Date: Sat, 6 May 2023 16:52:57 -0700
From: Juxepe Albi <juxepealbi@gmail.com>
Subject: All That Glitters - Prologue and Chapter One - The Letter

All That Glitters

Tsiif pulled himself up out of the narrow hole, reaching back down to
pull his heavy satchel out behind him. He remained low to the ground as
he looked slowly in all directions, to make certain there were no
witnesses to his exit from the cave.


Prologue


Tsiif-Nor von Vízrolin III, PhD, twenty-one years of age, blond hair,
green eyes, and five-foot ten, had just earned his doctorate in zoölogy
from Oxford. Tsiif had been an orphan since the age of twelve, but had
lived at boarding school from age five, and at the university until his
recent graduation. His parents had been killed in an airplane crash,
returning from an archæological dig in the Near East. Tsiif had spent no
time at all planning for what came next in his life; his bank account was
rather fat, thanks to his generous inheritance and the additional benefit
of his parents' hefty double-indemnity life insurance policies. Frankly,
he wasn't really worried about his future; he had worked very, very hard
on his studies for the last seven years of his life; and now, actually
never in his life having had one, he wanted a vacation--a long one.


The first thing Tsiff had planned to do after graduation, was to visit
his grandfather in the Philippines; but the boy's grandfather, Dr.
Tsiif-Nor von Vízrolin I, had recently died, leaving all his earthly
possessions to Tsiif, his only living relative.


There was only one catch----Tsiif had to live on the property for a
period of not less than two years to comply with the terms of the will.
Unfortunately, the estate was on a quite large, private island in the
Philippine Archipelago. The island was surrounded by rocks, the remains
of a volcanic caldera, which prevented visitors arriving by boat; and the
only entrance was through a narrow channel enclosed by electronically
locked gates. The island was completely wooded, so that there was no
access, indeed no view, from the air.


Also, there was a village on the island, with a general
store-cum-grocery. Some more than one hundred families lived there----all
employees of his grandfather. The old man's death had frightened all the
residents, in that they had nowhere else to go now; and none even had
known that his grandson existed.


Chapter 1 -- The Letter


Tsiif had arrived at his family home in London one afternoon to find a
letter from a Dr. Gregorio Nepomuceno, an attorney in Manila; Tsiif was
to come to Manila as soon as possible.


Tsiif's grandfather, Professor Dr. Tsiif-Nor von Vízrolin, had been a
famous author of zoölogist texts, and also author of very successful
speculative fiction. After he retired from teaching, he had moved to the
island to live in an ancient multi-bedroom bungalow, where he had lived
when he was working and writing. He had purchased the island property
with the proceeds of his first mystery novel, which had been a best
seller now for over ten years. Since that time, he had written eight
best-sellers and two text books on zoölogy; both of which were now being
used as texts at major colleges and universities throughout the world.


Vízrolin had made a name for himself as a brilliant author, and was near
total retirement when he discovered on his island, in a dense forest
nestled at the foot of Twin Peaks, several specie of rare small animals
which had managed not to be discovered prior to the time he, himself, had
found them. In fact, they had been so rare, that he was afraid to show
his findings, because of the danger of causing their extermination by
meddling researchers; and he had constructed a habitat on his own
premises in an attempt to increase their populations. His last work was a
zoölogy book with photographs documenting them, but with no indication of
where the animals had been found, leaving the impression that it was
somewhere in Africa.

Tsiif, answering the Manila attorney's summons, closed his house in
London and flew to the Philippines, having no idea what to expect on his
arrival.


The attorney, Dr. Gregorio Nepomuceno, was very thorough, and presented
Tsiif with a briefcase full of documents describing his grandfather's
assets and holdings. Tsiif now owned a second house and a condo complex
in London; a condo complex in Manila; condo complexes in Manhattan and
Los Angeles; a ski lodge in Vermont; a luxury hotel and a condo complex
in Orlando; and two hotel-casinos, one off, and one on, the Strip in Las
Vegas.


