AWIO On the Scene

"You did all this yourself? Nice work!"

He was outside with AWIO's "Security" and had been giving his report to an AWIO case worker while passing out coffees. They'd arrived in a pair of helicopters. AWIO may still be working out some organizational kinks but their response time was impressive.

Kea had been visibly agitated and nervous with so many people about. She'd also been slightly miffed with his explanation of things and being left out. Still She'd clung to him, so he'd suggested that a majority could wait outside leaving her with just a few someones she trusted... and now he was answering their questions. Getting the story straight before law enforcement arrived. About what had transpired and his sponsorship "interview".

Dave looked at the man who spoke with the unusual slitted eyes standing over the quartet of lowlifes he'd restrained in the old van letting out a low whistle. Dave just shrugged. "Not really. They were strictly amateur hour. Especially that one." He pointed out Speedy.

"Yeah, I was gonna ask about that one," the fellow said as Dave read his name on his uniform as "Roz". "The others are more or less unharmed except for a bump or two. But not him. What'd you hit him with?"

Dave smirked and explained what he'd over heard of the criminals conversation. "So seeing as he was the one who hurt Kea and expressed a desire to hurt her more with the beanbag gun, and I'd run out of tranquilizer rounds taking down those two, I figured he could have a taste of that. Twice. Then I hit him with his own tazer."

Roz grinned but looked at him skeptically. "Once?"

The corner of Dave's mouth lifted. "I may have let the charge build up and shocked him again."

Roz laughed out loud, grinning. "Oh I like this one!"

The fellow in the suit from the AWIO, "Edward" Dave reminded himself of the case workers name, however kept a straight face. "That's enough, Roz. We need security to gaurd the suspects for now until local LEO's arrive then cooperate in every possible way with their investigation. We need everything to go smoothly. Understood?"

Roz nodded. "Understood. Don't worry. My guys know their jobs. Permission to speak freely?"

Edward looked at Dave who shook his head smiling. He certainly wouldn't object. Infact part of the reason he had come out was just to hand Roz and the rest of AWIO security team coffees while Kea finished getting checked out by an AWIO medic who specialized in otherworlders and answered the other case workers, a young woman named Rachel and a goblin interpreter, questions about her experience... and from the glances and side eye and not-so-secretive smiles he'd gotten from the three of them, questions about himself he was guessing. It was embaressing and he'd wanted to extend the welcome wagon to the rest of the AWIO folks so it had been a good excuse to retreat from his home and let the ladies talk. "I don't mind at all."

"Go ahead," Edward said with a sigh like he was put upon... but he was smiling so Dave knew the two were joking around. He decided they were friends as well as work associates.

Roz grinned. "Alright. I just have a couple of questions. So where was Kea when all this happened? I'm surprised that she didn't get involved."

Dave rubbed the back of his neck. "Well as luck had it she'd just gotten in the shower. I know because I heard it through the door-"

"Oh ho!" Roz grinned and winked while Edward raised an eyebrow. "Hanging around outside the door of the bathroom, huh?"

Dave rolled his eyes and snorted not falling for the baiting. "That's all in the report I gave. I wasn't going to leave her "alone", alone. When dealing with a victim that's been through a traumatic experience it's important to give them space when required but just as important is providing reassurance. If she needed help or her situation changed and she needed support, I'd be nearby. Kea was very understably shook up when we first met. She was in fight and flight mode when I found her. We soon developed a rapid rapport and trust. Sometimes someone in a situation like that will do that. They're **** for any kind of stable comfort they can get. Sometimes just having someone they trust close by like that can keep them functioning instead of breaking down."

Roz whistled again. "You don't say? You sure seem to know a lot about kicking ass and trauma, both physical and mental. How'd you get that unusual skill set?"

Dave shrugged. "One at a time is how. First was Army. Spent a good part of my life there. I did alright-"

"Twenty years with the Special Forces," Edward interrupted reading from a tablet. "Top marksman. Survival and tracking skills expert. Served with distinction in multiple theaters in a command capacity. Recipient of multiple awards during such time not the least of which were bronze and silver stars, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Medal of Honor and no less than five Purple Hearts. Holds the record for-"

"Being a damn fool," Dave cut him off slightly irritated and shaking his head. "That's what. Geez y'all sure did your homework fast."

Edward smiled. "Apologies. We do indeed "do our homework", as you say. Background checks are an important part of screening applicants. We don't often get applicants as... interesting as yours. It's pretty thrilling reading for just the dry facts."

