The Queen of the Bonobos

While there was no investigation of Larry's shooting, there were all sorts of inquiries into the events surrounding the bizarre activities at the Safari Restaurant. Many of those present were interrogated, but their recollections were so incredible as to be unbelievable. "It's like everyone there that night had a simultaneous psychological breakdown," one frustrated police detective testified at a hearing.

Ironically, the zoo prospered after that fateful event, even after the inevitable lawsuits. Throngs of people crowded in to view the scene and speculate on what had really happened. Dr. Becker would have been proud to learn that the primate house received the most visitors.

Leila and I managed to avoid the attention of the media and the authorities. The day after the "Jailbreak", we both broke our leases and moved in together in an apartment well to the north of the city. It worked well for us. Because the suburb was on the interstate, I still had easy access to the airport. And Leila found a well-established veterinarian who wanted someone to take over his practice. She told me that after everything that happened, she was more than happy to switch to caring for family pets.

So all was well that ended well, and we lived happily ever after -- except that we didn't. The reason was the curse hanging over me. Despite the fact that Leila and I loved each other, the hunger within me never subsided. I needed sex, and other women seemed to sense my need and be drawn to it.

If it had only been the two of us living in our small community, I might have been able to control myself. But every week I flew off to distant cities, and every night away from home I was surrounded by beautiful women who seemed to want me just as much as I wanted them. I could not and did not stay true to Leila, and it was killing me.

Leila Tan -- Six Weeks Later

I knew Tom wasn't faithful when he was flying, and it was killing me. At first I tried to convince myself I was just paranoid, tried to rationalize the hints and clues I found. I did all the things that wives -- and husbands -- do to fool themselves into believing their spouse isn't cheating.

But I knew, and soon it all came to a head. Tom was in the bathroom shaving, and I went into the bedroom and checked his bag. In one of the zip-up pockets I found the sleeve of condoms he'd hidden.

When he came back into the bedroom, he found me crying on the bed. When he saw the condoms in my lap, his face went ashen. He walked over and knelt in front of me. "Oh, God, Leila, I'm so sorry. I've tried and tried, but I just can't control it. When I'm away from you, I'm like an alcoholic in a brewery."

He begged me not to leave him. He swore he'd do better next time, promised he'd go for counseling, and on and on. But I knew that psychological counseling and treatment programs wouldn't help.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the clock on the nightstand. It was time for him to leave for the airport. "Just go," I told him. "I need to make some decisions, and it's better if I do it alone. We can talk when you get home."

He nodded and stood. I bent down and tucked the condoms back in his suitcase. He bowed his head in shame, zipped up his bag and walked out of the room.

When I'm depressed, I deal with it by exercising. After Tom had left, I pulled on my hiking boots, grabbed my canteen and hickory hiking staff, and headed out the back door. Our new apartment backs up to a nature preserve, with miles of trails leading off into the desert. Blindly I set off on one of them, hoping for the relief that physical exhaustion sometimes brings.

The trail I'd taken was challenging, winding uphill through scrub brush and around boulders. I'd only gone a mile or two when I heard the yip of coyotes off to my right. Coyotes rarely bother humans, so I started to hike on, only to stop when I heard another sound I recognized. It was the cry of a chimpanzee in pain. No, not a chimpanzee, I realized, a bonobo!

I rushed around a boulder just in time to see one coyote snap at the arm of the bonobo, while the other had the leg of the injured female in its mouth, attempting to drag her off her feet. "Get away from her!" I screamed and charged without thinking. So intent on their prey were the two scavengers that I startled them and they backed away. Then the larger of the two darted forward, trying to grab the bonobo again, but I whacked him good with my hiking staff. He yelped and ran off, his partner right behind him.

I knelt to look at the little figure and realized with a start that it was Malkia. How she'd managed to survive out here for so long I had no idea, but it looked like she wouldn't last much longer. She was emaciated and bleeding copiously from the coyotes' attack. Her eyes looked cloudy and her breathing was shallow. I felt profoundly saddened that this queen of her clan was dying in this alien environment.

I opened my canteen and held it to her mouth. She awkwardly took several drinks, much of the water spilling down her chin. Then, to my surprise, she reached up and gently touched my face. "She recognizes me," I realized, and couldn't help but shed tears that my old charge was dying.

"Oh, Malkia, I'm so sorry for what we did to you," I cried out, knowing that she didn't understand. But she cocked her head and stared at me. I wondered what was going through her mind.

As I watched uncertainly, she reached out and took my hand, pulling it toward her face. When it almost touched her, she opened her mouth, baring her teeth. Then she cocked her head again, almost as if she was asking a question. Suddenly, I understood. "Yes, Malkia, do it!"

She bit my hand, and then she died.

I managed to scoop out a shallow grave and cover her body with the largest rocks I could carry, hoping the crude burial mound would be enough to thwart the coyotes. Then I headed home.

That night I had a high fever.

The K-Pop Girls -- Two Weeks Later

Kasey was just about to take another sip of her cosmo at the restaurant bar when Kelly grabbed her arm. "Look who just walked in the door," she hissed in an excited voice. "It's Captain McSex-God, that pilot who used to live in our complex."

Kasey spotted the man and her eyes lit up. "OMG, Kels, remember that night he spent with us? I'd do that again in a heartbeat."

"Me too, but I think he's already taken. Get a load of that hot Asian chick he's with."

The clothes the dark-haired woman wore weren't nearly as revealing as Kasey's or Kelly's, but she gave off an aura of confidence and sensuality the two girls couldn't help but envy.

As they watched the couple waiting for a table, they saw a busty young woman in a skimpy strapless dress brush past Tom, rubbing her breasts against his arm in hopes of catching his attention. His attention never left his companion.

Kelly rolled her eyes. "Wow! That move always works for me! He must really have it bad for his date." Kasey could only nod.

When the maître d led the couple to their table, Tom escorted the Asian woman on his arm. Then he quickly moved to hold her chair for her before seating himself beside her.

"Just look how courteous he is to her," Kasey pointed out jealously.

"Yeah, he treats her like a queen."