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Life's Illusions The Next Generation - Chapter 27
Reya met Aly at The Inn.
Aly already knew what Reya wanted to discuss before she even started speaking, he'd predicted it in a conversation with Bo only a few days earlier.
She'd rushed the words out, as if she were worried not saying it quickly would be giving him time to talk her out of what she wanted.
"I thought I'd come to see you because I don't want to keep the shares Poppa left me, but I'm worried it will look bad if I sell them, I don't want them, I'd rather have not had anything".
Aly smiled.
"I think Poppa knew we wouldn't keep them, it's why he left the other four percent in safekeeping, to protect the company against a raid if our blocks of shares were sold on the open market".
Reya looked puzzled, then tears started to roll down her cheeks as she said.
"I would never do that, did he really have so little faith in me, in us?, it hurts me to think he didn't trust me".
Aly wrapped his arms around her, kissing her cheek.
"It has nothing to do with trusting us, it's standard business practice, he was guarding against every eventually, for instance, what if, God forbid, something should happen suddenly to you and Raul, I'm assuming everything passes to Freya and Freddie?, and they have little knowledge of how important Guardian was to Poppa".
He paused to hug his sister close, she taking in his words.
"Don't take this the wrong way, but without any malicious intent, Freya and Freddie might put the shares on the open market, that would have the potential to cause Josef, Juan, Pierre and Carry untold problems, if there were not those four percent of shares hidden away".
Again he paused to let her absorb what he'd said.
"There was no doubt in Poppas mind when it came to our love for him, he was simply taking precautions, now, tell me, what did you have in mind?, because I do believe we are in tune as we always are".
Reya hugged him back, it had always given her a sense of being totally loved and protected when Aly held her close.
"I know I'm probably being stupid, Raul says I'm overthinking it, he says my intention is sound, but I need your opinion".
Aly was slightly confused, mainly because she hadn't really answered his question.
"Sis, you are no less frustrating now than you were when we were growing up, for goodness sake, tell me your plans".
Reya actually giggled, thinking about how many times Aly had made that same statement in their early years.
"I want to sell, but I'm only considering family, I'd like it to be the four other existing shareholders, but if not I'll sell only to close family, with a restriction imposed, the shares have to be first offered back to family in the event of any future sale".
Aly nearly crushed her with his hug.
"Yep, we're on the same page, I'll speak to Josef and Juan tomorrow, but I have to ask, would it matter to you if there had to be a seriously deferred payment?, I mean, I'm not sure how financially fluid they all are, or how you are situated, but I'm prepared to finance a sale where Bo and I would bridge the cost until the other four could settle, if that is acceptable to you, it means basically you would sell to me, I'll broker a sale to them, Bo and I can afford to defer payment until they're in a position to pay us, I only mention a deferred payment because it would necessitate us liquidating some really serious funds, that might take a while".
Reya didn't even have to think about it.
"Yes Aly, do whatever you need to do, I don't need the money, I'm planning give a large portion of it to charity, the rest will go into trusts for Freddie and Freya, I know Poppa loved that company, but I don't, I never did, it always robbed us of his time, I always resented how devoted he was to it, always at our expense, so I'll just let you deal with everything".
Pierre was in the middle of a particularly difficult discussion with Berto the following morning when his Poppas, Aly and Bo, arrived at the house on Avenue Montclair.
As they entered they heard Pierre saying.
"We didn't mean to embarrass you, it was just the opposite, we wanted to protect you, you're being really unfair".
The loud slamming of a door greeted them as they entered the main lounge where Pierre was in tears.
Bo immediately scooped Pierre into a hug, asking.
"Hey, what's the matter, and who the hell slammed that door?".
Pierre was embarrassed, but he accepted his Poppa's hug, answering.
"Berto's angry with us because we didn't explain the birds and the bees properly before he had an embarrassing moment, it's okay, he'll think about it and apologise later, he's not a bad child, sometimes he flies off the handle, it takes a while before he comes to the right decision, then he'll come to give me love, it's just a bit raw when your child tells you he hates you, I don't know why, but lately I'm feeling so tired, every little thing gets to me when I know it shouldn't".
