Steve
I was up early, as usual, sitting in the parlor on one of the fixed stools at the bar in the suite. You know how it is; waiting for coffee to brew can seem like an eternity when you don't want to sit there and wait. There was no place else to go and nothing else to do. If I went out to the patio, I would just have to come back in. If I went back into the room, I would probably disturb someone.
Wonder why I can never sleep late? Only on rare occasions can I sleep until seven or eight. On vacation, away from all the responsibilities, it should be easier, but it's not. I always seem to wake up just before six in any time zone.
Ah, the coffee was done. Time for a few minutes out on the patio enjoying the sunrise.
Outside, sitting on the hotel's patio, I watched as seagulls investigated any possible scrap that was left lying around. There was a pelican standing on one leg on a piling near the outer edge of the docks. Looking out at the amazing display of huge yachts docked at the marina, I wondered just how many billions this display represented. Speaking of billions, Ben is still going gaga over the Mexican oil deal. Apparently his people have closed the deal and all he's waiting on is the transfer of funds. Ben has even told Sue that she was not only the daughter of a new billionaire, but she was even wealthier than her dad.
Sue wasn't impressed. I wonder if we're becoming jaded because we have so much. We really don't live like it on a day to day basis. I laughed at myself when I thought of how we can get into a private jet and go just about anywhere, and just like right now, sail on a multi-million dollar yacht to Europe. Yeah, we are real common folk. I really hope the kids continue to be just kids and not a bunch of stuck up, rude group of people who expect the world to wait on them.
The kids all have chores at home, and they all are expected to study hard. Their moms are no pushovers when it comes to their home schooling. That was something to think about, as what we had wasn't really home schooling. The moms and grandmothers help with the schooling, but the fact that we had a couple of professional educators would make us a school, more than home schooling. So far the county hasn't bitched, but our group is quiet about the way they do things. It's too bad the regular schools were not better, since it would be good for the kids to mix with others.
I suppose they did mix with a variety of nationalities and of various skin colors. A trailer park is a good place to find a variety, even if most of the residents work at S&S or Quality Wear. The kids don't see skin color and have no problem with the Latin kids. Heck, they speak Spanish as if it was their native language. Juanita has seen to that. The only time there is a problem is when an older kid moves in and tries to be a bully. It just doesn't work to try to intimidate a bunch of close knit kids that look out for each other. It also doesn't hurt that the kids have martial arts training at least three times a week. It's fun to watch them spar with each other, complete with the formal bows before and after a session. They really do respect each other.
Then there is the music. That really started on our first big sailing trip up to Alaska and Hawaii. Chuck introduced the kids to something that will stay with them forever. He also discovered some very unique talent, not only in my bunch, but in Dewey's and the Irish kids. Who knows, perhaps they would have discovered music on their own, but Chuck really brought it out.
I'm so proud of Bonita. She not only has learned and is a child prodigy; she is an avid teacher to every kid who will pause long enough for her to show them how to play something. She has all the kids enjoying making music. I wonder how that will work out in her life? And now the kids are all going to play during a real concert.
But Chuck is the one who started it all. I am always in awe of the way Chuck becomes a Pied Piper with the kids, leading them into new areas of music. Lisa is doing it too, in her loving, unselfish way. The two are really meant to be a pair.
It's funny; Chuck has ended up with a lot of women, but in reality he and Lisa are the head of the group, like Sue and I are of ours. His original five from way back in his employment office days are about as strange a group as you could find anywhere. Next, you think of his little, I suppose, Mexican sweetheart, who is a younger twin to Juanita. Maybe she's really Cuban and not Mexican. I'll have to find out.
And where in the world did those Asian sisters come from. When I first met them, they were trying to be invisible, but as time has passed they are now significant entities in Chuck's family. That is a very strange group. What's even crazier is him having someone of Julie's age becoming an intimate participant within his family. That woman is old enough to be my mother, much less Chuck's. Julie is amazing though, as she continues to act younger almost everyday, kind of like my Juanita.
