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Life's Illusions - Book Five - Chapter 25
Milo had left Vinny with those words ringing in his head.
'I'm not needed, I'm a liability'.
He'd packed a bag and called Sam to take him to the airport.
Whilst Vinny had been chastising his Poppa Piers in the garden, his Poppa Milo had walked away, completely dejected, convinced he wasn't wanted or needed".
He'd flown to Dubai, checked in at the Burj Al Arab and instructed his pilots to return to Sydney, after that he'd become invisible.
Guardian's Control would report that he had stayed only one night at the Burj Al Arab, discarded his personal security device, (his watch), and they couldn't report beyond that point.
Milo was not without means, he was now officially missing.
The morning started for Piers with the sun streaming in through the patio windows, a sure sign that Milo was cross with him, he was always up first and without fail drew the window shades so that Piers could sleep a little longer, but not this morning.
Turning over away from the suns glare he'd realised Milo's side of the bed hadn't been slept in, thinking to himself that Vinny was right, this had definitely gotten out of hand, it was a sure testament of how upset Milos was by his not coming to bed.
Throwing back the covers to get out of bed he'd noticed the folded note propped up on his bedside table, reaching out for it, suddenly he was frightened.
'I love you Piers, I always have and always will, but I'm tired, it seems whatever I do is wrong, and I don't even know why, you said I'd driven them away, perhaps with me out of the picture they'll all see sense and you can have your family back together. Ask Vinny to convince Gracie not to leave Guardian, I've sent my resignation to Joe, she won't be bothered by me anymore, and if you get the chance, tell Jezz I'm sorry I shouted at him, I love him as the son that he's always been, just as I love all of you.
Goodbye my love.
Piers was a complete wreck, Milo had left him, his worst fear had become fact.
Vinny had spent most of the morning linked to Guardian's Sydney Control Room, they knew he'd checked into the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, and he didn't appear to intend travelling any further because his plane was on its way back to Sydney.
Vinny was making plans with his Poppa Piers to fly to Dubai later in the day when he received a call from Guardian's Controller who was audibly on the verge of tears.
"Vinny, we've lost him, he checked out of the hotel and left his security monitor there, we've scoured every port but there's no sign of him leaving Dubai, we have no idea where he is".
Vinny sighed.
"Do we know how long ago he left the hotel?".
The Controller replied causing another sigh from Vinny.
"Several hours ago apparently, we thought he was still there because his monitor was registering, it was the room service maid, she'd found his watch when she cleaned the room, slipped it onto her wrist while she completed her work then handed it in to the front desk at the end of her shift".
There came a point where Vinny saw Josef heading toward him, he'd said to Paulette.
"I can't deal with him dishing out crap right now, I'll end up regretting my response".
Paulette blocked her fathers advance.
"Poppa, Vinny can't take you hurling insults right now, it wouldn't end well".
But he'd surprised her, walking straight up to Vinny.
"Vinny I'm sorry, can I help in any way?, whatever you need just ask".
Vinny had sounded defeated when he replied.
"I don't know if you've been keeping up with developments Joe, but Poppa Milo's vanished, he ditched his security monitor in Dubai and we can't find him, so I've got a Poppa in the wind, a Poppa in hysterics, and a brother and sister who don't know what's going on because they refuse to have anything to do with the family, and I'm stumped".
His father in law surprised both of them.
"Delegation Vinny, at least for some of it, Paulette, you go and talk to Gracie, Carry and I will go to see Jezz, you Vinny can then concentrate on tracking your Poppa Milo, he can't just vanish, he has to be using something to live, call Rick he's known Milo a lot longer than any of us, he might know something, it's a long shot but worth a try".
Rick was shocked to hear of the troubles in Sydney but Josef had been right, he did come up with something.
"Hold the line Vinny I'm going to drop Sydney Control into the conversation, ............ Control I have Vinny on the line as well, try your searches again but you're looking for Milo Soames".
Control came back within moments.
"We have an account activation at a Dubai branch of National Australia Bank in the name Milo Soames, it's been activated several times over the last twenty four hours, we're searching accommodation addresses now, I'll get back to you shortly Vinny".
Rick signed off telling Vinny not to be disheartened and to keep him updated, if need be he'd fly out, Vinny thanked him profusely for his help.
When Vinny mentioned the name to his Poppa Piers he saw his expression change, it was as if a light came on, bringing a smile, but it faded just as quickly.