Aly disappeared whilst Bo cuddled Pierre.
Finding Berto's bedroom door closed he knocked, not gently, and was surprised to hear the answering shout.
"Fuck off I hate you".
Aly was now on the moral high ground as he gruffly answered.
"Speak to me like that again child and whatever your age, I will take you over my knee, this is your Grandfather now open the door".
Aly almost giggled at the obviously panicked scrambling on the other side of the door before it opened.
"I'm sorry Gramps, I didn't know it was you".
Aly was in no mood to accept the apology, his response made it perfectly clear.
"No, you thought it was my son, your Poppa, the one who loves and protects you, so tell me, because I'm at a loss to understand, why would you think it's acceptable to use that sort of language to your Poppa, after leaving him crying in the lounge".
Berto just stared at Aly, his face becoming redder by the minute, until Aly barked.
"I asked you a question boy".
Berto was stumbling with a reply, but he was saved by Junior rushing in and engulfing him in a hug.
"It's okay Bro, calm down, I've got it Gramps, let it go for now please, I'm going to have a chat with Berto, I don't want to be rude but could you leave us alone".
Junior's tone made it clear that it wasn't a request, but Aly still persisted.
"No Junior, I asked your brother a question, I expect a reply".
Junior wasn't fazed either, he faced his Gramps down and replied.
"And I told you, you're not getting one until I speak with Berto, so back off, unless you want it to be about me and you, because you're not going at it with Berto, now I'm asking again, please leave us alone".
Aly was shocked, and he would later admit to Bo, at first he was angry, his expression had conveyed that to Junior, but looking at Berto, he'd realised, the boy was upset and totally confused, Junior was right, and he'd backed down.
"Okay I understand, I'll leave you to speak alone, but you have to understand, I'm not happy, my boy doesn't deserve the way Berto spoke to him tonight, I expect you'll ensure Berto understands that".
Junior understood fully as he replied.
"Got ya Gramps, you need to remember we both love you, and Berto loves Poppa dearly, you got part of something, you need to stand back and see the big picture, this here boy is going to be so apologetic it will make your eyes water, he doesn't mean any harm, he just doesn't always get it right first time around, we're going to chat about that".
About an hour later as Pierre, Aly, and Bo were talking, Junior and Berto joined them.
Berto looked terrified, Juniors stance and expression conveyed exactly how serious he was as he said.
"Berto wants to say something to Poppa, I'd appreciate it if everyone else would hold their tongues, okay Bro, you go for it".
Berto walked almost shyly over to Pierre.
He looked nervous as he said.
"I'm sorry Poppa, I messed up, I got it all wrong again, Junior explained it to me, I'm really sorry, I love you, do you still love me?".
Pierre pulled him down in a hug to sit beside him.
"Of course I still love you, and I always will, don't ever doubt that".
Looking at Junior, Pierre said.
"Thank you son, I'm sorry, we put you in a very difficult position, but as usual, you came through and saved the day".
Junior beamed, praise from his Poppa always made him glow with pride, but he remembered his altercation with Gramps Aly and as they were leaving he managed to whisper.
"I'm really sorry about earlier Gramps, I get a little over protective sometimes where Berto's concerned, I didn't mean to offend you, but I was rude, I know that, and I apologise".
Aly whispered back whilst dragging Junior into a man hug.
"You were protecting your brother, I was angry, and I was in the wrong, no apology is necessary, you did good".
For Aly it had turned out to be a visit which hadn't achieved what he'd wanted, as they walked to the gate out to the road, he'd said to Pierre.
"Our reason for visiting was to discuss the company shares Reya and I inherited from your Grandfather, could we maybe make time tomorrow to meet up?".
Pierre was intrigued, and a little nervous, his reply showed it.
"Well yes, but should I ask Josef and Juan to be available too, is it good, or is it something they won't be happy with?".
