There was some commotion in the bed, so I opened my eyes and saw Bobby getting out of bed. A three hundred fifty pound beauty isn't very graceful getting out of bed. Wanda and Jan were both watching and must have seen my eyes open. They smiled. Bobby turned and came around the bed to give me a kiss. "You got back fast, just four days. The way John talked, it was going to be a couple of weeks. Go back to sleep, I'm sure you have at least one incident day coming."
"I need to get up and exercise. A good swim will do me good."
I got out of bed and went to the pool and all three girls came with me. We swam hard, making us all feel good. Marie had come out and came up to me when I was hanging onto the side of the pool and gave me a big kiss. "Glad you're back, Stud. I thought I was going to have to find a sub. I'd have to go out to that park to find one though."
Jan gave me a nice kiss and fondled me. "I need to clone you for when I'm horny. I go out with these women who don't know how to love me. You've just spoiled me, that's all."
Wanda gave me a hug and kiss as well. She just said, "I missed you too. You are important to all of us, you know."
Bobby slid in front of me and hugged me. She looked at me and said, "I'm getting' closer. You keep this up and I might say yes. Then what are you gonna do?"'
I smiled and hugged her back, then bent down and sucked a nipple into my mouth. I pulled off with a pop and said, "Yum." That got a laugh from everyone.
After showering outside, eating breakfast, and getting ready, Wanda said, "Your boss told me that since you were coming in late last night or early today, you were not allowed into the office until Monday. There's nothing happening, so just stay away and rest up. This is Friday, enjoy it."
I was still tired, so I lay down on the couch with the TV on, and promptly fell asleep. I woke because of a lot of racket going on outside. I looked out the front window to see one guy on a big commercial riding lawn mower, one guy edging, one guy trimming bushes, and another blowing things around. I thought, "What the fuck, when did we get a lawn service?"
I called the station and asked Bobby. "When did we get a lawn service?"
"Since you decided to be a wheel and I made Station Chief. Tell me when you have time to do lawn work. There's also going to be a guy coming by to do the pool. He probably doesn't earn what he gets, but he does vacuum it and check the chemicals. He also does the hot tub, so if you see someone out there, he's supposed to be there."
At that second, a strange woman came from the hall with a pile of bed clothes in her hand. "What? Who? Bobby, there's a woman in the house, what's going on?"
"That's Maria. She does Frank's house and had Tuesday and Friday open. She does all the heavy housework for us and our basic laundry. She does a hell of job ironing too. Treat her nice."
I just hung up. There's too much going on.
"I'm sorry, Senor Chuck, I thought you were still sleeping. I tried to be quiet."
I smiled, "No problem, Maria, I don't need to sleep all day. I'll put some clothes on and get out of here."
I put on Jeans, a T-shirt, and boots. I pushed the bike out of the garage and shut the door. I was about to leave, but thought better of it, and went back inside, put on a big loose vest, and slid a clip-on holster on my belt. I cranked up the Harley and headed to Jonah's.
The big titted blonde barmaid was working while talking to some guy that I thought I recognized. I nodded at him and he said, "Johnson, Deputy Marshal right?"
I nodded, "And you are?"
Before he could answer, the blonde said, "He's my husband and he's a deputy sheriff so you better be nice."
I laughed at the outburst.
The guy said, "I've been at a couple of your confrontations. I was out at the airport a little while ago when that sniper was knocked down. You did a good job out there."
"I was lucky."
He nodded and turned back to the blonde.
Jonah came from the back and greeted me loudly, saying, "Double D, bring this man a beer and some of the chili I just brought in."
Fitting name for the babe. She must be used to the nickname, as she didn't flinch over it.
I drank a beer and ate chili while Jonah and I discussed our past weekend. He said he didn't think he could handle that kind of craziness very often. "My wife is nuts. When she gets a wild hair, she goes crazy. Between Bobby and her, I don't know which one is the worst voyeur. They both seem to get off on what most women would cut our balls off for."
