(Author Note: This is the second story in a series. This series is based on characters and situations originally introduced in the CP novels, Camp Torowa Falls and Camp Torowa Falls 1964 .
This series may be read independently of those novels.)
For best results, you should read the first chapter of this series, "The Road to Chaos", first.)
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Time can bring you down
Time can bend your knees
Time can break your heart
Have you beggin' please,
Beggin' please

"Tears in Heaven" - Eric Clapton, 1992

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An hour later a large group of people walked across the parking lot from the Keystone Diner to Eric's Rock Island Club. The sign post out in front of the club had the large sign at the top of the post that identified the club. Beneath that was one of those computerized signs with the changing text in white LED lights making announcements to drivers passing by on Beach Blvd. There were currently three separate messages rotating, each appearing for about five seconds:

• Thurs: Bully Pulpit & Jedi Mind Trick
• Fri-Sat: Lighthouse & Friends Christmas Show
• Merry Christmas from the ERIC crew!

At breakfast, which turned out to be very good, Mike and Jack met three new people. Alan Dunson, MD. was a semi-retired trauma surgeon who lived in nearby Ponte Vedra Beach in a home that was actually located along the fairway of a private golf course. Dr. Dunson was also one of the partners who co-owned ERIC. He was the regular keyboard player for Lighthouse. Jamey, Timmy and their parents all called him Uncle Alan. Jack and Mike were invited to do the same.

Uncle Alan's eldest son was Lieutenant Commander Andy Dunson, a surgeon in the US Navy Medical Corps. Currently on the surgical staff of Naval Hospital Pensacola in northwest Florida, Andy had managed to get leave for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. Apparently Andy, who asked to be called Commander Andy, played keyboards and French Horn, a combination that mystified Mike.

Uncle Alan's youngest son was Sam Dunson, who amazingly enough was not a surgeon. In fact Sam was a classically trained French chef. A graduate of Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Sam had backed that up with a six month internship in a Parisian restaurant and 18 months working as a line cook at a bistro in the South of France. After a few more years of seasoning - cooking at various US schools and restaurants, Sam became the first executive chef for the ERIC restaurant kitchen when the club opened in 2012. In 2014 Sam moved on. He was now the executive chef and co-owner of Avignon Bar & Grill in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Sam was a trombone player who would be joining his older brother Andy in the horn section of the ad hoc Lighthouse & Friends band that would be performing these shows. He asked Mike and Jack to call him Chef Sam. He said didn't want to be called "Uncle Sam" because he was afraid that people might mistake him for the US government and ask him for money.

The eleven people walking across the parking lot split off into groups to retrieve their instruments from their vehicles. Commander Dan ordered Jamey and Mike to help his parents carry their spare instruments, so the two boys followed Uncle Corey and Aunt Anna back to their Range Rover. Aunt Anna carried both of her own violin cases and Uncle Corey handed each boy an encased guitar. Corey carried the other two guitar cases himself.

As they entered the club, Mike was trying to work out the best person to ask about the ERIC club name. But it turned out that his question was answered by the memorial display on the foyer wall facing the front doors. This memorial was dominated by a large framed photo of a handsome middle-aged man in the uniform of a US Navy captain. A brass plaque on the bottom edge of the frame bore this legend:

Captain Eric Ronald Linsey, USN.
March 17, 1951 - September 11, 2001
Father, Husband, Brother, Steadfast Friend and Patriot.
He lives forever in our hearts and memories.

He was not a very sentimental person, but reading this made Mike choke up. He was well aware that serving in the military was dangerous - his own father once privately admitted to Mike that landing a supersonic fighter jet on an aircraft carrier flight deck at night could be terrifying. Flying high performance warplanes from a carrier was certainly one of the most dangerous jobs that a person could do for a living.

Mike knew that barely a day went by where no American servicemen or women were either killed or seriously injured while on active duty. A surprisingly high percentage of these costly mishaps occurred during training rather than in actual combat. So these losses accrued, at only a slightly reduced rate, even when the United States was not at war with anyone. But to Mike, these tragic losses were always something that happened to other people's serving family members.

Mike actually had a couple of classmates and friends over his short life who had lost family members to the Global War On Terror. But for some reason seeing this memorial to a man who died on that day, the day it all started, brought home the realities of the world in which he lived more than anything had before.

