Family Pictures 3

See part 1 for warnings/notes.

Family pictures 3
by Stacy L.A. Stronach, September 1997

The Loft

Just then, there was a knock on the door, "I'll get it," Jim
said, as he rose off the couch and headed for the door. When he
opened it, he stared at the man standing there, the last person
on earth he'd expected to find at his door.

"Hi, Jimmy, how are you doing? I didn't come at a bad time, did
I?" Joe Ellison smiled and asked his son.

Stephen sat up in the armchair, almost dropping his nephew on the floor,
when he saw his father standing there. Cathryn turned her
head towards the door, and even though her view was blocked,
she'd know that voice anywhere. "My God, it's Joe," she
whispered, a pained look on her face.

Jim was so surprised that he couldn't even speak, so his father
pushed his way into the room, only to stop when he saw all the
people there. Then he noticed Cathryn sitting at the table, and
his eyes narrowed as he glared at his ex-wife. "Cathryn, what are you
doing here?" he asked, his voice level and low.

"I'm visiting my sons, Joseph," she replied, returning his look.

By this time, Stephen had walked over to where Jim was standing,
having given Jacob back to his mother. Blair also moved to stand
beside Jim, wanting to be near his lover, and offer his support.
Sadryna, Simon, and Naomi just watched as things unfolded.

Joe made no reply to his ex-wife, but turned to look at his sons, "Stevie,
hey you're here, too. That's great. Both of my boys are
here. So, what's with all the people, and who are they, Jimmy?"
his father asked.

"Please don't call me Jimmy. It's Jim," Jim said with a narrow
glance to his father. He put his arm around Blair, and started
the introductions, "Well, Joe, this is my lover, Blair Sandburg,
and the beautiful lady sitting at the table with Mom is Blair's
mother, Naomi Sandburg. And on the couch are my boss, Simon
Banks, my sister, Sadryna Cameron and her son, Jacob Cameron,"
Jim finished, wondering how his father would react to the fact
that he was with Blair.

It was so quiet in the room, that even the non-Sentinels could've heard
a pin drop, and as it was Jim and Sadryna were sure they
heard the dust motes settling onto the floor.

Joe stood silently, *My son is a goddamn faggot and has to work
for a nigger, Christ, what is this world coming to? I suppose
that baby is mixed race, some people are just so sick. Probably
Cat's influence, wonder what the hell is wrong with Stephen?* he
thought, but managed to keep from looking disgusted, he couldn't
afford to, he needed his sons. Then Joe smiled, and reached over
to shake Blair's hand, "Nice to meet you, Blair," he said, and
then greeted the rest of the people he'd been introduced to. He
looked at Jim, and spoke, "Look, Jim, I've obviously crashed your party,
I should go, but I really do want to talk to you and
Steve. Maybe tomorrow?"

Jim looked at his brother, and when Stephen nodded, he said,
"Yeah that would be okay, I guess."

"Good, I'll give you a call tomorrow morning and we'll set it up. Well,
I'd better be going," Joe said as he left.

"He didn't seem so bad," Naomi commented, earning some
exasperated looks from the others.

"Whoever that was, it sure as hell wasn't my ex-husband,"
Cathryn commented. "The Joe I knew would've freaked if he found
out one of his boys was gay, and he would've blamed me for it
happening."

"Well, maybe he's changed," Stephen offered.

"Yeah, and maybe next week they'll legalize gay marriages in
every state in the US," Jim said sarcastically, looking at his
brother. "No, I think something's up, there was something he
wasn't telling us, I could tell."

Simon stood up, and looked at the women, "Ladies, I think it's
time we called it a night, it's getting late." He had driven
Naomi and Cathryn over to the loft.

Sadryna got up as well, cradling her almost asleep son to her,
"Yes, we should. Jacob has had a long and busy day. I really
should get him into bed," she agreed.

Sadryna Cameron's house

Sadryna pulled the blanket up to cover her sleeping son. She
loved her son so much that sometimes it almost overwhelmed her.
If anything ever happened to him...she shuddered slightly at the
thought.

