---

"Going home to a place he'd never been before…"

"Rocky Mountain High" - John Denver

The big move to Colorado got seriously underway in the next few weeks. It didn't affect the Affair because it would go right on running after we were gone, so I kept my rooms there. Suria was moving her entire lab and its contents, and I'm sure that was a nightmare, but I stayed away from the place and didn't care anyway.

The real mess was at Star's house, so Vai and I took the boys out as often as we could. While we were off having fun at the park or wherever, some of the men of the Ninety-third Battalion of the Federation Guard, Star's private warriors, were transformed into movers. Whenever I was around, Mephic, the head officer, was always yelling at them about something, and the troops just hopped to it. Of the twenty or so that showed up, they weren't all men; maybe a third of them were females. The ladies were just as big and strong-looking as the men and no more likely to flirt with you than to step into a pair of size twelve four-inch heels.

I wondered if this particular portion of the Guard answered to Lecurela, like Suria did, or were loyal to Star alone. Mephic acted as though the Sun and Moon revolved around Star, so I was pretty sure where his sympathies lay. It could have been an act, but Mephic was too serious to ever make it on the Broadway stage.

Some things were too delicate to be packed. Most American computers were still punching holes in paper tape, but Star had a small and sophisticated computer in his office, and he'd already said he'd move it himself, the fast way - without a moving van.

Sometimes it was difficult to pry him away from the gadget. Somehow, he received all the Earth news on it, as well as bulletins from the Federation, and spent hours studying it all in detail.

President Nixon had resigned under the threat of impeachment, and Gerald Ford was the thirty-eighth US president. India tested an atomic device, becoming this world's sixth nuclear power. Just what Earth needed. The National Academy of Sciences called for a temporary ban on some genetic engineering research. That one made me laugh. I wondered if Suria got the memo.

Me? I was more interested in Jim Croce and Gladys Knight and the Pips, but Vai and I always listened patiently to Star's thoughts over dinner. Federation politics would be his lifelong occupation when he came of age. I supposed it was only fair that he cut his teeth on Earth's tribulations.

It does rain in Southern California, as the popular '70's song corroborated. The latter part of our so-called spring had been wet and dreary, and it was beginning to piss me off. I thought about jumping Vai and the kids to Arizona or some other place that was dry and warm, but I didn't trust my teleportation skills with children that I loved but were not my own.

Word was that the house in Colorado would be finished in a month - around the first of June. Finally, the last box was packed and loaded into the big moving van and there was nothing left to do but go. I let Star do the jumping for all of us.

It was a lovely warm summer day when we arrived in the Colorado foothills - blue sky, puffy clouds, birdsong, and soft breezes. Star's house, as designed by Vaira, rose three stories from the high-country meadow, and the snow-capped Rockies were the perfect backdrop. Painted white from third-story dormers to the columns supporting the huge front porch, the structure was almost too bright to look at. There were outbuildings too - a small guest house, a garage, and a good-sized stable out back.

Star had purchased over one hundred acres and had the property fenced, as all acreages in the area were fenced, but he himself would be the "burglar alarm," knowing instantly if anyone (or anything) trespassed, using only a tiny fraction of his mind to monitor the house and grounds. Looking around those wide-open spaces with eyes used to the city, it seemed to me that there was enough room left to build anything else he might want in the future.

Construction was complete on the exterior of the house. All that remained was finishing the inside. Still, the place was absent the usual carpentry mess; Star's workers were far too efficient for that. The entry hall was unpainted but already floored with inlaid tiles and large enough to remind me again of Scarlett O'Hara's, or perhaps Ashley Wilkes', legendary southern home.

I'd been invited to stay with Star and Vaira as long as I wanted, but I knew it would be for no longer than it took me to find my own place. I was enjoying the hell out of being with the kids during the day and Star and Vai at night, but I didn't want to take the chance of wearing out my welcome.

The twins, over a year old now, had gone directly from crawling to running, and they loved the place at first sight. A seemingly endless green meadow for a front yard and stands of pines and aspen in back - what more could any child want?

A playground seemed to be the answer to that, and one was under construction, complete with swings and slide, between the house and the stables.

The house was not at all to my taste, but I dutifully complimented Vaira on her design. She seemed so proud to have done something for the family.

* * *

I found that I liked Denver. Smaller and cleaner than LA, it seemed to have a forward-thinking attitude while retaining a touch of old western charm. I loved the varied atmosphere of Colfax Avenue, neatly bisecting the city while stretching all the way from the mountains to the plains. At the time, it was the longest continuous roadway in the United States.

After renting a small apartment near downtown, I explored the city in detail. The gay baths were a regular institution back when syphilis was still the biggest sexual bogeyman. I wasted no time availing myself of their sybaritic pleasures, cleanliness being next to gayness - at least in that neighborhood.

I loved Elitch's Gardens too, the famous Denver attraction boasting exotic botanic species in greenhouses as well as a theater and acres of outdoor plantings. As you have no doubt noted, I am fond of carousels, and it didn't take me long to locate that one, a gorgeous example of the woodcarver's art. The roller coaster was fun too, especially when I could lure someone to ride it with me. Vai was terrified of them, and Star couldn't be bothered.

Phillip Drackett's new version of the Affair was built south of town, off Santa Fe Drive, in an area similar to the location of his original club. Vampires being traditionalists, Mr. D stuck to the crystal and mirror decorating scheme - this time with royal blue instead of red.

Suria established herself out on West Colfax, near the medical center. Star still hung out there a good part of every day.

When I wasn't having fun with the kids or chasing tail of one sort or another, I found places that were willing to let me sing. That was always something I enjoyed, and sometimes I even got paid for it.

Star's house was completely finished and winter arrived at about the same time. One day it was Indian summer, and the next we had snow. True to his word, Dex taught me to ski, and it was almost as fun as surfing. The twins loved the white stuff, reinventing snow angels and sledding in their own unique style.

By the time spring rolled around, Denver had become home.