Born in 2004, Mike and his best friend Jamey would never know what it was like to live in the pre-9/11 world. The only world they had ever known was one where random terrorist lunatics could appear anywhere at any time and attack innocent people with guns, bombs, trucks, or whatever else they could improvise. Mike did the math and wondered what the world was like way back in 1963, when Eric Linsey would have been twelve years old. Unfortunately the only period movie with 12-year-old characters that he had seen - and remembered - was Stand By Me. It was a very good film, but that movie was set in the 1950s, not the 1960s.

As Mike stood there in the foyer with tears in his eyes and still carrying Uncle Corey's spare guitar, he began to examine the other photos in the memorial to Eric Linsey. Apparently Captain Linsey had been part of the Silent Service - he had served aboard nuclear submarines. Linsey had commanded USS Topeka (SSN-754), a Los Angeles-class attack submarine from 1990-93. Later in his career Linsey had commanded Submarine Squadron 1. Both these commands were based in Pearl Harbor, Hawai'i. This raised an interesting question - how did a naval officer who apparently spent much of his career based in Honolulu die in the 9/11 attacks? Only two remotely logical explanations sprang immediately to mind. Either the man was serving in a staff billet in the Pentagon, or he had been really unlucky and had simply been visiting the Pentagon for a meeting that morning.

Trying to solve this mystery, Mike began reading the textual parts of the memorial. He soon became aware of the fact that he was no longer alone in the small room. Mike turned to find himself facing three old men. Uncle Corey was flanked by Uncle Alan and a tall man that Mike had not yet met, but whom he recognized as a much older version of that young middie who had played varsity baseball with Uncle Corey back in 1973. Purely on reflex, Mike wiped the tears from his eyes on the jacket sleeve of his free arm. He felt embarrased about the tears and said, "Sorry."

Uncle Alan shook his head slightly. "Never apologize for having feelings, Mike. Men are allowed to have them."

"That's right, Mike," said Uncle Corey. "Having empathy for our fellow human beings is what separates us from the animals who took Eric from us, along with thousands of others that day, and countless others in the fifteen years since that day."

At that point the third man cleared his throat dramatically. Uncle Corey turned towards the man, "What now... oh, wait. How rude of me! Michael Damico, I'd like you to meet my oldest and best friend, Major General Jerome Farnham, United States Marine Corps, Retired. Jerry, as we all call him, is another co-owner of this club, plus he plays percussion for Lighthouse."

Uncle Corey turned back to his friend. "Jerry, this is Michael Damico, my grandson Jamey's best friend. Mike's father is a naval aviator who flies the F/A-18 Easy, just like Danny. His father is currently deployed to the Med on the Mighty Ike, if I remember correctly." He turned to Mike for confirmation of this fact.

Mike nodded to Uncle Corey, then he offered his right hand to Jerry. "I'm honored to meet you, General Farnham."

General Farnham shook Mike's hand firmly, but the man was clearly being careful not to crush the boy's hand which, from the looks of his muscular forearms, would have been an easy task for him. "I'm very pleased to meet you, Michael. Please call me Uncle Jerry if you don't mind. I will answer to General since it would be disrespectful of me not to, but I'm not a man who stands on formality now that I'm retired."

Mike was a bit confused and startled, Uncle Jerry's right hand had some nasty looking scars. Clearly the man had seen combat and been wounded. All he said was, "Why would that be disrespectful, Uncle Jerry?"

"Because people often refer to retired service members by their final - now honorary - rank to honor the actual service branch as much as they're honoring the retired individual. So if I refused to answer to General, a permanent honorary title I earned through 37 years of faithful service, it could be interpreted as me wishing to disrespect the United States Marine Corps. I would die before I would disrespect the Corps. So I'm left with no other choice but to respond graciously to my honorary title whenever someone chooses to make use of it."

Uncle Corey suddenly had a kind of shocked/embarrassed look on his face. "Which reminds me... Michael, do you prefer being called Michael, Mike, Mikey, or something else?"

Mike was startled by this. "I prefer being called Mike. But you've already been calling me that, Uncle Corey."

"Well yeah," said Uncle Corey, looking a bit sheepish, "Fortunately I jumped to the correct conclusion. I started calling you Mike since that's what Jamey was calling you. But I should have asked you when we first met last night."

"That's okay, Uncle Corey," said Mike. "I do have a question about..."

"HEY!!" A loud and strident female voice came through the open door to the actual club. "Did you three shepherd bozos find your lost lamb yet? Or should we organize search parties?"

