The Dehumanization of Ethan Brown

During the summer, the Feldman house sold. Neither of his sisters left forwarding addresses so the realtor called Ethan to finish the sale. He signed several papers after a postmortem paternity test proved Alb Albert Feldman was his father. The realtor gave Ethan the money from the sale because he was the only heir to the estate over eighteen, beside the two sisters didn\'t leave forwarding addresses for the realtor. Hannah was living a location without an address and Louisa lived in a house in Ottawa with over fifty other people; neither had any concern about their late father\'s property.

Albert Feldman was a respected history professor and had made an adequate living. He died owning a four-bedroom, 3200 square foot house outright in the most exclusive neighborhood in Syracuse. It had an immaculate lawn, perfect sliding and sold for close to half a million. It was strange signing all these documents and collecting the money for the sale of a house that he never lived in. Louise and Hannah didn\'t fight him for the money. Human sisters would have wanted a piece of the pie, but werewolf society is patriarchal. His half-sisters accepted that the house belonged to Ethan as Albert\'s only son.

The additions were finished before the first snow of the following winter. Ria was glowing as her pregnancy advanced. Ethadn’adn’t legally married Ria and wondered if he would. Ria was his wife and a piece of paper wouldn’t change it.

Although there were three bedrooms, most nights everyone slept in the grand room near the fireplace. There was a new fabric-covered sofa but it was only used for company. Pack sat on blankets and comforters on the hard tile floor. Ethan kept the heat just high enough to keep the pipes from freezing. Now that they had a working water heater, Ethan enjoyed taking a hot showers especially now with his expectant wife. Tony’s wife was moving during the winter. The pack was growing.

Bonnie arrived as they were celebrating Thanksgiving. “Sweetie, how are you?”

Ethan hugged Bonnie. She didn\'t strip at the door like she did when they lived in this house when he was a child. She hadn\'t felt like part of the pack since Albert sent her packing in fear that others might kill her and her child. “Fine. Ria is going to give you a grandchild next spring.” Ethan kissed her face and licked her neck and then pressed his face against his head behind her ear.

Bonnie. a red hair beauty that looked younger than her years, stroked her son\'s hair as she continued to hug him. Ethan pulled away realizing she was uncomfortable hugging her grown son in his state of undressed.. “I’m happy for you and Ria,” Bonnie said.

“You aren’t angry about me being a cop.” Ethan took her arm so she wouldn\'t feel as uncomfortable and led her to the sofa. He didn\'t want her to feel that she was being groped by her own flesh and blood.

“Narcotics?” Bonnie asked.

“I know your interest in legalization of marijuana. As police officer when I talk about legalization of marijuana, people occasionally listen. Believe me marijuana is small potatoes. We’re more interested in closing crack houses and stopping the distribution of harder drugs. I’m trying to get a transfer anyway.” Ethan cleared her a place on the sofa. The children had covered most of it with blankets and stuffed animals.

“To what?”

“Canine units. I’ve learned a lot helping Juan with his Huskies.”

“You’ll probably still be sniffing out drugs.”

Ethan laughed thinking back to the two times he sniffed out explosive devices. “And bombs.” Most bomb scares were just that, but the police department had to be sure. Ethan\'s nose didn\'t lie.

“Missing persons,” Ria said. “Margaret and Jake want to open a private investigating agency. If they can get the licensing, Ethan might quit the police force and join them.”

Bonnie said, “That is a big if. I like the improvement on the house since I\'ve been here. Does anyone actually use the bedrooms?”

“One is for grandmother; she is a proper business woman who had her children. There is a nursery, a room for homeschooling, which also servesa hoa home office. We have beds in all the rooms so a social worker might think people actually sleep upstairs,” Ria said.

“Aunt Doris does,” Ethan said. “Sometimes, Camilla and the babies sleep upstairs.”

“How many people are living here?” B?” Bonnie asked.

“Eleven. That isn’t as many that lived here during the seventies. At one time, I think there was over twenty,” Ethan said. “You would remember. I was only a kid back then.”

“Al only married Lucinda because the pack would have turned on him if we had anymore half-wolf children,” Bonnie explained.