When his meeting with the attorney was over for the day, he was advised
to make a trip to the island, Isla Ng Kambal; he had to decide what he
would do about the residence requirement of his grandfather's will. Tsiif
didn't really have a desperate need for the money held in trust at a
major Manila bank; but two years wasn't that long in the scheme of
things--a long vacation, indeed. Tsiif had never had an ongoing
relationship, and his social life was zilch. He was free to do as he
pleased.


The attorney explained that communications with the mainland from the
island were by a radio phone at the general store, which would connect
with a Manila telephone exchange; and in only a few minutes he had
arranged for Tsiif to be flown by helicopter to a dock on the eastern
shore, in an area which he also now owned, and picked up in a boat which
also now belonged to him.


By the time he got to the harbor, the "boat" was waiting. Tsiif hadn't
known what to expect, but it certainly wasn't a fifty-nine foot luxury
yacht.


"Señor Dr. Vízrolin, I am Emíl, your chauffeur, welcome to Isla Ng
Kambal," the man said, extending his hand.


"I am pleased to meet you, Emíl," Tsiif replied. He couldn't help being
impressed with the boat. What had he expected, a rowboat?


Emíl very anxiously wanted to ask him about his plans for the property,
but didn't want to appear pushy.


Tsiif was astonished at the huge towering rocks that surrounded the
island, and could hold his curiosity no longer.


"How did these rocks come to be here?" he asked.


"This island was created by a volcano, Sir," Emíl replied. "They are
completely natural, the remains of the volcanic caldera. Your grandfather
was very proud of this island. Its name, The Twins, is due to the twin
peaks, as you can see. Most of the English call the island 'Twin
Peaks.'"


"I can certainly see why," Tsiif replied. "It is beautiful here."


The forest prevented the house from being seen from the water; but when
they approached the gate, which prevented just any craft's coming into
the caldera, it opened automatically. And when they made a left turn, the
landing dock was immediately visible. After disembarking from the boat,
they took a shiny red jeep to ride up to the General Store, after loading
the three pieces of luggage that Tsiif had brought with him. From this
vantage point, Tsiif could see the front of an enormous three-storyed
structure. He had expected the stated bungalow, not this enormous
mansion.


"It's huge!" Tsiif observed. "Who lived here with Grandfather?"


"No one permanent," Emíl replied, cryptically. "There are other
members of the staff, but we all live in the village. I took the liberty
of buying a few supplies for the kitchen; and we will stop at the general
store so that you can get things to your own taste. The store belongs to
you now; your grandfather put it here to supply necessities; but special
items will need to be brought from the mainland."


The general store was being clerked by a young man who looked high school
age; and it was well-stocked with just about everything a person was
likely to need for basic day-to-day living, including a rather large
selection of clothing. Emíl explained that all the fresh produce was
grown on the island.


"This my nephew, Lalo," Emíl said. "Lalo, this is Dr. Vízrolin, old
Dr. Vízrolin's grandson."


"Very glad to meet you, Sir," the boy said, blushing profusely.


Lalo was slightly shorter than Tsiif; he had a swimmers build, with curly
black hair, curly eyelashes and hazel eyes.


"Sir...," Lalo began, "uh, well..."


"Yes, Lalo, what do you wish to say," I asked quietly.


"Your grandfather was our teacher," the boy said. "Will we now have to
go to school on the mainland?"


"Oh, my!" I replied. "I have no idea. Why don't you come by the house
this afternoon, and we will discuss it. How many pupils did Grandfather
have?"


"Sixteen," the boy replied, staring at the floor.


"I honestly don't know, Lalo; but we will certainly work something out,
even if we have to bring a teacher from the mainland. That would
certainly be easier than sixteen students going to the mainland every
day. I have been a teaching assistant on a college level; but I don't
know what home schooling entails. We will investigate it," I promised.


He and Emíl again boarded the shiny red Jeep----now Tsiif's shiny red
Jeep----in front of the store, with the three pieces of luggage that
Tsiff had brought with him.


"What time do you finish here?" I asked Lalo.