Uncle Corey and Uncle Alan looked towards each other and rolled their eyes. Meanwhile Uncle Jerry leaned through the doorway into the club and said, in a loud voice, "We found him, Hon! He's safe."

"Oh, wonderful," said the woman sarcastically. "Now get your asses in here so we can start these rehearsals!"

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The rest of Thursday morning was largely a blur to Mike when he tried to remember it later. He clearly recalled being both impressed and alarmed by the sheer size of Eric's Rock Island Club. The place seated 525 people in a restaurant/bar format with a large stage structure at the back of the club. Apparently Uncle Corey was expecting a full house for both shows, which Mike found more than a little scary. His previous experience performing on stage was limited to a school play, and that audience had less than 100 people, most of whom were family members of the cast.

Mike met more than a dozen additional new people before rehearsals began and many of their names ran together in his mind. But there were a few new people who stood out and were memorable:

The loud, strident woman turned out to be Rebecca Lane Farnham, who was Uncle Corey's younger sister and Uncle Jerry's wife. Mike was startled when it dawned on him that these two men, who by all accounts had been lifelong best friends, were also brothers-in-law. Aunt Becky, as she wanted to called, did not appear capable of speaking in what Mike's mother referred to as an "indoor voice". Not a large woman by any measure Mike was aware of, Aunt Becky was nonetheless a powerhouse of a woman, particularly in the vocal area. She used her powerful voice to belt out classic rock and roll tunes such as "Barracuda" and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", which seemed to Mike like a rather aggressive song to be part of a Christmas show. Aunt Becky also played guitars and banjos, mostly playing rhythm guitar while occasionally trading guitar leads with her brother Corey and the third regular guitarist for Lighthouse...

Marston Waters was quite memorable since he was the regular saxaphone and flute player for Lighthouse. An African-American gentleman, Marston was a retired US Navy enlisted musician who had performed with the US Navy Band for 25 years. His final assignment was with Navy Band Northeast, based at Naval Station Newport in Rhode Island. That was where Senior Chief Petty Officer Marston Waters had met Rear Admiral Corey Lane after the Admiral became the President of the Naval War College, which was also located on the grounds of Naval Station Newport. The two retired Navy men used their honorary rank titles with their first names. So they referred to each other as Admiral Corey and Chief Marston.

The saxaphone had long been Mike's favorite musical instrument. He hoped to learn to play the sax himself some day, but so far his mother had been telling him he wasn't old enough to learn to play music. This was a total load of crap, of course. Jamey had been learning to play piano since the age of eight and guitar since the age of ten - all with no ill effects. Jamey had tried to help Mike convince his mother to change her mind, but she refused to budge. Jamey told Chief Marston about Mike's problem, which embarrassed Mike. Chief Marston sympathized, and agreed that Mrs. Damico was wrong, but unfortunately he couldn't think of a solution to Mike's problem.

There was one full-time professional musician among the "friends" playing with Lighthouse that weekend. Mike immediately knew that he had seen this man before, but he couldn't remember where. Mike was stunned and found it hard to speak when he was introduced to William Jerome "Will" Lane, Uncle Corey's youngest son. That was when he finally recognized him as the same Will Lane that Mike and his father had seen perform at the Prism Theater in Norfolk, Virginia as the leader of his Grammy Award winning band, Bayou Beach. That group won two Grammys in 2015, one for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Group for "Half Full", the #1 hit single from their first album, French Quarter. Bayou Beach also won the Best New Artist Grammy. Mike was surprised to learn that Bayou Beach started out as one of the house bands there at ERIC, and they eventuaaly became a featured act after they signed their first recording contract. Will would be playing guitars and keyboards in the show, and according to the set list Mike saw, the man would be performing "Half Full" as part of the third set. Will was also scheduled to provide lead vocals for covers of "Puff, The Magic Dragon" and "Feliz Navidad". Mike couldn't believe that Jamey had never told him that his Uncle Will was that Will Lane. His friend was well aware of how Mike felt about Bayou Beach, even though Jamey himself wasn't a fan. Just wait until he could speak to Jamey in private - that should be an interesting conversation. Mike and Jack were asked to call him Uncle Will.

George Farnham, Ph.D. was the youngest son (and middle child) of Uncle Jerry and Aunt Becky. He was a Rhodes Scholar and was currently an Associate Professor of Linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. George would be playing trumpet for the Christmas shows, rounding out the temporary horn section. George was married to...