"I should have remembered that, it was the surname they gave him at the Soames Orphanage where he was brought up, he always said he hated it, that should tell you how much I've hurt him if he'll go back to that name just to get away from me".
Piers had gone from smiling to tears by the time he'd finished speaking, Vinny pulled him into a hug just as Paulette and Gracie arrived, with Gracie clattering down the stairs and grabbing him.
"I'm sorry Poppa, where is he?, we need to find him, I have to tell him I'm sorry too".
It seemed like something was actually going in their favour as Josef and Carry arrived around twenty minutes later with a tearful Jezz and Ferdie in tow, mirroring Gracie as Jezz pulled his Poppa into a hug apologising, then looking at Gracie he'd said.
"I'm sorry Gracie, I only did it because I was scared you would get hurt again, but I know I was wrong".
Gracie looked hard faced saying.
"Yes you were, but that's the past, now we need to concentrate on finding Poppa".
Then they were hugging.
Vinny told Josef about Rick coming up with his Poppa's old surname and how it had proved he was definitely still in Dubai a few hours earlier.
As he was telling Josef his cell phone rang, it was Guardian's Controller in Sydney.
"We have him pinpointed Vinny, I'm sending the address now, but you need to move fast, he's booked on a flight under his real name to Washington U.S. in two days time".
As soon as he came off the call he immediately pressed a speed dial to call his Poppas pilots.
"Hi, we're on the road in the next few minutes, file a flight plan for Dubai and I'll need a car and driver when we get there, six passengers I'm guessing, possibly less, I'll let you know before we get to you".
Ending another call he'd announced.
"Whoever's going, we need to go now, he has plans to fly to Washington in forty eight hours".
There was a general clamouring as they agreed everyone except Josef and a Carry would be going, they were staying behind to look after little Andy and Jacqueline.
On the way to the airport Jezz asked.
"Has anyone told Baz what's going on?".
Piers spoke up.
"No and we're not going to, it's the first time since they got back together that he and Annie have been able to spend a whole week in each other's company, between us we've done enough damage to this family without ruining their week as well".
Eighteen hours later they landed in Dubai and jumped into the waiting limousine, two hours later they drew up outside an apartment building in an up market suburb of Dubai.
Vinny took the drivers number and agreed he would wait outside until he heard from Vinny to know if he should stay or leave.
At the apartment door Piers was shaking with nerves, so much so that Paulette put her arms around him as Vinny pressed the doorbell.
"Calm down Poppa".
The door opened and a sadly bedraggled Milo appeared before them, unshaven and unkempt, but to Piers he was still the most handsome man in the world, he didn't wait for Milo to speak, he launched himself at him.
"Milo you fool, how could you possibly think I'd have a family without you, I wouldn't even have a life, come home my love, we need you, and nothing was your fault, we all got it wrong, me most of all because I hurt you, my soulmate".
Milo hadn't said anything, he was just wrapped around Piers crying, as were they all in the doorway of the apartment, a really sad bunch to anyone looking on, but they'd have been wrong, they were really consumed with an overpowering sense of happiness, they'd found him, they had their Poppa back.
They'd stayed in Milo's rental apartment until the following day then flown back to Sydney where, after the euphoria of having Milo home had settled a little, Piers drew Gracie and Jezz aside.
"You'll both move back into your homes, and make no mistake they are your homes, the deeds are being transferred into your names, don't argue, I refuse to be unhappy today, and you Gracie will meet with Ahmed, he's heartbroken, your mission is to repair that damage, and move your bloody car from our driveway child unless you want me to start driving it, which I will do if it's still there tomorrow".
They'd hugged him in tears, but Piers had been really moved by Ferdie, who had quietly sought him out later, hugging him.
"Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, you couldn't have known this but Jezz and I have been at loggerheads about his break from the family, I've never had a family before this and I didn't believe there was a good enough reason to exile ourselves, I love him so much, but you're the only parents I've ever known, and I love you, we were close to a point where we would possibly have drifted apart, and that would have broken me, broken us".
Piers hugged him.
"Let's not dwell on what might have been, let's concentrate on moving forward as a family".
When Gracie walked into Remedy the receptionist gave an audible gasp.
"Would you please enquire if Ahmed could possibly spare me a few minutes, if he's busy I'll understand".