"The store is open all the time," Emíl answered for the boy; "but not
always attended by a clerk, except for routine stocking; people usually
take what they need and sign the book."


"Very well," I replied. "I'll see you later, then, Lalo."


"Thank you, Sir," the boy replied.


They boarded the Jeep and drove the nearly quarter-mile to the house.


"If you need help in the house tonight, don't hesitate to ask Lalo to
stay. Some of the boys used to help out around the house; there was a
roster of who worked, and when. I'm sure Lalo will explain," Emíl
informed him.


When we arrived at the house, a very pregnant Pit Bull ran excitedly to
the Jeep. She headed straight for me, smelling my pants legs and hands.
She gave a short bark of recognition, then turned to Emíl, acknowledging
him.


"This is Asa. She seems to know you," Emíl said, with a puzzled look.


"It certainly seems as though she does," I replied. "Dogs have always
liked me; but, of course, I was never allowed one at school."

Although it was only two hours before noon, I was exhausted; and I
explained to Emíl that I would need to take a nap to help with the
jet-lag I was experiencing.


"Please ask Lalo to give me about two hours for a nap, Emíl."


"Certainly, Sir," the man replied.

Three hours later, Tsiif was awakened by the door knocker. Without
thinking, he stumbled downstairs to the door in his boxer-briefs, and
threw it open to an obviously startled Lalo, who was freshly showered and
dressed in his best clothes.


Tsiif was no he-man, but he was solid muscle. There was not an extra
ounce of fat on his body and his sculptured six-pack was a sight to
behold. Lalo was speechless and his eyes were like saucers and fixated on
his new employer's body.


"Uh, ah... I... uh...," Lalo mumbled, tongue-tied.


"Oh, Lalo, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I had been asleep and the door
startled me. Come in. Let me get some clothes on and we can talk."


"I can... I'll.. I'll come back.. later," Lalo stuttered.


"Oh, gosh, no! Just wait a minute."


Tsiif ran upstairs and grabbed some gym shorts and a wife beater.


It was useless. Lalo couldn't string two words together coherently; he
was so taken by Tsiif's body. Sweat was beading up on his forehead and
was beginning to soak his underarms and was coming through the chest of
his shirt. Tsiif couldn't understand what had happened to the boy.


"You're sweating; maybe you are getting a fever," I suggested. "Would
you like to cool off in the swimming pool?"


"I... I... I don't... have a... suit," Lalo struggled with the words.


"I'm sure I have some gym shorts that fit you," I responded, turning
and heading back upstairs. I returned momentarily with a pair for the
boy. I had never seen anyone in such a state before.


"You can change in there," I said, pointing him to a downstairs
bathroom.


Lalo, robot-like, stumbled into the restroom and changed into the newly
acquired shorts.


"I really hadn't noticed how hot it is. Why are you so dressed up? It's
much too hot for a jacket and tie. No wonder you are perspiring."


I led the way to the pool and we both jumped in.

With Tsiif's body submerged from the neck down, Lalo was finally able to
get hold of himself; and somehow managed to speak cohesively.


"Now, tell me about the way Grandfather held the school."


"We... we had school five days a week for four hours a day," Lalo
managed to get out. "Some... sometimes, he would give us an assignment
first thing; and we would spend the rest of the time solving it. There
was no homework, per se."


"I guess you have textbooks, then?" Tsiif asked.


"Oh, yes. We do. I must have left my case on the porch," the boy
replied. He had been so taken with Tsiif, that he had left it outside the
door.


"You can show me later," Tsiif assured him.


Just then, there was a knocking at the door.


"Oh, I forgot; Jáve was coming, too. That must be who is knocking."


Tsiif jumped out of the pool and opened the door.


"I...uh.. it's... uh... I'm Jáve," the new boy announced, looking at
Tsiif's perfect body and generous endowment.


"We're in the pool," Tsiif replied. "I'll get you a suit."


While he was gone, he grabbed some drinks and a few snacks, indicating
the place for the boy to change.