Roz whistled lowly again. "Hard son of a bitch... err, no offense meant."

Dave shook his head and smiled sadly. "None taken. Dumb son of a bitch, is more accurate. It took me too damn long to realize that doing something you're good at isn't necessarily doing something that's good for you. That much **** and pain, for yourself and others, it damages the soul. Chips away at it overtime. By the time I'd figured something that obvious out I was pretty far gone. So I changed ways and paths. Got help with my trauma and issues. Started feeling better. Started doing and being better. Started helping my fellow soldiers deal with their problems. Felt even better about that and found I liked it. A lot. Went back to school and applied myself."

"I'd say that's putting it mildly, doctor," Edward said. "Volunteered to help in multiple programs dealing in everything from PTSD to **** survivors and recovery and rehabilitation. In the last couple of years you've authored multiple papers and written several books on the subject."

Dave rolled his eyes again. "Don't do that. I'm a PhD but I don't go around calling myself, doctor. I don't heal folks, I help them with developing and utilizing the tools to help themselves... or at least I hope so. That's the thing with trauma. There's no bandaid fix for it. It doesn't actually get "better". A person just learns to cope better. Build a callus around it. Manage their fear and pain. Be mindful of their triggers. They just do the best they can to move on carrying it around, accepting and controlling their reactions to it, not the other way around." He sighed. "Or they don't... some folks never really recover. That's why trauma care is so important. Breaking or minimizing it's hold over them and managing their expectations while minimizing their fear of it." He stared at Speedy, frowning.

"Something wrong?" Roz asked blinking his ophidian eyes.

Dave nodded, sighing. "I didn't do so well this morning."

Eduard blinked. "I think you handled Kea remarkably well actually. Give yourself some credit."

Dave shook his head though and nodded towards the punk. "Seeing her attacker. Hearing him express his desire to inflict further harm on her. I failed "me". I wanted to hurt him. I could have picked up the other tranquilizer guns or reloaded from them. I was gentle all things considered with the others... but not him. So why not? The obvious answer is that some part of me wanted to cause him pain. Wanted just a little retribution for Kea. I got triggered... and failed."

Roz stared at him incredulously. "You feel bad for hurting that jerk?!"

Dave shook his head and met his eyes. "Not particularly. I'm not gonna lose sleep over that punk. But doing so I hurt some part of myself. I picked at an old festering wound called rage and let it put one finger on the wheel, if only for a time. I only caused him a little pain... but what if I'd done more? I was armed with my own gun. What if I'd shot him. Or decided to physically harm him. God knows I wanted to physically throttle him. What if I did and it went to far? Broke his ribs? His arms? Busted his legs? Permanently crippled him so it'd be unlikely he hurt anyone again? Made him a "victim"? Or stopped him from ever hurting anyone again... permanently? What if I killed him?"

Roz swallowed and nodded. "Heavy stuff. Okay... I get where you're coming from now." He looked thoughtful though and smiled. "But in the end you didn't do any of those things so don't be too hard on yourself about it. Because you achieved your most important objective. Good job on that."

Dave nodded but smiled a little at that. "Thanks, Roz. That was the most important thing at the time and still is."

Now Edward blinked confused. "Okay, hold up. You guys lost me. What was most important?"

Roz grinned. "Oh boy. Mr Smart-guy-know-it-all missed that one, eh? I dunno. You want to enlighten him, teach?" He teased.

Edward rolled his eyes but Dave nodded smiling. "Sure. I don't mind at all. He just hasn't thought it through all the way yet. Roz initially was asking me why I did it alone and why I didn't involve Kea. She was in the shower was a convenient excuse, and even more convenient timing, to not involve her and I didn't tell her until y'all were almost here and she was mildly miffed about that... but that was not the reason. I didn't involve her because..." he let the obvious answer hang for Edward to conclude.

Edward thought about that and then facepalmed. "Oh-kay. You're right. That was also obviously the right call to make. She would have been facing her captors/tormentors and her attacker."

"Right," Dave said nodding seriously. "Some do find a form of limited catharsis that way but for most it only escalates their stress and trauma, especially so close to the traumatic incident. I was tempted to go too far and while I caused him pain, I used nonlethal methods. Would Kea have made similar choices? Would she have made worse choices? Or, doubtful I think but anything's possible, would she have had a breakdown? And how would she feel in the aftermath? Either way the likelihood of an unhealthy outcome for her was high and I certainly wasn't going to risk it if it wasn't necessary." He smirked at the house. "She's definitely miffed that I didn't involve her... but she's not upset either. She's more relieved. To be done with it. So I kept her safe. That was, and is, my number one concern."