The receptionist, who'd also been the first aider who attended Gracie the first time she'd been there after banging her head, almost choked out a reply.
"Please Gracie have a seat, I haven't asked yet but I just know he'll be here in a few minutes".
Gracie took a seat as the receptionist spoke rapidly into her headset.
What Gracie caught of the conversation would normally have made her giggle, if she weren't so terribly nervous.
"I don't give a fuck who he's with, you go right now and tell him Gracie's in reception, unless you want me to come up there and punch your fucking lights out".
The receptionist finished her call and looked over at Gracie.
"I'm certain he'll be here in a few minutes".
And he was, slamming loudly through the door from the emergency stairwell completely out of breath, with tears in his eyes, he'd stopped dead at seeing her.
She'd stood up and held her arms out.
That's all it took, no words, he was in her arms, and the receptionist was crying.
Josef and Carry sat with Piers and Milo in the garden that evening and Josef had to ask.
"So about your resignation Milo, am I to scrap it, please?".
Milo had put his arm around Piers.
"For now Joe, but I want out, no correct that, in a year from now we want to be able to step away, so you have a mission, find a way to make that happen, we will step in on a consultancy basis in a crisis if needed, but for all intents and purposes we will be retired".
Josef nodded.
"I can work with that, it will necessitate some really difficult decisions being made, it would seem you two aren't the only ones who've come to this decision, Juan and I are on the same page, as is Rick".
Milo and Piers were shocked.
Josef explained, Juan had expressed a wish to be released from Guardian, he was tired, something Josef said he thought they all felt, they'd been working for so many years and he admitted, they all could be proud of what they'd achieved, but he didn't want to duplicate Leo's folly, of letting the company steal his life, putting an arm around Carry as Milo had done to Piers earlier he'd said.
"I have a wife who is my world, and a daughter with a man at her side who is her equal, and mine as well if I'm honest, I'm approaching sixty, I want to enjoy the years now, not regret them later, so be prepared, we are all looking for our successors, it's no easy task, but I believe we have them in our midst, they'll just need encouragement, to see themselves as we see them".
Two days after they'd returned home with Milo, Baz came back from his week on the Gold Coast with Annie.
His arrival statement brought several giggles.
"I've had the most amazing week, have I missed anything here?, I bet you've all been bored stiff without me".
In Orange, Dale was debating good naturedly with Jimmy their eldest son at a family board meeting, which in truth was more like a poorly rehearsed comedy sketch as usual.
Fleur and Rosie were trying desperately not to laugh.
"Those Vinyards are substandard, but I'll admit, even if it will delay my first well deserved drink of the evening you now have me intrigued, how exactly are you going to justify that they could possibly fit our model, their crops will never yield anything above what we would class as a seriously below average vintage?".
Jimmy knew he had his brother in his corner, they were like two sides of the same coin.
"We cater to a superior select market, I don't dispute that, but why do we not look to engage in other sectors?, what of the slightly lower market than ours, can we not produce an acceptable product and take a fair slice of that market too?, it's a big market which we can influence".
He could see his Daddy weighing up the possibilities as he added something to deliberately confuse him.
"I accept the vineyards I want to buy, on the basis of what Franky tells me, wouldn't on their own be able to stand up to the challenge, you are spot on when you describe them as seriously sub standard, but that's rated against our current required standards, and if we were catering to a specific, but not so select a market, their standard still wouldn't be quite good enough".
Dale knew he was either missing something, or Jimmy had a plan up his sleeve, knowing his son, he was erring toward the later and asked.
"What you've said so far is that you want to buy four Vinyards with the aim of producing a product for a market not as select as our current market, which would be a credible plan if you hadn't just told us that the Vinyards you want to buy cannot produce a crop of sufficient standard to make your plan possible, am I correct so far?".
Jimmy grinned and nodded, Dale noticed Franky was grinning too.
"Okay you sneaky little devil, what haven't you told us?".
They were all laughing now as Jimmy revealed.
"We have the ace card, we can introduce a portion of our superior crop into the mix, it need only be a very small portion, but it has the potential to produce wine of a phenomenal quality in comparison to what's available in that mediocre market, it's my belief that we would be offering a standard way above anything currently on offer, we could take that sector of the market by storm".
Jimmy could see his younger brother Franky beaming with praise, but they were waiting, with baited breath, hanging on what their Daddy would say.
