Date: Mon, 31 May 2010 01:40:17 +0000
From: Jacob Latson <jacob_latson@hotmail.com>
Subject: Agony & Ecstasy Chapter 45

Disclaimer:

This story will describe the life of John Miller from his time as a man
who has been devastated by divorce and enters into a new life of
wealth.  This story will include descriptions of male sex, including
M/M, M/T, M/b, T/b and b/b.  If stories involving sex between
consenting males of all ages, including mainly gay sex, offends you, go
back to the Archives and pick a different story for your reading
pleasure.  Don't expect constant descriptions of erotic sex in this
story.  I always want to develop a plot and characters before the hot
action starts.

There has been minimal research for this story therefore, names,
places, and events are mostly fictitious and similarities to real life
are coincidental.

Some companies and organizations mentioned actually exist, but
references to the activities, policies, programs and procedures are
fictitious. This story will include references to the United States
government, the FBI, CIA and other agencies.  Any references are purely
fictional, and only used to develop the plot and characters.

Thanks again to Bill for his editing skills.


Agony & Ecstasy Chapter 45


John was leaving the North American Headquarters with Derek Kaufman driving
the 1959 Chevrolet Impala, 2 door hardtop.  The bright red car was one of
John's favorites and he knew that Derek always wanted to drive it.  When
they got to the main gate, John was pissed when he saw that PETA (People
for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) were continuing their vigil on public
land but right in front of the main gate.  John saw that several media vans
were making live broadcasts.  "Stop the car!" John said to Derek.  "I'm
losing my patience with this bunch of assholes."

Derek tried to keep John from leaving the safety of the vintage car but he
knew that John Miller wasn't afraid of confronting people who were
constantly criticizing the Sea & Jungle Imports Company.  Derek was in
charge of the security operations in the United States, a promotion that
Butch Mendez and John had agreed to.  Derek used his cell phone to call
Butch Mendez to report the problem but knew that he could do whatever was
necessary to keep John safe.  Amy Wentworth and Matt Steele jumped out to
walk with John and were ready for trouble.  The two security officers knew
that the PETA members had spray painted vulgarities on the main gates and
signs and the security officers were ready to use their Glock handguns or
concealed Uzi automatic weapons if necessary.

John walked up to where Rosemary Wade was unleashing her venom at the
famous furniture company for using real leather.  She had the attention of
Robert Brown, a special reporter for a leading syndicated news group.
Robert Brown recognized John Miller and was shaking with excitement when he
hoped that he would be able to get Rosemary and John to square off in front
of his cameras.  When he had been told to tape Rosemary Wade's comments, he
was offended, but now it was looking like the interview of the year and a
real boost to his career if he could incite anger between the two different
factions.

"Helpless animals are slaughtered and their skins are ripped from their
bodies, just so this company can make their horrible furniture," Rosemary
said.  "PETA wants all hunting and fishing outlawed.  Animals must be
treated with respect and allowed to live their lives without fear of being
used for barbaric events like weekend barbecues.  PETA advocates eating
only vegetables and that will allow all of the animals and fish of our
world to live without fear."

Robert saw John standing behind Rosemary and immediately asked, "John
Miller, you're the CEO of this huge company.  Do you have any comments
about what Rosemary Wade has just said?"

"I sure do!" John said with a smile.  "I appreciate that Rosemary and her
group of mental defectives have decided to abstain from consumption of
protein derived from meat or fish.  If she and her friends are successful,
the price of filet mignon will drop drastically and I can serve my family
and friends with a higher quality of grilled gourmet food.  I don't think
that God let mankind get to the top of the food chain to eat grass, but I
see that the lawn leading away from these gates is in need of trimming.
Rosemary, would you and your friends like to help me out?  I won't charge
you for grazing on the Kentucky blue grass unless you rip the roots out.  I
might even be able to throw you a few dandelions so you can have a dessert
suitable to your beliefs."

"You bastard!" Rosemary screamed, "You're a murderer!  You kill animals and
display the heads here at this building and around the world in your stores
and you wear leather clothing.  I should shoot you dead right here in front
of the television cameras!"

John wasn't going to take the bait of this nasty bitch.  He knew she wanted
to create a physical altercation that would be broadcast around the world.

Derek Kaufman had finished his call to Butch Mendez and ran to where John
was standing in front of the television cameras.  It was the first time
that Derek had seen the Miller eyes turn into the cold eyes of a predator.
He had heard from other security officers, and especially Mike Mahon that
John could turn into a predator in a matter of seconds, and that someone
was going to go down very soon.

John realized that Rosemary had hit a nerve with him, and he took a deep
breath and decided to fuck with the bitch.  "You just threatened me," John
said calmly.  He opened his sports coat and revealed his shoulder holster
and the 45 automatic Glock handgun.  "If I feel that my life is in danger,
I can shoot your worthless ass and then get into my 1959 Impala and go to
the Hidden Harbor Yacht Club for lunch.  I can't decide if I want the
lobster salad or a huge porterhouse steak.  Maybe you can help me decide."

"Your company sponsors summer camps where young boys learn how to be
killers," Rosemary blurted out.

"At the summer camps we teach boys and girls techniques in climbing,
canoeing, archery and shooting," John answered.

"Shooting!  That's irresponsible!" Rosemary insisted.

"I don't agree," John replied.  They are supervised on the range by
professional instructors who used to be in the military or were police
officers."

"Why would you teach them how to shoot deadly weapons?" Rosemary asked.
"You're teaching them how to be violent killers!"

"I don't agree," John began.  "We teach them proper handling of weapons
before they ever touch a rifle, shotgun or pistol."

"But they will have all of the equipment and training to become violent
killers!"  Rosemary insisted.

"Well if we used your example, you have all of the equipment and training
to be a prostitute," John replied.  "It's up to you to decide how to lead
your life".

The crowd roared when Rosemary lost control of her emotions and screamed
obscenities at John before storming away from the collection of
microphones.

Robert knew that he had just captured the most important interview of his
entire career.  He prayed that his camera man had captured the verbal
exchange and decided to continue to interview John.  "PETA wants all guns
outlawed," Robert began.  "What is that gun and why do you carry it?"

"This is a Glock 45 caliber semi-automatic handgun with nine rounds in the
magazine and one in the chamber," John replied calmly.  "I carry it to
protect myself and the people that I love.  I noticed that Rosemary carries
a weapon too that happens to be her face.  With a face like hers, she
certainly won't have any men showing interest, but maybe my son's dog would
be tempted.  Barney's a wonderful beagle, and he might want to spend time
with her if you have a grocery bag to put over her face."

Derek Kaufman, Amy Wentworth and Matt Steele roared in laughter when they
heard John put Rosemary in her place.  Their laughter was joined by
everyone in the area except the other members of PETA.

Robert Brown tried to choke back his laughter, but he wasn't successful.
He was ecstatic about the content of the unplanned video confrontation and
knew that his company would make a fortune selling the video footage.  He
finally composed himself and asked, "You said that the weapon is a 45
caliber handgun.  Why do you carry a 45?"

"Because they don't make a 46," John said with a straight face.

"Do you carry that handgun because you expected trouble here?" Robert
asked.

"Nope," John replied.  "If I expected trouble here, I would have brought a
rife or shotgun.  If you look at the gates and signs for my company, you
can see that vulgarities have been spray painted all over.  The timing of
this broadcast is perfect.  Right now I can see the Detroit Police cruisers
coming here to arrest Rosemary Wade and several other PETA members for
destruction of private property.  I guess that Rosemary and her accomplices
didn't realize that we have security cameras covering every inch of our
private property.  I happen to know that the videos clearly show the
vandalism, and I have every intention of pursuing criminal charges against
the perpetrators.  Robert, I thank you for being here, but I'm leaving for
a lunch date with some friends and then a fishing trip out on Lake Huron."

Derek Kaufman wanted to hug John and thank him for controlling his anger
while confronting the PETA bitch.  When they were inside the Impala, Derek,
Amy and Matt were laughing so hard that Derek couldn't drive.  None of them
could believe how John had diffused the situation and turned it around on
Rosemary Wade.

**************************************************** It was two weeks later
when John headed for the Hidden Harbor Yacht Club for lunch with Mario
Genovesi and Michael Costanza.  He greeted his friends in the bar area and
joined them in enjoying a Miller Manhattan while they gazed at the actions
of the horny teenagers in the club swimming pool.  John was thinking about
Nicklas traveling to the Czech Republic for a brief vacation before the
high school football practices began.  He missed his son and wished that he
was with Nicky at Proud Les Domov.  Actually, John had always wanted to
give away all of his responsibilities and retire to the orphanage to spend
the rest of his life with the rescued children in the beautiful
countryside.  He had given up his own personal dreams to let Nicklas
realize his personal dreams of living in Michigan and attending American
schools.  John was envious that Nicklas, Mike Mahon, Lodak and Jan were all
vacationing at Proud Les Domov and couldn't wait to join them.

During lunch the men talked about Benito Capressi, the head of the Capressi
family headquartered in New York City.  Benito was flying in to Detroit
Metro Airport on his private jet and had bragged to Mario that it was the
most beautiful jet in the world.  Mario knew that John had one of his
private jets at the same hangar at Metro Airport and asked John to go with
him to meet his friend and compare the luxury jets.

"Benito has helped us make peace with the other families," Michael said to
John.  "He and Mario both lost sons when they tried to abduct you.  Benito
was ready to go to war until he learned the truth."

Two Suburbans left the exclusive club to drive to Metro Airport.  Mario and
Michael had their personal bodyguards in one Suburban and John and members
of his security forces were in the other vehicle.  When the two vehicles
drove out on the tarmac, everyone saw a beautiful Gulfstream 5 jet taxiing
up to the hangar.  The men got out and waited for the jet to come to
rest. They saw the hatch open and the ground crew move the portable
stairway into place.

