Daddy would kill the both of us.”“Don’t. I must’ve clicked the wrong button when I made the reservation. You DO have a room with two queen beds, don’t you?”“Yessir, we do,” the desk clerk said. “Same price. I see you have one of our preferred customer cards.”“Yes I do,” Bill said.That, my friends, is how I ended up sleeping in the same bed as Sandy, brand new friend.“I ... uh ... you KNOW they’re all THREE married?” she said, speaking of Dave and Brindy and Carlita.“Yeah, uh-huh ... Still good people, though,” I said. We were in the. It would serve no purpose. He held a contract, and the stories over the last few decades had made it perfectly clear what happens to slaves in rebellion. There were laws for the safety of slaves, but they held little importance for those that willingly refused their end of the contract. Obey, and be safe from mortal danger, well-fed, and given basic medical care. Fight, and should would likely be beaten down and starved until her body was broken and her will shattered. He squeezed.