"Okay, I agree, we'll buy them, and you Franky will I know give Jimmy the best possible crop, and you Jimmy, well let's just say you'd better not fail on this, I'm staking the labels name on you coming good, Rosie, you'll need to think about starting a campaign as a run up, and a label name".
Rosie did what she always did, said the first things that came to mind.
"Afford. Quality. Because you can".
They all just stared at her with Dale saying, his words full of genuine admiration.
"How on earth do you manage to do that?".
Rosie giggled.
"I just listen to your comedy sketch and pick out the key points, it's going to be affordable, it's going to be quality, I'm not sure of the last bit, because you can, or, why wouldn't you?", I'll have to think on that".
His boys were over the moon, it had always been like that, since as far back as they could remember, their Daddy would listen to them whatever the subject, he'd always encouraged them to, as he put it, think outside of the box, tried and tested is boring, aim for better, aim for the unusual, or better yet, the impossible.
Franky turned now to Fleur.
"Momma, if we're doing this I want to implant around five percent of good stock vines into the existing, that way Jimmy doesn't need to add current production to the mix, the harvest will have it automatically blended in, it should reduce the amount of work Jimmy has to do in getting his standard right, so would you have enough established vines?".
Fleur laughed openly.
"Well now sneaky son number two, as I've been pushed by two very sneaky sons for months to increase production of good grafted stock, it seems I might just about be able to satisfy your needs".
Dale said to Fleur in bed later that night.
"God knows how, but between us we produced the perfect elements, they work as one and they always have, despite being several years apart they act as a single machine, each knowing what the other needs or thinks, it's completely uncanny, if you listen to their conversations it's like there's only one person speaking, they actually split conversations and come together as one, I really think this might be their debut, if they pull it off I'm willing to give them Carte Blanche, we step back, I whisk you off to some remote deserted island and ravish you twenty four seven".
She in turn was laughing loudly.
"Let's see if Jimmy can pull it off first shall we Romeo?".
His reply had been predictable.
"Let's just examine the known facts, Franky will produce exactly the harvest he said he would, Jimmy will take whatever his brother provides to him and turn it into exactly what was promised, Rosie will market the finished product before the fruit is even ripe on the vine, so where is the doubt coming from?, I tell you Fleur, the amount of admiration I have for them is phenomenal, and they make it look so easy, all three of them.
Fleur had given up on trying to figure the dynamics of the relationship between Dale and their children, she knew they loved each other, but it was the deeper feelings, of respect, of awe that they held for each other.
Dale still managed the company overall, Fleur had stepped back years earlier, concentrating on her projects, marrying differing vines, attempting to produce a more resilient and productive species, and she'd been successful, over half of their Vinyards were now planted with her produce, which gave them an advantage in terms of quality, quantity, and resistance to pests.
Jimmy ran the winery.
Since he'd been around twelve or thirteen it had become the place to find him, even at that young age he could describe the process in detail, from the moment grapes entered until the finished product sat in his hands as a bottle of Montclair-Thorn-Mulroney.
By age fifteen he'd all but taken charge of their production schedule, not disappointing his Daddy in the slightest when he'd announced before his seventeenth birthday that he didn't want to go on with higher education, he wanted to be hands on.
Franky had followed his brother in shunning further education, he controlled the Vinyards, that would be the best way to describe what he did, he oversaw and directed, like the conductor of an orchestra, he saw everything, nothing escaped him, a pest crawling across a vine leaf in the most remote corner, he sensed it, was drawn to it.
Rosie ran the company offices, dealt with marketing, oversaw finance, in essence she was COO (Chief Operating Officer) nothing fazed her, she had gone to college, taking Business Management courses, but like her brothers, she'd been specific in her intended future, college yes, university no.
All three were alike, none of them did anything by half, for all of them there was no such thing as perfection, it was their joint opinion that everything could be improved upon, therefore perfection didn't exist, except when describing their Daddy's cooking.
Within two months of that particular meeting the Vinyards had been purchased and Franky had the new vines implanted amongst the existing, well in time for the growing season.
Fleur could spend a whole day with Franky as he toured his vines, he had the same affinity for them that she did, he tended them like they were his children, finding one which was showing signs of some problem, talking to it, de budding, or de leafing where he thought there was something not right.
He'd watched them closely all season until it was almost time, at supper one night he'd said, surprising them.