“I wondered why I had no full brothers or sisters,” said Ethan.

“I believe that they w hav have killed you if he didn’t agree. I always knew in my heart that he loved me and Lucinda was politics.” Bonnie moved out around the same time that Albert brought Lucinda that large expensive house in a proper suburban neighborhood.

“It’s funny how things change. Although I’m half, I have the respect of an alpha because it’s my money that supports the house,” Ethan said.

“Not quite,\" said Ria. \"Dad\'s in charge when it comes to pack politics.”

“Juan and I agree on everything. I can’t remember the last time Juan and I had a fight. If we had an argument, we would confer in private and Juan would make a statement to the pack. I feel closer to Juan than I ever did to Leslie.” Ethan wasn\'t going to tell his mother that he was having sex with Juan. He told himself that he would stop after he started having sex with Ria, but it felt good and Juan insisted that it didn\'t hurt anyone. Although Ethan knew that he let it continue because he was afraid of Juan, he could tell himself that it felt good and didn\'t harm anyone. It wasn\'t like having sex with a female that could result in pregnancy.

“He’s family,\" Bonnie said.

“Leslie was jealous of him. She didn’t understand pack politics. You talk anthropology and you ask her to apply it and she stares at you.” Ethan sat on the floor beside Ria and started to stroke her skin slowly.

“You didn’t expect her to join you on the sofa.\" Ria pressed her body against Ethan. They wouldn\'t have sex in front of the children but that didn\'t stop them from going to second or third base.

“No, but she didn’t have right to stare,” Ethan said. “You stare a second, get it out of your system then move on, even a five year old knows staring is rude.”

“Leslie has always been rude,” Bonnie conferred.

“She left her husband,” said Ethan.

Ria said, “People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. Ethan is a good husband. He takes Tony out protect our lands almost every night and is a good big brother to Marla and my little brothers. Our gain is Leslie’s loss.”

Juan came up from the basement with meat to defrost. “Bonnie, it’s been a while.” Juan hugged her.

“Still don’t like to wear clothes,” Bonnie said.

“Last time, I saw you I was only a kid,” Juan said. “I love your son. He has brought the pack to the twenty-first century. We can talk to other packs through the Internet. It’s like the world is your family.”

“I brought a couple of computers for our home office, had a new storage room built and purchased appliances.” Ethan hugged Juan and kissed him on the cheek.

Bonnie hugged both of them. “I thought you would spend the rest of your life living with that arrogant policewoman.”

“Leslie and I still see each other. I still have her medical power of attorney. I gave mine to Juan. Leslie seems happy enough. She somehow manages without me.” Leslie appeared unhappy since Ethan left, but his mother didn\'t need to know that. Ethan wasn\'t responsible for Leslie\'s happiness. Ethan had his own life to live and Leslie was only a friend, not a spouse or sibling.

Anthony went to answer the door and he didn’t look happy once he looked through the peephole. “Speak of the devil.”

“It’s Leslie,” Bonnie said.

“I don’t want her ruining my holiday,” Juan said.

Ethan opened the door. Leslie closed it behind her and looked around a moment. “Nice.” Leslie removed all her clothes even her socks came off. Leslie sniffed the air. “Clean except for wolf shedding.” Leslie hugged Ethan hard showing no visible discomfort about their nudity. “It’s good to see you.”

“How’s Mike?”

“Visiting his family. I would like Carl to have my power of attorney.”

“I’ll call your brother Monday,” Ethan said, as he led Leslie to the sofa. “We haven’t eaten, yet.”

“I like my turkey cooked without salmonella,” Leslie said.

“The fruit and vegetables are okay,” Bonnie said.

Leslie shook her finger. “This is why you became vegetarian.”

\"Self-defense. Spoiled fruit and vegetables might give you a stomachache but they won\'t kill you,\" Bonnie said. \"I lived with the pack over seven years and sometimes I couldn\'t afford my own food. Albert would always buy me fresh produce to eat.\"

“Werewolves don’t get fucking ptomaine,” Ria said. “Jake and Margaret raid the dumpster at the grocery store where Jake works. The butchers dump tons of meat each week.” It wasn\'t a ton but it was at least ten or twenty pounds.