Benito Capressi was standing at the entryway to his private jet and
welcomed his guests to come aboard.  He was convinced that he owned the
finest private jet in the world and was anxious to show it off.  John,
Mario and Michael were walking up the stairway where Benito was waiting for
them when all hell broke loose.

Three dark vans screamed alongside the private jet and 12 men jumped out
with AK 47 assault weapons and opened fire on the plane and the wealthy men
and bodyguards.

John was wearing his bullet resistant vest and felt the impact of two
bullets that knocked him down on the stairway.  He pulled out his Glock and
opened fire on the attackers.

The air was filled with gunfire with the members of MS 13 showing no fear
as they avenged the death of their members who had died in the failed
abduction of John Miller and his son.  John saw Michael Costanza go down
with a bullet hole in his head and knew that his friend was dead.  He
continued firing until his Glock magazine was empty.  Before he could
reload, he was hit multiple times and collapsed on the stairway before
tumbling down the stairs to land in a heap on the tarmac.

Dead bodies covered the ground before the bodyguards had killed or wounded
all of the attackers.  Derek Kaufman sobbed openly when he saw that John
Miller had been shot in the head along with wounds to his arms and legs.
He saw that Mario was down, Michael was obviously dead, and Benito Capressi
had his head blown off.  Derek was wounded in the arm and leg, but
struggled to find his cell phone to call Butch.

Butch Mendez was in the Detroit Headquarters before heading for the airport
to fly to Paris for a meeting with INTERPOL.  He had turned over control of
the American Operations to Derek Kaufman and was waiting for his friend to
come back to the Headquarters Building for a final conversation before he
left.

"Butch here!" he said when he answered his cell phone.  He was immediately
alarmed because he knew that his security officers never called his cell
phone except in emergencies.

"BUTCH!  JOHN'S DOWN ALONG WITH FOUR OF US, MARIO, MICHAEL AND ANOTHER FIVE
MEN!" Derek screamed.  "WE'RE AT THE PRIVATE HANGAR AT METRO AND THERE ARE
DEAD BODIES EVERYWHERE!  JOHN'S HURT BAD!  HE TOOK ONE IN THE HEAD!"

"JESUS CHRIST!" Butch yelled.  He immediately went to his desk and hit the
alarm button for the strike teams and prayed that John and his men would
live.  He also activated the emergency alarm that would lock down all
locations of the Sea & Jungle Imports Company, world wide.  He ran out of
the office and headed for the airport.

Nicklas was enjoying a soccer game on the grounds of the orphanage in the
Czech Republic and wanted to call his father to be sure when they would be
reunited.  He was just making a long kick that bounced off the goal post
when he saw security officers running out on the field.  A siren was
screaming around the countryside and he was terrified when one of the
guards swept him off his feet and carried him inside the main building.
Nicklas screamed at the guard to put him down, but the man ignored his
cussing and demands.

Children everywhere were being herded inside the main buildings with armed
guards rushing outside to block the main road and take up defensive
positions.  Everyone knew that something horrible had happened and they
were terrified.

Karel Kovar had taken over command of all of the security officers in the
Czech Republic and he had locked down the orphanage and all operations in
the country as soon as he got the emergency call from Butch Mendez.  Only
when he was convinced that the orphanage was secure did he call the North
American Headquarters to find out why the red alert had been issued.

Sue Nyquist was in charge of the office after Butch left to head for the
hospital where John and four security officers had been taken.  Sue knew
that the strike teams would collect their weapons and gear and then guard
the hospital in case there was another attack.  She had learned bits of
information from reports from the airport security office and from the
paramedics.  The news was not good.

Butch ran into the Trauma Unit at Bentley Hospital and positioned his armed
men at the entrances before he demanded to know where John Miller had been
taken.  He threatened the duty nurse and was ready to hit her when a
hospital security officer ran to the desk.

"David!" Butch said when he recognized the man.  "Where did they take John
Miller and the other gunshot victims?"

"Doctor Gunderson is the duty surgeon but he called in a neurosurgeon,"
David said to Butch.  "I barely recognized John Miller because of all the
blood.  John took one in the head and he arrested.  They're taking him into
emergency surgery and it doesn't look good.  We've called the Detroit
Police to get this place secure.  Some of the other wounded men were taken
to Beaumont Hospital because this is more than we can handle."

"My strike teams are on the way to secure this entire hospital," Butch
said.  "Are any of my men conscious?"

Derek Kaufman was heavily medicated, but he tried to tell Butch what
happened at the airport.  "It was an organized hit," Derek choked out,
"Three vans pulled up and I'd estimate that 12 men got out with AK 47's
blazing.  John, Mario and Michael were meeting Benito Capressi at the
private hangar and were walking up the steps to get inside Benito's plane
when the shooting started.  I bet that the shooters were all MS 13 gang
members.  They hosed down everyone and we pulled out our Uzis and smoked
them, but they hit all of us.  I know that Michael Costanza took one in the
head and was dead before he hit the ground.  Benito was shredded and Mario
was hit in the legs and arms.  All of us were wearing vests or we'd all be
dead.  I helped stabilize John before I passed out.  Butch, John took a bad
hit in the head and others in the arms and legs.  I can't imagine that he
survived his head wound."

"They took John into surgery," Butch replied, "He arrested twice but they
have him on life support.  I'm waiting for the doctors to give us some
news."

"I should have kept John from going to the airport," Derek said
apologetically, "This is all my fault."

"Can that bullshit!" Butch insisted.  "Just relax and let the doctors take
care of you.  I'll go check on our other people and give you an update."

Butch had canceled his plans to fly to Europe and returned to the North
American Headquarters to take control.  He was determined to lock down all
of the Sea & Jungle Imports Company operations and to make sure that all of
John Miller's family and company executives were safe and guarded.  Butch
knew that a war had started, and he also knew that he had the personnel and
equipment to engage the enemies.

Kirsty Miller was at home with Little John and baby Abby when she got the
call that John Miller had been shot.  She fought to stay conscious and told
Sue Nyquist that Johnny was at Houghton Lake where he was painting a cabin
with a close friend.  She gave Sue the general location of her husband but
added that Johnny's cell phone was turned off. She then quickly packed
clothing for herself, her husband and two children.  She didn't know where
she was going, but she took her cell phone and quickly called her parents.

Butch called Matt Russell and learned that John was still in surgery.  Matt
gave Butch updates on Amy Wentworth, Derek Kaufman, Lou Williams and Ross
Johnson.  They were all expected to live, but had all been wounded by
gunfire at the airport firefight.

Johnny Miller was enjoying the visit with his college friend, Tim Shepard.
They had planned the trip to Houghton Lake to get away from their wives and
go fishing.  They also planned to paint Tim's cabin and drink a ton of
beer, but they kept that information from their wives.  Tim's cabin had
been rebuilt, but no phone line was installed and both men had turned their
cell phones off.  They had just finished painting the north side of the
cabin and were getting ready to go to a bar for food and beer when the
helicopter came down in the middle of the road.

Johnny knew that the arrival of a helicopter could only mean bad news about
a member of his family.  He tossed his paint brush to Tim and ran towards
the chopper where Jeff Cole, Dan Wisniewski, Tayshaun Jones, and Seth
Green, all former Blackhawk employees were jumping out with automatic
weapons ready.  Johnny knew that something terrible had happened and he
begged the men to tell him why they had come for him.

"Johnny's leaving with us," Tayshaun said to Tim Shepard.  "You won't be
able to contact him for several days, but you can call the Security Office
on this number to know why we came here today."  He gave Tim a business
card and turned quickly to help Johnny get into the helicopter.

Traffic on the road had been blocked when the helicopter landed, and irate
drivers were honking their horns and out of their cars screaming
obscenities until they saw the heavily armed security officers.  All of the
drivers jumped back into their vehicles and prayed that the armed men would
forget the vulgarity they had used when the road was blocked.  They watched
the helicopter lift off and then frantically drove away, hoping that no one
had witnessed their verbal assaults.

Johnny was in shock when he heard that his father had been shot at Detroit
Metro Airport.  He listened to Tayshaun's description of the armed attack
and sank down in the seat, afraid to even think that his father might
already be dead after hearing that he had been shot in the head.

"Butch Mendez happened to be in Detroit and he's taken over control of all
security operations," Tayshaun said to Johnny.  "Your family has been moved
to a place where we can protect them and you, and the same has happened to
Katelyn Albright and her children and your brother, Nicklas.  We still
don't know the details, but it appears that members of MS 13 were the
shooters.  Two of them were captured and we've been using our special
training in interrogation to find out what we can."

Johnny knew that many of the security officers had been trained in the
military, specifically in the Special Forces.  Others who had been
Blackhawk employees had been mercenaries.  All of the security officers
were lethal weapons if provoked, and Johnny felt sick when he thought of
how the shooters were being interrogated.

In the Czech Republic, Nicklas paced the floor of the master bedroom and
couldn't believe that he was being treated like a prisoner.  He was furious
and threatened every security officer that he came in contact with.  No one
would tell him why the alarm siren had been activated or why he was being
confined to the bedroom with armed security officers guarding every window
and door.

Karel Kovar, head of security at the Proud Les Domov orphanage walked into
the master bedroom and saw the fear and anger in the eyes of Nicklas
Zednik-Miller.  He knew what had happened in Michigan and was afraid to
tell the handsome teenager that his father had been shot and would probably
die.  He had lost both of his own parents in a senseless shooting by
Russian spies, and had joined INTERPOL to eradicate the influence of the
former Soviet Union.

"I have very bad news for you from Michigan," Karel began, "Butch Mendez
called me and explained that he started the red alert for all facilities
controlled by your company.  Your father, John Miller, has been shot and
his wounds are very bad.  Butch is waiting for you to call him so he can
tell you the details."