"Daddy can we get the neighbors in for the harvest, as many as possible I think, I seem to have underestimated production by quite a bit.
Dale hadn't been fazed, it was a common occurrence with Franky, even Fleur the supposed family guru in vine welfare, for all of the time she spent with him, couldn't explain how he could take an almost dead vine and not only return it to full health, but encourage it to produce a crop in excess of anything ever experienced, and it seemed he'd completely outdone himself this time.
Jimmy just laughed.
"Looks like you're going to be giving me plenty to play with Bro".
Franky had brought in six bunches of ripe grapes for them to taste, and Rosie was first to comment.
"Are these all from Momma's vines?".
Jimmy shook his head.
"No, and I really don't understand, only one of these six is from Momma's vines, if I didn't know it's not supposed to be possible, I'd say Momma's vines have somehow cross pollinated the others and added something".
Rosie was a force to be reckoned with when it came to tasting, exactly what she was doing now with Franky's crop.
The same applied to her being the first and only person to taste test Jimmy's new vintage, he had complete and utter faith in his sisters ability to judge present and future, giving him what she believed to be its current status and its ageing capability.
Right now they were all gathered around the dinning table, Jimmy was truly astounded at the quality his brother had achieved.
"Bro I think you just outdid yourself, they're not up to the quality you achieve from our best stock, but they're way better than I expected, I'm pretty certain I'll achieve an immediately drinkable wine, but I'm thinking we could take a percentage to ageing, introduce it some time after the original vintage previews, and at a premium cost, well done Bro, you've more than fulfilled your part of the plan, let's hope I can do your harvest proud and produce something spectacular".
Dale was also quick to praise his son.
"Jimmy's just about summed it up son, I can't even begin to understand how you do it, you're an absolute genius, to produce this quality from those knackered old vines, I'm so bloody proud of you".
At which point everyone cheered and Fleur reached for the swear box, costing a laughing Dale two dollars.
Rosie picked up on her brother's comment about taking some of the vintage for ageing.
"Can we leave that decision until we sample what you produce, there's something about these grapes that tells me they might not give you anything better than your first offer, I'll know when I sample with you".
Fleur and Dale were watching how Jimmy hung on his sister's words.
"Sure Sis, I'll be guided by you, it's not failed us before".
Rosie now turned to Franky.
"How exactly, or rather, what pattern did you use to implant Momma's vines on the good stock Vinyards?".
Franky could be seen to think about her question before he answered.
"There was no pattern, we didn't implant, it was simply replacing sections of older poor quality vines".
Both could be seen thinking, it was comical to watch, almost as if a light had suddenly come on, they looked at each other and smiled, much to everyone else's curiosity, until Franky spoke.
"Thanks Sis, that must be it".
Dale said laughing.
"Would either of you care to share the secret?, we're not all telepathic".
Franky giggled, explaining.
"What Sis and I are thinking is, I implanted at regular intervals across the whole of the four new vineyards, that appears to have affected pollination in a really good way, but when I used Momma's vines on the good stock I didn't go right across the vineyards, I only replaced blocks of poor, older vines, so, if I implant on a regular pattern right across the vineyards, in theory it should dramatically improve both quality and yield".
Dale had put out the call for any and all labour to aid with the harvest and they'd not been disappointed.
On Saturday morning over two hundred turned up at the gates of Montclair-Thorn-Mulroney.
Frankly marshalled them into groups of ten and set them to work.
The majority were locals and understood the need to protect the grapes and even more important, to protect the mother plants, the vines which would now slowly go through a relax, leaf drop, and hibernation, before springing into life again for the next season.
One guy in particular came to Franky several times to report damaged supports, until Franky set him up with a crew of five to repair the support network as they progressed.
Late on Sunday afternoon it was clear they were only about eighty percent completed on the harvest, but the majority of the weekend workers had jobs to go to the next day.
That was the point where Dale had to 'blow the whistle', it was a local expression, heeded by all growers.
It required Dale to send out a 'Blow the whistle' email to all local estates and growers, and they weren't disappointed by the response, on Monday morning over one hundred and fifty pickers were waiting at the gate, not as many as they'd had over the weekend, but these were individuals given release by their employers to go to the aid of Montclair-Thorn-Mulroney, and they were thankful, by Monday evening it was manageable, their own workforce would be able to mop up the remaining few rows.
Franky had worked non stop for three days, watching the harvesting, and monitoring the support restringing.
