Deceit and Justice
by jburr54
jwoodf1795@aol.com

A friend of mine and I had found an old house slated for demolition, and since both of us were currently restoring our own old houses, we decided to bid on the demolition rights to see what we could salvage for our homes. We won the bid and instantly went to work on the old house. It was a two story four-square styled house built in the early 1900's, and we realized right away why it had been condemned. Termites had literally feasted on the place, but there was still a lot of good salvageable trim and some great old bathroom fixtures.

I'm Jim and my friend's name is Buddy, and he and I have been actively involved in the historic district of our town for a long time now. Buddy is 15 years older than I, and we both have a lot in common, so we hang out a lot together. A lot of people think that we are partners, but we decided early on that we weren't compatible in that respect, so we are still both looking for the right guys. I'm 47, and it seems that every man that I meet that I like has no interest in me, so I have just determined to let fate do as it will for me.

Buddy and I decided that we would pry loose a lot of the molding first, and then proceed upstairs to disconnect the old bathtubs and pedestal sinks. We worked most of the first day on gently prying the trim loose and stacking it in neat piles. I was wearing gloves, but my hands weren't accustomed to all the hammer and pry bar work, so it didn't take long for me to have the start of blisters on my hands. I didn't even know it until we broke for lunch, and when I pulled the gloves off, the blisters had already burst and burned like hell when I washed my hands.

After lunch we decided to start on the bathroom fixtures upstairs. The old stairway was pretty sturdy, but when I reached the landing where a lot of moisture had accumulated under a window, the floor gave way with me. I crashed through the floor and fell 12 feet to the floor below. I was dazed, but I could tell that I hadn't broken anything. When I began to survey the damage, though, I discovered a long deep gash running up the side of my left thigh. It was bleeding pretty bad, but not to the point that there was an artery involved. I pulled my sweat towel out of my back pocket, and applied pressure to it as I checked everything else out. Buddy was back down the stairs by now to check on me.

When I looked up through the hole I had fallen through I saw a large nail that probably caused the gash on my left leg. I seemed to be all right otherwise except for a scrape on the side of my right knee that was just slightly bleeding. Buddy convinced me to go to the emergency room and get the deeper cut on my left thigh checked out.

After I spent probably an hour signing my name to every conceivable form imaginable, and providing insurance information, I was finally placed in one of those stalls with a draw curtain around it. After about another 30 minutes a nurse came in to take my vitals, and write down the specifics of my injury. After she left I waited long enough that my patience was beginning to wear thin. Finally, about another hour later the curtain swung back, and a devastatingly handsome young doctor walked in. My impatience just melted away, and I prepared myself to stutter and act the fool I usually act in the presence of a good looking man. Sure enough, as he began looking at my wound without introducing himself, I said, "my name is God, I mean you're a god, I mean I'm Jim, what's your name?" I was so red by then that my face felt like it was on fire. He just smiled and winked at me and replied, "that's the first time I've been referred to as a god, but I'll see if I can't live up to it; I'm Dr. Miller, but please call me Chad." I just lowered my head in humiliation.

Chad looked to be in his early 30's. I later found out that he was 34. He got the nurse to clean the wound, and he returned to sew it up. After he had deadened the area and sewn up the cut, he pulled a tube out of his pocket. He squeezed some ointment out of the tube and rubbed it along the stitches as he told me that it was an anti-bacterial ointment that would help the healing. He then put some of the same ointment on the scrape on my right knee and on the broken blisters of both my hands. He dressed and wrapped my hands and the other wounds, and told me not to take a shower, but to just clean off with a wash cloth, so as not to get the stitches wet, and then he shocked me. He asked if I would mind if he stopped by my house to check on me later that evening. All I said was, "yeah, sure," and he stood staring at me for a few moments, and finally asked, "well, where do you live?" Again, I turned crimson, and began apologizing, "oh, I live at 1928 Broadway, I'm sorry, I thought you would have it on your charts there." "Thanks, he said, I have it now, will it be okay if I drop by at about 7:00?" and he smiled that beautiful dimpled smile again when I said, "sure," he left.

The nurse came in and gave me a shot for Tetanus, and gave me a prescription for some antibiotics. After I dressed, I walked out to find Buddy waiting on me. Cute Dr. Chad hadn't gone unnoticed by him either. Buddy took me home, and told me he'd go get the prescription for me. I immediately set to cleaning myself up the best I could without getting into the shower, and sat down at my computer to do some surfing while I waited for 7:00. It was just a few minutes past 7:00 when the knock came at my front door. I practically ran down the stairs, and then composed myself as I opened the door. There stood Dr. Chad. I just said, "Hi", and stood there staring into those gorgeous eyes. Finally, my trance was broken when he asked if he could come in. I blushed again as I stood aside and motioned him in.

Chad looked as if he had cleaned up a bit too. He was so fresh and smelled delightful. He had his little black doctor's bag with him, and he asked if I would mind taking my pants off, so he could check my leg. I quickly complied. He checked the stitches, and said they looked a little red, so he applied some more ointment. He pulled the light bandages off of my hands and did the same to them as well as my right knee, and then re-bandaged the knee. He pulled out some white cotton gloves, and told me they would probably be more comfortable on my hands, so I slipped them on.

I told him I wasn't a very good host, and that I didn't have anything to offer him to eat, but that I could order a pizza if he would stay and eat it with me. I was shocked when he agreed. I loosened up some, and we actually carried on an intelligent conversation as we waited for the pizza. When the pizza arrived, I carried the box into the kitchen as Chad followed. I grabbed a couple of beers from the fridge, some plates, and napkins, and carried them into the table. Chad brought the pizza and set it in the middle of the table. We both sipped a little on our beers before Chad opened the pizza box and slid a slice out onto his plate. I was reaching for a slice when Chad grabbed my wrist to stop me. "You'll mess up those clean white gloves. Here, let me get it for you." I just sat back as he put a slice onto my plate. "I need to go get a fork and knife if I am going to eat this without messing up my gloves," I said as I stood to go into the kitchen. Again Chad stopped me. "Why don't you just let me feed you? I like taking care of others, and I especially like taking care of handsome men."

My mouth fell open as I slowly sat back down, and I just sat there with this stupid look on my face. My trance was broken as Chad lifted the pizza and put it to my mouth. I never touched another thing during dinner. Chad not only fed me, but insisted on holding my beer as I drank. This was all a little weird to me, but kind of arousing too. I could certainly tell that Chad was enjoying all of it. Needless to say, after dinner we ended up in my bedroom.

Chad very carefully and sensuously undressed me, and when I reached out to begin unbuttoning his shirt, again he stopped me and said, "no, just lie back and let me do everything. I want to take care of you tonight." I couldn't say no to this guy. He had such a strange power over me. I suppose I was still in a state of shock of sorts; not from the injuries, but from the fact that such a drop-dead-gorgeous guy had taken such an interest in me. Well, it was an experience that I will never forget. Chad took me places that I didn't know existed as far as pure sexual pleasure was concerned. I tasted him more than once that night, and I shocked myself with the realization that I could cum more than once in a night, and the orgasms were unbelievable. I don't know what time it was when we collapsed and fell asleep from our marathon love session, but I remember awakening just a few hours later. Oh how I remember that morning after.

I was dreaming, and felt like I was drowning in a pool of boiling water. I raised my hands from the water to watch them burst into flames. It was at that moment that I awoke with a start. It was still dark outside, but from the faint glow of the street light outside flowing through the blinds I could see Chad still asleep at my side. He stirred as I turned the bedside light on. I was literally lying in a pool of my own sweat. My legs and my hands were throbbing with pain. I could now see that the white gloves were totally soaked through with a disgusting combination of puss and blood, and were stretched to their limits. My hands looked to be swollen to almost twice their normal sizes. As I threw the sheets back, my infection engorged legs became visible. By now Chad was awake. He gasped at what lay before him, but immediately became the doctor.