I nodded, "Seems so, doesn't it."
"Stick around; the monster lady is coming by in a little while. She's probably ready to entertain you and me by now. She's just over her period, so she's hornier than a woman has a right to be. It'll take all of me just to take the edge off. If you stick around, you can help me out."
"That's okay, Jonah, I seem to have enough to take care of at home without wanting some of yours."
"You don't understand, Man," Jonah said, almost begging. "I can't handle her when she's wound up. I don't think any two men can. You would be doing me a favor. I'll take movies so Bobby won't get upset she didn't get to watch."
"Shit, Jonah, what's wrong with this picture.? You're trying to get me to play with your big lady, and I'm turning you down. But remember, I have my own big lady to try to keep happy."
"You're right, Chuck, it's my job and I guess I have to do it. Good work if you think about it. But Millie will just flat fuck me near to death sometimes."
"My heart bleeds for you. I'll send flowers, Jonah. I'm going to ride a little, get some wind in my face. I'll talk to you later."
I didn't have any special direction, so I headed north, thinking I could always stop at Park Place for a beer and shoot some pool. Instead, I headed over to the private airport to ask a few more questions about flying. Perhaps I could get a short flight in one of the little trainer planes they had.
I went through the gate and parked the bike in front of the charter office. The hangar on the left was empty of the jets, but the hangar on the right looked pretty full. Across the tarmac, the opposing hangar was open with a prop jet being worked on, but the eye catcher was a bright red with yellow accent bi-plane. Now that would be fun.
I went inside the office to see who I might ask questions of. Steve and Star were standing at a board, discussing something. They looked my way and both smiled. Steve said, "Fancy seeing you so soon. I figured you'd still be catching forty winks."
"Can't sleep while the rest of the world works. I did take the day off, though."
"What can we do for you, Mr. Johnson," Star asked?
"Call me, Chuck, please. I came by to possibly schedule one of the introductory flights you mention in the brochure for flight training."
"We can do that Mr., ah, Chuck. What evening or day would you like? I have openings for tomorrow, Saturday, at two and most days next week. After five it gets busy with lessons, but we can work in a check ride."
"How about tomorrow, it sounds like a good time?"
Steve was waving his hand, "No, no, no. If you want a check ride, you get one right now. I'm goofing off today anyway, so let me check out a plane and we'll go flying. First though, I need to check on my new toy. Did you see that red bi-plane in the hangar across the aisle?"
"That's a nice looking airplane. I didn't think they still made those. It looks new."
"It's a home built type plane. They are considered experimental, but are certified after they are built. I've only flown it twice and it's a blast. The little thing will do almost a hundred fifty and is rated for aerobatics too. Hey, how about a ride in that, then we'll go up in a boring little Cessna 150 series to show you what you have to learn in."
My smile must have been a giveaway. Steve said, "Let's go see if it's ready."
We walked across to the other hangar and over to the bi-plane. Steve picked up a clipboard that was in the plane and looked through the papers. He walked over to a mechanic that was working on a turboprop then went to a board to hang his clipboard among several others.
He walked back to me and said, "Pick the tail up and swing it around and I'll push up at the wing. Let's get it out of here first."
The plane was nicely balanced and easy to pick up. We were able to push the plane out and set it back down facing toward the ramps and runway. "You sit up front. The helmet has a built in headset so we can talk to each other. If you would, don't put your feet on the pedals, and if you do, don't push. You can feel how I push them. Treat the stick the same way, you can put your hand on it but don't push, let me control it."
Steve began doing his preflight check, explaining to me what he was doing. He checked the fuel for water, checked all the moving parts on the plane, moving the tabs back and forth. He even kicked the tires. He opened an access door, checked the oil, and buttoned everything up.
"Let's go flying. Use the shoulder harness, but don't pull it so tight it cuts off the circulation. Remember what I said about the stick and pedals."