She closed the door as she left the room and walked down the
hallway to her bedroom, closing that door behind her as she
walked in. Sadryna smiled, Simon was already undressed and lying on
the bed, waiting for her, *Gods, he's so gorgeous* she thought as she
began to undress.

Once she was nude, she sat in front of her vanity table, and
heard Simon rise off the bed. He knelt behind her, took the
elastic off the end of the french braid her hair was in, and
started to undo the braid. After it was released, she handed him
the hairbrush and he brushed her hair for her, a ritual that had
started shortly after they'd started sleeping together, almost
two months ago. Simon loved playing with her long hair, in fact
she'd let it grow even longer, just for Simon and it now fell
down past her ass. Simon finished brushing her hair, and reached
around her to set the brush back on the table.

Sadryna turned around on the stool so that she was facing him,
opening her legs to let Simon get close. As he ran his hands up
her thighs to her waist, she wrapped her arms around his neck,
tilting her head down to kiss him, her hair falling like a
curtain over both of them. She moaned as their tongues met,
tasting each other, and she could feel herself getting even
wetter, oh but this man knew how to kiss. Simon stood up without
breaking the kiss and carried her over to the bed, placing her
there gently. He laid down beside her, one hand moving down to
caress her breasts as he started nuzzling at her neck. She could
feel his substantial erection pressing against her body and she
reached down, stroking him, enjoying the moans he made against
her neck, she could feel it vibrate through her entire body.

When Simon's mouth sucked at one of her nipples, she gasped,
arching off the bed, her hands moving to grab his head. He kissed and
sucked at the underside of her breast then took her nipple
into his mouth again before trailing across to her other breast,
bestowing the same treatment upon it. Sadryna couldn't take
anymore, she wanted him, and wanted him now, so she pulled him up to
kiss her again. "I need you, now, lover, do it, fuck me," she
growled as she sucked on his earlobe. Simon moaned as he
positioned himself between her legs, and she reached down to
guide him into her.

He entered her as she wrapped her legs around his waist, and then he
slowly starting thrusting in and out of her. Simon groaned, he loved
having his cock in her tight, hot pussy, her muscles
squeezing him each time he pushed into her. He managed to get a
hand between their bodies, his fingers tenderly caressing her
clit, causing her to whimper, her head moving side to side. As
he felt himself getting closer to orgasm, he started flicking his finger
against her clit, barely touching it, knowing that the
barely there touch would make her cum. And it did, Sadryna
screaming out his name, as he pushed into her, hard, one last
time and felt her pussy convulsing around him as he came, moaning her
name over and over.

Sadryna's legs slid down from around his waist, as he withdrew
from her and collapsed beside her, pulling her close to him,
wrapping her in his arms. She looked up at Simon and kissed him
softly, before murmuring, "Oh, I love you so much, Simon, that
was wonderful."

"It's always wonderful with you. I love you, too, Baby," Simon
replied, as they both fell asleep.

The Loft, the next day

Stephen stretched out on the couch, paying half attention to the
to the movie that was on the TV, he was here waiting with Jim for their
father to call. He kept glancing over to the other couch,
where his brother and Blair were situated; Blair sitting up, Jim
lying down, on his side, his head in his lover's lap. Blair had
a book he was reading in one hand, while his other hand gently
stroked Jim's head, almost absentmindedly, as Jim watched the
movie. When Stephen looked over again, Jim grabbed Blair's hand,
bringing it to his mouth, and kissed his palm a couple of times,
making the younger man smile, and glance away from his book to
look at Jim.

Stephen quickly turned his attention back to the TV as he felt
the jealousy well up in him. He wasn't jealous that Jim had
Blair, specifically, as Stephen's tastes ran to more female
partners, but of the fact that Jim had such a strong, loving
relationship, one that seemed like it would last forever. Being
with Blair had made Jim more...comfortable with himself, it
seemed, and it was reflected in the fact that Jim was more
relaxed, happier than Stephen could ever remember seeing him.
Sometimes, Stephen despaired of ever having that type of love--
he'd had his share of relationships, but none that seemed to be
as strong as what his brother had. He sighed, hell, even Sadryna had
managed to find someone, and although she and Simon had only
been together for the six months since the picnic, their
relationship seemed almost as strong as what Blair and Jim had.

