Most of the company he kept was bad company.Well grandpa had worked out that he probably would never be able to wrestle down young Katie all by himsel...f - as he was getting older and frailer and she was getting healthier and stronger day by day.Lester Pleason was one of those shady characters that grandpa kept company with in the bars both day and night in the bad part of town. An old whoring and drinking buddy who was known to have a rough side.It was on one of their drunken binges together. Lori and Carol Anne went to another table where they joined David, Carol Anne's sponsor and Paul who was Lori's pledge. Already there were Rick and his sponsor, Sharon, and Tom and Barb. The other table was about half full of other members.As they ate, conversation flowed back and forth. None of the new pledges was exactly the shy type or they most likely would never have been selected. And even though they were apprehensive about what was coming and even a little embarrassed about what had. At night, Kittykins slept on Miriam’s bed, often playing with her feet under the covers before finally laying down beside the girl and falling asleep. But little girls grow up, and cats grow old, and one day it was time for Miriam to go off to college. By this time, Kittykins had become an elderly cat. She spent most of her days lazing in the sun. Sometimes she forgot that she had been fed, and would pester Mother or Miriam, if she was home from school, to feed her. All during Miriam’s time at. My cheeks burning, I glanced down at the chart. “So, it's not time for your yearly check-up. What brought you in?”“I just learned I was pregnant yesterday,” she said, a big smile on her lips. “But I know there are some risks for a woman my age having a child.”“Increased risk of down syndrome,” I admitted, “or other forms of autism. You are nearing the end of your reproductive cycle.” I licked my lips. “I thought you went back on the pill last year. Did you...stop?”“Oh, I guess it was an.