THE SEX REBEL OF JESUSLAND, mini-chapter 82

82. LUNCH WITH ESTHER

“Are you all right, Eve? You look haggard.”

If Esther Todd were a real friend, she should be able to tell her everything, but she couldn’t. Esther Todd was a new friend, unlike Rachel. She could tell Rachel anything, and did, and look where it had gotten her now. Her only friend did not want to listen to her problem, and had too many problems of her own, what with her baby’s cough, to have any sympathy over for anyone else.

Could she tell Adam? Hardly. She did not want to be dependent on him in any way. She already craved her orgasms with him too much. She had to wean herself off him. By sleeping with Ezra perhaps. She could get married to Ezra.

But maybe not. Esther might have something to say about that.

“Tough case at work,” Eve said. “I’m seeing two halves of a homosexual couple. I believe I may have to tell one of them to see another counselor. I thought I might learn something by treating a couple, but it seems to blur my focus.”

Ah, work problems. One could always safely blame them for everything.

“Well, you should get your beauty sleep. We want you to be pretty for Ezra. Is he still chomping at the bit?”

Esther chuckled. Eve found herself chuckling along. Esther was a tonic. So strong, so direct, and yet so female. She wanted to be like that. But had Esther ever had a problem like this? How would Esther handle it? Would she be able to just brush it off and go on? Was that what powerful people did?

“Last time we saw each other he was.”

“I’ve got the vote of my Board now, Eve. I will be Joshua’s successor.”

“I’m so happy,” said Eve, but she was disappointed. Did that mean she had lost her role in the power struggle?

“But Ezra has launched a new line of attack. He has a new girlfriend who controls a very large fortune since the death of her husband. He wants to take us over.”

“Take over Sunday Fox? How is that possible?”

“In business anyone can be taken over, Eve. All it takes is money.”

“What are his chances regarding this?”

“Pretty good with his new access to capital.”

“What will he do if he takes you over?”

“He’ll find me a suitably humiliating role in the company, and I will have to resign. Another victim of the arrogant gender.”
“Oh, Esther.”

The powerful had their problems, too.

“You can say that again, Eve. Our friend Ezra is a more formidable enemy than I thought. I think it’s time for you to get very close to him, to ferret out his plans.”
“Ezra and I don’t focus on talk about business.”

“Men always talk after sex. They like to brag.”

“You want me to sleep with Ezra?”

“Wouldn’t you like to sleep with a man as powerful as him? Who might soon be more powerful than me?”

It was a very good question.

“I not only condone it, Eve, I approve of it. You should sleep with him and marry him. That is the quickest way you have of joining us in the Top Tier of the Bureau. Maybe quicker than joining sides with me against him. Either way you win.”

Esther was not afraid of pointing out all the angles to her: that it might be even better for her to go play in Ezra’s sandbox.

“Esther, how exactly will it help you if I sleep with him?”

“I will give you certain questions to ask him once you’ve got him bedded. It may help.”

Esther took Eve’s hand and tapped her palm with her finger. Despite the intimate gesture, it felt like Esther was receding from her.

“Eve, this is about power, not sex. Your power. You will gain power over Ezra. You will gain power with me. There is a game here you must learn to play. We’re allies now, you and me, and we fight for each other. You could be running a big division in Sunday Fox, right under me, with me mentoring you every day. But I need to know that I have your unstinting loyalty.”

Esther had assumed a brisk tone that she sometimes showed. It was a cold part of her, and Eve was not comfortable with it. A take-it-or-leave-it manner. Esther’s eyes looked like she could flick you away at a moment’s notice, as easy as blinking. It scared Eve. She preferred the chuckling Esther. She would be a tough woman to work for, but then that was what she, Eve, had to become if she wanted to be a powerful woman in the world. An Esther. A queen. Who was willing to wield an axe if necessary.

“You have my loyalty, Esther. Totally.”

What else could she say?

“Ezra will be in Los Angeles tomorrow for a week. I’ll fly you there and book you into a hotel. You can attend a Bureau Orientation Course there on my dollar.”

A Bureau Orientation Course! That was the next step up the ladder from her position as a Senior Therapist. You had to be invited by a higher-up. Bang, it had just happened to her. Her journey to the top was about to begin in earnest.

“Thank you, Esther, for giving me this chance. It’s Jesus sweet of you.”

“You will call Ezra. And you will have an assignation. Is that understood?”

“Indeed.” Esther’s eyes loomed as frozen as icebergs.

“We’ll see what we will see. I haven’t lost the battle yet. He thinks he can fuck my sister and use her money to stop me. We’ll see what we will see.”

“His new girlfriend is your sister?”

“Yes. My twin. We discovered each other only when we were grownup. It was amazing to find another self. This is about more than just a little power struggle with Ezra. I have to save her from his clutches. You know about twins, don’t you?”

“No, I can’t say I do.”

“We look out for each other.”

I want to be your twin, too, Esther. I need someone to look out for me.