I climbed up and slid into the seat, getting the shoulder harness over my shoulders and buckling the seat belt. My feet were on the pedals and I felt Steve pushing each pedal down and I watched the stick move around.
There was a click, and then the whirr of what was probably the fuel pump or something like that, just before Steve hit the starter. The motor quickly caught and Steve let it idle for a minute or so. The few instruments in the plane had leapt to life when the engine started, and I even recognized what a couple of them were.
Over the helmet, I heard Steve identify himself and ask for permission to access the taxiway. When the other voice said, clear to runway something, Steve just taxied over, pulled out onto the runway, and opened the throttle. The little plane didn't roll far before the tail came up and the whole plane lifted off just a short distance later.
We slowly climbed higher. After flying in the Lear, I had a misconception of how airplanes were supposed to fly. We were pretty high by the time we cleared the end of the runway. We banked back to the north and flew north above Highway 41 then banked to the West to follow Highway 52 toward the coast.
The altimeter showed we were right at five thousand feet until we came to the coast, then Steve took us down to about a thousand feet. He told me to check out the rays and the sharks as we paralleled the beach. We banked left again and began climbing as Steve picked up Highway 54. When we were out over farm country, Steve asked, "Want to do some fun stuff?"
"Go for it, I'm game."
Steve gave the plane more power then flipped it over so we were hanging in our harnesses. He flipped us back upright and climbed until the altimeter read over ten thousand feet. He did a complete three hundred sixty degree roll, followed by climbing steeply and falling over backward to slide into a shallow dive until we were level once again. We did some sharp banks, a fairly deep dive, and ended up with Steve asking permission to land back at the air park. He rolled the plane to a stop in front of the little aircraft hangar and shut the plane down.
Once out of the plane, he asked, "You like that?"
"That's what I want to learn, how to fly for fun like that. I might need to fly myself somewhere, but the fun part is what I want. I know I'll have to fly a bigger plane for Bobby to fly in with me, but we could fly up to see her sister in Panama City easily instead of that long drive up there. This little plane would be a blast, but Bobby may not fit in it."
Steve nodded in agreement, "Don't worry, as long you don't try to carry a lot of other people, you'll be fine. You have to figure that Bobby is two people, so if you fly in, say a 172, you could take one additional person, but that's all."
"Let's get a little plane and get bored. I'll let you fly it a little."
Star was smiling when I went inside, as directed, to ask for an airplane. She handed me a book and pointed at the number on the front. I thanked her and went into the hangar to look for the corresponding number on an airplane.
There was a bright yellow Cessna 152 with S&S Flight Training painted in bright blue on it. I walked over to the plane and was looking it over. Steve walked up and took the book I had and opened the left door and checked a gauge with a number in the book. He then pulled a checklist book from a pocket over the seat and said, "Let's do the preflight inspection just like you would do it if you were going to take a lesson.
We went through the items one at a time, with Steve showing me where everything was, and the proper names for the parts of the airplane. He explained, "This plane can have a maximum gross weight of sixteen hundred pounds. That's on a cold day. On hot days, the air is too thin and the plane can't get off the ground if it's too heavy. So how much do you weigh?"
"Probably one eighty, one eighty-five."
"I weigh about one ninety, so together we weigh just under four hundred pounds. It's not that hot, so if we add the four hundred to the little over a thousand pounds the plane weighs empty, and we'll be two hundred pounds lighter than maximum. We should be able to take off without a problem."
Once again, we pushed an airplane out of a hangar. This time though, we didn't have to pick up the tail. This one set up on three wheels. We climbed into the only two seats in it, and continued with the checklist until Steve flipped up a switch and held another up to engage the starter. The little plane started right up. As soon as the propeller was turning at a good speed, the little plane wanted to move. When the gauges all read as the checklist said, Steve radioed for access and it was granted once again.
This time we went all the way to the end of the runway and turned around. Steve explained how, and why, each plane requested and was granted runway access. Pretty much common sense, but I imagine some people still need to be told. We turned up the runway and we began rolling faster and faster until Steve lifted the front wheel and the little plane seemed to leap into the air.