Takahiro Nakano was a Japanese-American gentleman who went by the nickname of “Tana”. He was a member of the Information Technology staff at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with the title of Assistant Director of Web Services. Tana would be playing the shamisen, a kind of 3-stringed Japanese banjo. The shamisen lent some unusual sounds to the songs where it was employed.

Mike had been taught, both at home and at school, to be completely tolerant and accepting of "alternate sexualities". George and Tana were definitely not the first gay couple that Mike had ever known. They were, to the best of Mike's knowledge, the first gay couple he had ever known who were legally married to each other. The Commonwealth of Virginia, where Mike had lived for most of his life, had only recently legalized same-sex marriage. Another factor was the fact that the Norfolk/Newport News/Hampton/Chesapeake/Portsmouth/Virginia Beach area of the state was definitely a Navy/Marine Corps enclave, being home to the largest collection of Naval and Marine Corps bases, Naval shipyards, and other Naval/Marine Corps support/research facilities on the planet. Although "Don't ask, don't tell" was no longer an officially accepted policy within the US armed services, the truth was that "Some old habits die hard", as Mike's father would say.

Apparently George and Tana would prefer to be called by those names, even by children. But Commander Dan, Uncle Corey and Uncle Jerry insisted that the boys use the honorific "Mister" or "Uncle" as a sign of respect for their elders. The two men preferred "Uncle". So Uncle George and Uncle Tana it would be.

Mary Farnham Tressler was the only daughter (and youngest child) of Uncle Jerry and Aunt Becky. Mary had been tragically widowed at the age of 25 when her husband, Lieutenant (junior grade) Joseph Tressler, had died in a motorcycle accident while home on leave from the Navy. This left Mary to raise their 15-month-old son, Thomas Joseph Tressler, on her own. Ten years later she taught Marine Science at a Middle School in Atlantic Beach, Florida - a northern suburb of Jacksonville. Mary would be playing banjo, violin and percussion at the shows. She asked Mike and Jack to call her Miss Mary.

Thomas Joseph "T.J." Tressler was the 11-year-old son of Mary Tressler and the grandson of Uncle Jerry and Aunt Becky. T.J. was the fifth and final member of their little Boy's Choir that would be providing background vocals for the Christmas Shows. T.J. brought along a portable snare drum that he would be playing for "The Little Drummer Boy".

In fact Mike was quite alarmed when he learned that the choir would be taking over lead vocal duties for that one song. Eventually T.J., Jamey and some of the adults managed to get Mike and Timmy, who was also unhappy about having to take center stage, to see it their way. The story in "The Little Drummer Boy" was clearly told from a boy's point of view. Since they actually had five boys on stage for the shows, it was only logical that the boys sing that song. The adults would play the music for the song and possibly back the boys up on some of the "Rum Pa Pa Pums" if it was thought to be necessary.

I was gambling in Havana
I took a little risk
Send lawyers, guns and money
Dad, get me out of this

I'm an innocent bystander
Somehow I got stuck
Between the rock and a hard place
And I'm down on my luck

"Lawyers, Guns and Money" - Warren Zevon, Excitable Boy, 1978

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Once everyone involved with the show had arrived Uncle Corey gathered them all together to review the "Plan of Action" for the next three days. He began by summarizing the shows that were the object of all these efforts:

• Two shows: Friday 7 PM and Saturday (Christmas Eve) 7 PM
• Each show will have three 50 minute sets plus a 5 song encore
• 10-15 minute breaks between sets; 2-3 minute break between third set and encores
• 45 total songs, including 16 Christmas songs

Uncle Corey then explained the rehearsal schedule. They would rehearse for the rest of Thursday, but they needed to be packed up and gone by 5 PM. That was when the two regional bands booked to play at 7 PM and 10 PM that evening would be arriving to load-in and setup for their shows.

On Friday they would be able to do their real setup for the Christmas shows. Since they were the only act performing at ERIC on Friday and Saturday, they could leave their gear set up when they left after the first show on Friday.

At that point Uncle Corey turned the proceedings over to his son Will. The reason was that Will Lane had both Bachelors and Masters degrees in music from very good schools. He also had years of professional experience as a performer, composer and arranger of music. This made Will the best candidate to quickly develop workable arrangements for this impromptu ensemble. Fortunately Will had agreed to act as Music Director for these Christmas shows.