Nicklas felt like he would pass out after hearing that John had been shot.
John had been shot before, but from the way Karel was talking to him, it
sounded like his father was already dead.  He remembered when John had
talked to him about the danger of being a wealthy person and had also told
him what he expected of his son if he was ever killed.  John had said that
he wanted Nicklas, Johnny and Katelyn to pull together and do what was
necessary to protect the company and the thousands of employees.

"Is he dead?" Nicklas choked out.  He was afraid that Karel would nod his
head, "Yes" and then walk out of the room.  Nicklas saw Dr. Johan Kovar
coming into the room and feared that the doctor would give him an injection
that would knock him out for several hours.

"I've talked to Butch," Dr. Kovar said to Nicklas.  "Our beloved John
Miller has multiple gunshot wounds, but the most grave is a bullet that hit
him in the forehead and went through his skull and brain before exiting the
back of his head.  I have never lied to you.  I can't imagine how John
could survive such a terrible gunshot wound."

Nicklas broke down sobbing and Dr. Kovar was ready with a syringe of
medication if the teenaged boy lost all control of his emotions.  Instead
Dr. Kovar saw the determination in Nicklas' eyes and knew that the young
man wanted to act and be treated like an adult.  Several hours had passed
since the actual shooting, and Dr. Kovar and Karel Kovar wanted to talk to
Butch Mendez to know if John Miller was still alive.

Nicklas looked at the two men and saw in their eyes the fear that his
father was dead.  He wiped away his tears and again thought back to what
John had said to him about how to act if something bad happened.  He knew
that he was being tested and steeled himself to learn the truth from Butch.
"Karel, can you call Butch Mendez and put the call on the speaker phone?"
Nicklas asked.  "I don't want anyone lying to me.  I can handle the truth
but I'll kill anyone who lies to me about John's condition."

Butch Mendez hadn't slept and was pacing back and forth in Derek Kaufman's
office at the North American Headquarters of the Sea & Jungle Imports
Company.  He was getting calls from his security officers, medical experts
and many unofficial sources of classified information.  He was piecing
together the details of the attack at Metro Airport and all indications
were that the intended targets were Mario Genovesi and Benito Capressi.
John Miller had simply been at the wrong place at the wrong time.  Butch
knew that the two MS 13 shooters that had survived the gunfight had been
"interrogated" by two of his special security officers. The leader of the
interrogation unit was Donald Cassidy, the former owner of Blackhawk
Security.  Donald had retired but had been bored with playing golf and
watching his grass grow in Florida, so he returned to Detroit and was
listed as an "advisor" to the security operations.

 The public would never know the truth, which was that the two shooters had
been taken to a secure sight and "waterboarded" by Donald Cassidy in the
presence of CIA and FBI agents to force the shooters to reveal all that
they knew about the attack.  After the interrogation, the CIA and FBI
agents left the scene so they could deny any involvement in what happened
to the two shooters.  Two black Cadillac Escalades came to the warehouse
where the interrogation had taken place and eight bruisers stepped out.  To
the security officers and Donald Cassidy, it was very obvious that the new
arrivals had Mafia connections and wanted to do their own interrogation of
the captured men.

Donald Cassidy called Butch Mendez and the two men had a very unusual
conversation that would only be understood by professionals in the law
enforcement community.  Nothing that would incriminate either man was said,
but the message was clearly transmitted that John Miller was not the target
of the assassination attempt and that the surviving shooters would never be
seen again.

Butch was relieved that John and his family hadn't been targeted, but he
still feared that his boss and friend would die from the gunshot wounds.
He had his strike teams protecting the wounded security officers along with
the entire wing where John Miller was being treated, but he wished that he
had more resources to cover all family and friends of John.  He knew that
Johnny, Kirsty, Little John and Abby had been taken to the home of Helen
Baxter where armed security officers could protect them.  Katelyn Albright
and her two children had been taken to a remote hunting lodge in Idaho
where they were being guarded.

When the call came in from Proud Les Domov, Butch braced for the worst.  He
knew that Nicklas loved John more than anything in the world and would be
devastated.

"Butch here."

"Karel Kovar calling with Nicklas."

"Butch, I'm afraid to ask how he is" Nicklas said.

"He's still alive," Butch began.  "John has multiple wounds, but the most
severe is a gunshot wound to the head.  They have a new experimental laser
that's being tested for removing brain tumors and I authorized Dr. William
Kubic to use the laser to seal off damaged portions of John's brain.  You
know that I have the authority to do that under John's living will."

"Will he live?" Nicklas asked.  "I'm afraid that he's already dead.  I need
to be there but Karel won't let me leave this bedroom.  I'm a prisoner here
and my place is with my father in Michigan."

"I understand your wishes, but you know that John lets the security force
make decisions about your safety," Butch replied.  "Johnny and Katelyn have
been taken away to safety too.  No member of the family is allowed near the
hospital until we know that it's safe.  Maybe you don't remember me going
over the rules with you, John, Katelyn and Johnny about a year ago.  We
suspect that John wasn't the target of the assassins.  Until we know for
sure, you'll have to stay where you're safe.  I know that this is horrible
for you, but you have to trust me.  I'll call you when I have more news.
Right now, I suggest that you pray for your father."

"Who else was shot and who did it?" Nicklas asked.

"John went with Mario Genovesi, Michael Costanza and several bodyguards to
meet Benito Capressi at Metro Airport.  Benito wanted to show off his new
jet but we believe 12 members of MS 13 were out to kill Benito and Mario.
It appears those two were targeted because their sons shafted MS 13 and the
Colombian Cartel in the botched abduction of you and your father.  Michael
Costanza is dead along with Benito.  By last count we have 8 bodyguards
either dead or wounded along with 10 of the attackers.  The four security
officers from our company are people that you know.  Amy Wentworth, Derek
Kaufman, Lou Williams and Ross Johnson are all wounded but expected to
live."

"What can I do?" Nicklas asked.  "I feel helpless."

"Pray and follow the directions of Karel and the other security officers,"
Butch replied.  "INTERPOL is watching all airports and other means of
travel to your location just in case assassins try to get to you.  When we
know that it's safe, we'll bring you here, but not before we have special
protection in place."

Nicklas hung up the phone and looked at Karel Kovar and Dr. Johan Kovar.
The two men were cousins, but had extremely different occupations.  One was
a doctor and the other had been a mercenary before serving in INTERPOL and
then joined the Czech branch of the Sea & Jungle Imports Company security
operations.

Butch collapsed into the leather chair and tried to rub his temples to
reduce the splitting headache.  He hadn't slept in over 30 hours and had to
continue to control the entire company around the world.  Sue Nyquist came
into the office and could see that her boss was exhausted.

"We won't have another update from Dr. Kubic for at least four hours," Sue
said.  "I'll handle the phones so you can go to Helen's office and take a
short nap.  I promise to wake you if I hear anything important.  We've got
great people working with us so let's trust them to do their jobs.  We need
you awake and alert, not like you are right now."

Butch would have normally been angry at hearing a subordinate talk to him
like that, but he took a deep breath and admitted that Sue was right.  When
he walked into Helen's spacious office, he saw that two leather couches had
been pulled together to make a very comfortable bed.  Sue had obviously
planned this because there were blankets and feather pillows waiting for
him.

Sue was relieved that Butch had left her in charge while he got some needed
sleep.  She worked the phones and made brief notes of anything that she
wanted to share with Butch after his nap.  It was six hours later when
Dr. Kubic called and suggested a conference call with the members of John
Miller's family.  Dr. Kubic had just examined John Miller and then met with
the hospital director and legal staff.  The use of the Carlton Laser was
still considered experimental, but the results with John Miller's surgery
were very positive.  Sue Nyquist feared the worst, but agreed to organize
the call with Butch, Johnny, Katelyn and Nicklas.  She reluctantly went and
woke Butch up and told him about the conference call.

"I was afraid of this," Butch admitted.  "When a neurosurgeon asks to talk
to the family, it's never to share good news."

Thirty minutes later, the conference call was established.  Butch knew that
he had the ultimate decision authority to remove the life support systems,
and dreaded making the decision that John had entrusted to him.

"My name's William Kubic, and I'm the Chief of Neurosurgery for this
hospital," Dr.  Kubic began.  "When we took John Miller into the operating
room, I immediately questioned if we had any chance of saving his life,
mainly because of the damage done by the bullet.  We believe that it was a
jacketed bullet made for penetrating metal or protective vests, and the
bullet entered his forehead above his left eye, passed through his brain
and exited the back of his skull.  I won't go into the details of the
intricate surgical techniques, but I will tell you that a normal bullet or
hollow point projectile would have killed him instantly when the bullet
expanded on impact.  Because of a very generous donation from the
Zednik-Miller Foundation, we had secured an experimental Carlton laser for
treating brain tumors that had always been considered inoperable.
Mr. Mendez authorized me to use this new equipment and we proceeded with
the treatment.  Imagine a flexible wire about the diameter of a pencil
lead, with a miniature camera and low voltage laser on the end.  After
removing bone fragments with conventional equipment, we inserted the
Carlton and sealed off areas of leakage.  I consider the surgery successful
but swelling of his brain is at a critical level.  To be honest, I never
expected him to survive the surgery.  This is the first application of a
Carlton Laser on a gunshot wound to the brain and we have no statistics on
survival rate.  I'll try to answer your questions if you will not all ask
at the same time."

"What can you do to control the swelling?" Johnny asked.

"Will he live?" Nicklas asked.

"Does he have a chance to live a normal life?" Katelyn asked.

 Dr. Kubic answered each question but never lied to the family members.  He
promised to give updates to Butch Mendez and also promised that he wouldn't
leave the hospital.