Both men nodded. "I do have one more question," Roz said looking at his bandaged arm. "You didn't mention getting injured during the confrontation so-"

Dave cut him off, answering. He'd been expecting that question coming up and he felt relatively sure that AWIO would be understanding of the bite... but he also was equally certain that injuring, let alone attacking, a potential sponsor was probably "bad" to have in her record so- "The cat bit me."

"The cat... bit you?" Roz asked raising his eyebrow.

"Yup," Dave said nodding. "I stepped on his tail by accident so I had it coming. He's normally rather sweet." He pointed to the big cat in the window watching the intruders on his domain with great interest.

Roz smiled and nodded. "Well alright. That is a big cat. Sounds plausible. Cats do bite after all. Can't blame a cat for being a cat."

Edward watched as they both nodded agreeing to the falsehood and turned towards him smiling. He sighed and nodded. "Right. "Cat bite" is going in the official report. Try not to let him eat the neighbors, OK?"

Dave smiled and nodded. "I'll try but no promises. He's the terror of the the county and right now my lion tamer act is on hold indefinitely for the foreseeable future."

Edward nodded. "Alright so in short. You found Kea. Calmed her down and developed in your words a "rapid rapport and trust". You fed and clothed her. Let her clean herself up. Than you put yourself in danger to protect her out of multiple concerns for her physical and mental health, safety and general well-being. You faced down and subdued her pursuers using a minimum of **** through stealth and surprise... oh and you got bit by "the cat" through your own "clumsiness"... anything else?"

Dave shook his head. "No... I don't think so. That rather neatly sums it up in short- Oh we were watching childrens edutainment to work on her learning and language skills before yall showed up if that makes any difference?"

Edward added that to his notes shaking his head but smiling. He was also watching and reading on his tablet as Rachel's transcript of her interview of Kea came in real time... and she was doing the same. The two matched up on most of the details though there were differences and it seemed Dave had only told the one lie about the bite- he watched as that got edited out in real time by Rachel and changed to "Cat bite". She was interfering again... but she was the lead on this and she was likely going to be his boss eventually. She'd also already checked the "Approved" box for "Kea" despite the obvious problem that Kea hadn't finished her acclimation studies yet. There were other discrepancies too in Kea's recollection of things in the report. She was saying he'd proposed to her and a few other things that were likely misunderstandings on her part... but those things aside they didn't change the facts. Mr Stark had, with no obligation to do so whatsoever, gone to great lengths to help, comfort and care for a Monster Girl with charity and consideration. He'd done, and been tested, more in one morning than most sponsors and not only done it well but exceeded the standard sponsor expectations. He smiled. A lie agreed upon... "Nope that about does it for both your report and interview, Mr Stark," he said checking the "approved" box on David's application and file. "Thank you for your cooperation in getting to the truth about this matter."

Dave nodded. He'd been right. These were decent folks. They'd likely have to be in this line of work and continue doing it well. "Not a problem. The absolute truth is the only thing that matters to me is Kea's saftey and well-being." He fixed them both with a hard look. "That's the truth. So be truthful with me. Is she?"

Roz smirked at Edward. "Oh he's sharp! I approve by the way. One hundred percent."

Edward sighed staring at Roz. "I haven't gotten to that part yet. Putting the cart before the horse much?"

Roz shrugged. "You're the one going too slow. It's obvious why you asked me to help evaluate him. Just like it's obvious you're going to stamp "accepted" on his sponsorship of Kea, if you haven't already. Just like it's obvious that you like him and the way he thinks! So, obviously, just do what you want to do. Why wait?"

Edward sighed at being transparent to his friend. "Because there's an order to things. First things first, Roz."

Dave raised an eyebrow looking at the pair and poured a refill for another AWIO member who came over to the picnic table setup. They thanked him and he gave himself a moment by refilling and sipping from his own cup. "How about answering my concern first? Is Kea safe now?"

Edward gave Roz a look and he nodded. "Odds are good that she is. Kea is only a somewhat valuable hostage. A chieftains daughter to her tribe, but not that unique. She is the youngest of twenty-one such daughters by multiple wives."

Dave blinked. "Ah... I see... is she...?"