And now we're both in a peculiar mess. He has Gina and I have Gio. What to do, what to do? Gio is so loving to the girls, I just can't hurt her by sending her away. Her two kids come to me for attention even more than my own. My own kids have always had all the love and care any kid could ever have, but all four of those kids are starved for male attention, and they just love the way the older women act as grandmothers to them. It's a shame the two women couldn't or can't remain with their families. Those kids would really love to know their real grandparents more.
Chuck was telling me that it looked as if Gina was becoming a part of his huge growing group. Even Tina fell in love with the Italian beauty. Of course, the little lezzy is equally infatuated with Gio. I wonder if they have gotten together. Probably not, as Mickey, Sue, and Mercy have kept Gio busy.
Ah yes, my Mickey. She may be small, but she is a package of dynamite. She can run, or should I say lick, her way through my original four faster than a speeding bullet. I have to laugh at how wild all the girls get when Mickey gets in one of her marathon pussy eating phases. Funny though, she'll satisfy that itch then be under me, seeming to enjoy being made love to by me, as much as she is attracted to women. Are men really supposed to understand women?
Who's to understand Sue? She hunted me down, a real predator. Of course, Mercy was about the same with her psychic connections. Today, after all these years, remembering our first meeting, and how Sue and Mercy latched onto each other, is still amazing.
The two became a force, a force that attracted Juanita. Juanita is my beautiful, mature Latin lady, so loving, so caring, and another force to be dealt with, right along with Kathy, the one who was really my first love. She is so damned independent, even today, after all these years. All of her kids are wonders. All of them are special people, even Barb, the strange little girl that really is becoming a woman, a very volatile woman. I see her finding some guy in the future, and cranking out babies on an annual basis, just like her mother. She's ready for college, but she hasn't acted like she really wants to go. Should I force her? I don't think so, as it has to be something she wants. We'll see when we get home. She's been doing a lot of deep thinking lately. I think she's reaching some decisions about where she's headed in life.
Contemplating my family makes me smile. The kids are my wealth. They make me happy every day. Of course, their mothers make me really happy every day.
I need some more coffee.
Dewey is in the parlor watching T.V. I wonder why he was so nervous last night? Something happened when he and Chuck went off. Hope he talks about it if he needs to get it off his chest.
"Morning, Dewey, I'm going to pour some more coffee, do you want some? Go out onto the patio and I'll bring it to you. Enjoy the morning air with me."
"Good Idea, Steve. I was about to fix my favorite morning kicker, but coffee might be better for me."
I brought Dewey some coffee, and also brought Peg Leg Pete out with me. Chuck came in and began pouring coffee while I was sending Dewey out.
As soon as Chuck and I sat down, Chuck asked Dewey, "You doing alright? I know that was a bit of a shocking experience for you, and it isn't a bad thing if you have to talk about it."
Dewey looked back and forth between Chuck and me. "Chuck, is it all right to talk about what happened with Steve?"
"Perfectly all right, Dewey. Steve is a best and most trusted friend to both of us, just like you have become another of my favorite people."
Dewey looked down at his coffee and back up at me, "You won't believe what happened last night. I still don't believe it. I could hardly believe it was happening then, and thinking about it now, I can't believe it ever happened."
I didn't say anything, as I could see Dewey was trying to work whatever happened out in his mind.
"Steve, I was astonished when that guy began becoming an ass out on the casino floor, about as floored as I was that a croupier was shorting customers five thousand Euros every time they won big and the numbers allowed the guy to short the player a five thousand chip. That just isn't done. I wonder how long that has been going on?"
It took Dewey a second to regroup. "I sensed there was something wrong when the partners I had called had us all go upstairs to their offices, discipline problems are handled in the executive casino office on the main floor."
