Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2012 06:30:29 -0700 (PDT)
From: Henry Brooks <hankster1430@bellsouth.net>
Subject: The Ghost of Jed Harding (Beginnings or Military) Short story

The Ghost of Jed Harding

1857-1861

Jed Harding and Isaiah Hauser were classmates at the United States Military
Academy in West Point, NY.  They met on their first day there in August,
1857, when they were assigned side by side cots in the Plebe barracks.  The
cots were assigned alphabetically.  They became instant friends even though
they had little in common except that they were both entering The Academy,
and seeking careers in the military.

Jed grew up on a plantation in Georgia.  His family owned over two hundred
slaves who worked tirelessly in the cotton fields, and in the mansion he
called his little home.  He had two younger sisters, and his father was a
widower.  His mother had died in a small pox plague about ten years
earlier.  He was a handsome lad of British descent.  He stood six feet
tall; his hair was a dark blond and slightly wavy; his eyes were blue; and
his body reflected the truth that he had worked side by side with the
slaves in the fields when it was necessary to do so.  He was only eighteen
when he entered The Academy, but he left behind two bastard mulatto sons,
from two different slave mothers.  He also left behind more than a few sore
male slave asses which he had fucked.  He had also forced both the women
and the men to suck his cock.  That was his secret, and he swore to
slaughter the slave victims he had raped, if they told anyone.  They all
kept the secret, and received special favors from the young master.  Of
course his words were empty threats.  Except for forcing sex on his slaves,
he had never been mean or cruel to any one of them in his life.  Still they
were merely disposable property to him, and nothing more.

Isaiah was born to a farming family also.  He was of German descent, and a
true Yankee from Connecticut, where his family grew tobacco.  He wasn't
poor, but he was far from rich.  Still, compared to many of his friends, he
was a person of means.  He looked nothing like Jed except for the brawn.
He was 6'2" tall; his hair was black and straight and fell to his neck; his
eyes were brown and seductive.  Seductive eyes did him no good at all.  He
came to The Academy an eighteen year old virgin.

As they made up their cots, they introduced each other and when they shook
hands, they knew that they would be friends.  Jed couldn't wait for them to
shower together.  He was anxious to check out his new friend, and he was
not disappointed.  Isaiah was about five fat inches of flaccid beauty.  His
foreskin was skimpy and Jed liked that.  Jed himself was about a quarter of
an inch shorter, but just as fluffy, and he grew to about seven inches.  He
had too much foreskin and only about half of it retreated when he was hard.
Isaiah's ass was round and bubbly, and Jed hungered to put his cock as far
up that ass as he could.  For the first time that he could remember, he
pictured Isaiah's cock entering his own ass and even his mouth.  He was
smitten with desire.  He started to grow hard in the shower and forced
himself to turn away and think of terrible things.

The Plebe's had no break from their arduous routines until Thanksgiving.
Jed lived too far away to go home for so short a time.  He would not be
returning to Georgia until Christmas break.  Isaiah begged him to come home
with him.  Of course, he accepted immediately.

It was a short coach ride to Poughkeepsie, New York, then a ferry ride
across the Hudson River, and another coach ride to Greenwich, Connecticut.
Isaiah's father, Hans, would be picking them up at the coach station in
Greenwich, and transporting them to his farm some twenty miles away.  They
would be leaving The Academy early Wednesday morning and arriving home late
Wednesday afternoon.

Hans embraced his son warmly, and Jed was jealous.  His father never showed
him any affection.  When the coach approached the Hauser's home, Jed was
surprised at how small it looked next to his magnificent plantation home,
but when he entered, he was struck by the cozy, inviting feeling he felt.
The house had only four bedrooms.  Isaiah's parents occupied the largest
room, and his two younger brothers had the two smallest bedrooms.  Isaiah's
bedroom was smaller than his parents' and larger than each of his brothers.

"We'll be rooming together," he told Jed.  "Come, I'll show you my room and
we can freshen up before dinner."  The room contained a single size bed
that was no bigger than the cots they slept on at The Academy.  Jed was
overjoyed, even when Isaiah said, "If we're too uncomfortable, I can sleep
on the floor."

"No way," Jed thought.