We climbed even slower than the bi-plane had, but we reached five thousand feet fairly fast, heading north. Steve took the time to explain each instrument and what it meant. As he was flying along, he said, "Take the controls and try to keep the plane level. You can use the artificial horizon to make sure, but try to do it by feel or sensation first."
I flew along for a few minutes until the motor seemed to be groaning. I looked at Steve and he smiled then pointed at the instrument on the dash. The nose was up pretty good. I eased the stick forward until the instrument showed level again.
"You did what most people do. You pull the nose up and continue that way until you are near to stalling the airplane. Fly north some more and try to keep the plane level. Let the plane do what it wants, as it will fly level if you let it."
Sure enough, as long as I didn't let the sensation that I needed to keep the nose up take over, the plane's attitude remained level. Steve had me descend to four thousand feet, then asked me to climb back to five thousand feet. He had done that before and adjusted the amount of fuel he was giving the motor. I advanced the fuel about what he had done before and gently headed higher. No groaning of the engine, so I didn't stall or almost stall. I set the fuel back to where it had been to keep the plane level.
He pointed outside and said over the intercom, "That's Brooksville. Let's turn around and go back. Use the compass and turn in a wide bank until you're going in the other direction. We were heading at about 004 degrees, so I banked and ended up trying to get right on a heading of 184 degrees. I had to right the attitude a little to stay at five thousand feet, but I got it right. This would just require practice like anything else.
Back on the ground, we did the checklist and he said to leave the plane out next to the bi-plane so that the fuel truck would know which ones to refuel. When we went inside, Star smilingly asked, "Are you ready to sign up?"
"Sure, why not. I don't want this to go on and on, so I want to try to take lessons and fly as often as possible. I need to plan on that instrument school as soon as I have my regular license."
She went over the costs and said, "If you want to start studying your ground school stuff, we can get you in the class for Saturday and Sunday. If you think you'll be ready, you can test on Sunday."
"Okay, what time tomorrow?"
"Be here no later than nine. The class will be in the operations building. It will not be out until three. If you take the test on Sunday, you'll have two and a half hours to answer sixty questions. They are not hard if you read the material and have a lick of common sense. Here's the binder for the class. Read it through. The instructor is going to be halfway through it already as it usually takes two weekends for ground school. Good luck. If you don't think you're ready Sunday, come to the next two weekends and take the test in two weeks."
I could do this, I know how to study. Walking out of the charter service office, I found Steve waiting by my motorcycle. He said, "Most Fridays, we have a gathering out at the house for people who work at S&S and some of the clothing people. It's a lot of fun. I know for a fact that we are having a larger than average blowout to celebrate some company stuff, so we'll have ribs and chicken, and I'm told even a pig. Bring your lady and those other ladies I was told about. Free beer, free food, lots of good people. The party starts at five and usually lasts till nine or ten or so. What do you say, will you come?"
Bobby shouldn't be hard to convince, and she was the most important. The others may or may not come. I like this guy and his wife, so why not. "Sure, we'll come. Tell me how to get there. You said you lived in a trailer park, right?"
He gave me directions to a trailer park that was pretty near where we were. I thought I would just drive by to check out the place so I'd know where to go. I called Bobby, "We've been invited to a party tonight at the pilot's place near Land of Lakes, or Lutz, actually. I'd like to go. They are going to have food and booze and lots of people. Can you ask the others? If they want to come, good, if not, that's fine too."
Bobby asked what kind of food. I told her, "Barbecue ribs and chicken, and he said they were cooking a pig too."
"I'm in," Bobby said. "I'll call Jan. Marie will follow us anywhere and Wanda will follow you anywhere."
"Then just come home and pick me up. If you guys want to change clothes and get casual, that will give you a chance. Don't dawdle, as Steve says the party starts as soon as people can get there after the bell rings on Fridays."