Uncle Will announced that the rest of Thursday would be spent learning the Christmas songs on the setlist, along with any classic rock/pop songs that Lighthouse hadn't performed very often. There wasn't nearly enough rehearsal time to fully practice and develop all 45 songs on the set list. So Will decided they would learn the new songs and then let Lighthouse launch into their standard repertoire songs. The friends would join in as and if necessary.

The final task that needed to be completed before rehearsals actually began was to get all 23 members of the ensemble "wired for sound". ERIC boasted a high-tech 64 channel digital sound mixing system that could handle wireless microphones and wireless instrument pickups. A sound tech brought two large boxes of wireless mic rigs to the stage. Aunt Anna grabbed four sets and led the other three ladies in the ensemble backstage for some privacy while they wired each other up.

The reason why that was necessary mystified Mike briefly... until he saw the male members of the core Lighthouse group pulling up their shirts to don their mics. The transmitter pack was hooked to the belt in the back and the connecting cable ran around the body to emerge from the front of the shirt just a couple of inches below the neckline.

"Do you see that?" whispered Jack. "Uncle Corey and Uncle Jerry are both wearing concealed guns on the back of their belts."

"Well, yeah Jack," whispered Mike. "It looks like Uncle Jerry's gun is a 45 automatic, and it's not all that well concealed. I had noticed he was packin' before he lifted his shirt."

T.J. giggled, then whispered, "My Grandpa carries a Springfield Model 1911 compact 45 automatic. It's a smaller version of the Military-issue 1911 he carried as his personal sidearm in the Marine Corps."

"Cool," whispered Jamey. "My grandpa carries a 9mm automatic. I think it's a Sig Sauer, but I can't remember which model he uses. All these big gun companies make tons of different models."

"Okay, what's all this whispering about?" said Uncle Jerry as he approached the boys with a small box of mic sets.

"Well, grandpa," said T.J. as he stepped forward to get his mic installed first, "we were just discussing the concealed pistols that you and Uncle Corey are wearing today."

"Today?" said Uncle Jerry, he snorted, "We carry concealed every day. Don't worry, we both have permits and we stay in practice. You're completely safe around us. We received professional small arms training as midshipmen at the Naval Academy. Those classes were taught by elite Navy and Marine Corps Masters-at-Arms. By the end we could competently handle every type of pistol, rifle, shotgun and light machine gun."

"But Uncle Jerry, that was a long time ago," said Jack. "Haven't things changed a lot since then?"

"Well, of course they've changed, Jack." said Uncle Jerry. "But I wouldn't say they've changed a lot. Gun design doesn't change that quickly, at least not since John Moses Browning died. In fact guns usually just evolve slowly over time. It's not hard for trained professionals like Corey and myself to keep up with the latest developments." He finished clipping the microphone to T.J.'s shirt just below the neckline. "Okay, you're set kiddo. Who's next?"

Mike had already decided he wanted some time to get used to wearing a mic setup, so he immediately stepped in front of the old Marine, raising his shirt. "I'll go next, Uncle Jerry."

While Jerry installed Mike's mic, he realized that both of Uncle Jerry's hands were badly scarred. Jerry noticed Mike's staring and said, "Don't worry, Mike. The scars almost never hurt anymore after 15 years. I burned my hands trying to get some people out of a burning building."

Jamey said, "Uncle Jerry never brags, but the burning building in question was the Pentagon. He was in there too that morning."

"Seriously?" said Mike and Jack in chorus.

"Yes," said Uncle Jerry. "I was on the staff of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, and we weren't in the damaged part of the building. We were all ordered to evacuate, but I broke off and helped some people out of the building while trying to find Eric. Unfortunately I couldn't get into Eric's area because it had collapsed after the crash. They never found any part of his remains and theorize that he was killed instantly from the crash and fireball. Then the burning jet fuel cremated his remains."

"I'm sorry," said Mike. The other four boys echoed this sentiment.

"Thank you, boys," said Uncle Jerry. "I managed to save a few lives that day, which will have to do as cold comfort. Even after 15 years the loss of Eric hurts me worse than these scars on my hands."

"Did you get in trouble for violating orders?" said Jack. Mike nearly gasped at the insensitivity of this question under the circumstances. But Uncle Jerry just ignored that aspect of it.

"No," said Uncle Jerry, "my boss was very understanding. He could have officially reprimanded me and spiked my chances of ever making general. Instead he put me in for the Purple Heart. In fact I got my Brigadier General star after my tour on his staff ended in 2003."