Edward smiled anticipating his question. "She is an adult. Have no worries about that."

Roz nodded and continued. "Most likely the thing they were referring to tracking her is the bigger problem. No tracking devices were found in her effects. So either they chipped her or, more likely, are using divination of some sort."

Dave looked up at that. "Divination? Like an augury? Reading and interpreting omens? You're talking magic."

Roz smiled. "You are sharp! How do you know about that kind of stuff?"

Dave sighed. "I was a tabletop role-playing gamer in my youth. Actually I was the one who ran the games for my friends. And many people in this world still believe in divination. Tarot, Runes, Crystal balls, drawing lots, dowsing and other fortune telling rituals abound."

"You don't believe?" Edward asked.

Dave shook his head. "I didn't say that. I never needed to before now. I suppose it would be foolish to discount the possibility these days considering we now know and have access to another world where the things we thought of as "fantasy" or "myth" are living breathing fact. Besides," He smiled slightly. "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,/

Than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

"What?" Edward asked.

"Shakespeare's Hamlet," Roz interjected with a smile. "A famous play from a famous playwright of this world." He shrugged. "I liked attending plays or listening to the minstrels on the otherside. Reading or attending new ones here is a real treat."

Edward smiled. "I didn't know that about you. Good for you, Roz!"

Roz shrugged and turned towards Dave again. "You should know by now theres more than meets the eye. I'm from the other world if that wasn't obvious by now."

Dave smiled and nodded. "I'd figured but I didn't want to pry. Belated welcome to our Earth, neighbor," he said holding out his hand.

Roz clasped his forearm instead in the fashion of warriors and grinned when Dave did the same smiling widely. "Thank you, neighbor and friend! I quite like it here!"

"Glad to hear it," Dave said warmly. "So you all think magic is involved?"

Roz shrugged. "It's certainly a possibility. Magic and certain items from the otherworld are highly regulated, and with good reasons, but there have been incidents... including this one." He glanced at Edward who gave a very tight nod indicating that he could tell... some. "This is off the record. Several weeks ago Kea was part of a group of otherworlders that went missing from an an AWIO sponsored acclamation facility."

"Acclamation facility?" Dave asked.

Edward nodded. "It's a place where those coming from the otherside can study and learn the languages, customs and norms of the area they'll be integrating into so they can fit into that society better. From there they move into AWIO group homes and continue to learn and socialize with each other as AWIO tries to match them up with sponsor candidates. Some have studied long before crossing over to this world and others-"

"Like Kea?" Dave asked catching on.

"Others, like Kea," Edward said nodding. "Have only a limited grasp or knowledge of how things are here. We try to make sure they all have a basic working knowledge and grasp of the local language they wish to integrate with among other things like customs and cultures. It lessens the individuals stress from environmental change and culture shock. Kea had only just begun to grasp the basics before..." he paused.

Dave frowned stating what he had already figured out. "She and others were forcibly **** from one of these acclamation facilities. Otherworlders are probably a valuable commodity and so there's a bkackmarket boom by those who see them as "non-human" and therefore "things", isn't there? Therefore you have a criminal element problem as well as other problems. Am I close?"

Roz and Edward both nodded and frowned. "Very, perceptive. We and the people from the otherside have been targeted not only by intolerance and bigotry but various criminal elements as well. We find the process of the interviewing and screening of sponsers is getting better over all but we had initial problems with that too and mistakes still occasionally happen. We had hoped that things would go much smoother than they have. Frankly? We underestimated the situation quite a bit. We've been taking steps, like adding more case workers, even recruiting some sponsers , and adding Roz and other security personnel, but again, speaking frankly, we are behind where we want to be and are stuck playing catch-up."

Roz nodded. "That's where you come in."

"Me?" Dave asked surprised.

Edward sighed looking at Roz. "You're rushing things again."

Roz snorted. "He's already figured out the broadstrokes of the picture and done what we would have wanted to do. He's qualified, over qualified in fact, and he obviously gives a damn with his heart and head in the right place. I say you're wasting time dancing around the subject and you should just make your proposal straight out. Worst case scenario he turns you down but I'd wager a month's pay he won't."

"Done," Edward agreed quickly.

"What are you...," Dave asked then paused his eyes going wide as he caught on. "Wait. You want me to work for AWIO?"