For a moment Aly was disappointed, but he realised, to the boys who had effectively built Guardian into the massively successful business it had become, this was a real worry".
"I could be hurt that you would have so little faith in me son, but I'm mindful of how important those shares are, how they could affect the ownership of the company you guys have worked hard to build, so I'll choose to dismiss your remark, it's all good, let me know when you want to meet up and where".
Pierre realised how his remark had been received by his Poppa.
"I'm sorry Poppa, that was ill thought out, it didn't reflect what I meant, I know you would only ever do whatever was in our best interest, I'll ask Juan and Josef if they want to meet, or if they're happy to leave it to me, I'll ring you tonight, Juan should be home around eight this evening".
As soon as Pierre brought the subject up Juan was almost jumping.
"They're going to sell up, it could destroy us, we'll lose control, if an investment company buys in they'll want all sorts of changes, cost cutting exercises, it will be a nightmare, our standards will drop, it will be a downward spiral".
Pierre immediately bristled, his tone telling Juan he'd said the wrong thing.
"That's a really harsh observation, and an ill informed forecast, we don't know what Poppa was going to say, but seeing as Berto, Junior and I already upset him today without thinking, I'd prefer it if you and Josef left this to me, because to be honest, I'm too tired to argue".
Juan walked up behind a clearly irritated Pierre, pulling him into a hug.
"I'm sorry you're right, we don't know, so let's wait and see what he has to say, but I do think Jo and Carry deserve to know".
Pierre agreed, so they spent the next thirty minutes on a conference call with Josef and Carry, and they'd been completely thrown by Josef's calm and confident response.
"I think Pierre can deal with this, and stop panicking Bro, Leo left those shares with them because he wanted to give them one of his most precious possessions, to openly display his love, but I suspect he also wanted to give them the chance to harm Guardian, after all, it robbed them of his time when they were growing up, but he was a cunning old devil, he knew they would never harm his third child, that's what Guardian was to him, speak with your Poppas Pierre, I trust them completely, they will do the right thing, I think we will like whatever they have in mind, our only problem will be raising enough capital between the four of us to buy them out".
Later that night Pierre called his Poppas, arranging to meet at The Inn the following afternoon.
Pierre had deliberately left his morning free, there was a particular mission, he needed to undertake, despite feeling really tired.
Junior and Gabby had left for college after breakfast, Berto wasn't due to work until later that day, but he didn't want to hang around, he was still embarrassed by that outburst the previous day.
Pierre could read Berto easily, the downcast looks, red face, stunted replies.
As soon as Junior and Gabby left, Pierre said.
"Will you spend the morning with me son, I thought I'd put some sandwiches together, we could go sit by the stream in the park, enjoy the summer sun, just you and me?".
Berto smiled.
"I'd like that Poppa, can we have jelly, sandwiches are good, but I like jelly too?".
Pierre laughed.
"Berto, when have I not put jelly into a picnic basket?, I know how much you love it".
Sitting by the stream in the park, they'd eaten the sandwiches, Berto had eaten two jelly tubs, right now he was in his most favourite position, leaning back against his Poppa, feeling loved and secure, his Poppas arms encircling him.
Pierre almost whispered.
"I really am sorry son, your Poppa Juan and I should have told you about sex and how it would feel, what happens to your body, and we didn't, we chickened out, left it to Junior, that was so wrong of us".
Pierre had felt Berto tense up, but he went on.
"Relax son, I'm trying to tell you we can discuss anything, we're your Poppas, we've been where you are now, we had the urges you are getting, it was as frightening for us then as it is for you now, we're all the same".
Berto picked up on something his Poppa had said.
"You were frightened as well?".
Pierre giggled.
"I was bloody terrified, I thought something was really wrong, I still remember the first time I came in my pants, I was in the library at school, it was before I had my operation, before I could walk, I was in my wheelchair, it was your uncle JJ who found me crying, he was in a real panic until he realised why I was upset, after that he wasn't fazed, he explained it all to me, told me to go back to the orphanage and have a wank, I'm guessing Junior's told you what that is?".