Jamey apparently thought a topic change was in order. He said, "I think I've heard the name John Moses Browning before. Who was he?"

Uncle Jerry chuckled, "I'm sure you've heard your grandfather drone on about Browning. He's a big fan, and well he should be. John Moses Browning is considered by many people to be the greatest gun designer who ever lived."

"Oh, yeah!" said Mike. "My Dad owns a Browning shotgun. So Browning invented the modern shotgun?"

"Well, no," said Uncle Jerry. "Browning did come up with some new features that are present on nearly every modern shotgun and rifle. But he didn't invent either category of weapon. What Browning did was to completely revolutionize the handgun." Jerry finished clipping the mic to the front of Mike's shirt. "How is that, Mike? Comfortable?"

"Yes, sir!" said Mike as he stepped out of the way so Jamey could get his mic installed. As he tucked his shirt back into his jeans Uncle Jerry continued the story of John Moses Browning.

"So Browning was born just before the Civil War, I think. He entered a world where a revolver that worked almost every time and rarely blew up in your face was considered the pinnacle of handgun technology. When Browning departed from this world in the 1920s he left us with the Model 1911 and the Browning Hi Power. The man single-handedly invented the practical, reliable automatic pistol as we know it today. His 1911 prototypes were the ancestors of every 45 automatic you've ever seen or heard of... including this one," After checking to make sure that no members of the public had entered the club Uncle Jerry reached behind his back and drew his personal sidearm. He held it in front of him to display it to the boys.

Mike noticed two things immediately. Uncle Jerry kept the barrel of his pistol pointed at the ceiling, and none of his fingers were on the trigger or trigger guard. The man instinctively practiced safe gun handling. The 1911 itself was beautiful, with a two-tone slide and frame, a stainless steel barrel peeking out through the ejector port, and black polymer grips. There seemed to be a logo on the grips, but Uncle Jerry's big right hand covered most of it. Mike said, "T.J. told us you carry a Springfield 1911?"

"That's true, I used to carry a Springield Armory 1911," said Uncle Jerry. "But I upgraded about a year ago. This is a Wilson Combat 1911 CQB Commander 45 automatic in Black and Gray. It's a smaller verion of the Mil-Spec 1911s they used to issue as a holstered sidearm in the Marine Corps. A smaller 1911 is needed if you want to carry a 45 automatic pistol concealed. This Wilson has many modern features to make it a better concealed carry and self-defense weapon." He re-holstered his 1911 and tucked in his shirt.

"Can we shoot it at the range sometime?" said Jamey.

"Absolutely not!" said Uncle Jerry. "A 45 has way too much recoil to be safely handled by boys your age. If you want to learn to shoot, discuss it with your grandfather, Jamey. I know he once owned a Browning Buck Mark 22 target pistol. He used it to start out your Dad and Uncle Will on shooting handguns. The Buck Mark would be ideal for you boys to start out on, too... if Corey still owns it."

As Uncle Jerry hooked up Jack's mic, Jack said, "What about that Browning High Tower you mentioned?"

Uncle Corey laughed as he joined the little group. "It's actually the Browning Hi Power... so called because the new double-stack magazine that Browning invented for it could hold 13 rounds of 9mm Luger ammo, twice the capacity of any 1911 that existed at that time. Ironically Browning never lived to see the Hi Power enter production. He had only completed the design drawings and a couple of prototypes before passing away in Belgium. It took lesser engineers a few years to work out how to reproduce Browning's design so that the gun could enter production. But Browning's Hi Power prototypes are the ancestors of every smaller caliber automatic pistol with high capacity magazines in the world today. Including this one."

Uncle Corey scanned the club to make sure no members of the public were there before he drew his own pistol from behind his back. He held it barrel up and with his finger off the trigger just like Uncle Jerry had done. Mike was amazed at how much this pistol looked like it meant business, even though it was noticeably smaller than Jerry's 1911. The slide and frame were finished in flat black, as was the barrel since this time there was no stainless steel visible through the ejector port. In fact this weapon was black all over, including the polymer grips. The overall effect gave the pistol a mean and serious look.

Uncle Corey said, "This is my Sig Sauer P229 M11-A1 Compact 9mm automatic pistol. The magazines hold 15 rounds each. This is the smaller, concealed carry version of the Sig P226 Mk25 Navy Full Sized 9mm pistol used as a sidearm by Navy Special Forces Operators... in other words, the Navy Seals."