"Come on out back when you are ready," he instructed.


That tongue-tied problem must be epidemic here, Tsiif mused to himself.


They passed out bottles of Sidrál, an apple-flavored carbonated soda,
along with some snacks, and sat on the edge of the pool.


"Lalo was just telling me about Grandfather's way of teaching," Tsiif
told Jáve. "Do you think everyone would prefer to go to the mainland
every day; have the teacher come here for four hours a day; or, do it the
way you've been doing it?"


"The students went to the mainland, before your Grandfather started
teaching us; it took most of the day just to get us there and back,"
Jáve replied.


"Yes, the whole day was shot," Lalo agreed. "Sir, if you wouldn't mind
giving it a try, we would see how it works out."


"First of all, my name is Tsiif. I'm not that much older than you guys;
and I'm not used to all this 'Sir' business. I know you are being
respectful, but my first name will be fine. Please feel free to use my
name instead of 'Sir.'"


"Thank you, Sir... er, Tsiif," Lalo replied, blushing.


So, what are we having for dinner? I could eat the balls off a brass
deer," I stated, with an ear-to-ear grin.


The boys looked at each other and burst out laughing.


"Actually, there is a brass deer in the park by the pier," Jáve joked.
"Any special sauce we could whip up for it?"


Lalo turned as red as a rose with embarrassment, but it went over Tsiif's
head; not once did he realize the pun the boy was trying to make.


They went into the kitchen and Tsiif found three steaks and some
corn-on-the-cob. He put them on to cook and grabbed some fresh veggies to
make a salad.


After dinner, Tsiif offered them some brandy, which they took gladly; and
they went into the lounge to sit and talk. Two snifters of brandy later,
tongues were loosened and they had bonded.


"So what did you do for fun in the city," Jáve probed.


"I was home-schooled until I was five; then I was sent to a boarding
school. My parents were killed in a plane crash when I was twelve; so I
lived at the school until I graduated. Then I moved to university, and
didn't do anything but study for the past seven years," Tsiif replied,
blushing slightly. Admitting that to them was not easy.


"What about dates, parties, dances... things like that?" Lalo asked
pointedly.


"None of the above," Tsiif replied. "I was trying my best to get my
doctorate in as little time as possible, so that I could escape the
academic life, once and for all."


"Well, I guess asking you to teach us was not exactly what you had in
mind, then?" Jáve asked, hesitantly.


"I guess that's really all I know about," I replied.


"No wild women in your life?" Jáve pried.


"No tame ones either," Tsiif replied. "I guess that makes me a dull
guy, huh?"


"Not necessarily," Lalo added. "It's just hard to imagine that someone
with your good looks could have escaped capture." Lalo blushed profusely
after having said that.


"To tell you the truth," Tsiif replied; "this is first time since
puberty that I have taken time to think about a social life. I guess I'm
socially stunted. Not only that, I really don't know what to talk about.
I don't really listen to music and I don't have any hobbies. 'All work
and no play makes Jack a dull boy', as the saying goes."


"You don't have any problem relating to us," Jáve offered.


"I'm trying really hard, to tell you the truth. Neither of you has
fallen asleep yet; so I must be doing something right. What do you guys
do for amusement here?"


"Got us there," Jáve answered. "We don't do any of those things
either. The girls on the island are virtually born with chastity belts;
and there is absolutely NO playing around with them. We do have a Boys'
Club that sponsors some activities; none of which includes dancing or
touchy-feely with dates, or anything."


"If I told you how bad it really is with me, you would think I was
lying," Tsiif offered.


"How so?" Lalo bit. Now we were getting somewhere.


"I don't even masturbate," a slightly tipsy Tsiif admitted.


"Stop! You're killing me," Jáve cried. "You don't masturbate? Gosh, I
would lose my mind if I didn't beat it at least twice a day."


"I can get by for two days, sometimes," Lalo admitted, clearly
uncomfortable with the present conversation.


"You mean you've never been part of a circle-jerk?" Jáve asked.


Lalo blanched, then blushed. He couldn't believe Jáve had asked that.