While they were changing from their uniforms into civilian attire, farm
attire at that, Zachariah and Benjamin burst in on them.  They had just
come in from doing their chores.  Zach was sixteen and Ben was fifteen.
They wrestled Isaiah to the floor and played with him lovingly.  Again Jed
grew jealous.  He could never play with two younger sisters like this.
When everyone settled down, and introductions were made, they went
downstairs to meet Isaiah's mother, Greta.

Jed was expecting to meet a short plump hausfrau.  Imagine his shock to
meet a tall, attractive, blue eyed blonde.  She did not look much older
than Isaiah.  She and Isaiah hugged until Jed thought they would break each
other's bones.  Much to his surprise, she gave Jed a big hug also, and a
kiss on the cheek.

"Isaiah has written so much about you," she said.  "I am so delighted to
meet you.  Now all you men can get out of my kitchen and dinner will be
ready in a few minutes."

When they were in the living room, Jed asked how many acres the family
owned.

"Eighty," Hans answered proudly.

"That's wonderful," Jed replied.  "We have about fifteen hundred.  How many
slaves does it take to run the place?"

Hans and his sons turned white.

"Good heavens man.  We run the place ourselves.  At harvest time, I hire
farm hands from amongst our neighbors.  Some men even join us from the city
to make extra money."  Jed found this unfathomable, but wisely he said
nothing.

Greta made a stick to your ribs, Yankee winter dinner; New England clam
chowder, pot roast, home made bread, apple pie and hot tea.  The weather
had dropped a good twenty degrees in the past hour and the family
appreciated what she had cooked.  The house had chilled considerably and
Hans and his sons added wood to the several fireplaces, and they stoked the
fires.  It was Jed's first time away from Georgia.  He knew it would be
much colder than at home, but still he was surprised.  He also realized
that winter had not really set in yet, and he wasn't looking forward to
what lay ahead.  The efforts of the family had considerably warmed the
lower level of the house, but Hans said, "Be sure you all have extra
blankets tonight."  He looked at Jed.  "The only fireplace upstairs is in
the master bedroom," he explained.  Jed was delighted.

After dinner, Jed and Isaiah were questioned by the family, who wanted to
know what life was like at The Academy.  Jed kept sending Isaiah telepathic
messages.  He was afraid they would talk all night.  Finally Isaiah got the
message.  Jed and I have been up since before dawn," he said.  "Would you
all please excuse us?  I, for one, need to get some sleep."

The cadets put on coats and went outside to use the outhouse.  "I hate
chamber pots," Isaiah proclaimed.  "I only use them as a last resort.  I
have a couple in our room."  Jed barely heard him.  All he could think
about was that in just a few short minutes they would be lying in bed
together.

When they entered Isaiah's room they found a basin filled with warm soapy
water and some dry towels.

"Your mom's a wonder," Jed said.  "She thinks of everything."  Jed
surprised Isaiah when he stripped off his long johns and washed his balls
and cock as well as the rest of him.  Then he put his underwear back on.
Isaiah was embarrassed into doing the same.

The bed was small and they were indeed forced to lie close to each other.
Jed loved it, but Isaiah was uncomfortable.  The silence in the room was
very dramatic, especially since the two friends usually talked non-stop.

Finally Isaiah said, "I'm glad we got the extra blankets.  It's nice and
warm under here."

"It's too warm for me," Jed lied.  "I'm taking off my long johns."  He
jumped out of bed, stripped naked, and climbed back into the warm bed.  The
lack of space permitted him to push up against Isaiah's body.  Now Isaiah
may have been a virgin, but he knew the feel of a hard cock pushing up
against his thigh.

He froze, not knowing what he should do.  Then he thought better of making
a thing of it.  Young men of eighteen got hard all the time.  It didn't
mean a thing.  Why he had a boner himself right now."

"Why don't you strip also?" Jed asked.  "Our body heat will keep us warmer
than any blankets."

Isaiah didn't have to be told twice.  In seconds, both boys were naked, and
now instinct took over.  They were facing each other and Jed's lust made
him throw caution to the wind.  He pushed hard against his best friend and
began to rub his boner against Isaiah's hard cock.  As he did so, they both
began to purr.