"We've got to get you to the hospital. It looks like every wound is infected." Oddly enough, the first thing I thought of was that Buddy had dropped off the anti-biotics, and I hadn't taken one. Only later would I learn that they wouldn't have helped anyway. Chad made several efforts to get me out of bed, but my legs were so severely swollen that I couldn't bend them at the knees. He finally just left me in the bed as he called 911. By the time the ambulance arrived I was slipping into delirium from the fever. I don't remember the ride to the hospital. In fact my next memory would be from three weeks later when I would finally be lucid enough to know where I was.

The first face I remember seeing in the hospital was an old friend of mine from high school. He was a nurse in intensive care, and he was smiling down at me as I tried to blink everything into focus. I tried to call his name, but there were tubes down my throat, and God knows where else. Barry was his name, and I hadn't seen him in probably 20 years. He had become a nurse not long after high school, and he had been one of the first men that I had gone to bed with when I first came out after college. We sort of lost touch with each other as our career paths took us in different directions. I had always had sort of a closeted attraction (for lack of a better term) to short large men. I still do in a way. Barry fit that bill to a tee. He was only about 5'6" tall and had to weigh at least 300 pounds. When I looked up into his face, I could see that he hadn't changed much over the last 20 years. He still had that same cherubic face with a full head of dark hair and sparkling blue eyes.

Barry could see the anxiety on my face, and began reassuring me. "We think you are out of the woods now," he said in a consoling way. "We should be able to remove some of the tubes, so that you will be able to talk, and maybe start eating some solid food." Who knows how doped up I was, but I must have drifted back to sleep. When I awoke again, Chad was standing next to my bed looking at my chart. There were no tubes down my throat now, but my throat was sore as hell. It hurt just to swallow. I tried to speak, but only got a kind of squeak out. Chad lowered the chart and smiled at me. "Hey, man, you gave us one hell of a run for our money, but it looks like you'll be okay to move to a private room in a day or two, and I for one will be anxious to get you home." Then he winked at me, went to the end of the bed and hung the chart up, and smiled and winked again as he left.

Barry came into the room right after Chad had left. My throat was on fire, and I needed a drink of water. I felt like I was strapped down to the bed, and every part of me ached. I finally managed to ask Barry for some water. He filled me a glass, dropped a straw in it and held it for me to sip. It was hard to swallow, but it helped a lot. Barry asked me if I needed anything. I told him not really, but I remembered the night I came to the hospital, and I asked if they'd gotten the infections cleared up. I could tell that Barry was trying hard to remain pleasant. He smiled and said that it looked as if there was now no sign of infection. I sighed a breath of relief, and asked how long it had taken to clear the infections up. All Barry said as the smile disappeared was, "you've been here 24 days, and you seem to be healing nicely now."

About that time an older man came into the room. He was a stern looking silver haired man with a dark complexion, and as he took my chart from the end of the bed, I could just make out his name tag, Dr. R. Najib. Barry backed away as Dr. Najib came around to the side of the bed. The doctor obviously had to strain to act pleasant as he asked how I felt today. When I told him I felt like shit, he attempted a smile as he said, "well, you should after all you've been through." I asked him what kind of doctor he was, and he told me he was a surgeon. I remember saying, "my god, I needed a surgeon to take care of an infection?" Dr. Najib patted my shoulder, and said, "son, you were in surgery four times before we were able to get all of the infection." My mind was reeling now. All I could think was that they had cut massive amounts of flesh from my body, and I would probably be in rehab for months to retrain muscles and tissues that had been devastated. I asked Dr. Najib how much he had to remove to stop the infection. Nothing could have adequately prepared me for his answer.

Very matter of factly as he continued to look at my chart, Dr. Najib said, "We had to remove both of your hands, and both of your legs." I was now in total shock as he continued, "we were able to get all of the infection by just removing your hands, but it took three more surgeries to stop the spread of infection in your legs. Luckily we were successful without having to remove any of your hip, but your left leg is gone at the hip. We managed to save just enough of your right leg, so that you should learn to balance for sitting." Even though they felt like lead, and ached terribly, I managed to lift my arms to see the bandaged stumps at my wrists. Dr. Najib left as Barry came to my bedside. He had tears in his eyes as he watched me stare at my arms in disbelief. When I looked at him, I could no longer control my emotions, and began crying like a baby.

************

I never attempted to look at what was left of my legs until I was moved to a private room. My insurance only provided for a semi-private room, but I found out later that Chad had arranged for me to have a private room. Just two days after I got the information that had so completely devastated me, Barry came into my room in intensive care followed by two men with a gurney. Barry told me that I was being moved into a private room. He adjusted my bed to flatten it out and raise it to the height of the gurney, and then pulled the sheet off of me. I was lying flat, so I still didn't see anything, or attempt to see anything below my chest. Barry told me that he was going to remove my catheter before moving me, and when he pulled it out every remaining muscle in my body tightened from the pain. He apologized and said that it wouldn't have hurt so bad if I hadn't needed one for so long. When my breathing was back to normal, Barry and one of the other men lifted me onto the gurney. He covered me up and I started on my ride to a private room.

When we got to the room, I was transferred to my new bed. I asked Barry to leave the sheet off of me as he raised the head of the bed. That is when I saw the mass of white bandages covering my left hip and the very brief remnant of my right leg. The right stump couldn't have been more than about three inches long. The reality of the situation hit home hard, but I had always been very accepting of change, and before I had even seen what was left of my lower body, I had made my mind up that I was going to make the best of this situation. Barry's look of concern dissipated as he saw that I was not getting emotional. I actually smiled his way, and asked if he would be around to help me adjust to the new me. He broke into a broad smile, and said, "I'd love to be here for you as long as some of the things I remember about the old you haven't changed....if you know what I mean." He actually blushed as he said it, and for the first time I laughed out loud.

My wrists healed quickly, and over the next few weeks everyone concentrated on helping me get my strength back. The healing process for my legs was much slower, and pain alone kept me from progressing at a pace acceptable to myself. I refused pain medication because I always had such a fear of becoming addicted or of being out of control, so I struggled in the rehabilitation process. I was only in the hospital 10 days after I had been moved to a private room, and then I was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital. I was there another three months before I was finally pronounced fit enough to go home.

Barry had spent time with me almost every day that I was in the rehab hospital. Even when he was working his regular 12-hour shift, he would always manage to spend at least two hours with me at the end of his shift. Chad came by on a regular basis too, albeit not nearly as often as Barry. Needless to say it wasn't long after I had transferred to the rehab hospital that my sexual stamina returned, and Chad was always anxious to "take care of that beautiful abbreviated body" as he put it. I was never quite sure of how to take that, but he did make me feel good. I never had to ask Chad to do anything where sex was concerned because that seemed to be the only thing on his mind. In fact, one afternoon I wasn't expecting anyone, and I was unusually horny for some reason, so I had pushed my briefs off, and was busy rubbing my cock with my wrist stumps, when in walked Chad. I smiled at him and said, "you're just in time to help out." He actually became angry and said, "looks to me like you're doing okay by yourself. It doesn't do much for me if you can take care of yourself." I had never seen this side of Chad, and was really confused at what he was saying. He just turned around and walked out. I was stunned, and suddenly lost interest in my sex play.