"Better than that," Tsiif replied. "I don't even know what that is, I
guess I've got a lot to learn. What exactly is a circle-jerk?"


"A bunch of guys sit around in a circle and bet on who can get off
first, who shoots the most, the farthest, and who can last the longest,"
Jáve explained.


"In front of each other?" Tsiif asked, with some degree of
astonishment.


"Yep, right in front of each other," Jáve affirmed.


"You all do that?" Tsiif asked.


"Well, Lalo doesn't do it with us very often, but sometimes," Jáve
admitted.


"How many of the other guys do that?" Tsiif asked.


"All of them," Lalo offered. "I'm just sort of bashful."

The next morning, Emíl was baiting Lalo for a report on his meeting with
the new boss.


"We got a little tipsy on brandy," Lalo admitted.


"I bet you did," Emíl commented, winking provocatively. "He's a pretty
hot-looking guy."


"Oh, no, don't get the wrong idea, Emíl. He's hot-looking all right, and
ripped. He answered the door in a pair of very well-packed boxer-briefs,
and without a shirt; but that guy doesn't even jerk off in private. He
has had absolutely the most workaholic life I could possibly imagine. The
way I understand it, he has never had sex of any kind with anyone. We had
to explain a circle-jerk to him."


"He had to be putting you on," Emíl accused. "Nobody is that
backward."


"He is an orphan since age twelve, after having been home-schooled, and
sent to a boarding school when he was five. He has spent the last seven
years trying to earn his doctorate in the shortest time possible. That
guy has done nothing but study night and day for seven years, at least.
We did explain to him about the chastity belt set. If he couldn't put two
and two together... Come to think of it, he didn't get a single pun or
double-entendre that Jáve sent by him."


"Maybe you'll have to break him in."


"It'll have to be someone less bashful than I am. I couldn't possibly
even manage the innuendos that Jáve was throwing around without dying of
embarrassment. Only some of the younger boys have the balls to just try
to put the make on him. I don't even know if he likes boys, especially
young ones. He didn't seem too disappointed when we told him the
situation with the girls; but he also didn't insist that we show him a
circle-jerk."


"Go back tomorrow afternoon on some pretense or other----take Rafe with
you. If you don't manage to bring him around, it will certainly put a
damper on the few activities that the guys have, with his being all over
the place on a daily basis. You better get to work; or get somebody else
to do it."

The next day Lalo was knocking on my door by 8 a.m.


"Just in time," I said, pulling Lalo inside, then noticing Rafe, an
extremely cute red-headed, blue-eyed fifteen-year-old, standing behind
him. "Well, hello!" I said, eyeing the handsome youth.


"Tsiif, this is Rafe. He's going on sixteen and will be in my class,
along with Jáve and most of the others.


"Very pleased to meet you, Rafe." The boy's smile was infectious. Was
this one of the circle-jerk participants?


"I have been reading one of Grandfather's diaries, and was just going
to try out his favorite fishing hole. Have you been there?"


"Uh... no," Lalo answered. "This part of the river belonged to Dr.
Vízrolin alone; and he kept it as a habitat for the animals. We swim and
fish farther up. There is a waterfall and a rock-bottomed pool. The water
is a bit cold up there, but you get used to it; but, uh, we don't have
any tackle with us."


"That's fine. I'm sure there is something you two can use. First of all,
you need to change into some shorts. Those fine clothes aren't designed
for fishing."


Tsiif hustled up some board shorts and t-shirts for them, and they were
off out the back door.


Tsiif had noticed fishing gear in a room on the back of the pool-house;
and they were able to find enough for ten people to fish, if needed.


Almost immediately, the three of them caught a tilapia, then another,
then another. When they had a dozen, they decided to call it a day.

As they were washing up, Tsiif had been telling them about his plan for
the school.


"Where do you live, Lalo?" he asked.


"In the house nearest the general store," he answered. "That makes it
convenient to watch the store."


"And you, Rafe?"


The boys looked at each other.


"Uh... I... well..."


