1721

I have not missed the murderous glance that Hans has cast on his young colleague, Lawrence, whom already I like, and am looking forward to working with him. Right now we are all silent, and now I am getting a better sense of this Dr. Vanderkamp. Suddenly he gets up. He is tall and thin, and must be nearing seventy. He is bald, with glasses and a hooked nose on a thin face with very thin almost no lips. "Christopher", he says, "It was nice to meet you. I hope you don't mind if I have you transferred to a different psychiatrist. I don't believe there is much I can do for you, given the circumstances...

1720

He even asked me to marry him. Can you imagine? He would get a divorce from his wife, Cornelia and leave the kids, they have two daughters, Gisela and Wilhelmena, and how are your wife and kids these days, Hans. She hasn't kicked you out I trust." "They are still married to each other", says Lawrence, "At least that's the idea I had when he introduced us at the office Christmas party a few months ago."

1719

Turning to Stella, Hans Vanderkamp says, "And what did you say your name is, again?" She calmly produces her phone and in a quiet voice says, "Have a good listen to this, you insolent piece of shit." After hearing their entire conversation from my car today being played back to him, Hans VanderKamp says, "isn't it amazing what they can do with artificial intelligence now." Lawrence intervenes and says, "Except for one little detail, Dr. Vanderkamp. I heard that entire conversation as you were having it with her from your office." "Eavesdropping." "For lack of a better word, that's exactly what I was doing. And, I imagine, Stella, that you have, shall we say, a history with my esteemed colleague." "Until I retired from being a hooker in Amsterdam twenty years ago, Dr, Vanderkamp used to come to me every week for spankings and more."

1718

I can hear her saying to him, "Listen, there is no time to argue about this and they are waiting to see you." She returns to reception and beckons us all to come in and join them. "This cannot be done", says Hans the Dutch psychiatrist, now almost apopleptic, and with aplomb Stella leads us to an empty meeting room where we all enter and sit down at the long table. "And where is the case manager?" "Right here", says a spritely young man of not much more than thirty, a smile lighting his nimble and rather handsome face. The psychiatrist looks at him, appealing. "it's okay, Hans, they are all here to support Chris." "But are they his family?" "We'd might as well be", says Carl. "And what does Christopher say?" "If they leave, I leave."

1717

No sooner have we come into the small waiting area than Stella marches to the front desk, opens the door, and while walking in past the horrified receptionist, who indeed is the same old bat that used to sneer at all the patients all the time, and she snarls. "Hey, you can't just walk in here like that." "Yes I can and where is..Oh, there you are Hans, yes we can all see you right away." "And who might you be?" "Stella James, your old Dutch canal flame..."

1716

We have all grown silent, since who is going to find a ready answer for that? We are almost there. Suddenly Stella asks me for the phone number of the mental health team. I pull over onto Tenth avenue, and there is a space to stop. I hand her my phone and she marks the number on her own mobile. "I'm putting it on speaker phone for everyone to hear our full conversation, and I am also recording the conversation for posterity..." "West Side Mental Health Team", says the receptionist. Her voice sounds very familiar. "Hello, I would like to speak to Dr Hans Vanderkamp, please" "Whom shall I say is calling?"...."Stella James. Hello Hans, is that you?" yes, says a male voice with a heavy Dutch accent. And who could this be please. "It's me, your old pal Stella, that's right dear, THAT Stella. How about a nice hard spanking?" Stella, is that really you? It must be almost twenty years since I last saw you. Where are you. "I am here in your lovely city of Vancouver." And now she is chortling malevolently. Are you living here? Stella, it's been so long. "I got here a week ago." We have to meet for drinks. Are you busy this evening. It might have to wait a while, I am here on business." you're setting up shop here? "Other business. I'm no longer spanking bums for a living. Listen, I know you are busy, but I would just like to warn you that I will be accompanying your client Christopher Jones during his meeting with you and his case worker in the next five minutes or so." How do you happen to know one of our clients. "Long story, dear, but we can explain to you everything in just a few minutes." Are you with him right now. "I am right here with him in his car." We do have to see him unaccompanied, you know..."that's alright dear, we can discuss everything when we arrive..."

1715

The drive to the mental health team is full of opinions, comments and questions about prostitution, the sex trade, and what should be done about the johns. Caspar alone remains silent, and Stella has been invoking her own version of moral imperative for irradicting all the johns from the face of the earth. "But mercifully", she says, "They should never be killed or tortured, nor even punished. But reeducated. They must all be reeducated, every last one of themn, because those pathetic excuses for men are but the outward manifestation of what is truly wrong and broken about your humanity. Okay, since I happen to be a half-breed, OUR humanity." But how are we going to catch all of them", says Erik. "That alone would be a monumental, and next to inpossible undertaking." "Our agents are everywhere", says Stella. "Please explain", says Carl. "The Millionth Council." Say I, "What exctly is the Millionth Council" "We happen to be but one of billions upon billions of angelical hierarchies across all the universes ever created by our Maker and Sustainer..."