Berto was red faced but he nodded his head, grateful he wasn't facing his Poppa, but, at the same time, eager to hear more.
"Well I did go back to the orphanage, and after one wank I was hooked, I think I nearly wore it out over the next twenty four hours, in fact, at school next day your uncle JJ looked at me and told me I looked knackered, he told me to be careful or it might drop off".
Pierre paused because he could feel Berto giggling.
"I don't want you to be embarrassed son, if there's anything you want to know, you can ask me, or Poppa Juan, we've both been where you are, every boy experiences it, it's called puberty, when your body changes from being a little boy into being a man, you're growing into manhood, if you feel more comfortable talking to Junior that's okay as well, we trust him to guide you, he loves you as much as we do".
Berto had dozed for a while in his Poppas arms, when he awoke he realised his Poppa was fast asleep, and it was nearly time for him to be at work.
He'd never known his Poppa fall asleep in the daytime, he gently shook Pierre awake.
Pierre was surprised, he felt so tired he could have happily rested there all day, but he realised they had to make a move.
"Come on son, it would be wonderful to sit here dozing all afternoon, but you need to get showered and dressed for work, and I have an appointment with your Grandfathers, I'll give you a lift to work when you're ready".
At four in the afternoon, Pierre was sitting, with his Poppas, in the familiar surroundings of the house he'd called home during the happiest part of his youth.
Surprisingly, it was Bo who started them off.
"Poppa Aly has asked me to explain what he has in mind, purely because I'm sort of neutral, uninvolved".
Pierre was listening intently as Bo went on.
"Poppa Aly, and your Aunt Reya, don't want to keep the shares in Guardian they inherited from your Gramps, but they don't want to put them on the open market either, so I'm guessing you'll understand where this is leading us".
Pierre nodded as Bo paused before going on.
"They are in agreement, you four should be the ones to hold those shares, if not you four, then some other family member, or members, but that is the key, they don't want them going outside of family control".
Bo and Aly could see Pierre struggling to process the information, as Bo continued.
"Poppa Aly and your Aunt Reya are offering both blocks of shares to you four, at current market value you would be looking at a cost of approximately one billion euros".
They both heard Pierre's sharp intake of breath, and each thought he was about to cry.
For Pierre it was a shock, it shouldn't have been, he knew the worth of the company, knew the worth of the shares they already held, but hearing it quoted in cold hard cash was still a monumental shock.
Aly jumped in now, sensing Pierre's shock.
"Don't panic son, we have a plan to secure the shares for you, that is of course, if you guys want them, now relax, breath deeply, and Poppa Bo will explain".
Pierre visibly relaxed, but only a little, his mind was spinning through various scenarios, some good, some bad, but they watched as he got to his Poppa Aly's last statement, then they saw him relax, he'd come to the realisation, his Poppas had a plan, now Bo knew he could continue.
"We will cover you for any shortfall, in the form of an interest free loan, there is no danger of the shares ending up anywhere but with you four, understand Pierre, the company is safe, if you want to own it outright, you can".
For Pierre, those words were the absolute, ultimate, catalyst, it was as if hearing them used up the last of his reserves of energy, his mind kept running in a loop, just hearing, 'If you want to own it outright, you can', they overpowered Pierre's defences, his eyes fluttered and turned up, he gave a little gasp, and then the blackness came, he'd passed out.
Aly was the first to see him toppling sideways, in a flash he had his precious son in his arms.
Bo went into a panic, until Aly brought him up sharply.
"Bo, ice cold water and a cloth, now".
Bo ran to the kitchen, gathered ice into a bowl, grabbed a cloth, and was back to Aly, who was holding a prone Pierre, in less than thirty seconds.
Aly applied the ice cold compress to Pierre's brow, taking turns, moping his brow, then wiping his face, before returning to his brow.
When he hadn't revived in fifteen minutes, Aly told Bo to call the village doctor, who arrived within minutes.
The doctor, did a quick cursory examination, then, without any seeming concern sorted through his medical bag.