"Well, you must live somewhere," I said with a small laugh, patting the
boy on the back.


"He was living here in this house when Dr. Vízrolin died. Rafe was being
fostered here," Lalo said, hurriedly.


"Here in the main house?" I affirmed, surprised. "So you must have a
room here."


"Yes, Sir," Rafe answered, looking at the floor. "I'm staying on the
couch at Emil's house now."


"Why? If you have a room here in the house, you should be staying in
it," I affirmed. "Show us your room."


"We weren't sure what would be happening," Lalo told me. "Emíl thought
you should be consulted."


We climbed to the third floor, and just off the staircase, Rafe pointed
to a door. It was a large room, and it was bright. There was a single
bed, a dresser, a small desk with a chair and a few toys, a soccer ball,
and a cabinet for clothes. There was a small hand-braided rug by the side
of the bed that had his name, Rafe, woven into it.


"Were others living here, as well?" I asked.


"Two girls, but they were adopted just before the Doctor passed away,"
Rafe answered. "I was the only boy."


"Well, Rafe, I guess I don't live in this big house alone, then." I
said to him with a smile. "Do you wish to continue living here, or do
you want to stay with Emíl?"


"Oh, Sir, I would much prefer to live in my own room here," he replied.


"So you shall," I replied, throwing both my arms around the boy, and
hugging him closely. "But you have to promise to stop calling me Sir. My
name is Tsiif."


Rafe was stunned at the familiarity----stunned, but thrilled. No one had
ever hugged him before, that he could remember. He could certainly use a
lot more of that.


I noticed that Lalo had looked at Rafe, raising his eyebrows twice. Rafe
blushed blood-red.


What was that all about, I thought to myself.


"So, do you have a lot of stuff at Emil's house."


"Just a box of clothes," Rafe replied.


"I'll ask Emíl to bring it up in the Jeep. Meanwhile, what about our
stirring up some grub. Who cooks around here?"


Mafa's son, Alonzo, went to chef's school in Manila, and was cooking for
the doctor," Rafe quickly replied.


"Well, what about that?" I asked. "How do I set all this back up? I
can cook, but I'd rather not."


There was a knock on the door.


Emíl was at the door and had a young man with him.


"Tsiif, this is Alonzo. He was the doctor's chef, and wondering if you
would be requiring his services?"


"You bet I will!" Tsiif replied, shaking hands with the boy. "We
caught a dozen tilapias, and I was just asking about lunch."


"Very glad to meet you, Sir," Alonzo replied with a huge smile. He
still had a job----he had been worried almost to the point of being ill.


"Hey, Alonzo," Lalo greeted.


"Hey, Lalo, Rafe," the boy answered.

The village was comprised of over eighty bahay kubos, mostly constructed
after the order of a classic Philippine village by the late Dr. Vízrolin,
for the villagers. There were four very large longhouses for unmarried
males. When Vízrolin had first purchased the island, the government was
planning to use it as a refuse dump due to the fact that it was so
inaccessible as to be dispensable. His arrival on the island had
frightened the residents, most of whom had lived here their entire
lives----most had been born here.


When Tsiif announced that he planned to make his home here; and that he
intended to improve the facilities, there was a mass sigh of relief. The
main house had been the home of a wealthy recluse, who had added on to
the original house nearly one hundred years ago.


Tsiif's grandfather had further enlarged it; and rescued children
orphaned by a great hurricane, taking them to live in his home. He had
been certified as a Caregiver by the Philippine government for many
years, and was well-known for his generosity and kindness toward homeless
children. Dr. Nepomuceno had asked Tsiif if he wanted to continue the
designation; and, after a brief pause to think it over, during which time
the attorney assured him that he had staff for just that purpose,
answered in the affirmative.

Tsiif determined that he would teach Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays only;
so he made two day assignments, which they discussed every other day.
There was a library-cum-school building near the general store, where the
students did their studying and homework.