"We'll try to get out a little early like last week. We've all put in some extra this week so it will be fine. See you soon."
I did ride over toward the trailer park, but turned into the business park next to it because of the big display of fancy trucks and motor homes that were out front. In this economy you wouldn't think the motor home business would be big, but they did have a lot full of big ones that were being worked on. The golf cart place on the other side of the street was something to see. They had every size utility and riding cart you can imagine, even those silly looking three-wheel police carts that meter readers use.
Farther back were big trucks with those new style bodies. There was a tractor there with lots of cartoons all over it. It looked like one of the trucks that were at the car races on TV all the time. Without the trailer, you couldn't tell.
I rode past what a sign said was the S&S Research and Development Center, and on the other side of the road was a strip mall with dozens of small shops. A couple of machine shops, a couple of motorcycle builders' shops, and even a Corvette restoration shop. There was a big school back there that I guess was for trades people. There were another bunch of big buildings surrounding a central building. It was the clothing company. Wow, this place had to have over a thousand employees. I wonder how they are staying in business?
I rode back to an area that was a county park. It was also the home of the little league, soccer teams, and Pop Warner football. The place even had some tennis courts and basketball courts. This was really nice. There was an access into the trailer park that I rode through and recognized a point where I should turn to get to Steve's. As I slowly rode down the street, a golf cart roared up beside me and a big guy asked me to stop a second.
I stopped and he asked me who I was and where I was going. I told him I was looking for Steve's place as he had invited me out for a party tonight. I had been in the business park and rode through the ballparks into the trailer park. He nodded and told me to ride slow as there were a lot of kids around. I rode down the street to find a huge tent in an open area that also had two horseshoe games set up. On one side of this area was a regular trailer house that was probably near seventy feet, but on the other side was some monster manufactured home that looked to be triple wide. The real amazing thing was the patio on the place. It was at least seventy feet long and was every bit of thirty or more feet wide. I could see tables and a big screen TV with several people and a lot of young people in there. That place was big.
I rode back out and stopped at the front gate where the security guard was. I asked if I needed anything special to get back in for the party later. He said no, but I shouldn't carry in the park. I showed him my badge and he nodded, "I guess if you have to have it, carry it."
"I can leave it in the car. That way it won't offend Steve and his family."
"Shit, you won't offend Steve; he'll want to play with it. You'll just have to watch the kids, there are a lot of them."
I rode home, showered, put on clean clothes, and was ready for the ladies to get home.
At four thirty-five, the garage door opened and the Escalade drove in on one side, and the Chrysler 300 drove in on the other. The four ladies breezed by me with a hug and kiss from Bobby, the same from Wanda, a how's it hangin' from Marie, and a sweet smile and a hug from Jan. I was drinking a tall Beefeaters, so I just kept relaxing while the crew changed.
They were ready in no time. Since I was drinking, I had Bobby drive while I navigated. On the way out, I told Bobby about signing up for the pilot's license school and what I would be doing this weekend. I also told her of my flights and the ride through the business park and what I saw in the trailer park. Bobby said, "Sue, the big breasted lady pilot said her place had a big patio where a lot of people came. I wonder if that's what you saw."
Wanda and Jan were teasing Marie about the size of Sue. Marie was fascinated over Betsy's big ones, so they just knew she would be drooling over Sue. Jan said, "You never know, lots of women like other women. She might go both ways, just like us."
Once inside the park we were directed where to go to park. There were cars everywhere and people walking toward the big tented area. When we parked, I pulled my gun off and stuck it in the glove box. The girls all asked, and I suggested leaving their purses in the car. They would be safe and since there were a lot of kids around, it would be a good idea.
As we walked to the party area, we were struck with the sensation of the old time Florida trailer park. The difference though was most of the trailers were very big and all were well kept. The grounds were neat and well cared for, and even the street signposts were freshly painted. The place was very nice.