Like I said, Barry came by almost every day, and not once had he ever commented on my appearance except to tell me how handsome I was. I think he just liked to watch me blush. Barry didn't push himself on me sexually either. At first I thought he was repulsed by what I had become, but that notion changed three days after I had been moved to the rehab hospital. Barry had told the nurses that he would clean me up in the evenings. Of course it meant less for them to do, so they were happy to oblige. For whatever reason, on the third day I was there, all my sexual desires came back with a vengeance. Barry hadn't even gotten my shirt off and my cock was straining to get out of my shorts. He noticed, and gently slid my shorts and briefs off, and began cleaning around my genitals with the warm wash cloth. I just lay my head back and moaned. The next thing I knew Barry was giving me head. Naturally, he had barely gotten started before it was over. I asked him to lock the door and let me return the favor. He complied and quickly got undressed. Barry was really large, so there wasn't room for both of us in the hospital bed. He didn't seem concerned. He stood at the edge of the bed and asked me just to stroke him with my wrists. I lay on one side as I reached under his belly with my right wrist, and began rubbing his cock. He moaned deeply as his cock twitched. I was getting hard again myself just watching his reaction. I finally swung around sideways on the bed, and lying on my back I dropped my head off the edge of the bed and took his tool into my mouth as I continued to play with his balls with my left wrist stump. I began rubbing my own cock with my right wrist. In short order Barry pulled out of my mouth, and shot his load all over my chest and stomach. I pressed my balls downward with my left wrist as I continued to rub my cock with my right, and as Barry bent down and began kissing me deeply, I shot another load.

Barry may have been jealous of Chad, but he never showed it, and unlike Chad he was always very kind and gentle with me. It was obvious that Chad got off to having complete control over me, and I was beginning to tire of it. Chad had been good to me, but his demanding nature was really getting on my nerves. Barry had helped arrange for my assistance once I got home, and when I did get home, I had someone with me all of the time. The hospital had chosen not to fight me in court over the staff infections that had taken my limbs, and I was pretty much set for life, not wealthy, but set. I hadn't been home but two days when Chad dropped by. Luckily, Barry was at work. I was in the kitchen having a snack and reading the paper, and without even asking, Chad picked me up and began walking to the stairs. Chad was such a beautiful man that I tended to just melt when he was around, but this time I stiffened and protested.

"Chad, you could at least ask how I am before you drag me upstairs to rape me," I said.

Chad just smiled and replied, "oooh, talk bad to me some more, and I may have to punish you."

"I'm serious, Chad. You treat me like some kind of toy. I don't feel any serious connection with you anymore."

"I'll show you connection," Chad interrupted, "and you'll be begging for even more connection. You know that fat boy of yours can't give you what I can."

I was getting nervous now. Chad and I were alone in the house, and I was worried about what he was about to do. Chad had evidently slipped my caretaker some money when he arrived, so that he could do with me what he pleased without interruption. I was struggling against Chad now, and yelling for Lewis, my caretaker, but the yelling was to no avail. Lewis was obviously not in the house.

When we got to the bedroom, Chad practically threw me onto the bed. I laughed a defiant laugh at him when he pulled a pair of handcuffs from his pocket. "What the hell do you think you're going to do with those?" I jeered. "They'll just slide off my wrists." Chad's look was almost evil as he said, "if you slide these off, I'll just keep clamping them back on until I've either had my way, or you pass out from pain." He clamped the cuffs about two inches above my wrist after he pulled them through the headboard, and I instantly felt the pain. The inside of the cuffs were serrated with sharp points, and Chad closed them so tightly that the teeth dug into the flesh. As I grimaced in pain, he smiled and said, "now be a good boy while I fuck your legless ass." He then pulled me down in the bed until my arms were pulled tight above my head, and he quickly undressed.

I could only watch as he slid on a condom, lubed it up, raised my hips into the air, and pulled my ass hard down onto his engorged cock. I screamed in pain. The quick insertion combined with the cuffs digging into the flesh of my wrists was almost unbearable. Unbearable for me, but Chad was having the best fuck of his life. When he finally came and pulled out, my body was limp. He left me lying there as he cleaned himself up and got dressed. After he dressed he unlocked the handcuffs and removed them. The ends of my wrists were streaked with blood from where the teeth of the cuffs had torn into my arms. Like a good doctor, Chad pulled his tube of ointment from his pocket, put on a pair of latex gloves, and smeared the ointment on my fresh wounds. "That should take care of it," he said as he recapped the tube of ointment, stuck it into his pocket, tossed his gloves into the waste basket, and left with me lying naked, bleeding, and in shock in bed. Just before he walked out of the bedroom he turned around and said, "in a few weeks you'll be begging for me because no one else will have you." I didn't breath a sigh of relief until I heard the back door slam as he left. Then I just turned over onto my stomach, buried my face into a pillow, and began crying uncontrollably. Like a poor helpless child I literally cried myself to sleep.

I awoke to Lewis's voice. "Oh, my God," he said as he rushed into the bathroom, and two or three more times he repeated, "oh, my God; oh, my God" I could hear the water running in the bath tub, and Lewis came back into the bedroom with a genuine look of the kid who got caught skipping school. He didn't say anything as he picked me up and carried me to the tub. As he gently sat me down into the tub my right wrist touched the warm water, and the instant burning of water on a wound caused me to gasp and grimace. "I'm so sor...so, so, sorry," Lewis stuttered, "but I need to get you cleaned up, and I need to clean the blood from your wrists."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because Barry will be here soon, and if he sees this mess he'll fire me." Lewis knew he had screwed up by leaving me alone with Chad, but what hurt now more than anything was that I was becoming just an object in everyone's eyes. Chad treating me like some soulless sex toy, and now Lewis worried about Barry, but not me, and was talking to me like I was just a child. I was hurt, but I was becoming furious with frustration, and the kind of helpless rage that a trapped and injured animal must feel. I was ready to explode, but I bit my tongue until Lewis had dried me and dressed me in some boxer shorts and a tee-shirt, and seated me in a chair at the end of the room while he pulled the soiled bed clothes from the bed. When he had pulled all of the sheets from the bed, I could hold it no more.

"Get out" in a low almost growling voice was all I said. Lewis stopped and looked at me, and grunted, "huh?"

"I said, GET OUT!" This time I was loud, and said the words very precisely.

"But, I need to finish making the bed, or Barry will be pissed." Lewis still wasn't getting it.

"Barry isn't paying you, you ungrateful worthless piece of SHIT, I AM!" I could feel myself edging up in the chair, and had to be very careful to steady myself as I continued. "You or nobody else is going to treat me like some helpless, mindless moron any more. NOW, I SAID GET OUT.....NOW!"

Lewis looked shocked, but he did as I said. As I listened to him driving away I had a feeling of true accomplishment, and I relaxed back into the chair with an almost unnatural self-assurance. I knew that Barry would be getting off in a couple of hours, and I could make myself content with my thoughts until he came by.

I realized that after only a few minutes I needed to go to the bathroom pretty bad, and the door to the bathroom was on the opposite side of the bedroom from where I was sitting. I had gotten pretty good at moving around in a king sized bed, but I had not yet ventured to try to move around on the floor. I was getting pretty desperate, so I figured I'd better try something, or just sit there and wet myself, the chair, and the floor too. I moved up to the front edge of the chair, and then managed to turn around so that I could bend forward and rest my elbows on the chair seat to start lowering myself to the floor. It actually worked, and when my butt hit the floor, I turned to start making my way to the bathroom. It was a hardwood floor, so I couldn't use my still sensitive wrist stumps to lift myself, or even pull myself toward the bathroom, so I decided I would have to butt walk as best I could. I lost my balance a few times along the way, and was able to catch and steady myself with one wrist or the other.