The ampule held under Pierre's nose made a cracking noise as he twisted it, within seconds Pierre showed signs of coming back to the conscious world.
After the spluttering, gasping, struggling, had subsided, the doctor gave Pierre a shot, took some blood samples, then told his Poppas he was to rest for a minimum of forty eight hours, he was, for a reason the doctor couldn't explain, totally exhausted, he needed complete rest, meanwhile the blood samples would be sent to the local hospital lab for testing.
Aly's call to Guardian's HQ in Torremolinas didn't go well at all.
The call was routed to Josef's office, where he and Juan, along with Rick, were planning the coverage of a high profile principle's concert tour.
Juan and Rick were oblivious to the content of the call which had interrupted their discussion, until Josef shouted.
"Pierre, what happened, is he alright, why did he collapse?".
Juan was then on his feet, snatching the phone from his brother.
"Who is this, what's happened, where's Pierre?".
Aly almost had to shout just to be heard.
" Juan it's Aly, Pierre is safe he's conscious and with us, come home Juan, the doctor said he's completely exhausted, it's why he passed out, he has to rest for forty eight hours, Bo's gone to get Junior and Gabby out of school, Berto's already here, but he's becoming more of a problem than Pierre, the boy's inconsolable, he's somehow got it into his head that he's to blame, it's becoming a nightmare".
Juan immediately took charge.
"Give the phone to Berto, I need to speak to him now".
Juan heard some muffled words and crying before a sobbing Berto could be heard.
"Son, this is Poppa Juan, I'm asking you to stop crying and look after Poppa Pierre until I get there, can you do that for me?".
Berto stopped sobbing immediately.
"Me Poppa, but I don't know what to do".
Juan knew he could do this.
"Do the most important thing Berto, put your arms around him, let him know he's safe and loved, do that until I get there, that's all I'm asking, can you do that son?".
The reply Juan received was a strong, determined.
"Yes Poppa, I'll do that, I won't leave him until you get here".
Juan replied.
"Tell him I'm on my way, I'll be there soon, and we're going to change things, your Poppa needs some serious cuddling, he does too much, tell him I'm going to show him how important he is, see you soon son".
As he put down the phone Juan bolted for the door, shouting to Josef's PA that he wanted his car ready when he got to the employee parking level.
His driver was waiting by the elevator as he arrived on the employee parking level, Josef was only a step behind him talking on the phone to Carry.
Josef jumped into Juan's car with him.
"We'll take your plane, Carry's going to follow us in mine, but she's fuming, I have to warn you, be prepared for a roasting, she's been banging on for so long about Pierre doing too much".
Pierre had been carried bodily out of The Inn, staff and friends had been shocked to see him looking so pale and lifeless.
Bo placed him gently into the back of his 4x4, Berto was next to him, an arm around his Poppas shoulders, a clearly worried Piers sat in front with Bo.
Junior had his own car, Gabby was riding with him.
Aly drove Pierre's car as the little posse headed back to the house on Avenue Montclair.
Pierre was helped into bed, and surprisingly, he didn't object, within minutes he was fast asleep, his head resting on Berto's shoulder as he lay next to him.
When Juan arrived home he found Pierre still fast asleep, in Berto's arms, a pool of dribble from Pierre's mouth had soaked the shoulder and front of Berto's shirt, Juan whispered.
"Your shirt's wet son, why didn't you just ease him down and leave him to sleep?".
Berto whispered back.
"I promised to hold him until you got here, did I do right Poppa?, I never left him alone".
Juan kissed his son on the forehead.
"You did an excellent job son, but let's ease him down now, then you can go change that wet shirt".
Downstairs in the lounge Carry had just arrived.
As Juan opened the door into the lounge Carry could be heard berating Josef.
At the sound of the door opening she'd spun around and directed her anger at Juan.
"How long have I been telling you this was going to happen, all of you have ignored the warning signs, well I'm putting my foot down from here on, he cannot run this massive household single handed, raise a family, and work the hours he does at Guardian, it stops now, and you are going to tell him, do you understand?".