[fampic3, end 1/3]

[fampic3, start 2/3]

"What's wrong, Stephen?" Jim asked his brother upon hearing him
sigh.

"Nothing," Stephen replied.

"C'mon, Stevie, you should realize by now you can't lie to your
big brother," Jim said. The two brothers often called each other
by their childhood nicknames, although anyone else who tried it
would be in for an earful. For the brothers, it was a way of
letting each other know that they trusted the other, and that
they were almost as close as they had been, before their family
had broken up, and their father had started "training them for
the real" world in earnest.

Stephen looked at his brother, he was still getting used to the
fact that he could tell Jim anything, and that even though Jim
might tease him, he would never ridicule anything Stephen thought or
said. "I was just thinking about what a great relationship you two have
and that I don't think I'll ever be as lucky," Stephen
said.

"I used to feel the same way, Stephen, before Jim and I were
together. I'm sure you'll find someone--don't give up, man,"
Blair said.

"He's right, after Carolyn and I broke up, I never thought I'd
find anyone I would want to share my life with. It just might
take a little while, that's all. Look how long it took me," Jim
told his brother.

"I really hope you're not trying to reassure me with that last
statement, Jimmy. Besides, in another three years, I will be your age,"
Stephen complained.

Before Jim could reply, the phone rang and he rose off of the
couch to answer it, figuring it was Joe. He was right.

"Hey, son, would now be a good time for me to come over and visit you?"
Joe asked.

"That would be fine. Oh, and Stephen is already here, Joe," Jim
replied.

"Okay, I'll see you guys in about 15 minutes."

Jim turned to the two men in the living room, "Joe'll be here in
about 15 minutes."

"Did he say what he wanted?" Stephen enquired.

Jim shook his head, "No, but he must want something to come to us after
all these years, and the way he treated us," he said.

Twenty minutes later Joe Ellison sat on the couch, looking at his sons.
He cleared his throat and spoke, "I got sick with the
cancer a couple years ago. I had chemo and all that stuff, they
got rid of it, but it looks like it screwed up my blood. I'm not
sure exactly, the doctors use all those big medical words. The
point is, they figure I'll need a bone marrow transplant, and
none of my brothers or sisters are compatible."

Jim and Stephen stared at their father, surprised by what he
said. Jim looked at his father, "And...what?"

"Well, we need to get you boys tested, to see if you're
compatible with me, so that I'll have a donor," Joe explained.

Stephen got up and went into the bathroom; he had to think and
couldn't do it with Jim and his father going at each other, as he was
sure they would. He looked at himself in the mirror *My God,
after all these years, he comes to see us because he needs
something. The bastard, and he expects we'll just go off and do
what he wants, just like we did when we were children.* His hand
dropped to his left thigh, rubbing where he knew the scars were,
he thought he could almost feel them through the cloth. Then he
realized that he could feel them through the cloth, and that he could
feel the indivdual threads in the material of his pants.
*Oh, God, no. This can't be happening now, I thought I was over
this, dammit! Right now, I need to think about what Joe asked.
Can I do that? Can I live with myself if I don't?* And Stephen
knew the answer to that. He quickly splashed some cold water on
his face, and winced, it had felt like a thousand little icicles
had hit his skin. He quickly dried his face and hands, and tried
to ignore the fact he could feel every little loop of thread in
the terry cloth. Moving to stand by the door, he waited until his brother
and father stopped talking before he left.

Blair had noticed Stephen heading for the bathroom but had
quickly turned his attention back to Jim and Joe. Looking at Jim, Blair
had seen his jaw start to clench and unclench, which meant
that Jim was extremely pissed off.

"You say that like it's a foregone conclusion we'll do that,
Joe," Jim said evenly, glaring at his father.

"Well, you're my sons, of course you'd help me, wouldn't you?"
Joe asked, truly confused.