Inch by inch I finally made it to the door of the bathroom. By now I was about to pop, and a new dilemma presented itself in the form of the toilet bowl. There was no way I could get up onto it. I finally decided that any drain would do. The shower had only about a four inch ledge to get over, and luckily had a curtain instead of a glass door, so I made my way to it. Instead of using my wrist stumps, I got down onto my elbows and pulled myself over the ledge. Once in the shower I managed to pull my boxers off and hung them up on the cold water knob, and pointed my cock as best I could toward the shower drain. Of course, the pee didn't all go directly into the drain. It made a pool around the drain first, and I actually ended up sitting in some. What the hell, I was relieved, and enjoying a major new accomplishment. Once out of the shower and onto a rug I managed to pull a towel off of the towel rod, and lay back onto the rug while I cleaned myself off as best I could. I had left my boxer shorts hanging in the shower, and didn't feel like trying to retrieve them, so I just left my lower body naked and made my way back into the bedroom. I got to a small area rug next to the bed where I stayed until Barry got to the house.

I heard Barry as he came in the back door. He called for Lewis, and I shouted from upstairs that Lewis was gone. I heard Barry almost running up the stairs, and with the weight he carried around, he was almost breathless as he came through the door of the bedroom, and saw me sitting on the rug.

"Wh-what's going on, where's Lewis?" he asked. There was a brief pause as I was about to speak, and then he continued, "and why are you sitting half-naked in the middle of the floor?"

"Well, help me up onto the bed, and I'll tell you about it." I replied. "Besides, this damn floor is getting harder by the minute."

Barry very carefully but gingerly picked me up, and sat me on the bed, and sat down beside me. I told him every detail of the day, and as I told him about the handcuffs, he cupped my wrists in his hands and pulled them up to examine them. By the time I finished the story I was about to burst with pride for all that I had managed to do, but I could see the sadness and anger in Barry's face, and the tears welling up in his eyes. I was expecting him to start cursing Chad, but instead, he turned to me, reached around me, and pulled me into a bear hug. I could feel his tears wetting my shoulder as he very softly spoke into my ear.

"I am so sorry. I should have managed to be here all the time to take care of you. I love you so much, and I couldn't bear it if something happened to you." By the time he finished, Barry was really struggling to choke back the sobs.

This was Barry. In his own way taking the blame for everything, and at the same time showing the kind of gentle compassion that had endeared him so thoroughly to me. I was briefly taken aback by his revelation, but I really wasn't surprised, and while he held me tight crying on my shoulder, I realized that my feelings for him could not be denied either, and I whispered back into his ear, "I love you too."

**********

When Barry and I had finally composed ourselves, Barry began to more thoroughly exam my wrists. They were red and a bit puffy, and a few of the deeper cuts were oozing a bit, but I just assumed that was to be expected from my efforts of the day.

"I'll run some bath water, and get you cleaned up." Barry stood and went into the bathroom. When I heard the water running I called to Barry, "will you take a bath with me?" I asked, and a moment later Barry emerged from the bathroom naked and smiling.

"You took another one of my ideas," he mused as he came to the bed, pulled my shirt off over my head, and picked me up to carry me to the bath. We didn't even get to the door, and I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck and began kissing him. We leaned against the door jamb for a long time fondly kissing one another. My hard cock was intruding into the soft flesh of Barry's belly, and I wanted to feel his manhood and taste him. He finally carried me into the tub, sat me into the warm water, and turned the faucets off. Now I could see his excitement below his belly, and as he stepped into the tub I managed to stretch enough to take his cock into my mouth before he could sit down. He moaned and reached for the towel rack to steady himself. He did not stop me as I sucked his cock and rubbed his balls with my wrists. He finally composed himself enough to begin sitting into the tub. Once he was down there was very little room left for me, and the water was gurgling into the overflow drain.

Barry very carefully washed me, and paid special attention to my wrists, lathering them up at least three times. After he had stepped out of the tub and dried himself he threw his towel over the closed toilet, and pulled me out of the tub and sat me on it as he dried me with a fresh towel. Once we were dry we continued our love making in the bedroom.

I dozed off after our love session, and Barry woke me up with a start. He was fully dressed, and he had laid clothes out for me.

"What's up, Barry? Where're we going?"

"I need to take you in to see Dr. Finster. He's an infection specialist, and I'm worried about your wrists." He said as he pulled a pair of briefs from the drawer.

I looked at my wrists. They had indeed swollen some more, and some puss had formed on some of the wounds. "Why are they doing this?" I asked "Chad smeared some anti-biotic ointment on them before he left, and then Lewis washed them completely."

"I don't know," Barry answered, "I'm just worried that maybe they didn't get all of the original infection, and some of it lay dormant in your system waiting for an opportunity, or...." He paused for a moment. "Wait a minute, did you say Chad put an ointment on them?" I just shook my head up and down as he continued. "What kind of tube was it in?"

"I don't know. I didn't get a good look at the tube." I offered as I looked quizzically at Barry.

"Did he just smear it on with his finger?"

"Well, yeah," I said, "but he had rubber gloves on."

I could see the agitation in Barry's face. "Why the hell would he bother to put gloves on just to smear ointment on some superficial scrapes?"

"Geez, Barry, I don't know. Your the nurse."

"What did he do with the gloves?" Barry was really becoming anxious now.

"I think that he threw them over into the waste basket," I replied as I pointed my right wrist in the direction of the bedside receptacle.

"Don't go anywhere. I'll be right back." Barry said obviously without thinking. I just thought to myself, "where would I go," and almost laughed as I could hear Barry descending the stairs. It wasn't long before he was back wearing a pair of latex gloves, and carrying one of those little zip lock bags. He fished around in the waste basket and finally pulled out two gloves, stuck them in the bag, pulled his own gloves off very carefully, and dropped them into the bag too before he sealed it up.

"I have a friend in pathology who will check these out for me," Barry offered. "But now I need to get you to Dr. Finster's office. He was good enough to agree to meet us there at this late hour." I looked at the clock on the nightstand. It was 9:00 p.m. Barry finished dressing me, and carried me to the car. He didn't even bother to put the wheelchair in before we took off.

Dr. Finster was an oddity in our modern medical society. Most doctors sent everything off to a separate lab for analysis. Not Dr. Finster. He had his own little lab, and did all of his own lab work. "I trust my results more than I trust somebody else's," he said. He took some cultures from some of the oozing spots from both of my wrists, and told us to make ourselves comfortable as he examined them. He went into another room, and in very short order returned. He was carrying a syringe, and told Barry to help me get my pants off. As he jabbed the needle into my right hip he said, "this is a very potent anti-biotic, but I'm not sure it's soon enough. We need to get you to the hospital now, and get you on a steady anti-biotic drip."

All I could ask was, "why?"

Dr. Finster looked genuinely concerned as he said, "you are infected with one of the most virulent bacterias there is. It has been commonly referred to as the 'flesh eating' bacteria. The only hope to stop it is early intensive intervention."

I was shocked. This was the same bug that had caused them to have to remove my hands and legs, and now it was eating on me again.

Barry was quickly pulling my shorts back on as Dr. Finster continued. "Barry, take him straight to ICU. I'll take care of all the paperwork." Barry pulled me up into his arms, and I just remained stunned for the short ride to the hospital. Once at the hospital I didn't have time to think, there was such a flurry of activity. Needles were stuck into me, monitors attached, drips started. It was all very confusing but efficient, and Barry was right in the middle of all of it. There must have been something in the drip to calm me down because I drifted off to sleep. I awoke to the sound of Barry's and another familiar voice. When I opened my eyes, I saw Barry talking with Dr. Najib. "Oh my God," I thought, "not the surgeon." I quickly raised my wrists to make sure they were still there. They were, but they weren't very pretty. They were a swollen hideous looking mass of bluish, greenish, almost black flesh. I just sighed a long, "Shiiit." Barry came over to my side, and gently rubbed my forehead as he adjusted the drip with his other hand. I drifted back to sleep.