Dewey was shaking his head, "Steve, it happened so fast my head is still spinning. As soon as we entered the office, that huge man pulled a gun on us, or I should say he began, or tried, to pull a gun on us. Chuck almost cut his head off with some kind of judo or karate chop to his throat. Chuck actually handed me the guy's huge revolver to hold. You know me and guns, I just don't know enough about them to be of much use. While he was helping the guy get his breath and stand him up, the senior partner actually pulled a gun and was pointing it at us."
You could see and sense the horror Dewey felt. "I don't know how he did it, but Chuck somehow had a gun and shot the partner in the arm. The partner's gun went flying. Chuck actually shot the guy by sticking his gun under the big guy's armpit. Chuck was telling the other two partners to pull their guns out slowly, carefully, and put them on the desk, when I'm not sure why, but Chuck pushed the big guy away from him, making the guy fall. That's when another partner tried to use his gun and Chuck shot him. I mean he shot him right through the head. Blood and brains were everywhere. The last of the three looked like he was going to have a heart attack. I'm surprised he didn't, as Chuck said he's had some health issues. I have to tell you, I puked everything I had into a waste basket.
"Chuck didn't waste any time getting all of the guns over in a corner of the office while watching the big guy, the partner he had shot in the arm, and the one who was about to croak. I was in a panic and immediately called the other four partners to tell them about the three and that they must have intended to kill me, and probably Chuck too.
"Chuck called someone and before I had finished my calls, a couple of his security people came charging through the door. Again, almost as fast, a big group of people came in, cleaned up the office, packed the body in a bag, dumped it in a big laundry cart, put the two partners in wheelchairs, and left with the big guy. I think they might have done something to the big guy out in the hall, because I heard a thumping noise and a groan.
"Steve, those men asked me, I mean they really asked me, if I cared what happened to the partners and the big pit boss. It sounded as if they were just going to take them and execute them. I can't have that on my conscience, even if they might have tried to kill me. I felt bad the one partner was killed and another was shot, but to just kill those other three wouldn't have been right. The head security guy got me off to the side and assured me he was just going to take them somewhere. He said he was going to relocate them to where they wouldn't or couldn't be a threat to anyone.
"I have to tell you, Steve, that was scarier than the incident in Hawaii. Last night those men had guns and it appeared like they were going to use them."
Dewey was winding down, "Anyway, when all the strange security men were gone, we looked through everything in the office. We found a second set of books, just like we thought we would. When we began looking for where they might possibly be keeping the money they stole, as all three of those partners or now ex-partners are or were multi-millionaires, Chuck suggested the partners probably converted what they stole into gold. Well, the logical place to keep that much gold would be the main vault behind the cashier's area. Sure enough, we found a big safe full of gold bars. I don't know what those guys were thinking. They didn't need the extra money; they already had more than they could ever spend."
Dewey looked happy to have unloaded to me "Anyway, Steve, that's what happened last night and I have to tell you, I'm still terrified about it."
I told my old friend, "That's normal, Dewey. When you have a stressful encounter like that, the feelings you have at the time linger, sometimes for a long time, until you can resolve it in your mind. That's what the military docs call PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."
Dewey said, "I can believe it. How did you two go through something like that almost every day? I can't believe you two are even sane."
"Sane is a flexible concept. What happened to you was bad luck, and you're doing the absolute best thing for yourself by talking about it now, before it turns into a lump in your stomach you can't get rid of. A soldier or Marine has to be able to get up and do the same thing day after day for months, and the only way they can do that is by being at least a little crazy the whole time they're doing it. Think about a cop who shoots someone. No matter how justifiable it is, that cop gets put on a desk and has his gun taken away until he has gone through psychological counseling and evaluation. Doing that would obviously destroy an army, so the therapy needs to come at the end of a tour of duty. The sad part is that so many soldiers never get it, and keep the trauma bottled up for years, taking it out on family and friends. This 'combat psychosis' is necessary to function as a soldier, but it hurts functioning as a civilian. It's why so few veterans are ever willing to talk about their combat experiences. They may want to, but can't. You just did, and it's a good thing."