It was a few days later that Tsiif went to try the fishing hole again. At
one spot on the riverbank, the foliage grew right out into the water; and
when he went to investigate, he saw a moving flash of gold in the water.
He grabbed a handful of worms from the bait bucket and threw them across
the water. In an instant, an enormous fish swam to the surface, grabbing
a huge mouthful of the worms.


Tsiif blinked his eyes, and rubbed them with his fists. He had just seen
a huge cœlacanth----two hundred pounds or more! Not only that, but, under
and around it swam twenty or more smaller fish----babies?


Secured in the foliage was the end of a long metal net extending deep
into the river. Judging by the size of the openings, which were the
largest he had ever seen, the net was there to prevent the large fish
from coming close to the shore.


Rafe told me he was spending the night with several friends and would not
be home until morning. The Boys' Club had planned a weekend camp-out; but
the rain had put a stop to that. The sleepover was second choice. I was
too inexperienced to realize this was one of their circle-jerk nights.
They had used the one empty longhouse.

It had been one hell of a storm; lots of thunder, lightning, and the rain
had come down in buckets for two days. I decided to take a walk to
determine whether there had been damage. Walking along and finding a few
small downed trees, I was surprised to find two starved-looking young
pups, their matted fur covered with half-dried blood, and clearly
orphaned, near the favored fishing spot in the river, only a short hike
from my back door. The body of the mother, partially eaten by some wild
animal, was a short distance away------obviously dead for at least two
days. A few yards up the riverbank, I found a crudely woven cloth bag,
shredded up the side, but securely tied at the top. It appeared as though
the mother and pups might have been tied in the bag and dumped near the
river. I kept walking toward the river's end, where it emptied into the
bay.


Scanning the area, my attention was drawn to what appeared to be another,
much larger cloth bag. My curiosity got the better of me and I rushed to
examine my find.


"Oh, my," I murmured to myself, as I saw movement in the bag. I
hurriedly took out my pocket knife and cut open the still-wet bag.


Inside the bag was a pale-skinned child, nude except for an ancient
child's lifejacket. I shook my head, Why would someone evil enough to do
this to a child leave a lifejacket on it?


The lifejacket had undoubtedly saved the boy's life, preventing the
larger bag from totally submerging in the water. I quickly removed the
child from the bag, now seeing that it was a boy; and, removing my
jacket, wrapped it around him. I had seen him move; so I knew he was
still alive. His blondish hair was matted with sand and seaweed. I dipped
my handkerchief in the river and washed his face, and tried to get him to
take a drink from my canteen. The boy's eyes popped open, "Nyoatotko?"
the boy asked calmly.


"I have no idea what you just asked me," I answered.


"You... nane?," the boy tried again, pointing toward me.


"Tsiif," I told him. "You name?" I replied, pointing toward the boy.


"Bóje," the child replied.


"Mamá, Papá?" I asked.


"No... no," the boy replied. "No. Vánje?"


I didn't understand; but started carrying the boy back upstream. When we
came to the place where the pups and mother had been found, the boy
screamed, pointing to the dead mother.


"Vánje! Vánje!"


The boy struggled out of my arms and stumbled toward the dead animal,
stopping in his tracks when he saw the two pups. He whirled around to me
with a puzzled look on his face, pointing to the pups.


"Vánje, mamá," I offered.


The puzzled look on the boy's face made me decide that the pups had been
born after arriving in the bag.


Wrapping the boy again in my jacket, I placed the pups in the outside
pocket of my backpack, which I shouldered; and, lifting Bóje in my arms,
I walked rapidly back to the house.


Asa didn't meet us; that was unusual for her. I wondered if her pups were
on their way.


First things first, I thought. I drew a warm bath for Bóje and thoroughly
washed the boy, paying close attention to his hair, which was unusually
filthy.


When he was clean, he looked like a different boy. His curly golden blond
hair and his curly lashes sparkled in the light; and his brilliant green
eyes looked as though they were backlit.


After his bath, the boy seemed to be having trouble keeping his eyes
open. He showed little interest in food, strangely puzzled by the fork
and the knife. He managed to get half a sandwich and a glass of milk
down, before practically falling asleep at the table. I took him to the
master bedroom, tucking him in the giant bed that had belonged to my
grandfather.