I don't know how long it was before I awoke again, but I was nauseous. There was a tube in my nose, and I could feel the catheter in my cock. I knew I had been in surgery, and I was scared to death to see the results. Barry jumped out of a chair in the corner and ran to my side as I began to heave. He turned my head to one side toward a small plastic trough he was holding, and I threw up. He put the trough aside and wiped my face. I was crying now. "What did they do to me this time?" I sobbed.

Barry leaned over and kissed my forehead. "You'll be okay," he said. "I'm here for you."

I tried to raise my arms to see the damage. What was left of my right arm popped up for me to see a bandaged stump ending about six inches from my shoulder. There was no left stump. The shoulder itself was bandaged, and there were drain tubes coming out of the bandages. I remember thinking as I drifted back to sleep, "well Chad could do anything he pleased with me now without worrying about handcuffs."

Barry helped pull me through this one. He was always there. I actually healed quickly, and was out of the hospital in less than four weeks. I still had a lot of emotional healing to go, though, and a lot of mental adjusting to help me manage as a totally helpless man.

Barry quit his job and literally devoted his life and his love to me. He had hired a nice older gentleman to help with my care, and a sweet little lady to help around the house. I tried not to allow myself to become consumed with self-pity. When the time was right, I insisted that I have a prosthesis fitted to my right stump to allow me to be a bit more self sufficient. I struggled to become proficient with it, and eventually was able to feed myself, and poke around on the computer.

Some say that too much togetherness can ruin a relationship, but Barry and I became closer and closer. I had been home almost three months when I thought about the rubber gloves. "What ever came of that?" I asked Barry.

He had an almost mischievous grin when he said, "it was just as I suspected. The ointment on the gloves was loaded with the bacteria."

"What does that mean?' I asked.

"It means that Chad made up his own ointment and deliberately infected you for whatever perverted pleasure that gave him." Barry had an almost sinister look on his face now, "but Chad will get his soon enough."

"What do you mean by that, Barry?"

"I mean that you are not the only one that Chad has done this to, and, one way or another, I intend to put Chad out of the business of maiming others for his own perverted sexual gratification."

"Shit, Barry, you're not going to do anything stupid are you?" I was really getting concerned about Barry's tone.

"Oh, I'm not going to kill him or anything like that," he said, "but I am going to make sure he gets a taste of his own medicine."

"But how, and what did you mean that I wasn't the only one he had done this to?"

"You'll see HOW soon enough," Barry smirked, "and as to who, I did some checking. It seems that right before you came into the hospital the first time there had been a case similar to yours come through ICU. I was on vacation at the time, but, Joanie, my relief on the night shift mentioned this guy when we were taking care of you. She said that there was a guy about your age who had been in ICU awhile after having both of his arms amputated at the shoulders because of the same serious infection that you had." Barry squirmed a little in his chair as he continued. "I got on the computer and did some digging. The guy had evidently come to the emergency room after a table saw accident. He had lost part of both of his thumbs, and in such situations, the emergency room doctor would normally call in a hand specialist to do the surgery, but in this case Dr. Chad Miller was on duty, and he chose to amputate the thumbs at the first joint himself, and he got the patient's permission to do so."

"The patient's name was Jerry Mendoza, and when I looked up his address, I began to put two and two together. Jerry Mendoza lived at the same address as Dr. Miller. They were lovers."

My mouth dropped open, and Barry said, "wait there's more. Well, this Jerry guy shows up in ICU two days later. Chad was the one who admitted him, and to make a long story short, Dr. Najib had to take his arms off at the shoulders to stop the infection....the same bacterial infection that you ended up with."

I was still sitting in stunned silence. Finally, I asked, "is this guy still living with Chad?"

"I think so," Barry continued, "but evidently Chad likes to play around. I think he really gets his rocks off to creating the kind of man he wants, rather than having sex with the guy after he's done his handy work. But, I think Chad may have finally gone too far. Joanie called me yesterday, and told me that a man died in ICU two days ago from the same bacterial infection. Of course Chad had stitched him up a week earlier following a lawn mower accident."

"You've got to turn him in," I said. "With all of this evidence, they'll surely take away his license, and send him to jail."

"There is no guarantee of that," Barry replied, "and at best the evidence is circumstantial. No, there is a better way to stop Chad, and Joanie is going to help me."

"Isn't it too risky getting someone else involved?" I asked.

"I'm willing to take that risk," Barry said through his clinched teeth. "Besides, I trust Joanie."

Opportunity sometimes has an unusual way of presenting itself. One evening just two days after Barry had revealed all of this information to me, he and I were in the den watching TV when the phone rang. Barry looked over at the caller ID, and said, "well I'll be damned." He muted the volume on the TV and hit the speaker phone button, so I could hear. I gasped when I heard Chad's voice.

"What do you want, Chad?" Barry snapped.

There was a brief pause before Chad spoke. "I'd like to talk to Jim if I may." Chad actually sounded somewhat humble.

I spoke up, "I'm right here Chad. It depends on what you have to say whether I want to listen."

"I just want to say that I heard what happened to you, and I'm sorry," Chad started. I didn't even respond, and after a moment of silence he continued. "I know you probably think that I am mean and selfish, and you have a right to think those things, but I am truly sorry for the way I treated you, and believe it or not I miss you a lot."

"Chad, you don't give a shit about me. All you miss is the chance to fuck me and humiliate me."

"No," Chad interrupted, "I've been seeing a therapist since I saw you last, and I know I have a problem, but you have to believe me that I've not been able to think of much else but you. Please forgive me, and let me see you again." He sounded almost pitiful enough to be believable.

I paused for another brief moment, and finally said, "if Barry says that it's okay for you to come over, then it's okay with me, but no matter what you say, or what you want, Barry is going to be here, so you'd better get used to it."

Barry said matter of factly, "it's okay with me if you come over."

"Jim, I just want to see you again. We can just talk if that's okay, but I just need to see you." Chad pleaded.

"Okay, okay," I said. "When are you coming over?"

"I'll be there in about 15 minutes," Chad replied.

Barry hung the phone up and looked at me and smiled, "this couldn't be any more perfect."

**********

I began to feel uneasy as Barry got up and said, "I'll be right back. I've got a little prep work to do." I was looking at the TV but didn't really know what was on it. My mind was a blur. I kept thinking about what Barry was planning to do. I knew it was wrong, but I also knew that somehow Chad had to be prevented from hurting anyone else.

I heard Chad's car pull into the driveway, and I heard Barry greet him at the back door. My stomach was tied in knots. I really loathed Chad, but at the same time I knew the effect he always seemed to have on me. I had to try to hide my emotions. I couldn't let Chad see me as vulnerable, yet at the same time I wanted him to stay long enough for Barry to carry out his plan. I actually managed a smile as Chad walked into the room followed by Barry.

Barry came around him and sat down next to me on the loveseat. Chad remained standing and staring at me, and just as I feared, I began to weaken. He was so beautiful, and I did sense a change in him. I think that Barry could sense my nervousness, and he asked Chad to sit down. Chad sat down in the chair closest to the end of the loveseat where I was sitting. I was determined that Chad was going to speak first. I knew that if I opened my mouth I'd probably stick a foot I didn't have into it. Finally, Chad broke the ice.

"It's really good to see you, Jim. You look great."

I still wasn't accustomed to his compliments. He was always looking anywhere but my face when he made them, but this time he looked straight into my eyes and continued.

"I have finally figured out why I can't get you out of my mind." Chad was speaking softly now. Gone were the bold almost arrogant pronouncements and motions. "I know you think that I am only attracted to the fact that you are an amputee, and initially, I have to admit that I fantasized about you as an amputee, but it is you, not your condition that I keep thinking about. I never told you, but I have a lover, and it would kill him to know that when I make love to him I think about you. I'm in love with you, Jim, and I can't help it."