Our talk had taken a long time. The rest of the family must have sensed the three of us were talking about something private, since no one came out on the patio with us. I looked back at the room and saw a bunch of kids' faces pressed against the glass door. I suppose they wanted the day to start.
As Dewey stood, he said, "I'm going to have a busy couple of days straightening out this mess. I need to get going. Thanks for listening to me guys; I just don't go through something like that often. What am I saying? I've never gone through anything like that."
As soon as we entered the parlor, the kids were asking for breakfast. Sheila and Sheena gave us a look of 'where have you been.' Sue was at the bar counter and said, "I've ordered breakfast. It should be here any minute." Mercy and Kathy passed me and gave me a kiss on the way by. Juanita sort of slithered up to me and asked, "How are you this morning, Maestro?"
What's with the Spanish? Two could play this game, "Cómo sean usted esta manana, mi senora especial?" ((How are you this morning, my special lady?)
Juanita grinned at me and slapped my shoulder, "You make fun of me. I call you my master and you do what?"
"I asked my special lady how she was this morning."
"You don't speak Spanish often, why now?" Juanita asked, in a sincere way.
"You surprised me, mi senora especial, and I needed to surprise you too."
Juanita hugged me before going on to do what she had been intending to do.
Almost as soon as we had eaten breakfast, the kids took off what clothes they had on, wanting to go out to the beach. Mercy told them, "We're going to a special beach this morning. You don't wear clothes there either, but you need to wear clothes to get there. Put on shorts, T-shirts, and some flip-flops. We'll get ready to go early."
All of the kids, including Dewey's, Gio's, and Gina's ran for the rooms and reappeared wearing the appropriate clothes. I heard Greg and Stevie joking about how smart they were to not bother with underwear. It was one less thing to try to keep track of.
The band folks came to our suite, along with the large contingency from the Bell. Mac was still bragging about his ability to contain his gambling craze, while Mike smiled while thinking of how much money he made following Chuck's bets.
Dewey dressed in a business suit, kissed and hugged his family, and left. He told me quietly when he was on the way out the door, "Thanks for listening to me and letting me talk it out. Now I won't be tempted to tell the real story to the other partners."
Our huge group, led by Ed, loaded up on buses he had reserved and left for the private club in Monaco. I wondered if we would go back to the casinos tonight. I didn't get a chance to do very much. Our evening was cut short almost as soon as Chuck began winning. He seemed to be as gifted as Missy in anticipating the outcome of the games. It's funny how he very seldom appears to use his gift, while Mercy and Missy bang around in my head all the time, talking to me. I suppose that is pretty intimate and most guys are not like that.
The private beach club in Monaco was just opening. I suppose that since they catered mostly to the rich and famous, most of those people didn't get up early in the morning.
The kids were immediately playing at the water's edge, with mothers following them around, spraying them with sunblock. The kids just didn't want to take the time for stuff like that. Several ladies were now on loungers under big umbrellas, sipping summer drinks that were brought by the waiters and waitresses of the big hotel/resort. Since this was another of Dewey's investments, he had alerted people to be on the lookout for us and to treat us as royalty.
At lunch time, we went into a special dining room that accommodated the nude people from the beach. All of the chairs had towels on the seats with another towel on the back of the chair for the customers to use. After a leisurely lunch, the ladies wanted to go shopping in the designer shops at and near the resort. The kids were ready for a change of pace as well, and wanted to follow along.
After dressing, we wandered from shop to shop, but were all surprised as most of the shoppers were nude. It's funny to see nude women wearing thong footwear, carrying a big purse, and shopping for clothes. The picture it made was near humorous.
As three o'clock rolled around, Ed took us back to the resort in Nice. After showers for everyone, the kids wanted to go down to the boat to wait for Chuck, Lisa, and the band for their practice session.