"Why would we? After all you've done to us? Making sure our
mother couldn't see us, and was terrified to come near us.
Raising us up to compete against one another. Beating us all the
time. No, Joe, I have no reason to help you. And I won't. Not
now, not in the future," Jim said quietly, not yelling, that
would serve no purpose and would be reacting as his father would.

"I did the best I could for you two, and this is the gratitude I
get?" he asked his elder son.

"No, Joe, you didn't do the best for us, you did what was best
for you. What you needed, what you wanted, was always far
more important than anything Stephen or I needed or wanted. You
were a selfish bastard, Joe. And you know something, nothing's
changed. You didn't come here to see your sons, you came here
because you needed something from us. Still the same, Joe.
Still a selfish bastard, and as for gratitude, I owe you nothing, absolutely
nothing," Jim angrily told his father.

Joe was about to reply when Stephen came back to the living room
and stood beside his brother. "You'll help me out, won't you,
Stevie? You're still my son, aren't you?" Joe almost pleaded with his
younger son.

"If the conditions of being your son include doing this, then I
guess I'm not. And for some reason, that doesn't really upset me, I wonder
why that is?" Stephen said calmly.

"Goddamnit! What are you, some little faggot like your brother?
Stephen, I thought you were my son!" Joe yelled.

Blair could see that Jim was starting to get really angry, so
he walked over and stood in front of Joe, and spoke, "Look, Mr.
Ellison, I think you should leave now. You've said more than
enough."

Joe sneered at the young man, "Get the hell out of my way, you
queer little bitch!" he yelled, pushing Blair out of the way.
Blair managed to trip over his own feet and landed on the sofa,
fortunately not hurting himself. But it was the last straw for
Jim. He grabbed his father by the shirt, pulling his father's
face close to his.

"If you ever touch Blair or another member of my family, ever
again..." Jim started.

"You'll what? Hit me? Come on and hit me, Jimmy, you know you
want to do it. Afraid to, aren't you?" his father taunted,
although he himself was a little scared at the coldness in his
son's now seemingly ice blue eyes.

"Oh, you'd just love that wouldn't you. Then you could go around
saying, yeah, my boy is just like me. Well, I'm not like you, I don't
use violence to solve my problems. I don't beat up people
weaker or smaller than me. No, I was going to say that if you
ever touch anyone in my family--I'll arrest you, without
hesitation. Now get the fuck out of my apartment, Joe. I don't
want to see you ever again," Jim finished, releasing his father's shirt.

Joe didn't say anything, merely walked over, grabbed his coat,
and left, without saying another word. As he drove back to his
hotel, he felt the pain of his sons' betrayal deep in his soul.
They wouldn't help to save his life. Having them beat him to a
bloody pulp would have hurt far less than this...

Back at the loft, Blair watched as Jim and Stephen talked, trying to
come to terms with what had just happened. Then he had what he considered
a brilliant idea. He called Cathryn, and told
her what had happened, and that maybe her sons would like to see
her.

Ten minutes later, there was a knock on the door, and Blair went
over and answered it. "Hi, Cat," he said when he opened the door, "Come
in."

She gave Blair a quick hug, "Hi, Blair," she said as he took her
coat, hanging it up for her, while she walked over to where her
sons were.

Jim looked at his mother, "Mom, what are you doing here?" he
asked, surprised.

"Blair called me and told me what happened, and thought you might want
to see your mother," Cathryn explained.

Stephen moved over to make room for his mother to sit on the
couch, between her boys, and they spent the rest of the afternoon talking.

Later that evening, as Jim and Blair lay in bed, cuddled up to
each other, Jim said quietly, "Did I thank you yet for calling
Mom for us this afternoon? It really helped."

"No, you didn't, lover. But that's okay, I just thought you guys
needed your Mom," Blair replied, reaching up to kiss his lover.

"How can I ever thank you, Blair?" Jim teased.