As we walked up to the open area where the tent was, a young man about ten or eleven asked, "Are you Chuck Johnson, the Deputy Marshal?"
"Yes Sir, I am."
"I'm supposed to take you to my dad as soon as you get here. I've been watching for you."
I could see the resemblance to Steve then. He went into the big patio at the far end, with us following him, and right up to a bar where Steve was standing. "Here he is, Dad, just like you said. He limps a little like you do and he has a giant wife. She's even bigger than Crystal."
Steve ruffled his son's hair and stuck out his hand for me to shake. I introduced the ladies to him as Sue came up next to him. She was wearing a top that didn't magnify her chest, but it did give a mile or so of cleavage. Marie swallowed her tongue and Jan drooled as well. After the second introductions, Steve said, "It'll be too hard to try to introduce you to everyone, so I'll tell you what. When we make our announcements, I'll just introduce you to everyone. If you come back often, you'll get to know everyone. Now, what'll you have to drink?"
When I asked for a tall Beefeaters on the rocks Steve said, "Ah, a man after my heart. The best stuff to start a party with."
I turned around and Sue had spirited all of the women away to meet others. A beauty came up next to Steve and was obviously more than an acquaintance. Steve introduced me to Mercy. She was very gracious and you could feel her, as she looked into you. She seemed extraordinarily perceptive. Another lady came up to Steve and asked him for a mojito. She was an older, very attractive, Spanish lady named Juanita. You could tell Mercy and Steve were special to her by the way she stood next to them. Another lady, possibly older than Steve, came up to him and gave him a very friendly kiss. She was introduced as Kathy. Her dad was at the bar with us, having a beer. The feelings given off by these people put a smile on my face.
Steve's friend, Dewey, was standing with a tall lady that was introduced as his wife, Sheila. "I'd introduce you to my kid, but he's going wild being here with his buddies. They don't get together but a couple times a year."
The security guard was right about the kids. They seemed to be everywhere. There were nearly a dozen kids running around, that sort of all looked alike, and acted as if they were brother and sisters. There were some older, possibly college kids that acted like part of the family too. I couldn't tell who belonged to whom.
I saw a few people that I recognized from Jonah's, and the big security guy that had stopped me today. When a big lady came up to him, I remembered him from Park Place Bar and Billiards. There was a cute redhead with a burly guy that I recognized from the bike shop near here, and from Jonah's. The funny thing was there was another short redhead that looked like the other. I wondered if they were twins. Another guy I saw, I knew worked at the Harley store down on Dale Mabry.
I did go out to the tent with some guys in search of food. We all loaded up big paper plates with lots of food, and went back to where the cool air was being blown around. I wondered how he air-conditioned a screened patio. There were TVs around the patio like a sports bar, with a giant TV near an open sliding door of the main home.
The place was really busy, with traffic in and out of the house constantly. I heard talk of NASCAR stuff, truck sales, even some news about a construction company. One of the guys apparently had just gotten back from Ireland where there was a division of S&S that built material moving equipment, a big name for forklifts. I wondered why they had to build them way over there.
People were gathering inside and all around the patio in anticipation of something. Sue, Mercy, Kathy, and Juanita had come out to join Steve, along with a couple of men that seemed close to Steve as well.
A big, very tall, guy that I had heard a couple of people refer to as Tiny stood up and used a microphone that was connected to speakers both inside and outside the patio.
"Evening, folks, we have some news this evening that will be good for all of us. Before we get to the good stuff, let's do some social things. I see Dewey and family are here to visit. Steve has brought some new people into our clutches. I'll let him introduce them. Here, Steve."
Bobby, Wanda, Jan, and Marie magically appeared at my side.
Steve took the mike and said, "We recently picked up a new client at the air charter service that has been using us a lot. The man must be important, since he asks us to fly him somewhere, and asks if we can we leave in an hour or less. You know what this means, the only ones usually available are Sue and I. You know we were gone for a couple of days this past week; well, this guy's the culprit. The man of the group is Chuck Johnson. You best be on your good behavior as he is some kind of big shot as a Deputy U.S. Marshal. Say hi to Chuck."