I could feel Barry tense, and I leaned a little tighter into him as a sign of reassurance. Until this very moment I had considered myself to be totally helpless and dependent on others. Now suddenly I felt like I was completely in control. I capitalized on my position. I let Chad sit silently for a few moments before I spoke.

"Chad, the day you raped me in my own bed I determined that you could only love possessions, and you considered me a prized possession or object that you could play with all you wanted. I made a promise to myself that day that I would not let anyone fuck with my emotions the way you did ever again, and even with all that I have been through since then I have kept that promise to myself. You still stir something in me when I see you. You probably always will, but I only have two true loves now, myself and Barry, and I'm not going to let anyone do anything to damage that love or respect. Barry and I are one, and anything that we might agree to includes US as a package. So, if you want to visit US you are welcome. If you want to do more than just visit, when WE are willing, we will let you know, and if that day does come when WE might let you share our bed, if you don't show Barry the same attention you show me, you will never share it again." I looked over my shoulder at Barry. He had tears in his eyes, but was smiling the most radiant smile I had ever seen.

Barry composed himself while Chad was still staring blankly at me, and stood. "Chad, may I get you something to drink?" He asked.

Chad snapped out of his bewildered trance and said, "uh, sure, how about a Diet Coke or something."

Barry excused himself and went to the kitchen. After he left the room Chad looked up at me and almost pitifully said, "I want in the worst way to make love to you, and I'm willing to do anything to get to do that, but please be patient with me. Barry's not exactly a turn on for me."

"Well, he's a turn on for me," I glibly retorted, "so don't be surprised if I ignore you a lot if you ever do get the chance to go to bed with us."

Barry came back in carrying a tray with two drinks. He handed one to Chad, and the other one had two straws in it for Barry and me to share. I had just taken a sip when Chad caused me to almost blow it all over the room. He looked at Barry and said, "Barry, if I give you head right here will you let me come to bed with both of you tonight?"

Barry remained very cool as he replied, "Chad, I'll tell you what, let's finish our drinks, get naked right here in the den, and let me help Jim fuck your fine ass. Then when Jim's through, I want to have my own turn with you while you suck Jim back to an aroused state. If you can get Jim off a second time, then you can spend all night tonight, and all day tomorrow in bed with us if you like." God, I was proud of Barry, but Chad as usual never ceased to amaze me. He replied with a very quick and simple,

"Okay."

Chad practically chugged his Diet Coke. Barry sat what was left of our drink on the coffee table, and began undressing. Chad followed suit. Both of them were naked as Barry began undressing me. I had a throbbing boner, so he had to work to get my briefs off. Chad was beginning to act like he was drunk, and when he got down onto his hands and knees on the carpet, he fell over to one side. He had passed out from the drug Barry had put into his drink.

"How long will he be out," I asked.

"Oh, probably four to six hours," Barry replied.

Now it was my turn for a bit of revenge. Barry put a condom on me, turned Chad onto his stomach, lubed me up, laid me down on top of Chad, guided my cock into Chad's ass, and then began working my hips to allow me to fuck Chad. I know it was tiring for Barry, but it really didn't take very long. I came very quickly and kissed Chad on the back of his neck before Barry pulled me off of him, and removed my condom. Then Barry took his turn. I became aroused again just watching. I didn't need Chad to suck me off. When we had finished, Barry carried me up to bed, and went back downstairs to get Chad. Chad was just a little too much for Barry to carry, but I heard him dragging Chad up the stairs. Chad would definitely be sore from tonight's activities. When he got him into the bedroom he was able to lift him into bed.

Then Barry went into the bathroom, and returned wearing rubber gloves. He had a tiny screw top container in one hand with the top off, and a needle in his other hand. When he was next to the bed, he dipped the needle into the container and then reached over and pricked Chad's skin just above and behind the ankle of his left leg. He repeated the process on Chad's right leg. After dipping the needle into the container the third time, he then raised Chad's right arm and pricked the skin with the needle on the back of his arm just above the elbow, and then repeated the process on the left arm. Barry went back into the bathroom, and returned without the rubber gloves or any of the other paraphernalia. He covered Chad up, and walked around the bed and snuggled in next to me.

"In the morning he'll just think that a mosquito bit him, but in about 24 hours his arms and legs will be the size of melons." Barry whispered to me as if someone would hear.

I couldn't do any more than just doze. I was worried about Barry somehow getting caught, and really concerned about Chad too, and of all things, I kept thinking about Chad's lover, and wondering what he must be thinking, and what would happen with him once Chad was no longer able to take care of him.

Barry must have underestimated the dose of the drug he slipped into Chad's drink because Chad slept soundly until the sun was up the next morning. Barry had already had to carry me to the bathroom four times during the night. That's what happens when I get nervous. I was sitting up in the middle of the bed when Chad finally awoke. Barry was still snoring as Chad sleepily smiled up at me.

All I could think to say was, "sleep well?"

Chad replied, "like a baby" as he got out of bed and almost ran to the bathroom. It sounded like he peed for five minutes. He was scratching the back of his left arm as he came back into the room. He looked down at the clock and practically shouted.

"Shit, it's almost 7:00, and I'm supposed to be at the hospital at 7:30." He began frantically looking around the room.

"Your clothes are downstairs, remember?" I said almost sheepishly.

"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot." He winked at me as he trotted out the bedroom door. Barry was awake now, and propped up on his elbows watching all of this.

"It hasn't even dawned on him that he doesn't remember the sex last night," Barry chuckled.

Chad came back upstairs with his pants and socks on, and carrying his shirt and shoes. "Mind if I use some deodorant?" he asked as he went into the bathroom.

"No, go ahead," Barry said, "it's in the drawer to the right of the sink.

Chad came back into the bedroom buttoning his shirt in between alternately scratching his arms. "Man, did you guys leave a window open or something? I think a mosquito must have gnawed on me all night."

I just shrugged my shoulders. Chad returned to the bathroom, found our mouthwash, gargled, came back into the bedroom, slipped his shoes on, leaned over and gave both Barry and I a kiss, and then hurried out of the house.

Barry sighed and said, "damnit, the guy does have a way of making you like him. Now I'm going to start feeling guilty."

I tried to put his mind at ease. "Don't feel guilty. Chad's a very smooth operator with a personality like the seasons. He can make you love him and then totally screw with your mind."

Barry tried to keep both of us busy the rest of the day, so that we wouldn't think about Chad, but it didn't work. I couldn't stop thinking about him. That night we were watching TV again when the phone rang. Barry muted the TV and hit the speaker phone button. It was Joanie.

"Well, guess who showed up tonight for me to take care of?" She said.

"How does he look?" Barry quickly asked.

"Like someone beat the shit outta him with a baseball bat," she replied. "There is already a consultation going on between Dr. Najib, and some new infection specialist. It ain't Dr. Finster. It's more of an argument than a consultation. Najib is wanting to amputate immediately to save as much of the arms and legs as he can, but this young jackass, I think his name is Dr. Landros, says he thinks he can stop the infection. It doesn't look good for poooor Dr. Chad." She sarcastically droned.

"Thanks, Joanie. Call us with any new developments, please." Barry looked really concerned as he hit the button to hang up the phone. We both decided we weren't going to sleep that night, so we looked for a channel with a movie marathon.

**********

Barry and I were dozing on the loveseat when the phone rang again. It was 4:00 in the morning. Barry hit the hands free button. It was Joanie.

"Mornin' guys, my shift ends in a couple of hours, and I wanted to let you know that Chad has not improved, in fact he's worse. Landros convinced Najib to let him try his way through the night. Landros said he would be back at about 5:00 this morning to check on Chad. I'll call you back right before I leave to let you know what he determines."

"What do you mean, he's worse?" I asked.