Chuck
The conversation with Dewey went well this morning. He seemed to be able to get everything off his chest and resolve what had happened in his head. I think he probably came to the conclusion that his former partners' relocation was going to be permanent, somewhere far away, and probably not very pleasant.
When the rest of the family took off for the Monaco beaches, the band group, Lisa, and I went to the boat for our instruments. Since we only had our personal cases, we carried them ourselves instead of having a valet help us. The agent had hired a mini-bus again to transport us to the rented practice studio. If it had not been so much of a hassle, we could have practiced on the boat. There would have been plenty of room, private, and comfortable. Carlos even said it was too bad we couldn't set up on the boat.
The roadies had completed the hard job of moving instruments and setting up for us with good practice amps, so there was very little messing around.
Kenny wanted to go through the show as we had performed it on Sunday, just to get a feel for what we were doing. He cut us off during several pieces as he felt we were doing those as well as possible. When we were through, he handed out new scores for a couple of pieces he wanted to substitute in the program. This time, he had Carlos work the controller for the synthesizer. The idea was for Carlos to attempt to do blues fills that sounded like a brass backup.
It took several tries before everything was beginning to come together. When it was lunch time and we were treated to sandwiches and soft drinks by the agent. After lunch, we worked hard on the two pieces until Jack was nodding and saying, "That's studio quality, Guys. That's why all the extra pickups. Good job."
Since we had to take our instruments back to the boat in order to practice with the kids, we loaded up a little early and rode back to the resort and yacht club. We could hear the kids practicing the pieces of the set before we even reached the walkway to the boat. They actually sounded pretty good. Kenny stopped us and asked, "Listen to them and help me identify any adjustments we need to make. I think we could turn down the pickups on the acoustics a little, but crank up the harmonica. Jack, do you think you can make that Yamaha keyboard do the synthesizer brass we were doing?"
Jack said he should be able to do it and said he had brought all of the scores with him. The man was a multi-tasking genius to be able to operate the controller, as well as do fill-ins as background.
Inside the salon, the kids were excited that we had kept our promise to practice with them. Kenny, Dan, and Jack moved some microphones around and worked with the Yamaha keyboard and controller. Lisa and I went down to the big lounge next to the galley and brought up one of the Roland keyboards in order to have both the Yamaha with the synthesizer voices, as well as the Roland for piano. Kenny asked, "Didn't I see another Roland down there too? How about getting that so we can add some B-3 to this piece? Roland has a great B-3 voice and Carolyn can play it."
The music area of the salon was getting crowded with three keyboards. I didn't notice, but Bonita was with Jack and Carlos at the Yamaha keyboard, showing him how to set up the stops for the brass voices. She was explaining how you added additional trumpets by pushing the doubler button beneath the instrument.
Kenny asked me, "Do you think that little girl could do the synthesizer? We could really use Carlos on percussion on this piece, and Jack needs to be able to work the console and sound. Want to try her?"
I smiled, as Bonita would probably excel at what we wanted if she understood the concept and what we wanted. After waving Carlos and Jack away, I asked Lisa, "Do the general melody for me while I show Bonita what I want."
Bonita said, "I think I know what you want, I need one of those scores so I know where the backup brass needs to be added."
I asked her, "Have you listened to a lot of blues with brass?"
"Lots and lots, Chuck, I listen to Pop and Rags whenever they will let me. Momma lets me go to your studio to listen to them all the time."
"Okay," I said, almost disbelieving the little girl could be that perceptive. "We'll do this one from the top with all of us and see how it works." I turned to Jack, "How about one of those scores for our mistress of music over here."
Lisa smiled at me and said, "What did you say? What did you call Bonita?"
I laughed, "Mistress of music, why?"
Lisa was laughing too now, "That's perfect, from now on we'll just call her Bonita, Mistress of Music."
Kenny said, "Let's not get too far ahead. Let's play it through to see how she does."