He was really tired when he saw the boy who'd supervised the restringing being helped to the medics station and he'd been suddenly reenergised, running and shouting.
"What happened, is he alright?".
He'd heard how a restring wire had snapped, whipping back viciously and slicing across the boys leg.
Franky sat with him in the medics van as they waited for an ambulance to transfer him to hospital, then traveled with him.
The boy had constantly told Franky he would be okay, he didn't need to cause Franky any inconvenience, but Franky wasn't budging, he'd waited at the hospital until the boy had come out from surgery with his leg stitched from groin to almost his knee.
Dale had arrived just as the boy was given the all clear to go home, he'd loaded the boy with Franky holding him carefully, into his 4x4, asking.
"Where's home, I'll drop you off".
But the response was a total headfuck for Dale, Franky completely freaked out.
"We can't just drop him off, he can't look after himself, he can't even walk for fuck sake, what are you blind?, he's coming home with us".
Then turning to the boy he'd said pointedly.
"And you Ruben can shut the fuck up as well, when you prove you can look after yourself you can go home, until then I'm looking after you".
Dale relaxed and smiled, saying.
"That's got to be at least five dollars in the box.
Franky just laughed.
"Yeh, I suppose it should be".
Dale would tell Fleur later, almost giggling.
"Franky's gay, he's totally into Ruben, he said the unthinkable when I suggested dropping him off at home".
Fleur taking it completely the wrong way thought Dale was making fun of Franky, she should have known better, but she didn't, she lashed out viciously.
"You think it's alright to make fun of our son and label him for showing compassion, I thought you loved him".
Dale was stunned for a moment.
"Hey, stop it my love, I do love him and unlike you I've known for a long time, he's gay and I don't give a shit, unless the person he gives his heart to hurts him, then you might have reason to chastise me as I happily beat them to a pulp".
Fleur stopped speaking, looking at Dale with a sort of 'I can't believe it', expression.
"You're a typical Macho Aussie Male, I think I was frightened, I've known it for a long time too, you can accept it?".
Dale dragged her into a hug.
"One of these days we'll truly get the measure of each other, but I'll make you a promise hand on heart, anyone hurts my boy and I'll kill them, I don't care who he loves, I only want for him to be loved in return, he's my boy, that will never change".
Fleur was still concerned.
"But Ruben, that's a Jewish name, doesn't that concern you?".
Dale sighed.
"It's a faith Fleur, we don't even know if he's Jewish, anyway why would I be concerned about the faith someone believed in, it's not important, and anyone who thinks a persons faith is a reason to attack them is, in my opinion anyway, no more than a sorry fool who'll receive no compassion from me, I don't give a fig who worships what God, I'm more interested in the way they live their lives, how they respect others, and especially how they treat my boy".
In Franky's room, Ruben was tucked up comfortably in the second double bed.
Since they'd been little all of Dale and Fleur's children had two beds in their rooms, accommodating sleep overs for friends most weekends, it had been a regular occurrence that Jimmy and Franky would share so that Rosie could commandeer one of their rooms to accommodate her larger party of sleepover friends, giggling girls who Jimmy and Franky stayed well clear of.
Ruben had started to say something, only to be shushed by Franky.
"I swear Ruben, if you're going to say thanks again I'll batter you".
But Franky was surprised by what he heard.
"I was going to apologise, I should have said something earlier, but you were being so kind, I think you should know, because you might not like me after, and some of your friends might shun you for having anything to do with me".
Franky was surprised, but he wasn't stupid.
"You mean because you're gay, is that it?".
Ruben nodded, clearly embarrassed.
Franky sat on the bed next to him.
"I've never done anything with anyone, but I know I'm the same, and that's not me trying to take advantage, just so you don't let it worry you, I have a pretty amazing set of friends, some of them knew even before I did, we've talked about it, Jimmy and Rosie know as well, and I don't think any of them would ditch me because of it, but to be honest I don't really care, I was brought up to believe friendship is a two way street, about accepting everything without judging, if any of my friends can't do that, then they're welcome to walk away, I don't say it won't hurt me, but I'll deal with it".
Ruben just stared at him, mumbling.
"You as well?".
Franky laughed, a real belly laugh.
"Yes Ruben, me as well".
TBC
Comments are welcome to cfgw2000@aol.com.
Thank you for giving me your time, enjoy.