"I'm sure you can think of something, Big Guy," Blair answered, as
he claimed Jim's mouth, his tongue plundering there, savouring the taste
of his lover. Suddenly, Blair rolled over on top of his lover, capturing
Jim's hands and pushing them up over his head,
"Hmm, I've thought of something, no need for you to strain your
brain, lover," Blair smiled a predatory smile, a feral look in
his eyes. He leaned down to press a punishing kiss to Jim's lips, before
moving down to bite and suck on Jim's neck, making the
older man moan, and throw his head back, giving Blair better
access. Blair started to move his mouth down across Jim's chest,
then stopped, looking at the older man, "If you move your arms
from above your head without my permission, this stops.
Immediately, and I will be very, very pissed off. Got it?" he
whispered.

Jim merely nodded and when Blair released his hands, he grabbed a hold
of the headboard railing, he didn't want this to stop. Jim
gasped as he felt Blair suck one of his nipples into Blair's
mouth, nipping it, then licking at it, before biting it again,
while his fingers pinched and pulled on the other nipple. Blair
switched his mouth to Jim's other nipple, repeating the
performance, before moving his mouth across Jim's abdomen,
leaving a trail of bites and kisses. He moved his hands to stroke Jim's
inner thighs, up and down, occasionally grazing them with
his fingernails. Jim was writhing on the bed by this point, all
he wanted was for his cock to be in Blair's hot mouth, being
sucked for all he was worth.

The feather light touch of Blair's tongue across the head of his
cock made Jim push his hips up, trying to encourage Blair to suck him.
"Oh, Blairblairblair," he moaned as he felt the younger man
take his entire length into Blair's mouth in one smooth motion.
Jim arched off the bed when he felt Blair's saliva lubricated
finger push into his anus, as Blair started finger fucking him.
Crying out as he felt a finger rub across his prostate, Jim
almost forgot Blair's earlier command of keeping his hands above
his head, but remembered before Blair had noticed he tried to
move them. Jim's body tensed, and he thrust up into Blair's mouth one
last time as he came, hard, shooting his seed down the back
of his lover's throat. Oh, God, his body felt like Jell-O, he
didn't think he'd ever be able to move again.

Blair sensuously moved up his lover's body, kissing Jim, letting
the other man taste himself in Blair's mouth. Rolling off his
lover, Blair looked at him and said, "C'mon, Big Guy, on your
hands and knees. Now. I want to fuck you."

"I don't think I can move, Babe," Jim murmured, and opened his
eyes when he felt Blair slap him on the hip. "Ow, what was that
for?" he asked.

"You didn't do as I told you. I want you on your hands and knees, now,
Jim," Blair said, his blue eyes dark with desire, his
voice low and level.

Something in the way Blair said that made Jim comply with sudden
speed, rolling over and assuming the position his lover wanted
him in. Blair quickly grabbed the lube off the nightstand,
applying some to his fingers, before pushing two of them into
Jim's ass, preparing his lover. When Jim started pushing back
against three of Blair's fingers he removed them, and put some
lube on his cock. Kneeling behind Jim, Blair grasped the older
man's waist, and pushed into his lover's tight, hot ass in one
hard, quick thrust, making Jim moan.

"You like it when I fuck you hard, dontcha?" Blair whispered as
he stroked powerfully in and out of his lover. "You like having
my hard cock pounding into you. You're mine, mine, Jim, mine."
With Blair fucking him like there was no tomorrow, Jim was
reduced to wordless moans of agreement, which got louder when he
felt Blair's hand on his hardening cock. "Oh, you like that too,
don't ya, Baby, my hand pulling on your cock as I ride you.
Stroking you, making you cum all over my hand. Cum for me Baby,
oh yeah, that's it," Blair whispered to his lover. Jim was lost
in sensation, pushing forward into Blair's hand, shoving backward onto
Blair's cock.

Jim screamed Blair's name as he came again, and felt Blair shove
into him two more times as his lover orgasmed, his cum filling
Jim up inside. With his arms and legs no longer capable of
supporting his weight, Jim collapsed on the bed, with Blair on
top of him, both men panting from their exertion.

Blair withdrew his now soft cock from Jim, rolling over to lay
beside his lover, pulling the older man against him, "I love you, Jim,
so much. Oh, and you're welcome." Blair whispered, giving
Jim a gentle kiss.