There was a lot of applauding along with some whistles and hollering. These folks know how to have a good time.
"I can't hardly remember my kids names, so I'm going to let Chuck introduce the harem he's brought with him. I know you're all dyin' to find out the name of this gorgeous creature that makes Crystal look small. Here, Chuck, tell them who you brought with you."
With a smile I said, "This wonderful lady that has a heart as big as she is, is Bobby. Her real name is Roberta but she'll hurt you big time if you call her that. Trust me, she can hurt you. Bobby is the local Station Chief for the U.S. Marshals Service, so she is also a Deputy U.S. Marshal."
"This lady right here is also a Deputy Marshal, but works in the office as my office manager. Wanda recently moved here from Buffalo, New York. I'm sure you feel as I do, it was to our benefit."
"This smaller critter is Marie Antoinette. The name is bigger than she is, but I'm sure you will agree, her name is beautifully melodic. She too is a Deputy and works for Bobby as the chief clerk in her station."
"My special friend here is Jan. Look out now, as she is a Senior Agent and Assistant Bureau Chief with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Jan is not only second in command here in Tampa, but she is also the winner of the all-services pistol competitions for the last two years."
"That's my family or my group of friends. Some of you know Bobby's sister Millie from Jonah's, so you know her roots. Thank you for inviting us."
I gave the mike back to Steve. "Nice harem, ah, I mean family, isn't it?"
Lots of applause, hoots, and hollering.
"Okay, I'll tell you the news, then let Tiny tell you what it means. This week we received the sole rights to our patents that will allow us to build and sell three of our lifts in the United States without infringing on anyone else's patents. We have moved to use the new building in St. Louis that we were setting up as a service center, but it will now be the manufacturing facility for these new products. If all goes well, we should roll the first of our lifts off the line in ninety days."
Steve turned to Tiny and said, "Now tell 'em what this means."
Tiny said, "This means a lot to us right now as our sales of used equipment is down quite a bit, along with repair orders. The big lift repair orders are still coming in, but have slacked off a little. We are able to shift people from here to St. Louis to make our new products there. All of you men who are moving will be the team leaders there. You will teach our perfect attitude and make sure our plant is way up there in productivity."
"So far, we have not laid off the first person in our S&S Enterprises. Construction is tight, and we're still building the condos and apartments down across from Park Place. They are also still building the new plant for Quality clothing. Hopefully, we can get some more projects going for the men."
"To let you know about our 401Ks. We have a broker that plays in commodities instead of just stocks. We didn't sell all of our portfolios because the market has always recovered and rewarded those people who stayed. I believe that, but we've used our extra money to deal in commodities, such as gold, silver, and platinum. Of course corn, wheat, and beans are doing well too. Our 401K manager is still doing a great job."
"Since we announced a special package for those who want to retire early, we've had a whopping three people take me up on it. You guys are bad because everyone wants to work through this. Oh yeah, the three people who have retired were already getting Social Security for a long time. If any of you older folks decide you want to retire, let us know and we'll make you a deal you can't refuse."
"Summer's coming and you know what that means, everyone is going to want fishing trips, vacations at our special places, and trips to Hawaii. Right now, the fishing charters are booked for the entire summer. The sailboats are booked, but we're afraid to buy more as the bookings could always drop out. So, those who want to plan special vacations, start now. The company is suggesting driving vacations this year to go see the U.S. and all its glory."
"I'm giving the mike back to Steve as he wants to announce his vacation plans for this year."
Steve took the mike and said, "Will all, and I mean all, my kids come here a minute. You'll want to hear this."
A hundred or so kids came from every direction. There were some that were only about seven or eight, to kids that looked as if they were out of college. There wasn't a hundred, but there was a bunch. It looked like close to fifteen, I think. Shoot, this guy is prolific.