Edward nodded and pointed at his tablet that held the information on Dave he'd been reading from. "In short, yes. We immediately reviewed your sponsorship application and honestly speaking now that the interview is over, plus the obvious fact that you and Kea have already bonded anyway, you are approved. I wanted to let you be a sponsor for awhile first before approaching you about engaging your services but-"

"But that's a waste of time," Roz stated. "Strike while the iron is hot. A perfect candidate just appeared on your radar already doing what you propose on his own initiative and you want to "wait and ease them into it"? They're already in it, chose to be of their own volition, and likely did it better with their qualifications and instincts alone while we're still trying to figure out how to go about it and what the priorities are and should be to help adress the situation."

Edward nodded. "I think... No, I know you're right but it's a big-"

"I'll do it," Dave said simply and firmly.

Roz grinned and Edward blinked. "Just like that?"

Dave nodded without hesitation. "I have concerns and questions for later of course but you're telling me there are people like Kea who need help? Need it desperately, likely. Help that I can give them? I'll do it. Even if you didn't approve my sponsorship I'd still do it. Just tell me what you have in mind and need me to do."

Roz smacked his shoulder grinning, "See? He's eager to sign up! I knew it!"

Edward smiled genuinely relieved. "Don't worry. I wasn't lying. We've already approved your sponsorship and it is in no way conditional on you helping AWIO. You'll be subject to home visits and all the other Sponser norms in the beginning and Kea will need a fair bit of extra help in catching up in her studies from you. As for telling you what to do... we were hoping you could tell us, actually."

Dave chuckled. "Oh boy. So y'all want me do all the heavy lifting on this?"

Roz shook his head. "We want you to advise on the formation, and the carrying out, of rescue operation teams."

Edward nodded. "As well as the care and rehabilitation of the rescued as well as the general mental well-being of other folks in the program. If you want to get actively involved that is up to you but we'd certainly benefit from that as well. You'd need to speak to my superior further on the subject. This was their idea."

Dave blinked but nodded. "Kind of a big ask but tell them I'm definitely interested." He rubbed his chin. "Where to begin? I mean obviously the priority is otherwolders safety, health and well-being. The later will be particularly tricky," he said frowning thoughtfully stroking his chin thinking outloud for himself as much as explaining to them. "Like I said earlier there's no quick fix for trauma and we're talking about a potentially very wide range of it. Abductions like Kea, **** both physical and mental, manipulation and ****, etcetera... Not to mention different individuals handling things differently post-crisis. Each case will need individual attention and analysis for both treatment and long-term recovery. And that's just the obvious tip of the iceberg. There's so much more to mental and physical recovery and well-being as well as general health..."

Roz grinned as Dave kept outlining/thinking aloud, absorbed in the potential project and winked at Edward. "See? Not even officially on the job yet for a minute and already working. Pay up."

Edward raised one hand in surrender and pulled out his wallet with the other, smiling. A bet was a bet... and he was happy to lose this one.

Roz accepted his payment and nudged Dave who was still going on, deep in thought. "Take a breath, hey. You ain't even on the clock yet. You'll make the rest of us look bad!" He laughed at his own joke.

Dave blinked and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry. Bad habit I get hyper focused on "the job". He pointed at a old scar. "That's how I got this one. One of our demolitions guys was down and so I was helping the other set the charges. It was a tricky job because we could only bring so much to the chemical weapons plant behind enemy lines. They had to be placed just so to implode the building having it collapse in on itself rather than blow it sky high. Got shot while doing exactly what our expert told us... didn't even flinch. I knew it happened but I couldn't afford to mess it up. Failure wasn't an option... I could bleed later."

Roz laughed and Edward smiled. "Well hopefully we won't work you quite that hard!"

Dave chuckled and smiled but being snapped out of his focus on the problem allowed his train of thought and questions for them to start back up again. "Hey that reminds me of something else that's been mentioned that I wanted to ask about... What's this "bond" thing? At first I assumed it was like any normal bond that's formed over time or by sharing experiences with someone... but the way everyone keeps mentioning it I'm getting the feeling that there's something more significant there... uh, why are y'all looking at me like that?"

Roz was the first to recover and stop staring, shaking his head. He clapped Dave on the shoulder and smiled, jerking his thumb at Edward. "You really don't know do you? You're in for a treat! Thanks for the coffee. He can explain it best as stuff like that's more his area of expertise and all. I'll be looking forward to working with you. See you around."

Dave smiled. "Thanks Roz and it was my pleasure! I'm looking forward to it too! See you around!" He watched Roz walk away before turning to Edward. "So... what's this "bond" stuff? What exactly am I getting into here?"