"I love you, too Blair. I'm welcome?" Jim, whose brain felt like
it was made of pudding, couldn't quite remember what his lover
was referring to.

"You said you wanted to thank me for calling your mother earlier, well
this will do," Blair smiled, teasing the older man.

"Hmm, why do I get the feeling that I should be thanking you
for this?" Jim murmured against Blair's shoulder as the two men
fell asleep.

[fampic3, end 2/3]

[fampic3, start 3/3]

Sadryna Cameron's house, two months later

Sadryna looked around her rather large (thankfully) dining room
table. On her left sat Jim, then Blair (she'd learned the hard
way not to separate these two at dinner parties, they could be
pathetically embarrassing in their attempts to touch and/or see
one another), next to Blair was his mother, Naomi, then Stephen,
Simon's sister, Natasha Forester was next, and finally, her
husband, Devin Forester. To Sadryna's right was Simon ,
then her own mother, Cathryn, next was Simon's father, Gerald
Banks, and his wife Celeste, then Daryl Banks, and his cousin,
Natasha's daughter, Denise Forester. Sadryna had met Simon's
family about a month ago when his parents had invited her for
dinner. She had got along well with everyone, and had really
liked the people, and was glad that they had like her as well.
Tonight's dinner party had a purpose behind it, though...

After dessert was cleared from the table, Simon stood up, and
clearing his throat, spoke, "Excuse me, everyone." When there was silence,
he continued, "Thank you. I have an announcement to
make, that concerns everyone here. Yesterday, I asked Sadryna
Cameron to marry me, and she graciously has agreed," he finished, looking
with love at his fiancee.

Cathryn stood up, going over to hug her daughter, "Oh,
sweetheart, that is just such wonderful news, congratulations.
Welcome to our family Simon, such as it is," she said as she
turned to face her future son-in-law.

Simon smiled, and hugged Cathryn, "Thank you, Cat. I appreciate
it!"

Simon's father shook his son's hand, "I think you've made a very
good choice, son. She seems like a very fine woman," Gerald said, smiling.

"Yes, Simon, I must say, I approve of her much more than I did
Joan, that woman...Anyway, I'm glad you've found someone who
makes you happy, dear," Celeste said as she embraced her son.

Everyone in the room congratulated the couple. Jim walked over to Simon
and hugged his friend, "Welcome to the family, Simon. And
if you ever hurt my sister--you better learn to run fast, and you better
run far, far, away--cus I'll come after you," Jim said,
mock-serious.

"Jim, if I ever hurt her, I'd deserve to be hunted down.
Sadryna's the best thing that's ever happened to me, well next to my
son being born," Simon replied, smiling.

A little while later, Daryl walked over to where Simon and
Sadryna were, "See, I told you I could keep a secret," he said
proudly. The couple had told Daryl earlier in the day--he was
Simon's son, and they had felt he should be told first. Plus,
they had wanted to see how he'd react. They knew that Daryl
really liked Sadryna, but being his father's girlfriend was one
thing, being his wife, and thus Daryl's stepmother, might prove
to be something different. Daryl had been overjoyed at the news-- he
knew with what had happened between his parents there was no
chance they'd get back together--so he was very happy for his
father. Part of the attraction seemed to be the fact that Daryl
would have a little brother "that I can boss around," he'd said, "Gee,
maybe I can even get a little sister out of this deal,"
he'd added, looking at his father and Sadryna.

Simon had laughed, "Well, we'll have to see about that--I'm not
making any promises, son," he'd replied, looking at Sadryna, who
was trying her damnedest not to laugh.

Later that evening, once all the guests had left, and Simon's
family were ensconced in their rooms at Sadryna's house, the
couple sat in her bed. "Oh, Simon, I feel so damn short around
your family. I mean, even the women are tall. Your mother is
what, 5'11"? And Natasha is almost as tall as you!" she said.

"That just means our kids will have half a chance of being tall," he
replied, teasing her.

She playfully swatted his arm, "I know I'm short, you _don't_
have to remind me," she said.