The instrumental sounded better than it ever had with Bonita inserting the backup brass exactly where it needed to be, plus she added some brass progressions that were better than I expected. When we were finished, Jack said, "That was perfect. She was hitting the breaks perfectly. Did you hear Liz with her harmonica filling in with the same breaks? That sounded great."
Kenny said, "Guess we need to make sure we have enough keyboards on stage with us." He turned to Carolyn and said, "You did great on the organ voice. That was perfect and gave good background for the brass."
Carolyn said, "I like playing with the Lucky Lady Blues Band, especially when I get to play with the Mistress of Music."
Now Bonita was even getting embarrassed.
Kenny asked Bonita, "Did you hear anything that we need to change? Are the acoustic guitars giving the right background? Are they too loud or too soft? Let me know so we can fix it."
Bonita said, "No, the guitar group is doing what they are supposed to do. The four new players are playing straight rhythm chords and the rest are in two separate harmony groups. Their rhythm chords sound perfect, especially with Carolyn helping now."
Kenny said, "Okay, we have the two strong instrumentals, Pop's piece with all the vocals, and the ballad with the violins. That will be the set. You guys might need an encore, what do you think?"
As she got up from the Yamaha keyboard and picked up her junior SG, Bonita said, "I think we might have something that would be fun." She waved at two of the boys to go to the drums and bass.
Bonita counted down and the whole group of kids went into one of the band's signature instrumentals that the band did not include in the show. It sounded terrific and fit the bill if they needed an encore. Kenny just stood in front of them with his mouth open. Jack was busy working the console to get it all on disc. When it was over, Kenny asked, "When did you learn that?"
Bonita said, "On the way over here, we played a lot of your stuff and this one was fun so whenever Chuck and Lisa couldn't practice with us or teach us, we practiced this one. Was it really okay?"
Fred said, "More than okay, Kid. You played my part perfectly. I can't believe how good that piece sounds with the acoustic wall of sound you create."
All of the kids were elated and didn't want to stop, but Lisa and I convinced them that they were hungry along with the rest of us. We put our instruments away and locked up before heading back to the hotel suites.
The families were waiting for us to finish practice so we could go eat. The plan for tonight was to go to Cannes and spend an evening trying to enjoy the casinos there. Dewey was back from his day with the partners trying to discover what had been going on. He seemed to be in a great mood and was ready for an evening of fun and frolic.
After we ate in the hotel restaurant, the kids were once again assembled in our suite to spend the evening, this time with the pregnant women from the Irish Bell, Glenda, and Martin. The rest of us dressed up in our evening clothes, ready to hobnob with the elite. The women were all decked out in new gowns, including my pregnant ladies. I had given my American Express debit card to Brandy and told her to shop and buy anything they wanted. Brandy told me a little sheepishly, "I kept thinking your debit card was going to run out of money, but it didn't. Thanks Chuck for letting us go on a real shopping spree. We'll trade around the dresses when we're pregnant. That way we'll get double duty from the clothes."
The trip to Cannes was about an hour and was really very comfortable in the air conditioned bus. Everyone was served some white wine that Ed said was non-alcoholic. He tried to explain to us that this was the first squeezing of the grapes and was not fermented yet, so it had no alcohol. I don't know enough about wine to know what it's called. Finally Ed explained that it was really just unsweetened grape juice with a wine flavor.
At the first Casino in Cannes, not one of Dewey's, he told us to be gentle with them as he didn't want them to think he was bringing professionals in to bankrupt them. Lisa and the band group went with me as I played some craps on the cheap tables, followed by some real low dollar betting on the roulette game. By the time we left to go to another casino, we were causing a stir as we were winning a great deal of money. On the way to the bus, I found out Steve and Mercy had been doing the same and had won big. Missy had made a lot of believers playing cards, so with smiles, it was time we all went to the next place.