When she stopped ranting she was crying.
Juan walked up to her and put his arms around her.
I agree fully my dear sweet sister in law, but this is Pierre, you probably have no idea how difficult it is to dictate to him, but I'm determined to give it my best shot".
He'd been interrupted by a loud and persistent knocking at the front door, it had been Jacqueline in a complete tizzy.
"One of the winery workers told Roslyn that Pierre had collapsed, the doctor called, is he going to be okay, what happened?".
Jacqueline was clearly upset, there were tears streaking her usually immaculate makeup.
Carry hugged her, saying.
"He passed out, we only know what the doctor said, he's completely exhausted, needs at least forty eight hours rest, we don't know what caused it, though I maintain he's doing too much, and I'm determined he's going to lighten his load going forward".
Jacqueline was in total agreement.
"I've told him so many times, he needs a housekeeper and at least two more staff to run this house".
Juan seized on Jacqueline's suggestion.
"Aunt, do you have anyone in mind?, I think this is the perfect chance to get them hired, whilst Pierre can't object".
Jacqueline replied immediately.
"I have a perfect woman for housekeeper, she has two daughters, all three are looking for work, but they'd need accommodation".
Juan smiled.
"If you recommend them, we can do that, the coach house is completely renovated, it's three bedrooms, would you organise a meeting for me?, as quickly as possible, I need this to be something Pierre is stuck with, until he comes to realise the positive side of it".
Jacqueline agreed to call in on the people she had in mind as she drove home.
Juan was surprised when, an hour and a half later Jacqueline returned, with a woman who looked to be in her late forties, and trailing behind two pretty girls who looked to be twins of around seventeen or eighteen years.
Jacqueline made the introductions, the woman was Bernice Durand, her daughters, who were in fact seventeen year old twins, Adele and Aurea.
Bernice explained they had been resident housekeeper and domestic staff at a Small Chateau several miles away, but the owners had sold the Chateau and it was being developed as a hotel, so they'd lost their jobs and were close to being penniless, she all but begged Juan for the chance to prove their worth.
Juan warmed to her immediately.
"Come with me Bernice, girls, I have something to show you".
He led them through the ground floor, out of the kitchen door, across the patio and through a gate to what had once been a coach house and stables, it was now a completely renovated, three bedroom house, with two lounges, a small dining room and modern kitchen.
"This would be your accommodation, would it suit your needs?".
He could see Bernice was on the verge of crying as she answered.
"It's beautiful, I promise it will always look this way, we would take very good care of it, but does this mean we have a job?".
"It most certainly does, my Aunt Jacqueline has vouched for you, that's good enough for me, though there may be just one small fly in the ointment".
Juan went on to explain about Pierre being fiercely independent, he would almost certainly object, they would have to work hard to charm him.
Bernice smiled.
"Leave him to us, we'll prove ourselves invaluable, it's only right we go the extra mile after the faith you've placed in us".
If Bernice had been on the verge of tears when she saw their accommodation, the salaries offered did bring her to tears.
It was late in the evening when Pierre awoke, he felt a little disoriented at first, until he saw Juan dozing in the armchair across the room.
Juan came alert as Pierre threw back the bed clothes ready to get out.
"Hold it tiger, where do you think you're going?".
Pierre wasn't in the mood for being quizzed.
"I'm going to the toilet, I desperately need to pee".
Juan was now next to him.
"Okay, put your arm around my neck, I'm carrying you, and before you bother protesting, I'm carrying you back as well".
A true sign the doctors diagnosis had been right, Pierre was too tired to object.
Juan brought him back to their bedroom suite, settling him in bed and straightening the covers, before he said.
"Pierre, I don't know if this is the best time to talk to you, but it has to come sometime, so if you think you can listen I'll do it now".
All Pierre said was.
"You're not making any sense, talk about what?".
Juan could sense Pierre was still a little confused, but as long as he wasn't agitated, it should be okay to press on.