Suddenly Jed ducked under the blankets, and Isaiah felt the strangest, most
wonderful sensation.  His cock was warm and wet.  It took a few seconds to
realize that Jed had taken his cock into his mouth, and was running his
tongue up and down the underside of the hardest ever, biggest boner, Isaiah
had ever had.  He was unfamiliar with an orgasm.  When it started to build
in his body, he was scared, but it felt so good, he would not have stopped
it if he could.  He figured if Jed was trying to kill him, he'd have to
explain Isaiah's dead body in the morning.

Jed could sense that Isaiah was near and he sucked harder.  Isaiah came
gushing in Jed's mouth.  He started to scream and forced himself to stifle
it.  The walls in the house were paper thin.

Isaiah was afraid to move.  He had no idea what had happened to him, but he
did know that he wanted more, and he wanted to give Jed the same pleasure.
In a few minutes they were lying side by side again.  Their bodies were
pushed together and Jed put his lips on Isaiah's lips.  It was Isaiah's
first kiss, and he didn't know what to make of it, but he liked what he
felt.  Soon Jed's tongue was forcing open his lips, and their tongues were
tickling each other.  Isaiah was breathless.  He was even more shocked when
Jed whispered, "I love you Isaiah.  Please fuck me."

Isaiah was overwhelmed by Jed's admission of love, but he had no idea how a
man fucks another man.'

"I'll do whatever you want, but you'll have to show me how," he told Jed.

"Please," Jed pleaded "love me too."

"I want you to let me suck your cock too," Isaiah said.  "Then you can
teach me how to fuck."

That night, after recovering from the joy of fellatio, they fucked each
other twice, using only spit as a lubricant.  In the early morning hours,
they lay huddled together.  As he fell asleep, Isaiah whispered, "I love
you too, Jed."

Jed almost didn't want to go home for Christmas and for the two week summer
break, but he had to.  He would have preferred to have stayed behind with
Isaiah and to make love with him.  It got easier when they were upper
classmen.  They had many weekends off.  They would go into the nearest
town.  One of them would book a single room at some hotel, and they would
make love all weekend.

They were due to graduate on May 15, 1861.  One month before graduation,
Fort Sumter was fired on, and the long expected War Between the States
began.

"I have to go home," Jed announced.

"What about us?  This isn't fair," Isaiah sobbed.  "I love you.  This
conflict has nothing to do with us."

"Have you learned nothing from these past four years?  We have to put
country and duty above all personal considerations.  I just received a wire
from my father instructing me to go to Clarksville, Tennessee.  My
commission in the Confederate army is assured.  Apparently we are amassing
our troops there as a focal point for an invasion of the north."

Jed grabbed Isaiah and kissed him passionately.  `Stay safe, my love.
We'll meet after the war no matter who wins."  He ran off leaving Isaiah
sobbing.

Two weeks later while a good hunk of the confederate army was amassing in
Clarksville, they were beset upon in the middle of the night by almost five
thousand Union soldiers.  The surprise attack decimated The Rebel
stronghold.  Among the dead was a young officer named Jed Harding.

The ghost of Jed Harding was convinced that Isaiah Hauser had betrayed him.
He could not get any rest, and he devoted his eternity to taking revenge on
Isaiah's descendents.

2012

Carlton Hauser made an important family decision.  He took a semester off
from Yale to do so.  Shortly after he inherited his four time great
grandfather's house in Greenwich, CT, he decided to raze it to the ground
and sell the property.  The house had been the site of where all his
ancestors, and he himself, had been born, and where they all lived as
children.  But the house was almost one hundred and forty-five years old.
There had been too much renovation and band aid repairs to save the old
place.  It needed to be totally torn down and rebuilt.  Now it was a
question of whether he should throw good money after bad, or not.

There was another consideration in making the decision.  Every one of his
ancestors had died in this house.  The deaths occurred under mysterious
circumstances, shortly after their wives gave birth to their first son.  It
was deemed to be a terrible family curse, but every succeeding Hauser said
that it was pure nonsense and lived, or rather died, to rue their words.
Carlton knew that he could live here safely, but decided not to tempt the
fates.  He knew that he would never have a son.