When we entered Dewey's casino resort, the personnel treated Dewey like a king. He turned and told us, "The employees are required to recognize a partner whenever they come into the establishment. That's why I had such a difficult time last night."
Dewey got me off to the side and said, "Don't clean us out, but work your way to the high stakes roulette and craps table to see if the croupiers are paying the correct amount, not shorting the customer the last five thousand Euros. Check both the craps and roulette; we found some big irregularities on the craps tables at the casino we had the trouble in last night."
Lisa and I, with a following, were working our way from the low stakes tables up to the high stakes area. This one had a pit area where millions and millions of Euros were being lost with the turn of a card or roll of the dice. I asked the others to stay out of the high stakes area and just watch, promising them more winnings when we were through.
We bet the same as last night and ended up with the same thirty-five to one on 875,000 Euros. The croupier happily paid out chips worth thirty million, six hundred, and twenty-five thousand Euros. This made me real happy and tossed the croupier the five thousand Euro chip he had included. The man happily traded out our roulette chips for regular casino chips. At the craps table, it took a while to get an odd win. I had to bet just about every combination there was to get a big win with an odd five thousand at the end. Once again, we were given the correct payout. I gave that croupier the same tip, but had to almost beg to leave the table as other players were betting with me trying to ride my lucky streak.
We spent the rest of the evening playing some low stakes tables. I did everything I could to lose a lot of money back to the casino, but Dewey kept after me to just win as much as I could so people wouldn't think we only won at competitors' casinos. As we cashed out our chips, there was a big enclosed container for the New Zealand earthquake victims. Without hesitation, I dumped ten million in chips into the container. The cashier saw me drop the chips in there and said, "That is a wonderful gift for those people. I'm going to tell everyone that it was Mr. Dewey's friend who made the donation."
As we were on our way out of the casino, there were slot machines that took regular coins. I had several one and two Euro coins, so I handed them out to those around me and said, "Let's all play these one last time."
Frieda hit a jackpot for a hundred Euros. Brandy and Tiani each won a hundred. The only person that didn't win anything was Ed, as he didn't put the two Euro coin into the machine, but pocketed it instead. I was really laughing as it was destiny. I gave away ten million and was getting it all back. We were almost at the door when I handed a two Euro coin to Sue, Mercy, Lisa, and Gina. We all put our coins in machines right at the door, machines notorious for only paying out small pots. The world came to an end, Bells, sirens, horns, and whistles began going off, along with enough flashing lights you would have thought the cops had showed up.
Dewey was standing near me, shaking his head. I looked around and each of us had hit a big jackpot. We had to go through the whole cashier thing again, getting debit cards for big amounts. The girls had all won a million Euros and I had the ten million back. The cashier even said, "See? One good turn deserves another." I asked for two five million cards and dropped one into the New Zealand container.
This time, I didn't attempt to put any money into any machine and went straight to the bus. Ed had finally decided to try his luck and won a paltry one hundred Euros. He was happy though as he said, "This is the first time I've ever left a casino with money."
Back at the hotel, we gathered in our suite where the kids were piled up on couches and blankets after having a good time together. There were remnants of a popcorn feast and several empty juice bottles. Bonita had fallen asleep with her acoustic guitar in her arms. Lisa carefully removed it and put it next to her so it wouldn't get damaged.
We were just about to call it a night when there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find a security man with Giovanni Martinelli standing there. Giovanni asked, "Can I see my daughters and grandchildren a minute? Then I want you and Mr. Sharp to visit with me for a few minutes. Per piacere – please."
Gio and Gina saw their dad and went running to give him a hug. Giovanni walked to where each of his grandkids was and gazed down at them. You could tell the man loved his family in a great and gentle way. He said something to the girls and motioned for Steve and me to go with him.