"I was frightened Pierre, really frightened, I thought I was losing you again, I don't know how I held it together, until your Poppa Aly told me Berto was losing it worse than I was, that was the only thing that gave me focus".
Pierre was trying to follow what Juan was saying but he was having difficulty.
"I don't understand, I'm a bit foggy.
Juan was more concerned now than he had been before, this was not Pierre.
"Let's not go into this now, you need rest, settle down, try to sleep, we'll talk tomorrow when you're rested, just know this, without you, I would have no reason to exist, now sleep my love".
Juan knew, Pierre was asleep as he'd said those last words.
At breakfast next morning the atmosphere was strained.
Aly, Bo, Josef and Carry, had all stayed over, they'd expected Pierre to appear, but there was just Juan, it was Aly who broke the silence.
"So what's happening Juan, is he rested, can we see him?".
Juan put his head in his hands and his body started to shudder, he was sobbing.
Josef was across the room in a split second, scooping his brother into a hug.
"Tell us Bro, we need to know everything, it's the only way we can get this sorted, so, deep breath and talk".
Juan was feeling devastated, but he remembered his army training,he gave them his summation.
"He's more confused than he was yesterday, I don't understand, he's slept for nearly twenty hours, he should be fresh as a daisy, but he's seriously confused".
Bo jumped in.
"Okay that's it, we don't waste any more time, I'll ring our specialist, see how quickly we can get him admitted for tests, we need to get this sorted, are you okay with that Juan?".
Juan nodded.
A short time later, sitting on the bed in their master suite, by a clearly exhausted Pierre, Juan held him in his arms as he explained slowly.
"Pierre, we can't understand what's wrong with you, you're not getting better, so I'm taking charge, no arguing, your Poppas have booked you in with a specialist, a private ambulance will be here shortly, I'll be with you, don't go worrying, I'm not leaving your side until I know you're on the mend, now I'm going to get you showered and into clean pj's".
Pierre hadn't even tried to protest, that alone told Juan he must be seriously ill.
Juan lifted him out of bed, carried him like a child into the bathroom, there he sat on a marble bench with Pierre on his lap and stripped him naked.
In the shower Pierre was like a rag doll, not able to offer any help as Juan supported, and washed him under the warm streaming water.
Within thirty minutes Juan had him showered, dressed in clean pj's, and back in bed.
As he tried to move away Pierre held onto him, uttering the first words for nearly a day.
"I'm frightened, stay with me, I love you".
Juan watched as his eyes closed again, he was sleeping.
From Pierre's admission Juan refused to leave his side, watching intently as a team of medical staff hooked him up to all manner of wires and pipes, Pierre slept through, oblivious.
They'd agreed, only Juan would accompany Pierre, everyone else would concentrate on looking after Junior, Gabby and Berto.
The house on Montclair Avenue meanwhile was filling up with concerned relatives.
No one, except the ones close by observing him, had attached any great significance to the news that Pierre had passed out, but when the news a day later ran around the family that he wasn't getting better, he was getting worse, the whole family took serious notice.
Reece and Van arrived from Gregous in Greece, Reece was as upset as any grandparent could be.
Sofia arrived from Torremolinas with Rick, she was completely distraught, remembering that Pierre had almost lost his life when he came to her rescue in England.
Woody had been in London on business when he'd taken Jacqueline's call, she'd been sobbing.
"He's not getting better Woody, he's worse, Aly and Bo have had him admitted into a private clinic, I'm worried".
Woody had cancelled his schedule and headed directly for his plane, within a few hours, he and Jacqueline appeared at Avenue Montclair, they had Daniel with them, he'd rushed back from Paris that morning as soon as he'd heard the news.
In Chicago there had been a hurriedly arranged family conference, it was agreed, Billy, Jolly and Jay would head immediately for Montclair, but the boys made it clear, if there was no improvement, they would be following, and soon.
Two days after he was admitted, Pierre's doctors came to speak with Juan, he'd been warned in advance and called Aly, Bo, Josef and Carry, they were all present when the doctors arrived.
What they heard left them all devastated, sobbing.
TBC ARB Allan
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