Checking on Asa, I discovered that she was indeed giving birth to her
pups and two were already stillborn. I took the two stillborn pups away,
quickly bathed the two pups I had found, dried them and tucked them in
with her. She seemed not to notice they were not hers, not flinching when
they each took a nipple.


After allowing the boy about three hours of rest, during which time I
rode one of the dozen bicycles down to the general store. There was no
one there; so I selected seven shirts, seven pants, seven boxer briefs,
seven pairs of sox and a pair of trainers in Bóje's size, two nicer sets
of the first four and one pair of dress shoes. After wagging the bulky
package back on the bike, I roused him and took him to the bathroom,
where he emptied his bladder. I tucked the boy in again, then tucked
myself into the other side of the enormous bed.

Sometime during the night, I woke to find Bóje facing me in the bed,
snuggled tightly under my right arm----the boy's right arm across my
chest and his knee resting on my right hip.


The next morning I found that Asa had given birth to four more pups, with
the foundlings making six.

When Jáve arrived with Rafe the next morning, I explained about the dead
dog; and we went down the path carrying a shovel to bury the corpse.


Jáve brought a pair of gloves from the gardener's shack; and I was
startled when Rafe called out to me.


"There is something wrong with this dog," Jáve said.


"Well, it IS dead, and half-eaten," I replied jokingly.


"But, look," Jáve insisted.


On closer inspection, I noticed that, indeed, there was something wrong
with the dog. It had a pouch with four small teats inside it. It was a
marsupial dog, like a thylacine, but without the stripes.


That meant the pups weren't proper dogs at all, either. Asa seemed not to
notice the difference.


"The last marsupial dog died before World War II, making them extinct,"
I told the boys. "We must keep this a secret. If news of this were to
get out, this island would be overrun by newspaper reporters and
curiosity seekers. We can't have that. It would be the end of this place
as we know it."


They agreed that only the most trusted would be privy to the truth about
the pups Asa was raising along with her own. Luckily, they were about the
same color as her own pups.


"Siff! Siff!" a voice called. Bóje couldn't manage the TS sound yet.


Jáve and Rafe looked at me in question.


"We have a new arrival," I said simply; and because of the fostering
policy, neither Jáve nor Rafe questioned it. I proceeded to chop up
quantities of potatos, onion, peppers, ham and cheese, then broke a dozen
eggs to cook omelets and hash browns for the four of us. Bóje had no
trouble at all eating the omelet after mastering the use of the fork;
Jáve and Rafe wolfed theirs down. Without asking, I went back into the
kitchen and made four more, which they all shoveled down. The older boys
admitted to never having seen an omelet before that day, telling me that
their usual breakfast consisted of fish, rice and tofu.

I knew I would have to tell about finding the boy; but didn't want the
information spread off the island. I telephoned Dr. Nepomuceno, my
attorney in Manila, and explained to him about finding both the boy and
the dog, and requested an investigation to determine whether a missing
child had been reported. I was told to preserve the bags, in which I had
discovered a mix of unidentifiable seeds stuck into the weave, pending
further investigation.


Bóje was given the room next door to Rafe; they had an adjoining bath.


Nonetheless, I woke up very early the next morning with Bóje under my
right arm and Rafe snuggled up to my left side, with his head and arm on
my chest. I went immediately back to sleep, next waking up to a huge lump
under the sheet, from which came whispering.


Looking under the sheet, I found the two boys facing each other across my
midsection from which protruded ten-and-a-half inches of thick, hard,
throbbing man-meat.


"Gosh!" Rafe exclaimed. "That's the biggest one I ever saw!"


Bóje just giggled.

The cat was out of the bag. No one would care about the marsupial dogs,
or a mysterious boy in a bag made of nothing anyone had ever seen before,
or a few unidentifiable seeds; but a penis the size of Tsiif's would be
of interest to every boy on the island----and off.


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