Butch finally went home to clean up, rest, and spend some quality time with
his wife and children.  When he pulled into the driveway of his home, he
didn't see any security officers and was immediately alarmed.  His fears
were extinguished when he saw two men in camouflage clothing step out from
behind two trees in his front yard.  Another man came out from behind a
parked Escalade and pointed an RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade) launcher at
him and his Escalade.

Over the next two days, there were frequent phone calls to the family
members about John's condition.  John's brain had returned to normal size
after the surgical trauma, but there were no signs that John was improving.

Butch went to the hospital several times and sat in the ICU holding John's
hand and talking to his friend and boss.  He wondered if John was brain
dead, but pushed aside those thoughts and continued talking to his friend
just like during normal times.  He wondered if John would ever wake up and
also feared that even if John survived, he would never be the same.

Butch was in the Security Office when he got a phone call from the Hidden
Harbor Yacht Club asking him to be there at noon on the following day for
an important meeting.  Butch agreed to attend the meeting and wondered who
would be there.  He had his suspicions, but decided to wait to find out.
He had been using his resources to gather information about the assassins
and was prepared to share his information with the right people at the
meeting.

When Butch drove to the front gate of the Hidden Harbor Yacht Club, he saw
several men standing in front of Cadillac Escalades.  A sign said "Club
Closed for Emergency Repairs".  He recognized Matt Russell, one of his own
security officers, but didn't recognize any of the other seven men.  He
could see by the bulges in the jackets of the men that they were all armed.

"Butch, go right in and join the others in the Members Only Bar," Matt
Russell said.  One of the Escalades was moved back to let Butch drive in
and then the Escalade was moved back to join the other three vehicles
blocking the driveway.

When Butch walked inside, he saw many men armed with automatic weapons.
This was definitely going to be a well protected meeting!  When Butch
walked into the bar area, he was greeted by Paolo Carpetti.  Paolo and
Michael Costanza had been bodyguards for Mario Genovesi and Butch knew that
Paolo and Michael had given up their bodyguard duties to handle sensitive
issues for Mario.  Butch looked around the room and recognized many
faces. He was shocked that Philippe Ducharme had left the Bahamas to risk
traveling to Detroit for this meeting, but Butch decided to say nothing and
hugged his boss.  Butch was shocked to see people from the FBI, DEA, and
CIA, along with many men that he suspected were connected to the Mafia.  He
was relieved to see Donald Cassidy, former owner of Blackhawk Security,
talking to Taylor Coleman, a Private Investigator John had used several
times.

"This is gonna be the meeting of a lifetime!" Donald whispered to John.
"I've never seen this much firepower in one place at the same time unless
it was at the Pentagon.  Are you running this show?"

Butch never had a chance to answer Donald.  "Gentlemen could we please take
seats so we can get started?" Paolo Carpetti asked.  He wasted no time in
dimming the lights and starting a slide presentation.  The first slide
identified the groups that were represented at the meeting, but didn't give
any names of the representatives.  The next slide showed a photo of John
Miller and Nicklas Zednik-Miller.  Paolo gave a brief review of the
abduction and rescue.  He also showed pictures of Delano Genovesi, Franco
Capressi and Robert Ducharme and stated that they had planned the abduction
and had died as a result.  He explained the involvement of the Colombian
drug cartel and MS 13 so that everyone would understand.  Paolo then showed
photos of Michael Costanza and Benito Capressi and choked back his emotions
while describing how his two friends had died.  "I'd like Tom to come up
and show what his organization has learned about the assassins," Paolo
said.

Butch recognized Tom Watson from the DEA and watched the slides, listening
to Tom describe the locations of the major kingpins of the Colombian cartel
here in the United States.  The map showed the homes of Colombian generals
in Miami, New York City, Washington D.C., Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and
Seattle.  Another slide showed the main drug traffic routes into Florida,
Texas, Arizona and California and described how gangs like MS 13 were used
for distribution and sales of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines and
bootlegged prescription drugs.  Tom left no doubt that the Colombian Cartel
and MS 13 had organized the attack at Metro Airport.

Each time a man made a presentation, Butch was amazed at how much
information had been gathered in such a short time.  When it was his turn,
Butch gave a brief update on John's condition before sharing information
garnered from the two MS 13 shooters who had survived the gun fight at the
airport.  His information indicated that Mario Genovesi and Benito Capressi
were the targets of the assassins in retribution for the failed abduction
of John and Nicklas Miller.

Paolo was a master in controlling the meeting of these powerful men from
around the United States.  He answered some questions directly and referred
others to experts in the room.  He realized when it was time to move the
meeting forward and said, "Now it's time for us to do some serious planning
on how to respond to this attack.  My friends have been attacked and I want
revenge along with many of you.  If any of you want to leave now, you are
free to go.  If you stay, all that I ask is that you do nothing to sabotage
our plans for dealing a smashing blow to the Colombian cartel, the Mexican
cartels and gangs like MS 13."

After seeing that no one left, Paolo continued.  "We all know that
government agencies can't openly use their resources to attack citizens of
the United States or other countries, even when they know the people are
criminals polluting our nation with illegal drugs.  There are, however,
dedicated members of the FBI, DEA and CIA who are ready to act as
individuals in planning or carrying out a most severe retaliation to what
has happened to our country.  We have a significant army of security
officers from the Sea & Jungle Imports Company, soldiers from the five
families headquartered in New York City and cooperation from INTERPOL to
make this mission a success.  We will identify one person to be responsible
for each piece of this mission and then let that person develop a detailed
plan.  We have two weeks to prepare.  Our sources tell us that there will
be a meeting of the leaders of the Colombian drug cartel two weeks from
tomorrow in Medellin, Colombia.  By sheer luck, on that same day the
Mexican drug cartels will meet to try to end their turf war.  September
11th is the day that these organizations chose to have their important
meetings.  9-11 is a day that this country will never forget, and I pray
that it will be the same for our enemies in the drug trade."

The meeting lasted for several hours and small groups broke away to talk in
private about their selected areas of the plan and how to combine resources
to make it happen.  Butch had a very significant part of the plans.  It
would be almost impossible for military aircraft to drop bombs on the homes
of the drug kingpins, but helicopters from Executive Transportation could
fly over private property without attracting unwanted attention and deliver
a lethal payload.  Unmarked military aircraft would be used to launch
Cruise missiles or "smart" bombs to wipe out the cartel leaders in the
foreign countries.  Butch returned to his office and tried to decide how to
split up his responsibilities among dedicated volunteers in his ranks of
security officers.  *********************************** Butch waited two
days before allowing Katelyn Albright along with Zach and Brooke to leave
the hunting lodge to travel to Michigan.  Johnny and Kirsty Miller were
waiting at Metro Airport along with a huge group of armed security officers
for the company jet to arrive.  Butch had coordinated the arrival time with
a flight from Europe with Nicklas aboard.  John Miller was still
unconscious and Butch had decided that it was relatively safe for the
family members to see John with the understanding that they had to return
to their secured locations after the family visits.

Nicklas was impatient with the U.S. Customs agent and was ready to
physically attack the nasty woman before Butch came to the rescue.  Butch
had brought the supervisor out of his office and the man quickly stamped
the passport of the handsome teenager and let him walk out to meet his
family.

It was a very emotional reunion for the members of John's family.  They all
tried to say only positive things but dreaded the thought that John was
already brain dead.  When they got to the hospital, each family member was
allowed five minutes in the ICU with John.

Nicklas choked back his emotions when he walked into the ICU and saw his
father and lover lying motionless on the hospital bed.  Tubes and wires
were everywhere, but Nicklas ignored them and looked at John's face.  It
was apparent that John had lost a lot of weight and his complexion was a
sickening gray.  Bandages covered the head wounds along with a cast on
John's right leg and left arm where bullets had fractured the bones.
Nicklas leaned over and kissed John on the forehead, and then sat down
while he held his father's hand.  He talked to John about Barney, his
beloved dog, and the many children at Proud Les Domov who were praying for
him.  When it was time for him to leave, he leaned over, kissed John on his
dry lips, and begged his father to wake up.

Two days later, Zach Albright was taking his turn at visiting his
grandfather.  He was holding John's hand and talking softly to him about
his own dog that he named Barney when he saw John's eyelids flicker.  Zach
choked back his emotions and pushed the call button for the nurse.  He
wanted to scream for his mother, but was afraid of scaring John.  He saw
John's eyes open and then close slowly right before the nurse arrived.

"He opened his eyes!" Zach said excitedly.  "I wanted to scream for you but
I was afraid that I'd scare him.  He saw the nurse opening John's eyes to
add lubricating drops and ran down to the waiting room where the entire
family was waiting.  "HE OPENED HIS EYES!" Zach screamed.  "I SAW HIM OPEN
HIS EYES!"

Everyone rushed into John's room, but nurses and Dr. Kubic ordered them out
of the room so they could examine John.  The brain wave monitor had
recorded a marked increase in brain activity that confirmed Zach's
observation that John's brain had been at a higher level of awareness.  The
family paced the waiting room and could hardly wait for Dr. Kubic to come
in with a report.

Dr. Kubic walked into the waiting room with a big smile on his face.  He
wiped away the tears that were flowing down his face and talked openly to
the family members.  "I never dreamed that I would be having this
conversation with you after John's terrible head wound.  Zach was right!
John woke up for only a few seconds, but that's absolutely wonderful news!
A traumatic injury like his normally causes permanent brain damage, so we
have to be cautiously optimistic about what just happened.  We sedated him,
but I brought a printout of the results of the brain wave monitoring
equipment.  Look!  This is a flat line of his brain activity that's
indicative of his awareness after the surgery.  Now look at the higher
level and the sharp spikes that prove his brain is trying to function.
With the generous grant from the Zednik-Miller Foundation, I'm assigned
full time to experimentation with the Carlton Laser that I used to seal off
the damage to his brain.  John is my only patient right now, and I'll
monitor his progress continuously.  In some other brain injury patients,
we've seen continual improvement once the patient has shown signs of waking
up, but I have to warn you that other patients never are able to
communicate or move their bodies."