"Mercy and Sue have convinced me. We are not going to sail the Caribbean again. We are not going to sail to Europe. We are going to take the big boat, go through the Panama Canal, sail up the west coast all the way to Alaska, from there to Hawaii, over to Japan, then down to the Philippines, and finally make the long trek back to the Canal and home. The trip from Seattle until we get back to California will be with at least one other boat, piloted by my friend, Dewey. We might be able to get two more boats and families to go with us. We are planning on leaving the first day school is out and hopefully be back the week before school starts back. If we don't make it back in time, then you kids might have to be home schooled this year. We'll work it out. I wanted to sail through the area with the pirates, but my ladies have told me that I didn't need the excitement in my life. Real spoilsports, aren't they? I think we could have made believers out of them though."
"As it is, just getting to Panama can be dangerous enough, and on the other side, it can get real hairy with the drug guys that are out there. I guess you've noticed the extra time the ladies and older kids have been spending at the range. I think we'll be fine. I know you all will miss us, but we'll be back soon and you'll wonder where your peace and quiet went."
Steve gave the mike back to Tiny. "Okay, now that you know what your founder and fearless leader is doing for the summer, make your plans so we can create schedules so everyone gets a break."
Holy smokes, Steve and Sue. They must be S&S. These people are mega millionaires. They're not Bill Gates, but way up there. All that and they fly me around the country and live in a trailer park. Man, what a story this would be. Someone should write it.
My group had partially dispersed. Wanda had met some people she was enjoying. Jan and Marie were talking to some girls at a table with lots of beer steins. My Bobby was right there with me. She whispered to me, "Steve and Sue are S&S. I can't wait to look up Steve Sharp. I'll bet there are some good files on him."
The big security guard with the big girl friend came up to us, and he stuck out his hand and said, "My friends call me Bear. I noticed your tat earlier today and didn't have time to say anything. Not many have that one. Semper Fi."
"Ooorah. I think the total in all the years is less than a hundred and fifty."
He said, "It's a pretty damn elite group. Is that how you got hurt?"
I nodded.
"How bad?"
"Lost a leg to an RPG."
"Tough."
"They gave me a new one. I'm fine."
"Steve was in Desert Storm and was hurt. That's why he limps."
"I'll have to give him the greeting then. It's always good to meet more men among men. It's good to meet all of you."
Crystal said looking at Bobby, "You can say that again. I'm glad to know you, Bobby, I don't feel so damned big when you're around. Christ, you're big. You look fit too, like you work out."
I answered for her, "She does, every day. She near kills me, keeping me in the gym."
Bobby chuckled and said, "Sure I do. The runt drives me until I can hardly breathe. He nearly drowns me in the pool."
Bear offered, "We'll have to get together for a ride. I'll take you around the area, show you off or hide you, one or the other."
"Sounds good, Bear, I'll look forward to it."
It was getting past nine, so I suggested to Bobby, "Why don't we gather our group and let them know we are going to leave? They can stay or go, either way. Jan and Marie kind of look like they may have met new friends, and Wanda is hanging out with another couple."
Bobby made the rounds and our three ladies were all coming home with us. They had made new friends, but wanted the security of home. It took a long while just to say goodbye to our host and his women. There was constantly a kid in the way. It was fun to be around these people.
As Mercy gave me a hug, she kissed me and smiled ever so gently. My head was filled with her picture, and it was as if I heard her voice. It was weird, but she was definitely talking to me. She kept saying to me in my head, "We want you to come back, we like you, we want you." Strange.
We left the huge patio and the crazy party with a box of ribs and chicken wings. If I drank another beer, I could float home instead of riding in a car. Jan and Marie were excited about the new friends they had met. Wanda had a pleasant smile that reflected her good mood as well.
At home we snacked on some wings and more beer. When we finally got our teeth cleaned, we fell into bed, sleeping almost immediately.
Primary editing by Pepere
Proofing by Sagacious