Simon pulled her over so she was straddling his lap, and he
kissed her, wrapping his hands in her hair. When they pulled out
of the kiss, she cupped Simon's face in her hands, and looking
into his eyes, said, "Oh, Simon, I love you so much!"

He smiled, "And I love you just as much, Sadryna," he said,
before kissing her again.

Sadryna Cameron's house, three days later

Sadryna, Jim, and Stephen sat at the table in the kitchen, eating their
lunch. They usually got together once a week for lunch, so
they could catch up on whatever was happening in their lives, but also
so they could just spend some time together.

As they were eating, a car alarm went off nearby, which made Jim
and Sadryna wince, before they adjusted their hearing so that it
wouldn't bother them. However, they were both very surprised when Stephen
grabbed at his ears, crying, "Make it stop, make it stop, please."

Sadryna looked at Stephen and quickly figured out that he was
hearing the noise of the car alarm. She moved to sit next to him, and
whispering, said, "Stephen. It's okay. Just listen to my
voice, that's all I want you to pay attention to, is my voice."
He calmed down a bit, so she continued, "Take some slow, deep
breaths. That's it, that's good. Now, I want you go to that place in
your mind where you control your senses, can you find it?
Good. Now, I want you to picture a dial, with as many numbers
around it as you want. I want you to use that dial to turn down
your hearing so that it is at normal levels. Can you do that,
Stephen. Picture the dial. Now, I want you to remember something
for me. Anytime one of your senses goes out of whack like this,
picture a dial for that sense--you can use that dial to turn your sense
down, or turn it up. Okay, Stephen," she paused, watching
her brothers face, closely. He'd already moved his hands away
from his ears. "Good, Stephen, now open your eyes and look at me, okay?"

He did, and listening cautiously, realized that he could barely
hear the car alarm anymore--the dial thing had worked, but how
could she know what to do? "Sadryna, how on earth did you know
what was happening to me? How to help me?" he asked totally
confused.

Jim and Sadryna looked at one another, and then proceeded to
explain the concept of Sentinels to their brother, with Sadryna
recounting her experiences, and training, and Jim explaining what happened
to him in Peru, how his sense came back on line once he
was here in Cascade, and how Blair had helped him. Jim laughed
suddenly, "Well, I guess Blair won't need that grant money to
send you to Peru, now. He'll be so happy to find out that Stephen is
a Sentinel too," he said. "And he'll be able to help you with
this Stephen, and I guess Sadryna will be able to as well."

"What about you, Jimmy?" Stephen asked.

"I don't have as much control as Sadryna does, and Blair
understands the methods to help control them better than I do. He can
certainly explain them much better," Jim told his brother.

"You know, now he'll want to do a family history, especially
since all three of us have the heightened senses. Ah, well, at
least Blair will be happy," Sadryna said, smiling.

Downtown Cascade, same day

Blair and his mother had just finished their lunch at
"O'Reillys", one of the better restaurants in Cascade, and were
now walking downtown, window shopping for the most part, but just enjoying
their time together.

Blair had something he wanted to ask his mother, but he hesitated to
do so, not sure how she'd react. Finally, taking a deep
breath, he said, "Mom, I'd like to know who my father is."

Naomi stopped and looked at her son, *You knew this day would
come, Naomi, you should have told him before he asked*, and said, "Why
now, all of a sudden, sweetie? You were never interested
before."

"Well, I've been thinking these last couple of months, after all
that happened with Jim and his dad--I want to know my dad. To see if
we're anything alike, or if we're totally dissimilar. I just
need to know, Naomi," Blair said quietly.

"Oh, you are very much like him, Blair. He was a good and caring
person, just like you are. Look, can we go back to Cat's to talk
about this, I have a picture of him there, if you'd like to see
it, sweetie," Naomi told her son.

Before Blair could answer, they were interrupted by a deep male
voice: "Naomi? Naomi Sandburg?" the tall man asked her.

Naomi thought she recognized the voice, one she hadn't heard for
almost 29 years, and turning around, looked up into the deep
brown eyes of the man who was Blair's father.

End Family pictures 3