"It looks like the infection is not spreading very quickly, but the stench of gangrene is thick in the room from the areas around the wounds. His temperature has stayed pretty much under control, but his tongue has started to swell. I've inserted a breathing tube to be on the safe side."

Barry broke in, "why do you think his tongue is swelling?"

Joanie answered without really answering, "I don't really know, and sorry guys, but I've gotta go. I'll call you later."

Then there was just the hum of a dial tone. Barry looked at me, and lowered his head, and shook it from side to side as he said, "it's not supposed to be happening this way."

6:00, 6:30, and still no call from Joanie. Barry went to the kitchen to put some coffee on. As he walked back into the den the phone rang. He quickly hit the button to answer it.

"It's me again, sorry I'm so late calling back." Joanie said in a voice that sounded weary. "Landros is an idiot. He thinks that he is still going to be successful at saving Chad's limbs, but hell, he's just killing him. Thank God for Najib. He called in Finster this morning. I waited around until he arrived to see what would happen. Finster, Najib, and Landros went behind closed doors, but all of us could hear them shouting."

"Well, what happened? How's Chad now?" Barry impatiently asked.

"I'm getting to that," Joanie snapped. "Najib has Chad scheduled for surgery this morning. Landros relented. I just hope Chad survives this one. It doesn't look good."

"How can we find out how the surgery goes, Joannie?" The restlessness was really telling in Barry's voice now.

Joanie shot back, "shit, Barry, I've already been here almost 14 hours. I've got to get some sleep. I'll try to come in a couple of hours early tonight, so I can let you know something."

Barry started to say something else, and I interrupted, "thanks, Joanie. We appreciate everything that you're doing."

Barry caught on and followed with, "we'll wait to here from you this evening. Sleep well."

Joanie said, "Good-bye," and hung up.

I looked into Barry's eyes, bloodshot from lack of sleep, and said, "we need to get some sleep to. There's nothing else we can do, and just sitting around down here worrying is not doing either of us any good." Barry just nodded as he stood, lifted me into his arms, and very slowly climbed the stairs to the bedroom. He got me settled into bed when he remembered that the coffee pot was on downstairs, so he made one more trip down the stairs to turn it off. I went to sleep so fast that I don't even remember him crawling into bed.

We both were so exhausted that we slept until the phone rang at about 4:15 that afternoon. It was Joanie.

"How is he?" Barry quickly asked.

"He's holding his own," Joanie replied, "but something else has come up that I need you guys to take care of."

"How did the surgery go, Joanie?" Barry was getting insistent now.

Joanie stood her ground, "Look Barry, I'll go into the details later, right now there is something more important that I need you for. Chad's lover, Jerry, called ER looking for Chad this afternoon, and the bimbo downstairs, instead of directing the call to me, just told him that Chad was in critical condition in ICU. Poor guy was hysterical by the time he managed to get through to me. You know he can't drive, so I told him I'd get you to come over to his place to get him, and bring him to the hospital. Please call him to let him know you're coming."

Barry mellowed a bit. "Okay, Joanie, I'll give him a call now. We should be able to get to the hospital in about an hour. Call me on my cell phone if anything changes."

"Will do," Joanie replied, "and thanks."

Barry called Jerry, and had to spend at least ten minutes getting him to calm down. He told him we would pick him up in less than an hour to take him to the hospital. Barry was like a house-a-fire getting the two of us cleaned up and dressed, and in thirty minutes we were on our way to Chad's house to get Jerry.

When we got to Chad's house we pulled into the circular drive in front of the house. It was really a modest home, but obviously well maintained. Barry didn't even bother getting my wheelchair out of the trunk. He just unfastened my seat belt, and carried me to the front door. We didn't even get to the door before it swung open. A barefooted man in a pair of jersey pull-up shorts and a tee-shirt was standing at the door. The sleeves to his tee-shirt hung loosely at his shoulders. Jerry was much younger than I expected. He couldn't have been more than 30 with strawberry blond hair cut in a crew cut. He had the general demeanor of an athlete with a thick neck, square jaw line, and long muscular legs. He was about 6 feet tall, and was fairly slim.

Jerry seemed very nervous, and almost shocked when he saw me in Barry's arms, but he maintained his composure as he asked us in. Once we were in the house, Jerry pushed the door closed with his foot.

"I'm Jerry Mendoza, but I'm sure you had already figured that out," he said as he was closing the door. Barry introduce himself and me.

"I hate to have to ask this," Jerry continued, "but could you help me get dressed in something more appropriate to go to the hospital. What I'm wearing is all that I've managed to learn how to get into since my accident."

"You don't have anyone to come in and help while Chad's not here?" I asked.

Jerry gave me a puzzled look, and said, "no, Chad doesn't like anybody else in his house, and he said it would be good for me to learn to do things for myself."

As we walked through the house I could see the evidence of his lack of assistance. The house was a mess. I would have never believed that Chad could live this way. He always seemed to be Mr. Perfect. I had always envisioned Chad's house as having everything in perfect order, but as we entered the bedroom, there were clothes scattered everywhere with dirty underwear kicked into a corner, and dresser drawers opened with tee-shirts and socks pulled half out of them and hanging over the edge.

Barry asked me if I would be okay on the bed while he helped Jerry get dressed. I just nodded approval as he sat me down. I watched Jerry through the door of the closet lift a pair of pants on a hanger from the closet rod with his toes, and raise it until he could take the hooked part of the hanger into his mouth while Barry took a shirt from the top rod. They brought the clothes into the bedroom and set them down beside me. Jerry told Barry where to find a belt while he pulled a clean pair of underwear from one of the open dresser drawers. Jerry sat down on the edge of the bed next to me and raised his right foot up to the hem of his tee-shirt, grabbed it with his toes, and pulled it up and over his head, and tossed it onto the floor. He then began alternately scooting back on the bed, raising slightly and sitting up on the edge of the bed, and then scooting back again. He was pulling his elastic waist shorts off of his hips. Once they were down onto his upper legs, he stood and danced around enough to get them to fall to the floor. He wasn't wearing any underwear, and he was certainly well endowed. My mouth must have been hanging open because he just smiled when his eyes met mine.

Barry helped him into his underwear and pants, and buttoned the shirt onto him. He tucked the shirt into the pants, and then pulled the belt through the belt loops and fastened it. Jerry pulled a pair of sandals out from under the edge of the bed, and stepped into them. He asked Barry to put a little cologne on his neck and showed him where it was. Barry obliged, and then came over to pick me up.

As we walked toward the front door Jerry asked, "do you guys know Chad?"

Barry said, "yeah, I used to work at the same hospital with him."

I wasn't going to lie to this guy and I got one helluva look from Barry when I said, "Chad treated me following my accident, and he and I have been intimate in the past."

Surprisingly there was little reaction from Jerry. After we got into the car and were headed for the hospital Jerry said, "I've known for a long time that Chad could never be happy with just one man, but he takes care of me, and when we do have sex, he makes it seem really special. He's never given me the impression that he is getting tired of me, but I've always had a fear that he might kick me out some day,.....and I have nowhere I could go."

There was a brief deafening silence before I said, "there is plenty of room at our house. You could always stay with us." Barry was smiling as he glanced over at me.

Barry followed up, "if Chad survives this, he may need around the clock care himself. We would be happy to provide for both of you."

Jerry was trying hard to fight back the tears, and in a faltering voice said, "Thank you. I have no family, and several so-called friends totally abandoned me after my accident, and now two strangers offer to take me in. I guess there is a God after all."

We pulled into a handicapped parking slot at the hospital, and Barry opened the door for Jerry before he retrieved my wheelchair from the trunk. He got me strapped into the chair, and we headed inside. We got to ICU at a time that was not one of their strictly enforced visiting times, so Jerry and I waited in the hall as Barry went in. As we waited I told Jerry that Barry had worked in ICU and knew everyone. Barry soon came back out followed by Joanie. There was a minimum of greetings as Joanie immediately began apprising us of the situation.