"Will he ever be normal again?" Nicklas asked.

"Normal is difficult to describe," Dr. Kubic replied.  "He might be able to
hear but not speak or show any signs of communication.  I'm hoping that
he'll be able to blink his eyes to answer yes or no questions, but that
might be a long way off and maybe impossible.  We have to be patient and
see how things develop.  My professional opinion is that John Miller will
live, but his life might be severely restricted.  As I had explained
before, this is the first time the Carlton Laser has been used for
repairing the path of a bullet that completely penetrated the brain of the
patient.  The laser sealed off the tiny blood vessels and also sealed off
leakage of brain fluids.  The bullet that caused this injury was jacketed
and went through his brain instantly.  The speed of the bullet seared many
of the blood vessels and left a very narrow passage way.  If the bullet had
been a hollow point, it would have expanded and caused instant death.  The
laser sealed off the blood vessels and minimized the damage."

For the next several days, family and friends took turns going into the ICU
for the 5 minute visitation every hour of the day.  Several times they saw
John open his eyes, but no one was able to communicate with him.

Tom & Judy Jeffries, friends of John came to the hospital along with their
son, Jamie.  John had saved Jamie's life when the boy drove a jet ski into
the side of a swim float and had drowned.  Now the roles were reversed and
Jamie was seeing John in the ICU.  Jamie still didn't remember his own
accident, but he remembered John being at the hospital with him when he
woke up.  Jamie was talking softly to John about his boyfriend, Hunter
Harwood and was telling John how much he loved him and Hunter too.  "My
dick's now 7 ½ inches long when I have a full woody," Jamie whispered to
John.  "I still remember making love to you in that deer blind and in the
cabin.  I want you to wake up so you can get between me and Hunter at the
cottage.  Don't plan on getting any sleep!"

Jamie knew that his time with John was almost over, and he leaned over and
kissed John on the forehead and then on the lips.  He held John's hand and
was ready to say goodbye when he saw John's eyes flutter and then open.
Jamie wanted to scream for the nurses, but he pushed the call button and
leaned forward to be close to John's face.  He saw John's lips starting to
move and leaned down in case John said anything.

"Jamie," John whispered.  "Jamie."

Jamie was so excited that he was afraid he would wet his pants.  He didn't
want to leave the room but was pushed out into the hallway when two nurses
ran into the room.  Jamie stood in the hallway and sobbed openly.  His sobs
brought the Miller family and friends out of the waiting room.  They saw
Jamie crying and feared that John had died.

"He opened his eyes," Jamie choked out.  "He said my name!  It was only a
whisper, but I know I heard him say my name!"

Two hospital security officers came into the hallway and insisted that the
boisterous group go back into the waiting room and hold down the noise.
The hospital security officers were immediately confronted by Matt Russell
and Chris Miller, two of the Sea & Jungle Imports Company security officers
assigned to the hospital floor.  Everyone calmed down and wanted to be sure
of the good news before they called their families and friends.

Dr. Kubic walked into the waiting room with a huge smile on his face.  "I
have wonderful news for all of you!" He began.  "John Miller is awake and
able to communicate verbally with me.  He's very weak and doesn't know that
he was shot.  John can't see, but he can hear and answer simple questions.
Normally I'd keep all visitors away so he can rest and gain strength, but
I'll let Johnny, Katelyn and Nicklas go to spend a total of five minutes
with him.  Just be calm and try not to upset him by asking difficult
questions.  Tell him that you're here for him and want him to get well.
Please don't tell him about the men who died at the airport."

Katelyn, Johnny and Nicklas had to choke back their tears of joy to try to
communicate with John.  They held his hand and kissed him and continually
told him to get well.

John couldn't think clearly.  His head felt like it was in a vice and he
couldn't understand why he couldn't see or move his body.  He was
frustrated and tears flowed down his face.

Nicklas took a tissue and wiped away the tears before saying, "You have to
calm down.  You were shot in the head at the airport.  Remember when I was
in the hospital after my surgery to repair my nose?  I was frustrated and
angry.  You calmed me down and played your guitar for me.  Listen to this."

Johnny had gone to the waiting room and had retrieved the Gibson guitar and
handed it to Nicklas.  He knew that his father had taught Nicklas how to
play the guitar and he sat down to listen to Nicklas play for John.  The
sounds of the guitar music soothed John's frustration and he calmed down
and closed his eyes.  Nicklas kept playing songs that he knew John loved,
and waited until the last minute to leave the room.  He pleaded with Dr.
Kubic to be allowed to stay in the room and finally got the doctor to let
him or Jamie spend more time in the room playing the guitar.  Jamie had
learned the guitar from John and from Hunter, and he and Nicklas decided to
take turns playing music for John.  ************************* Butch knew
that Operation Slam was going to shock the world.  He was overwhelmed by
the response from his security officers when they learned that a military
type response to the attack at the airport was being considered.  Butch had
interviewed and hired each security officer and his intuition during the
hiring process was perfect.  Every man and woman on his security force
volunteered to take part in a lethal response to the airport attack.  Even
the officers who had been wounded begged to be included, and Butch gave the
recuperating officers communication assignments.  Butch had talked to his
friends in the FBI, CIA and DEA and wasn't surprised to learn that many
agents had volunteered to join Operation Slam as private citizens.  The
agents had been frustrated when their government agencies were restricted
from attacking known drug dealers, and this opportunity would let them
strike back at organizations that had killed many law enforcement officers
and agents.  Butch had planned a war that would cripple the drug trade in
the United States and also strike back at the gangs that controlled many
cities around the world.

Donald Cassidy and Taylor Coleman were organizing the west coast activities
while agents from the DEA and CIA made plans for hitting the meetings of
the Colombian and Mexican cartels.  Soldiers from the five Mafia families
were assigned to hit MS 13 gang headquarters around the nation.  Derek
Kaufman had recovered from his gunshot wounds and would coordinate the hits
on the drug kingpins in Chicago, Detroit, New York City, Washington
D.C. and Miami.

Butch had several late night meetings at remote locations where there was
no danger of being seen or heard.  Federal agencies could not officially be
involved, but they were ready to run interference with any branch of law
enforcement if needed.  Butch was amazed at the plethora of explosives and
weapons that were shipped to rented warehouses around the country.  Federal
officers had volunteered to take part in Operation Slam to finally have the
opportunity to shoot back at the gangs that controlled illicit drugs in the
United States, and military type weapons were delivered.

Nicklas was playing John's guitar when he saw that his father was awake.
He continued playing and sang softly to entertain his lover.  He saw John's
lips moving and put the guitar aside and leaned over to try and hear what
John was saying.

"I love you," John whispered to his son.  "I can hear you playing my
guitar.  I can tell the difference between light and dark now."

Nicklas could tell that it was difficult for John to say each word.  He
held John's hand and felt his father's hand close over his.  Nicklas wanted
to scream with joy when he realized that John's voice was returning along
with the ability to move his right hand.  He praised his father and wiped
away John's tears.  When he saw his father's eyes close, Nicklas ran to the
waiting room and shared the wonderful news with his family and friends.
Everyone celebrated knowing that John was making dramatic progress in his
recovery by being able to communicate effectively.  Cell phones spread the
wonderful news that John was making steady progress towards a normal life.

Butch decided to be honest with Dr. Kubic.  He took the neurosurgeon into
the hallway and said, "Things are going to happen that will put John's life
in danger.  I'm sending his family away to places where they'll be safe,
and I need your permission to move John to a secure location.  The initial
place will be only a 20 minute ride in an ambulance.  To protect John and
his family, I need to move him several times in the next two weeks.  I'm
going to be a real bastard to John's family when I send them away to
locations different from where they were last week."

"I've been afraid that the gang members would try to kill him here in the
hospital," Dr.  Kubic admitted.  "John's my only patient, and if you'll let
me, I'll go wherever you take him.  I have a `special friend' who can help
me take care of John.  My special friend's name is Gordon Applewood, and
you can check him out before I say anything to him about leaving.  Gordon's
my lover.  I'm gay but I keep that information a secret to avoid any media
exposure or problems with the administrators of this hospital.  Gordon's a
licensed practical nurse and will never tell anyone where we go.  He can
also make sure that I have all of the monitoring equipment I need.  If we
have an emergency with John, I'll take him to the nearest hospital and
assume all risks."

Butch met with John's family and it was not a pleasant meeting.  Nicklas,
Johnny and Katelyn all insisted that they be allowed to stay with John at
the hospital or wherever he would be taken.  Nicklas was the most vocal
when he refused to leave his father and threatened to hurt Butch.

Philippe Ducharme had been at the hospital during the long vigil and
decided to step in.  "In your best day you couldn't take Butch down, so
cool your jets and listen to him," Philippe insisted.  "John told me and
Butch that we'd be in charge of the company and family if he was
incapacitated.  I've stayed back, but now I'm telling you to grow up and
let Butch do his job.  Your life's in danger.  John's my best friend and
he's counting on me to do what's right, even if I have to knock you on your
ass, tie you up, and ship your ass back to the Czech Republic in a crate.
Look around.  I see about 10 security officers ready to kick your ass and
drug you.  They'll haul you away and lock you in a closet if they have to.
They all want John and all of us safe.  Do what Butch says or I'll kick
your ass!"