“We’re a small pack,” Camilla said. “Other packs will collect from five or more grocery stores a week. We’re spoiled by wildlife. The New York city pack lives almost entirely off of garbage cans.”

“I think I’ll stay away from the turkey,” Leslie said.

Juan sat next to Leslie on the sofa. “Ethan is the fucking best thing that ever happened to this pack. Ria and he really surprised us that night. He learned a lot from your military experience, he knows people in the city, he’s a police officer, and well educated. I’m sorry for the way I treated you.”

“It was my mistake. I shouldn’t have stared.” Leslie put her hand on Juan’s arm. “I shouldn’t be uncomfortable undressed with my military experience.”

Juan put his head on Leslie’s shoulder. “I’m not going to bite you.”

“He only bites pack members,” said Emilio Lopez, a man that had similar features and the same long black curly hair. His brother and family was over for Thanksgiving. They had a chicken coops on the other side of town. Somehow, they manage to make a living selling eggs to locals.

Ethan went to the kitchen and brought out a few chickens not giving mind to trippripping getting all over his body. The children stopped played with their toy trucks and cars and grabbed the chickens. “Lucky, we don’t have carpet. The contractor recommended replacing the tile with hard wood floors and using carpet remnants to protect them. We have a thirty pound turkey as well.” Ethan looked at the puddles of drippings that the chickens made.

“Fresh?” Leslie asked.

“Yes, I brought it. Fresh tastes better.” Ethan wiped the grease off his hands trying to ignore the drippings spilled on his lower body. “Just because I have the stomach of a scavenger doesn’t mean that I have to eat only fucking carrion.”

Camilla, wearing only an apron with her long brown hair in a braid, came out of the kitchen. “Who took my chicken?”

“The children were hungry,” Ethan said. “They were cooked yesterday.”

“The turkey will be done about a half hour. No stealing food.” Camilla turned around aetureturned to the kitchen.

“I better join her,” Ria said.

“Let the women cook,” Juan said snuggling against Leslie on the sofa. “Ethan got an industrial oven for the house. Cooked is easier to chew.”

“People are designed to eat insects, worms, fruits, seeds, and nuts,” Bonnie said.

“Ethan’s diet when he lived with me,” Leslie said.

“You brought me hot dogs. Live bait is cheap. I ate mostly nuts and tubers. Convenient and lots of calories for the weight,” Ethan said. “It upsets Leslie that I eat worms and insects.”

“Many cultures do,” Bonnie said.

“Conner and Brown spoke about the proper preparation of grubs while I was buying hot dogs,” Leslie said as Juan continued to fondle her. “If you continue that, I might think about leaving Mike.” Leslie put his hands through Juan’s long nearly black tightly curled hair. Leslie didn\'t comment about the eight children ranging from two to about twelve naked eating greasy chickens with their fingers. Tony and Ria considered themselves adults and wouldn’t sit on the ground with the younger children.

“I have a wife and seven children,” Juan stroked one of Leslie’s tiny breasts and pressed his mouth against Leslie’s neck. “I touch everyone and you aren’t fucking complaining.”

“Why would I complain? I can’t catch your condition,” Leslie said, lavishing in the physical contact. Leslie stroked the carpet of black curly hair on Juan’s chest. “I didn’t understand your culture, but I’ve never seen happier children.”

“It’s easy to dismiss others,” Juan said. “Ethan, join us on the sofa. The children don’t need you gawking at them.”

“I can clean up the mess later,” Ethan said. “I have a mop in my hands most of the time I’m home.”

Ethan went into the kitchen after Camilla left the kitchen with babies in her arms. “I’ll help Ria with the turkey.”

Camilla nursed the babies while sitting on a pillow on the floor. “Excuse me, Leslie.” Juan left the sofa to lay on the floor with his wife and babies.

“I better go,” Leslie said.

“Stay for dinner,” Camilla said.

“I don’t think so.” Leslie put her clothes back on. “Tell Ethan that I’m glad everything is working out.”

“You’ll see him at work,” Ria said.