"Technically," she started, "Chad's in a coma, but that's not unusual following such extensive surgery."

"What did they have to do to him?" Jerry asked.

Joanie continued, "there was such a long period for the infection to take hold before Dr. Najib was able to do surgery, that the surgery was more extensive than he had hoped it would be, and we are still not sure that it has stopped the spread of the infection." Joanie took a deep breath before continuing, "most people who lose so much of their bodies at one time don't survive. Chad is obviously very strong. He's still fighting. Dr. Najib had to remove both of Chad's arms and his right shoulder completely. The bacteria had ravaged Chad's lower legs, and was especially aggressive in his right leg. The doctor took his left leg just above the knee, but there was nothing of the right leg to save. He had to take it at the hip. Like I said, they are hopeful they were able to get all of the infection. They are keeping a close eye on his only remaining shoulder, and feeding Chad massive dosages of anti-biotics in hopes that more surgery won't be needed." She looked at Jerry as she said, "I'm so sorry, I wish I had better news."

Jerry surprisingly didn't show much emotion, he just lowered his head. At visiting time, only two at a time were supposed to be allowed into a room, but since we knew Joanie she let all three of us into Chad's room. Even with all of the tubes and wires, Chad still had such a beautiful face. The sheet was formed into a sort-of tent over his body to prevent contact with any of the new wounds, so we couldn't see the severity of the surgeries that Joanie described. I remember thinking about how this had in so many ways been my fault, and praying that Chad would pull through. I must have been crying as Barry patted me on the shoulder, and turned my chair to wheel me back out. Jerry stayed awhile longer.

We practically camped at the hospital for the next four days. We had our own special spot in the waiting room, and only occasionally made quick trips home to clean up and change. Barry moved a lot of Jerry's things to our house since we were closer to the hospital. Finally, very early on the morning of the fifth day following Chad's surgery, Joanie stepped into the waiting room with a smile on her face. "He's awake, guys," is all she said as she motioned for us to follow her.

As we entered Chad's room I could see that the tent was gone. There was just a light sheet over Chad's body outlining the extent of his condition. Chad's eyes were closed, but they opened as Jerry called his name, and I detected a hint of a smile at the corner of Chad's mouth as Jerry bent over and kissed him on the forehead. The tubes down Chad's throat kept him from talking. Barry and I didn't stay long. Once again we left Jerry alone with Chad for awhile.

Just three days later Chad was moved to a private room. The infection was pronounced effectively defeated. I knew what he was going through, and was very patient when he would have outbursts of frustration. Jerry and I were pretty useless when it came to offering any more that moral support, but Barry was a real trooper. He looked after both Jerry and I and would spend hours at the hospital helping Chad. Three weeks after Chad's surgery he was transferred to the rehabilitation hospital, and was there for another six weeks before he was pronounced ready to go home.

We convinced Chad to sell his house, and for he and Jerry to move in permanently with us. Chad had invested well during his short career, and with the sale of his house and his investments, he had a tidy little nest egg to help keep all of us living well. Chad continued to exhibit major frustration at times, but realizing that there was definitely a finality to his condition coupled with the fact that he was a practical man, he showed remarkable acceptance and determination to survive. He became quite adept at maneuvering himself with his left leg stump, the only residual limb that he was left with, and his sex drive had definitely not suffered.

One Sunday afternoon when all of our hired help was off, Chad and I were in the den watching an old movie. Barry came in and asked if we would be okay for a few minutes while he and Jerry went for some burgers. When we acknowledged that we could make it all right, Barry placed the phone close enough for me to reach it, and they left. This was the first time since Chad moved in with us that he and I were alone together, and even though the four of us had had sex together, for some reason I was overcome with lust at the prospect of making it with just Chad.

Without even asking him I scooted over close to him, and turned to face him on the loveseat. He had a puzzled look on his face as I leaned in and began kissing him. He just melted into the kiss. Then I managed to get down onto my stomach with my face in Chad's lap, and using my teeth, I tugged and pulled at Chad's shorts until I was able to get them off of him. Luckily, he wasn't wearing any underwear. I attacked his cock like a starved child as he moaned loudly. Then he slid down sideways from a sitting position until he was lying on his side with his head at my hip. I never stopped sucking his cock as I rolled over from my stomach to my side to allow him access to my cock. He didn't even bother trying to pull my shorts off, but just worked his way up one leg until he found my hard cock with his mouth. In this 69 position we both were soon shooting our loads down each other's throat. We managed to get back up into a sitting position, and out of nowhere Chad started telling me about his role in my becoming an amputee.

He told me about the ointment that he had tainted with the bacteria that caused the infection, and how he had used it on Jerry and me and one other guy. He didn't tell me that the other guy had died, and I didn't let on like I knew. I was worried that he was about to tell me that he knew Barry and I were somehow responsible for his infection, but instead he surprised me with a theory that made him the culprit of his own infection and amputations. He said that he had tainted two tubes of ointment with the bacteria, and the unmarked tube he always carried around with him. The second tube was one that he kept in a desk drawer in his office at the hospital, and it was a very commonly marked tube of an ointment used for insect bites and minor burns. He wanted the more commercial tube in his desk, so that it wouldn't draw any attention if someone else found it. Unfortunately, for the wrong brief moment Chad had forgotten that the tube was tainted.

He said that the last morning that he had left our house before he became ill, he had some mosquito bites that were driving him crazy, so when he got to the office, he began digging around in his desk to find something to put on them. When he saw the tube of ointment, he opened it up and smeared it on the bites on his legs and arms. Then he got a call for an incoming auto/pedestrian accident victim, and he rushed out to the floor to start work. It didn't dawn on him what he had done until about six hours later when his ankles began to throb and his arms started swelling. When he took off his white coat and saw the size of his arms, he panicked. He ran into his private bath, stripped down, and began scrubbing the wound sites with anti-bacterial soap. They were already oozing puss. It was then that he made the decision to call Dr. Landros, and admit himself. "The rest, as they say, is history," is how Chad ended his story.

I just sat there in silence letting it all sink in. Chad asked me to please not tell anyone, and I gave him my work. We then heard Barry and Jerry coming in the back door. Barry came into the den and saw Chad's shorts on the floor and just grinned at us as he said, "come on, I'm going to carry you one at a time to the kitchen," and he slid Chad's shorts back on him, and carried him off to the kitchen first.

I didn't keep the promise I made to Chad. I got a chance later that evening to tell Barry. I'm glad I did because Barry said that he was about ready to level with Chad about what he had done to him. Now, no one has to feel guilty.

The four of us have grown very close. We have bonded in ways that transcend sex, and we have learned to truly appreciate the fact that we have such a healthy sexual appetite for one another. Believe it or not, there is no jealousy. Joannie comes by to see us once in awhile, and, yeah, Barry and I told her Chad's story too.

There have been no more cases of the mysterious bacterial infections at the hospital, and Dr. Landros had so many malpractice lawsuits against him that he went back for a residency in radiology. I have become pretty good with my one arm prosthesis, and Chad is trying to convince the prosthetist to build a special prosthesis for his leg stump that will allow him to somehow feed himself using the muscles in the leg. They're still working on a design. Jerry is devoted to Chad, but has taken a special liking to me. I'm not complaining. I've always had a thing for his cock. Barry is still the trooper. Even though I caution him about his health, he has put on some more weight, but it hasn't slowed him down. It just makes it a little more interesting getting to his cock under that enormous belly of his.

Chad who at one time said that Barry wasn't exactly a sexual turn-on for him, now seems to find the greatest pleasure when he is having sex with Barry. I always said, "big men can be extremely sensuous."

THE END