Nicklas glared at Philippe and Butch.  His body was like a coiled spring,
ready to unleash his teenaged muscles and hormones against the authority of
the two grown men.  He was breathing hard until Zach Albright walked up to
him and gave him a hug.  "Uncle Nicklas, I love you, but you're being a
dickwad right now," Zach said.  He rarely called Nicklas, "Uncle Nicklas"
unless he wanted to make something perfectly clear.  "All that you should
care about is having grandpa in a safe place.  Are you fucking stupid?  The
shit's gonna hit the fan real soon.  If you don't duck, you're gonna be
covered with it or dead.  I'll make a deal with you.  I'll go wherever you
go so we can be together.  I love you, but right now, I'm pissed at you and
ready to help Uncle Philippe kick your ass."

Nicklas returned the hug from his nephew and felt the tension flowing out
of his body.  He wanted to be with John, but didn't want to create more
problems for Butch.  He looked at the handsome black man and said, "Uncle
Butch, I apologize.  Can you forgive me for being a dickwad?"

Butch was relieved and hugged both Nicklas and Zach.  He had been ready to
subdue Nicklas and take him out of the hospital by force, but Zach had
saved the day.  Butch changed his plans for sending Katelyn, Zach and
Brooke to a lodge in Montana, and nodded to Philippe.  He was thankful that
Philippe had a very capable security force in Nassau that would protect the
two boys.  Butch also knew that Dante Jenkins, Head of Security for the
gated community in Nassau would play a part in Operation Slam.

Over the next five days, Johnny, Kirsty, Little John and Abby were taken to
the Arrowhead Lake lodge in Northern Michigan and were guarded by several
security officers.  Nicklas and Zach were safely in John's mansion in
Nassau and were among friends.  Katelyn and Brooke were taken to the home
of Timothy Cater, a man who owned a major real estate business in Dallas
and was one of John Miller's favorite guests on hunting and fishing trips.
Delbert Pittinger and his mother had moved into John's mansion in Nassau so
Carol could be with her new lover, Maria.  The two women had communicated
by email and phone calls and wanted their relationship to move to a new
level.

Delbert was reluctant to leave Vancouver until he found out that his lover,
Kelly Osmund was in the same situation.  David Osmund had fallen in love
with Rosario, the woman who owned the estate next to John Miller's in
Nassau.  Carol Pittinger was afraid to even suggest to her son that they
move to Nassau until Delbert came home in tears.  Carol listened to her son
describe how Kelly and David Osmund were considering a move to Nassau
because David had proposed marriage to Rosario.  Carol finally was honest
with her son in describing her love affair with Maria, the housekeeper of
John Miller's estate.  Carol explained that John had agreed to hire her to
work with Maria and that she and her son would have a beautiful home of
their own on the estate.

What had appeared to be a major catastrophe for the two teen lovers turned
into a dream come true.  They would be in a tropical paradise and their
parents would be in long term relationships.  When the excited boys arrived
at the gated community on the tropical island, they were greeted by Nicklas
and Zach.  Things were definitely looking up for four horny boys!
********************************** Butch wanted to be on the front lines
when Operation Slam began.  The September 11 date had been picked by the
drug cartels for their meetings and it was poetic justice that the same
date would hit the gang organizations hard.  Butch and his co-conspirators
from the fateful meeting at the Hidden Harbor Yacht Club knew that they
would never stop the drug trade in the United States or around the world.
As long as there was a demand for illicit drugs, there would be someone
ready to import and market the product.  The goal of Operation Slam was to
give a clear message that gang warfare and drug empires would be met with
severe repercussions if family members of the Sea & Jungle Imports Company
or family members of the five major Mafia families were hit.

Derek Kaufman had resumed control of all security operations in the United
States, but welcomed Butch into the control center.  An entire wall of the
security office had been covered with HD televisions showing local
broadcasts from across the United States, Mexico, the Bahamas, and South
America.  Derek had a broken leg and arm from his gunshot wounds but was
able to use a remote to click back and forth to the various news broadcasts
and select any feed for the huge HD screen that dominated the wall.

The first important broadcasts came from New York City where explosions
were reported at very expensive estates on Long Island, followed by reports
of drive-by shootings and bombings of gang facilities.  None of the reports
had any actual video footage of the attacks, but showed the devastation of
huge homes that were rumored to be owned by high level drug dealers
connected to the Mexican and Colombian cartels.  The video footage
increased when television cameras showed buildings that had been hit with
RPG's and machine gun fire.  Unofficial sources were quoted as saying that
the buildings were known locations for members of MS 13 and other gangs
allegedly connected to the drug cartels.

Butch watched the monitors and knew that his people and others were taking
down the people responsible for the Metro Airport attack.  Reports came in
from Colombia and Mexico that high level meetings of the drug cartels had
been bombed.  The reports never identified the source or type of bombs that
wiped out the leaders of the drug cartels.  No one knew until later that it
was suspected that Cruise Missiles had been fired from unidentified jet
aircraft operating in International air space.  In Europe, poppy fields in
Afghanistan were hit with napalm and storage warehouses were bombed to the
ground.  Refineries in Spain and Italy were hit and heroin supplies would
be devastated for several months if not for years.

The news media was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the violent attacks on
gangs and organized crime across the United States and in Mexico and
Colombia.  Rumors flew around the television, radio and Internet news
outlets.  One commentator said that unconfirmed sources in the
U.S. military had a declaration of war against Colombia and Mexico.
Another said that chapters of the Ku Klux Klan had taken credit for
attacking the MS 13 gang members.  Left wing radicals immediately condemned
the attacks as unprovoked attacks on innocent citizens.  Moderate
commentators said that the attacks were the result of drug dealing around
the world and turf wars over control of major U.S.  cities.  Conservative
commentators praised the attacks and openly said that it was about time
that someone hit back at the gangs selling drugs to our children and the
international cartels that operated openly without fear.

Butch Mendez sat in the command center and watched the reports of
devastation.  He prayed that none of the organizers would be injured, but
realized that casualties were inevitable in war.  He stayed to watch the
news broadcasts and wondered how the United States Government and the
governments of countries around the world would react.  He knew that John
was safe and well guarded, and decided to stay in touch with his friends in
the alphabet agencies.

The liberal media wasted no time in condemning the attacks.  They demanded
an immediate Congressional Inquiry into the attacks and used every possible
avenue to blame the current Republican administration.  Hate mongers cried
racism because most of the victims were black or Hispanic.  Hollywood
entertainers offered to organize a telethon and musical fundraiser to pay
for any medical and legal expenses for the victims of the attacks.
Assholes used their television shows to defend the victims and demand
immediate arrests and prison terms for all perpetrators.  The only network
that gave honest news broadcasts was Fox News where detailed information
about organized crime connections was broadcast throughout the day.
Liberal media moguls tried to attack the credibility of the Fox broadcasts,
but were frustrated and angry when Fox News was given increasingly high
ratings.  After learning more about the attacks, CNBC and CNN started
broadcasting commentaries that were more neutral.  Later in the week, these
media companies had listened to the American public and they started
praising the attacks.

Similar events hit the media around the world.  INTERPOL had used military
connections to damage the sources of drugs and refineries and politicians
who were on the payrolls of the drug cartels demanded arrests.  Liberal
newspapers and television reporters tried to demand investigations and
punishment for the attacks on the supposedly honest businesses, but the
truth came out that the companies were drug traffickers.  Then the media
had to change their tactics to demand punishment for the guilty people,
including the corrupt politicians.

It was two weeks later when the media turned its focus to the impending
elections.  Michigan Governor Jennifer Granderson was running for
re-election, but she was blasted out of the race when sources revealed that
she had taken bribes for several favors.  The most damaging was a
multi-million dollar payment to her husband's consulting company to secure
contracts for bringing trash from Canada into landfills in Michigan.
Hidden in the trash shipments were hazardous materials and known
carcinogens.  She had also taken bribes to pardon criminals who had given
generous contributions to her campaign accounts.  The scandal hit the front
pages of newspapers around the country and the reports about the September
11th attacks on the drug cartels were pushed to back pages and then
disappeared.

Butch was relieved that the heat had died down on Operation Slam.  He knew
that some people would never give up demanding that the perpetrators be
identified, but also knew that the White House wanted peace.  Butch and
every honest law enforcement person in the nation were satisfied that a
blow had finally been struck back at organized crime.  He knew that many
private celebrations had occurred when law enforcement officers had
realized their dreams of hitting back at the scum of the earth.
************************* Nicklas was at the estate in Nassau and wished
that he could visit his father.  He knew that terrible things had happened
around the world and also knew that his company was involved.  He wanted to
be with John or to hear his voice, but Butch and Philippe had told him that
it wasn't safe for any visits or phone calls.  Nicklas had organized a
soccer game on the huge lawn of John's estate and was teasing Zach about
missing an easy goal.  It had rained, but the rain had almost stopped and
the boys had decided to play in the mud.  The soccer game had deteriorated
into a rugby game, with screaming boys covered with mud but laughing
uncontrollably.

Mike Mahon pushed the wheelchair down the paved path and then locked the
brakes.  He helped his best friend stand up and looked out over the huge
lawn and tried to find a red- haired boy.  "Let me go find him," Mike
offered.

"No, let me call him," John said softly.  He had been working hard in
physical therapy and also trying to get his mind working properly, but had
been frustrated.  He had argued with Dr. Kubic and finally convinced the
doctor to let him travel from Michigan to the Bahamas.  Because of his head
injuries, normal aircraft travel was out of the question.  The pressure
changes could cause bleeding or ruptured vessels, so John was moved from
Michigan to Miami, Florida in several stages and always by helicopter.  Now
John was staggering to maintain his balance while he searched for his son
and lover.

Nicklas had just tackled Zach and the two boys were rolling around in the
mud when they noticed that visitors had arrived.  The boys ignored the
visitors and returned to their impromptu rugby match.  Nicklas had just
been tackled again by Zach and struggled to get up when he heard something
that made him stop in his tracks.