On the evening before the bulldozers were due to arrive, Carlton went
through the house one more time to assure himself that nothing of value,
sentimental or monetary, was left behind.  He thought he spotted something
on a shelf high up in the armoire in the master bedroom.  Sometime over the
years, the armoire had been affixed to the wall, and so it had become part
of the house, and would be destroyed along with it.

He reached up and was surprised to find a dusty old journal on the top
shelf.  He wondered how it could have been missed by his father, and all
the grandfathers before him, but he could not come to any clarifying
conclusions.  He himself would never live as a married adult in this house,
so he could not imagine how it could have been missed by so many fastidious
housekeepers.

He dusted the book off with his handkerchief, and concluded his search of
the house.  When he was satisfied that nothing was left, he went back to
the small apartment he had rented in Greenwich.  The book was tucked under
his arm.  When he got home, he dusted the book further with a clean rag,
and laid it carefully on his bedside table.  Then he showered to wash away
all the grime he had acquired in the decaying house.

He was too tired to read the book that night, and he decided to tackle it
in the morning.  He fell asleep more quickly than he had ever fallen asleep
before.  In his sleep he had a vivid dream.  It was so real that when he
awoke, he remembered every detail and every word.

A handsome young soldier in a confederate uniform got into bed with him,
and kissed him full on the lips.  He could feel the kiss, warm and wet, and
he got an erection.  The officer spoke to him.  You look just like your
four time great grandfather, Isaiah.  It hurts me to see harm come to you.
You are the end of his line.  The curse will end with you.  The apparition
kissed him again and he had an orgasm.

The orgasm woke him up.  He had to get out of bed and change the bed sheet.
He was very disturbed by the dream, and the fact that at the age of twenty
he had a wet dream.  This time he could not fall asleep so quickly.  He
tossed and turned most of the night.  He finally fell asleep about four in
the morning and slept until eight.

When he awoke, he clearly saw the young officer sitting on the edge of his
bed and smiling at him.  He blinked his eyes and the ghost was gone.  He
was sure that he was imagining it all, and at some level he was
disappointed.  The young man was so handsome.  If he was real, Carlton
would have made a move on him.

After breakfast, Carlton made himself comfortable on the sofa and opened
the journal.  The script was old fashioned, and each letter was executed
with a flourish.  He found it difficult to read, but he didn't give up.
Somehow as he stared at the script, it got clearer and clearer to him.  He
read the first entry.

April 15, 1861: Yesterday the War Between the States began at last.  I fear
that I am the first casualty. I lost my beloved Jed, not to gunfire, but to
separation.  He has been summoned to Clarksville, somewhere in Tennessee,
to receive his commission in the Confederate Army.  I am certain that
should we both survive this conflict, we will find each other after the
war.  We love each other too much to be separated forever.  I have no idea
how I am to survive without him.  How can I engage in combat knowing that
Jed might be at the other end of my rifle.  I may die of a broken heart
before any rebel bullet can pierce it.

Carlton could not believe that his ancestor Isaiah Hauser had written these
words.  Fuck! He thought.  He was gay.  Why didn't he wait for Jed?  Why
did he marry?  He read on, hoping that the journal would answer these
questions.

April 22, 1861: Graduation was moved up three weeks because of the war.  I
received my commission today, and all of us new officers were assembled in
the dining room at The Academy.  We were addressed by a general, who was
more than a little drunk.  He told us that a spy in rebel territory had
informed the proper authorities that the rebels were massing in Clarksville
for an invasion of Union territory.  I grew sick.  I wanted to vomit.  I
knew that Jed was among them.

He went on to tell us that we would be among the officers leading the
surprise attack on the rebels before they could attack us.  I wanted to
die, but I had to hide my emotions, lest my fellow officers attribute my
feelings to cowardice.  I cheered as loudly as they did when the general
concluded his speech.

When we were dismissed, we went back to clear out our barracks.  The best
part of our clothing would be shipped home.  We kept only our combat gear,
some of which we were newly issued.

May 15, 1861: Today should have been my graduation day.  Instead it was the
worst day of my life.  At the crack of dawn, we fell upon hundreds of
rebels in a camp in Clarksville.  Most of them were still asleep and never
knew what hit them as our bayonets pierced their hearts.  I did not kill a
single rebel.  Instead I searched every face looking for my beloved in a
useless quest to keep him safe.  By nightfall the few of them remaining
alive surrendered, and we returned to our camp with the prisoners.  Jed was
not among them, and I feared the worst.  Optimistically I prayed that he
had not been in the camp at all.