We went to the resort's smaller, more intimate lounge. The only thing happening were gamblers coming in for a nightcap and to listen to a pianist playing popular ballads. When we were seated with drinks in front of us, Giovanni said to Steve, "Will you take my Gio as your own? Will you take my two grandchildren as your own too? I know you well now, Steve Sharp, and I know you are a good man. Both of you are strange men with many women, but you seem to make it work. I don't understand why you live in an American trailer park, but you do it because you want to. I can't argue with that if it brings you happiness. Will you take and keep my Gio and her kids?"
Steve began, "Mr. Martinelli."
Giovanni stopped him, "My name to you is Giovanni or Gio. You will call me by that name."
I guess Steve was told.
Steve began again, "Ah, Giovanni, we have just begun to investigate what it will require to get permanent visas for the two families to immigrate with us. My wife, Sue, says she has some of the best immigration attorneys that are working on it."
Giovanni said, "I know. I know you have begun. That is why we are talking. I want this for my Gio and her children. They will have a happy life with you in America. You treat people good, you love your children, and you respect your women. You will be a good man for my Gio and grandchildren."
Giovanni sat back, "I have had my people talk to the Italian immigration people. They will have conversations with the American people within the same department. By the time you reach America, all will be ready for my two girls and their kids to become your responsibility for as long as you will keep them. I ask you but one thing, if you decide not to keep my Gio and my grandchildren, please call me first, so I can personally come to get them. Will you do that?"
Steve looked at the man with a steady gaze, "Yes, I will do that. Giovanni, if you know me, then you know when I make up my mind, I am a man who keeps his word and keeps his family together. Something I think Chuck and I both want is for you to come to visit often. We haven't heard much of the ladies' mother, but she should come as well."
Giovanni had a very sad look on his face, "When the girls were very small, a man attacked me in a restaurant similar to where we are right now. There was a lot of shooting. Thankfully, the girls were spared and I was only slightly wounded, but their mother, my only wife, died in my arms. The family that took her from me is still paying."
He paused and said, "Yes, I will visit often if I am welcome. I made a promise to Chuck that I would not do business in his area so he wouldn't be tempted to bring me in on charges. You and I can have a similar deal, Mr. Sharp."
Steve grinned and said, "I'm Steve, Giovanni."
The man smiled at Steve's correction. You could tell Giovanni was happy and relaxed. He told me, "I see you in the casino winning much money. You must tell me how you do that one day. To know that my Gina will go to a man with that kind of luck is a good thing."
"Chuck, you and I have already made our pact. I felt then and more now that you will not only keep my Gina, but love my grandchildren and bring many more into this world for me to love. I am looking for Gina's husband to find him and bring her a divorce. I will get it done."
Steve offered, "You should stay here in Nice with us so you can visit with your grandchildren and see them perform in the concert on Friday night. They are learning to play the guitar very fast."
Giovanni smiled, but was a little sad, "I cannot stay. There are many who need my direction right now. Europe is very unsettled with those crazy people from the east. My people must watch for them as they travel. But I thank you for asking and appreciate that you are making me welcome to visit."
Giovanni stood and a man came up to stand beside him. We shook hands all around and watched him leave. Steve sat back down and waved at the waiter. We both wanted another scotch to sip while we contemplated what the man had said.
Steve looked at me, "What do you think? I think the man is sincere and really looks at us as being good for his daughters. He seems to trust you implicitly and feels you are going to keep Gina and the kids. I suppose I am too now, but I'm like you, too many women."
I told Steve, "We are both a little nuts to let our relationships get so far out of hand. I can tell you though; I am definitely going to limit any more women coming into the house. No more, period."
Steve laughed as he finished his drink. "Come on, let's go to bed. I'm tired and know I'll have to explain everything we have just discussed."
We did go to bed, but I didn't have to explain anything. All of the girls were groggy and sleepy. I snuggled up on the outside of Gina and went to sleep.
Primary Editing by Pepere
Proofing and Continuity by Sagacious
European tours, by Rotorhead
Another set of eyes – Knight6
Last one through - Deenara2000