"Nick...y", John choked out.

"Let me call him," Mike offered.

"No, let me do it," John insisted.

"Nicky," John tried again.  His voice was weak and he couldn't see his son
among the boys on the muddy lawn.

Nicklas had heard the first stuttered call of his name, but couldn't
believe that his ears were working properly.  He pushed Zach aside and
whispered to himself, "John?"

"I see him," Mike said to John.  "He's covered with mud, but I can see his
red hair."

John's vision was still impaired, but he wanted to be the one to call out
to his son.  He tossed aside his raincoat and cleared his throat before
calling out, "Nicky!"

Nicklas wheeled around and saw a group of bodyguards standing on the paved
sidewalk.  In the center of the group was a tall blonde haired man that he
instantly recognized as Mike Mahon.  Standing next to Mike was a man who
was throwing off a raincoat and floppy hat.  Nicklas saw that the man had a
bandage on his head, a cast on his arm and another on his leg and was using
crutches to stand.  He choked with emotions and said to Zach, "It's John!
IT'S JOHN!  IT'S JOHN!"

Mike and Butch Mendez braced themselves for the attack from the boys on the
lawn.  The two men had plenty of helpers to keep the boys from tackling
John, but also knew that the boys deserved the chance to welcome John to
Nassau.

Nicklas had tears flowing down his face when he ran towards his father.  He
tried to dodge Mike Mahon, but wasn't able and watched other men grab Zach,
Delbert and Kelly.

"Nicklas!  John's hurt!  You have to be gentle!" Mike insisted.  He held
the boisterous boy and waited until Butch had helped John sit down on the
wheelchair before letting Nicklas hug his father.

Nicklas couldn't believe that his father was with him again.  He had been
getting updates from Dr. Kubic, but hadn't talked directly to his father
since the hospital visits.  He had begged to travel to visit John, but had
been frustrated with the rejections from the security forces.

John had insisted that he wanted to be able to stand and hug his son in the
Bahamas instead of just describing his progress in physical therapy.  He
knew that Nicklas loved surprises, and had finally influenced the security
forces to help him travel.

For Nicklas, the reunion with his father was even more significant when the
entire Miller/Albright family was together in the mansion.  John was
exhausted from the travel and excitement, and everyone let him go to bed
early.  Nicklas cuddled next to his father and thanked God for protecting
them and letting them be re-united.  His prayers had been answered to have
John with him again.

*********************************

It was a cool autumn day at Proud Les Domov and Mike Mahon answered the
phone.  He and his wife, Lodak, had taken over control of the orphanage
decades earlier and were living in a very unusual arrangement that included
Jan Sladek for decisions and sex.  "Proud Les Domov, this is Mike, how can
I help you?" Mike said in English and then in Czech.

"Mike, it's me, Johnny," Johnny Miller said.  "Has Nicklas arrived yet?"

"No, and we're getting worried," Mike admitted.  "He hasn't been here in
months and the last time we saw him he looked horrible."

"My brother's been hiding something terrible from us," Johnny said.
"Little John has always had a strong bond with Nicklas and finally found
out what's wrong.  Nicklas has never accepted the death of our father, and
blames himself for not being there when Dad had the heart attack.  It's
been 10 years since Dad died, and I'm afraid that Nicklas will be leaving
us to join him very soon."

"You can't be serious!" Mike insisted.  "What's wrong with Nicklas?"

"He's got cancer," Johnny choked out.  "Little John did some digging and
had to threaten some doctors to find out the truth.  Nicklas has testicular
cancer that went to his spine and then to his brain.  He's been all over
the world to try all types of experimental treatments.  The last time I saw
him he could barely walk and he refused to even talk to me about his
illnesses.  He's wasted away and can't weigh more than a hundred pounds."

"JESUS CHRIST!" Mike exclaimed.  He remembered when Nicklas was in his
prime and the star kicker for the University of Michigan football team.
Nicklas had been recruited by National Football League teams but had
refused to turn pro when he graduated.  Instead he went on to graduate
school and got his MBA from Harvard so he could help manage the company.
Mike knew that John Miller had devoted his life to his family and the Sea &
Jungle Imports Company and had trained key people who took control when
John retired.  John had spent the last 8 years of his life at Proud Les
Domov and loved being with the rescued children.  John had never fully
recovered from being shot in the head, but had regained all of his mental
abilities.  The only lingering effect was loss of depth perception and long
distance vision.  John had to give up driving the vintage vehicles that he
loved and had collected, but it was a small sacrifice compared to people
who had lost their lives from gunshot wounds to the head.  Hunting for
trophies was another loss, but John had continued fishing for trophies and
had braved the challenging river in the Czech Republic each year in a quest
for a huge sturgeon.

"I'm upset that Nicklas won't confide in me," Johnny admitted.  "He's bull
headed, just like my dad and me, but he should have trusted me enough to be
honest with me.  Katelyn, Zach and Brooke have all tried to get him to talk
about his health issues, but Nicklas just blows us off.  I'm hoping that
Little John can break through that tough shell."

"It's weird to still call him `Little John' when he's 6 feet 8 inches tall
and weighs 280 pounds," Mike laughed.  "He would have made it into the
Football Hall of Fame if he had continued playing in the NFL.  Now he's a
big draw for public relations events like opening new stores or orphanages.
You and I know that he has a special bond with Nicklas.  Nicklas can be a
total shithead, but if Little John teases him, Nicklas turns to butter."

"Kirsty and I will be there in less than an hour," Johnny said.  "Little
John and Abby will be there with their families before our helicopter
lands.  Just be careful what you say when you see Nicklas.  He might get
pissed and storm off instead of staying for the memorial service."

"I have to tell you the truth," Mike began.  "We received a wooden crate a
few days ago and we were told not to open it.  You know that Lodak never
follows orders.  She opened the crate and then we all cried.  Inside is a
tombstone.  It has Nicklas' name on it and the inscription says `Together
Again'.  He must know something really bad about his cancer treatment."

Johnny Miller shed tears when he heard about the tombstone.  He had feared
that his brother was terminally ill and had tried everything to get Nicklas
to tell him the truth.  Now his fears were even more upsetting when he
heard this bit of news.  Nicklas knew that he was dying and had ordered his
own tombstone.  Everyone knew that Nicklas had loved John Miller with all
of his heart and had never been able to accept John's death.

When the limo arrived at the front of Proud Les Domov, Nicklas looked out
and remembered when he had first tried to be accepted at this very same
place in the world.  He saw the happy faces of the children and gazed at
the beauty of the buildings and manicured grounds.  He saw that Mike, Lodak
and Jan were standing on the porch and waiting for him, but he hesitated.
He was weak from the medical treatments, but was ready to face his family
and friends and put their fears to rest.  A miracle cure had been developed
and used, and Nicklas wondered if he would live long enough to attend the
next memorial service for his beloved father and lover.

"Will you let me help you?" the chauffeur asked Nicklas.  He had always
been the driver when Nicklas Zednik-Miller came to Prague and traveled to
Proud Les Domov for visits.  He had witnessed the deterioration of his
favorite passenger but had been ordered to never disclose the various
hospitals that Nicklas had visited.  Now he was taking his favorite
passenger to a place that he knew was very special.  Nicklas rarely
confided in him, but had admitted that his life had started when he had met
John Miller at Proud Les Domov many years ago.  He now realized that the
handsome athlete was now physically challenged, and he wanted to carry
Nicklas out of the limousine and up the steps of the orphanage.  When he
was rebuked, he opened the door, unfolded the aluminum walker, and helped
Nicklas stand up.

"If you try to help me, I'll leave right now!" Nicklas blurted out to Mike,
Lodak and Jan.  "I'm going to walk out to the hill and sit for a while.
Please let me have some private time at his grave.  I'll be okay.  I'm
tired, but I'm doing fine."

Mike, Lodak and Jan had to grab several children who broke away and wanted
to hug Nicklas.  The children all recognized the important man who had
always been a hero to all of the children who had come to this special
place in the world.

Nicklas saw the excited children and used his walker to move to a bench so
he could greet the children.  Just seeing the happy faces of the children
was the best medicine in the world for him.  He sat and chatted with the
children for several minutes before he excused himself and told all of them
that he wanted to walk to the hill alone.

Mike hugged his wife and they both shed tears when they saw how Nicklas
could barely walk towards the hill where John was buried.  The paved
pathway had been swept that day, but falling leaves had drifted across the
winding path and they worried that Nicklas would slip or fall.  They
watched until Nicklas was hidden by the trees and comforted each other.

Little John Miller arrived by helicopter along with his wife and three
children.  He had talked to his father and knew that Uncle Nicklas had
arrived at the orphanage and had struggled to walk to the gravesite.  When
he had been a toddler, he struggled to say "Uncle Nicklas" and his attempts
came out "UncaNickus", much to the amusement of his parents and
grandfather.  Now he towered over his father and uncle, but he still
deferred to their decisions.  He left his family at the main building and
was determined to confront his uncle about issues of health and being
honest with family members.

"I figured that you'd come looking for me," Nicklas said when he saw his
nephew coming down the path.  "There's room for you here on the bench as
long as you don't pressure me to hear about my health issues."

"UncaNickus, you're a total asshole!" Little John exclaimed.  "We all love
you and you shut us out when you got sick.  You always promised to be
honest with me, but you broke that promise.  I had to bribe people to learn
about the cancer and your treatments.  Why did you shut us out?"

"I didn't want anyone to worry about me," Nicklas said honestly.  He had
been ready to leave the Czech Republic if anyone challenged him about his
health, but Little John had always been his favorite relative.  "I'm going
to live if that's what you're here to find out."