May 28, 1861: Our high ranking officers have intercepted a list of rebel
dead at Clarksville.  As I feared, Jed was among them.  I want to die, but
I must go on.  I am too full of grief to write anything further today.

December 14, 1863: I hate this war.  It took away my life, my Jed.  I
haven't seen my family in two years.  My brothers are in the war.  Every
day I pray for their safety.  I hate living in a tent in an open field.  I
fear I will get sick and die, if a rebel doesn't get me first.  I would
welcome death.  Perhaps there is a heaven and I will be reunited with my
love.  I have no need to live another day in this hell.

June 11, 1866: The war has been over for some months now.  I was wounded in
the leg in the final hours of the war, and I will limp badly for the rest
of my days.  I have been discharged from the army with a small pension.  My
father has arranged a bride for me.  I will meet her tomorrow and we are to
be wed in a fortnight.  I fear that I might not be able to perform my
husbandly duties, but I will give it the same effort I gave to the army,
when my heart was never in it.  Is there a man on this earth more tortured
than I am?

June 13, 1866: Molly is a beautiful young girl.  I must admit I like her
very much, and I think she likes me.

June 1, 1867: In just a day or two I shall be a father.  For the first time
since Jed was torn from my arms, I feel that I may have something to live
for.

June 5, 1867: Today, unto me, a son was born.  I named him Jed.

Here the journal ended, but Carlton knew why.  Isaiah was thrown from his
horse and killed a few days later.  It was considered a freak accident.
Isaiah was a cavalry officer and a wonderful horseman. So how could this
have happened?  In his head, Carlton heard a voice say THE CURSE!

For some reason, Carlton could relate to his distant ancestor who was as
gay as he.  He lay prone on the sofa, closed his eyes, and began to cry for
Isaiah's loss.  He prayed that someday he could have a love as deep as
Jed's had been.

He imagined that he heard someone else crying.  He listened and he was
certain he did.  He opened his eyes, and there was the young rebel kneeling
on the floor next to the sofa.  He was as solid as any living person
Carlton knew.

The two sobbing men reached out and touched each other.

"You're real," Carlton said.  "Are you Jed?"

Jed nodded.  "He was innocent all along," he sobbed.  "How could I ever
have believed differently.  Forgive me, Isaiah, and ask all your progeny to
forgive me as well."  He laid his head on Carlton's chest and Carlton began
to stroke his hair.

"I can only manifest for an hour or so," Jed said.  "Please make love to me
Carlton.  You look just like your four time great grandfather, Isaiah.
That is, except for one thing.  You are circumcised."

Carlton laughed.  "Yes, yes, Jed let's make love.  Come with me into the
bedroom."  When Jed stood up he was as naked as the day he was born.
Carlton quickly shed his boxers, and they fell naked together on Carlton's
bed.

"What did you and Isaiah like to do the most?" Carlton asked.

"We would get each other as hard as possible with our tongues and then we
would fuck each other."

"That sounds perfect."  Carlton twisted around into a sixty nine position.
He went right to work, and ghost or no ghost, he felt Jed's hot warm tongue
bathing his throbbing cock.  Even more incredible, he could taste Jed as
clearly as any other guy he had ever been with.  He even had a little
struggle pushing back Jed's foreskin.

Later he unloaded easily into Jed's man hole.  When Jed fucked him, he was
aware when Jed had his orgasm, but he felt no body fluid entering his
gut. He did feel Jed getting softer and falling out of him.  They lay
perfectly still for awhile, basking in the afterglow.

"I have to go now," Jed announced.  "I've stayed too long seeking revenge,
and it was all for nothing.  I've got to go find Isaiah and all his
descendents and ask them to forgive me.  Oh Carlton, I can see a great
white light beckoning to me.  I really have to go now."

Jed got out of bed.  He was draped in a beautiful white robe and his
essence glowed with a bright white aura.  Carlton stared after him in total
awe, as Jed slowly faded away.

"I hope you find Isaiah," he yelled at the disappearing ghost.  "I hope you
find all of them, and when you do, please tell each one that I love him."