I meet a trio of gentlemen

Dear Dr. Johnson,

I have had time to reflect on my day and report that it was in nearly every sense a fine day. Not only was my research into the mysterious nymph that accosted me on the river informative, but my mind often wanders to the memory of the surprisingly accommodating Miss Monroe after I reduced her to a quivering bundle of flesh in that small room tucked into the rafters of the library. I helped the stunned woman sit up and compose herself. I fully expected Miss Monroe to flee from the small room, but to my surprise she was not nearly as distressed by my actions as I would have thought.

We dressed, as you might imagine Sir William, in an awkward silence. I searched desperately to find the words to express my remorse, but nothing in my proper British education seemed to cover what to say to a woman that you've brutally assaulted in a most improper manner. As absurd as it sounds, I thanked her for her assistance and left the room so she could finish dressing without further embarrassment. Please understand, Sir, that I was not attempting to flee. Where to could I run? So I was still in the main hall of the library when she hurried down the steps after me. She approached me nervously, tucking a strand of hair back neatly into place, once again the very model of modesty, and informed me that she wished me well in my pursuit of the strange blue creature. Once more I attempted to apologize, but she brushed aside my fumbling words without pause. To my surprise, instead she took a small card from her pocket and jotted an address on the back.

"I am home most evenings by seven, Dr. Baxter, if you need to discuss any new findings you might uncover." She told me without a hint of concern, and then added a further statement which left me even more confused than before. "I sometimes retire early, so I may not hear you knocking. There is a loose brick near the right side of the door jam, behind it you will find the key to the door." I have not, of course, attempted to visit Miss Monroe at her apartment so I cannot verify this extraordinary bit of information. I have the card with her address and I can smell the fading scent of her flowery perfume. The faint scent evokes memories of her struggling body and makes me wonder if a late-night surprise visit would be equally satisfying. I must resist these dark impulses Lord Johnson, and now that I have spending money, perhaps I will invite her out to dinner with me.

Which brings me to the main reason for this entry into the ever growing serial letter. I have met, by chance, several high officers in the East Orion Trading company. One of these fine gentlemen is well stationed in the local bank, and offered to extend a personal loan to help cover the expenses of setting up a household. Allow me to back-track a little to explain this generous offer. I had once again taken the Anna-Leigh into town the evening after my unfortunate encounter with Miss Monroe. I had thought perhaps to at least identify the neighborhood in which she resided and as a matter of curiosity see just how likely a target her apartment might be to a raider from the docks. As I approached the waterfront I was hailed by a trio of gentlemen in somber but meticulously tailored walking jackets strolling along the Riverwalk. When I heaved to, they exclaimed in delight at seeing the powerboat upon the river again and insisted that I join them in a drink so they could make my acquaintance.

The tallest of the three, I am quite certain judging by his upright bearing and manner of speech, was a military man perhaps now retired. The officer, Sir Eduard Black, introduced me to his comrades-in-arms as he called them, a short slightly overweight senior officer in the Company bank, and a bespectacled man only a few years older than me who traded in Soma futures and had the habit of periodically checking his gold pocket watch. The three led me to a exclusive gentlemen's club that made the Edwardian Royal Hotel look squalid in comparison and sat me among them in a booth with leather-backed couches and a marble-topped table that must have weighed over twenty stone. Two of the three gentlemen lit expensive cigars while myself and the Soma broker declined. Without a word, the tall leader of the three signaled for four glasses of scotch.

As I began to introduce myself to the gentlemen they assured me that Dr. Miller's new assistant had no need to give my name and that I was already the talk of the town. Or at least, as one of them added jovially, the talk of their wives. I confess, my lord, that I thought perhaps these three officers of the Company might be the very men that I had been cuckolding in the name of medical treatments, but the three offered me nothing but compliments and best wishes. We talked about the wonders of Rajah, which led to questions about my power boat and if the Anna-Leigh was fully operational.

I expressed my opinion that the boat was far more ready than its captain and related a tale of the first time I tried to dock her in the boathouse. In the end, I explained to the laughing men, I had to jump into the muddy water and drag the boat through the water-gate. The youngest of the men pointed out that surely my handling of the craft had improved and offered as evidence the smart way I had brought the boat around and docked it along the riverwalk. I conceded that after that first disastrous outing I had practiced docking until bringing the boat into the boathouse under power was no longer a cause for terror. My modesty and good nature appeared to have made a good impression with the trio as they insisted that I stay as their guest for dinner.

As conversation continued about the American raids on Kandar and the effects this might have on Soma prices, to the forecast for this year's production numbers and the possibility of expanding the mines to a secound location. I sat in silence and listened having little to offer among such an august company. Occasionally the officers would pause to explain one peculiarity or another to me, but for the most part I was ignored until talk turned to teasing the Soma trader about his upcoming nuptials. It seems the young man was to be wed to one of the city's most sought after debutants in a little over a month's time and that his bride was much admired by the other two officers. They then asked if I had set my sights on any of the young women parading about town. I did my very best to not be distracted by the memory of Alice's pretty face next to mine as we danced or how good it had felt to hold her in my arms, or for that matter Miss Monroe as she moaned and wiggled impaled by my member. Instead I answered that until I could get settled, I was concentrating my energy on my duties at Dr. Miller's clinic. This careful response was met by knowing chuckles and the soft 'clink' of our tumblers; I cannot say for sure Sir Williard, but I wonder if those men had at least a suspicion of some of the debauchery that takes place behind those whitewashed walls.

I turned the conversation back to safer topics. None of the men whose company I kept had made even passing references to the Blush and to address the topic in this secluded environment seemed deeply taboo. One of the most remarkable things about this gentlemen's club was the complete absence of any females, for the first time since settling in my new house I found myself surrounded by only men of high station and I found it to be remarkably relaxing. Perhaps this is one of the ways in which the officers of the Company shield themselves from the constant fight or the planetary curse. I resolved that as soon as I could to petition a fine club like this for memberships so that I too could escape the stress of women whose delicate bodies seamed to bring out the worst in me.

When the check came, none of the men would hear of me paying my share, and so I informed them that, as soon as my first payment from the Company had been deposited in the bank, that I would be sure to invite them to my house to repay their kindness. What followed happened so quickly that it is hard to relate, but young trader told the banker to have his institution extend me a loan, and then the tallest of the three simply pulled out a checkbook and wrote me a note for the amount of 500 pounds. I protested that I was unsure how long it would take to repay his generous offer and that I had nothing to offer as collateral.

"Why bother with the fuss and paperwork of a bank?" He asked as he pressed the crisp note into my hand, "among gentlemen like us there must be trust and honour." His two companions offered 'huzzahs' and even though we had just settled the account we all had one more round of the excellent scotch before leaving the club.

Tomorrow, I do not work at the clinic, and I intend to buy myself some of the supplies that I have been going without for the past several weeks. With new clothes and some jingle money in my pocket I can move ahead with some of the pressing issues that I have had to put off.