"You scared the fuck out of all of us," Little John admitted.  He wanted to
believe his uncle that he would live, but he was still afraid that Nicklas
had a terminal illness.  "I found out the truth but never told anyone, even
my parents.  Why did you give away all of your responsibilities to the
company without being honest with your family?  We all hated learning that
you were leaving the company after taking control when grandpa died.  Why
did you do it?"

"Your grandfather took me here and made this spot very special," Nicklas
began.  "When we sat here on this bench, John, my father and lover, your
grandfather, did something that I never expected.  He said it was taking
his personal inventory, and he challenged me to listen to what he said and
not interrupt.  He told me things that he had never shared with another
human being and made me promise not to ever disclose what he shared with
me.  He said that every person needs to take a personal inventory before
they can truly face the last years of their lives.  We chose this place for
our graves and planted this tree to mark the spot for eternity.  John
Miller is a Saint to me, but he said he had to tell me the truth about the
people that he intentionally harmed in his life."

"Jesus!" Little John exclaimed.  "Grandpa did that right here?"

"I've thought about his challenge that I'd have to share my personal
inventory with someone before I could be at peace in this life or my next
one," Nicklas said.  "If you'll agree to secrecy, I've chosen you to hear
my personal inventory.  Before you say anything, I want you to know that
the experimental procedures in Spain are working to counteract the ravages
of the cancer that started in my testicles, traveled to my spine and then
to my brain.  Our company has funded cancer research around the world, and
I volunteered to be the first test patient for the Alervactum series of
chemicals, radiation treatments and cell therapy.  My doctors are
cautiously optimistic that the cancer cells are being consumed by healthy
cells created through stem cell research."

Little John tried to talk, but his emotions took control.  He hugged his
uncle and shed tears while he listened to Nicklas admit things that he had
never dreamed had happened.  Little John listened to Nicklas describe his
life before meeting John Miller and how he had sold his body to get food
and shelter.  Little John couldn't imagine how bad things had been for an
ugly boy who had been beaten and thrown out by his own relatives.  He
couldn't blame Nicklas for lashing out at the people who had shot John
Miller.  He listened to the accounts of hired assassins and how the drug
cartels were under constant attacks that Nicklas had initiated.  He also
heard that his favorite relative wanted to live to continue to travel
around the world to see performances of Phantom of the Opera.  John Miller
had taken him to see the wonderful opera in Toronto, and he had always
loved the vibrant music.  Every time he sat in the audience, he reflected
back on his life with John Miller and shed tears of joy and loss now that
John was gone but not forgotten.

Nicklas was at peace with the world when he finished telling Little John
the good and bad things from his life.  When he saw that his nephew wasn't
pulling away, Nicklas asked, "Now do you understand why I had to give up
control of our company?  I'm focused on killing everyone who had a part in
shooting your grandfather, my father and lover.  John was everything to me
and I still can't accept that he's gone.  I was selfish and wanted to live
in Michigan and attend American schools.  John wanted to live here but he
gave up his dreams so I could live mine.  I feel so guilty for making him
take me to Michigan that I haven't been able to accept that he's dead.  I
barely remember his funeral.  Three former Presidents of the U.S. and the
current Vice-President were here, along with other Presidents, Prime
Ministers and dignitaries from around the world.  John Miller is a man who
changed the world, and can never be replaced.  I never felt worthy of his
love and still feel guilty for keeping him from living here."

"My dad talked to me about this," Little John admitted.  "Grandpa loved you
more than life itself.  There was nothing that he wouldn't do for you.
Grandpa loved watching you play high school sports and then kick for the
Michigan Wolverines.  There wasn't a man in the world that was prouder than
Grandpa when you kicked the winning field goal in the National Championship
Game against Southern Cal.  We were all there and he said it was the best
day of his life.  You got your wish to live in the United States and
Grandpa got his wish to live here with the wonderful children and the most
beautiful place in the world."

"Thanks for listening to me and not running away when I admitted that I
initiated the killing of many people," Nicklas said.  "I plan to live here
for several years and let you, your father, Katelyn, Brooke and Zach run
our company.  I see the children coming now, and I hope to be able to
attend this memorial service without breaking down.  I really thought that
this would be my last visit to this spot, but my doctors tell me that my
cancer is in remission.  You might have to put up with my nasty disposition
for a few more years."

"UncaNickus, if you turn into an asshole, I'll just sit on you until you
beg me to get off," Little John teased.  "I love you and can't tell you
what it means to me that you chose me to listen to your personal inventory.
We're in this together, and I'll always find time to spend with you and the
children here at Proud Les Domov.  I can't imagine a better place to
celebrate Christmas or to remember John Miller and what he did for children
around the world.  You put me in charge of the Zednik-Miller Foundation,
and I'll keep that title if you promise to help me do the right things for
the children of the world.  I got a call from Hans Gruber and he said he
would be here today.  I know that he's a special person to you."

"I remember the first year that Hans was here," Nicklas said.  "Hans was
five years old and John lifted him up to put the star on top of the
Christmas tree.  We all fell in love with Hans.  John told me that Hans was
gifted and would be something special.  Hans was elected to be President of
the Czech Republic, but he was here for John's funeral and has been here
for the past 9 years for the memorial services.  He politely refuses to
make any speech, but he has always said that John Miller was his
inspiration for his achievements."

Nicklas looked up and saw a stream of candles coming out of the main
building.  He smiled when he heard the young children singing, "I'd Like to
Teach the World to Sing in Perfect Harmony".  It was always one of John
Miller's favorite songs and had been included in the funeral mass when John
had been buried.  Nicklas saw that several beagle dogs were running around
the singing children and remembered his own beloved dog named Barney.

Johnny and Kirsty Miller walked with the children and joined in singing the
songs that John Miller had loved.  They held hands with the children and
saw Little John hugging Nicklas during the singing.

Mike and Lodak had been designated to make the short memorial comments, and
they waited for the singing to end before using the portable amplifier to
address their family and friends.

"Ten years ago today, a very special man left this earth," Mike began in
Czech and repeated the words in English.  "John Miller was my mentor and
friend, and he left a lasting impression on this orphanage, this country
and the world when he took control of the Sea & Jungle Imports Company.
John came here and saw only despair and children who were living in filth
and eating slop.  He made immediate changes and met the love of his life,
Nicklas Zednik-Miller."

"John loved this place and the Czech Republic and said it was like he was
coming home when he was here," Lodak added.  "John loved life but he knew
that death is part of life.  In his will he challenged all of us to
continue working to end world hunger and rescue children from poverty and
the ravages of war.  Our company now has over 200 orphanages around the
world and we provide financial support to over 300 hospitals and research
facilities.  John was adamant that we never mourn his passing.  He loved
music and we'll end this celebration of John's life with his favorite
song."

The children sang "Climb Every Mountain" in English and then in Czech as
they carried their candles back to the orphanage for the evening feast.  It
had been a tradition for the past 10 years that they would eat a special
meal after they visited John Miller's grave and celebrated his life of
giving to them and other unfortunates.

Nicklas had tears flowing down his face when he listened to the short
memorial comments about his father and lover.  Nothing in the world was
more beautiful than the voices of happy children singing songs of praise
for John Miller.  He saw that the Miller family was holding hands around
the grave and he struggled to stand to talk to them.  He looked at Mike
Mahon, Lodak and Jan and knew that the Czech children had wonderful people
in charge of Proud Les Domov.  He let Little John help him stand up so he
could talk to his extended family.  Katelyn and her husband wanted to help
Nicklas stand up, but knew that he was very strong willed.  Zach Albright
held the hand of his male partner, Nathan Pease and the two men both held
the hands of their adopted son while they listened to Nicklas.  Brooke
Albright was divorced and dreamed of finding a man who would treat her
right.

"Cancer is a terrible disease," Nicklas said softly.  "I was wrong to push
you away when I got sick.  Our company funds cancer research around the
world and the experimental treatment in Spain has given me hope that I'll
live to be here next year.  I gave away my responsibilities because I was
afraid that I would die.  In some ways, I looked forward to death so I
could be with John again.  My heart aches every day because he and I are
apart but this is not my time to join him.  All of you can manage the
company so I can live here with the happy children and be with John again.
I'm finally home, and this is the best day for me in many years.  Let's go
forward and make this a better world for everyone."

The family applauded and then hugged Nicklas.  He was home.  He would live.
He would always remember the man who had changed his life forever.

The Sea & Jungle Imports Company continues to prosper and dedicates the
profits to rescuing unfortunate children around the world.  Nicklas still
lives at the orphanage and visits the grave of John Miller every day with
fresh flowers, even in the winter.





***************************** I apologize for the delay in posting the last
part of this story.  A combination of writer's block and personal issues
prevented me from writing.  I hope you can understand that writing a long
story like this one takes a lot of time and dedication.

I want you to know that Bill, my editor, has helped me change my writing
style.  I've gone back to some of my previous stories and realize that Bill
suggested changes that made my stories easier to read.  Instead of being
grammatically correct, I'm learning to write dialogue that is closer to
what people actually say.

I have written other stories that you might be interested in reading.

Previous Stories

Title				Nifty Archive			Last Date

Washington Academy		BiSexual/High School		Jan. 11, 2007

CJ				Gay/College			Oct. 28, 2004

Brad Martin			Gay/Adult Youth			March 10, 2002

Land of Charta			Gay/Adult Youth			Feb. 15, 2002

Adam and Even More		Gay/Adult Youth			March 12, 2002

Christopher Robin		Gay/Adult Youth			Feb. 6, 2002

Life of Brad			Gay/Camping			Nov. 30, 1998
(this story was when I was using a different author name)

Thank you to the readers who took the time to write to me.

Jacob



Feedback is appreciated to Jacob_latson@hotmail.com