Edward came around and passed him his cup with a smile. "Alright, "Proffesor". Give me a refill and I'll give you the crash course on "Monster girl" dynamics. Pay attention because it'll all be on the test for the rest of your monster girl loving life!"

-One Indepth "The Finer Points of Living A Life With Monster Girls" Explanation Later-

"Hey," Edward snapped his fingers infront of David's face. "You okay?"

Dave blinked then smiled and nodded his head. "Yeah. It's... a bit much but you did a really good job explaining it all. Thanks for that. I just realized how hard your job is and was thinking about the potential pitfalls out there for the otherworlders. Screening sponsor candidates. Arranging interviews. The absolute necessity of those check-ins and home visits. And they're facing a bit of intolerance, too?" Dave shook his head. "That's not good. What about when a temporary bond forms with a bad or unsuitable sponsor? I understand that AWIO steps in quickly but how do the otherworlders fare after separation from "bad" sponsors? Or what about candidates who don't get picked by sponsors?That's got to be rough."

Edward sighed and nodded. "It certainly can be. We'd like your help with those parts of the process too. Some shrug it off, some recover after disappointment, some struggle and others... well... how to put this?"

Dave frowned and shook his head. "I can guess. They make further "bad" choices? It's sometimes called negative cycle or spiral. Negative thoughts and thinking patterns can quickly turn into self-fulfilling prophecies, leading to a downward spiral of negativity, apathy, and even depression. Anxiety, depression and other mental health problems can often cause or worsen negative thinking, making it even more difficult to break the cycle."

Edward nodded and sighed. "That's Indeed the pattern we see with some of them. They either continue to pick poorly, suffer from not getting selected, or sometimes, self-destruct the sponsor relationship themselves creating that negative self-fulfilling prophecy you mentioned. The ones who dont get sponsored need help too. They suffer from low self-esteem, depression, apathy and anxiety and many start living unhealthy lifestyles or developing bad habits making them more... problematic to care and find good sponsors for."

Dave nodded. "I'd be happy to help on that issue as well. It's tricky... their own low sense and value of self is likely the issue with most. "Victim thinking" is likely another. And their are many other possible factors too. Each will need individual assessment and a tailored support plan."

Edward smiled. Dave really was taking the problems seriously and he hadn't even started the job yet... speaking of... "I don't want to rush you but when do you think you can start? Two weeks seems reson-"

Dave shook his head. "Monday works for me... And if you have something critical come up, I'll come in immediately."

Edward shook his head. "You don't want more time settling in with Kea to yourselves? We usually advise sponsers to take a week or two off of work to settle in their new Sponsered. Like a honeymoon of sorts! And are you really okay with your situation? And we haven't even talked about salary or benefits yet."

Dave blinked then smiled. "I'm surprised by it too but... I am. Kea and I? It just feels... right, in a way that's hard to explain." He shrugged. "I guess it's the bond thing. Works fast," he chuckled then shrugged pulling out a pen and and grabbing a napkin, scribling away. "And you have others that need help, so the sooner the better! How about I start on a consultation basis? This would be my preferred hourly rate but it's negotiable especially since it seems like a big job. We could work out a sliding scale if need be. I'm also putting my contact info here. I have my resume on file in my laptop...," he paused before giving a wry smile. "I think? Sorry, It's been awhile. I don't have "current" business cards since the move. Guess I better get on that." He scratched at his head then laughed. "So much for early retirement!"

Edward chuckled then grinned taking the napkin holding the information and looking it over. "How about "Semi-retired"? We'll try not to work you too hard. And you can set your own hours as a consultant and we'll come up with a resonable benefits package... this rate though..."

Dave blinked. "I told you it's negotiable if it's too high-"

"Too high?" Edward asked incredulously shaking his head. "Try too low! What's with the bargin discount rate? We don't pay the specialists we have now that low!"

Dave shrugged. "It works for me but if y'all don't like it then scratch it. You guys tell me what you think is fair and we'll figure it out. The numbers at the bottom is my personal cellphone as well as home phone and fax number. If any, and I mean any, kind of emergency comes up that yall think you need my help with do not hesitate to give me a call, alright? Anytime. Day or night."

Edward whistled but nodded, smiling. "I understand and I'll make sure I take the offer up with my superior. I'm certain that they'll be eager to get in touch with you!"

Dave smiled. "I'll be looking forward to it!"