Yep, of course it was a version of a pistol used by the Navy. Mike loved the Navy since his father was still serving and intended to continue doing so as long as the Navy kept letting him fly fighter jets. But Admiral Lane seemed to take the whole Navy thing just a bit too seriously for Mike's taste. Does the man own anything that isn't Navy-themed?

"Uncle Corey," said Jack, a look of awe on his face, "were you a Navy Seal?"

The two old men laughed as Jerry hooked up Timmy's mic and Corey put his pistol back in the holster. Uncle Jerry said, "Not hardly, Jack. Corey is a good fighter if he has to be, but he's no special forces operator. Neither am I, for that matter."

Uncle Corey clarified, "I was a member of the Surface Warfare Community in the Navy. I served aboard, and eventually commanded, surface warships. I wound up commanding two different Ticonderoga-class Aegis cruisers..."

"Dad," said Uncle Will, "I hate interrupting you, but if you have the kids and yourselves wired up we need to get this show on the road. We're short of time as it is."

"Okay, Will," said Uncle Corey. "You're right. Let's go guys, back up on stage."

Fall to your knees bring on the rapture
Blessed be the boys time can't capture

On film or between the sheets
I always fall from your window
To the pitch black streets

"The Kids Aren't Alright" - Fall Out Boy, American Beauty/American Psycho, 2015

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Before they could start actually rehearsing they had to do a sound check to make sure all their wireless vocal circuits were operating properly. All 23 members of the ensemble lined up at the front of the stage. The sound check was conducted by Adam Childress, the stage manager at ERIC.

The first step was to have each performer, one at a time, clearly state his/her first name so the techs running the mixing console could idenify who will be singing on each channel. After identifying himself successfully the performer should start singing a song acapella until Adam told him to stop. This is just to enable the techs to set the sound level for each channel, so it didn't matter what song you sang. Just sing it at the same volume you intended to use when singing during the actual show.

Mike was left in a bit of a pickle. Normally he would have sung his favorite song, "Timeless" by Bayou Beach, from their 2015 album, Ripped Tide. But that song had been written by Jimmy Keough and Will Lane. Uncle Will also sang lead on that song on the album and in live shows. Mike had no intention of trying to sing that song in front of the man who co-wrote it and sang it professionally. Just sharing a stage with Will Lane was making Mike incredibly nervous. Mike became more and more agitated as his turn got closer and closer. He finally decided to sing "The Kids Aren't Alright" by Fall Out Boy. Mike was profoundly relieved when Adam told him to stop singing and then moved on to Jamey.

Jamey chose to sing "It Was Always You" by Maroon 5. T.J. just started rehearsing "The Little Drummer Boy" for his sound check. Jack sang some Bruno Mars tune that Mike wasn't familiar with since he wasn't a big Bruno Mars fan. Timmy couldn't think of anything to sing, so Adam suggested he sing "Jingle Bells". This was a good suggestion since Timmy actually remembered the lyrics to that song. Well, most of them, anyway.

As the actual rehearsal began things began to blur in Mike's memories again. He was mostly left with snippets of lyrics that the choir sang as backing vocals for the Christmas songs.

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the king of Isreal

    --------

He knows if you've been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake

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This night we pray
Our lives will show
This dream he had
Each child still knows

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Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way to say Merry Christmas to you

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I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas
From the bottom of my heart

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The club opened to the public as a restaurant and bar at 11 AM. By 11:30 there were more than two dozen people sitting in the dining room waiting for their food and watching the rehearsal in progress. Most of these people sat as close to the stage as they could get. It seemed there was a small group of regular customers who made a habit of eating lunch in the ERIC dining room on days when a daytime rehearsal was scheduled. These folks got to see part of a show without paying a cover charge, but they could not sit at the two rows of tables closest to the stage, which had been cordoned off and were reserved for the exclusive use of the band and stage staff. Everyone involved with the rehearsal would be eating lunch there in the front rows. In fact the boys were told they could have their own table.

A waitress named Peggy came up on stage and handed out menus to the performers. Uncle Dana announced that he and Corey would be buying lunch for the whole crew, so people should order whatever they wanted - but food and soft drinks only. This last part was met with good-natured jeers from the stage staff.

Peggy was running short of menus by the time she reached the choir, so the five boys had to share two menus. This would be Mike's first time dining in a nightclub (or, indeed, setting foot in one), so he wondered if all night club menus were this bizarre. The menu did have some generally familiar items like Pizza, Chili, Chicken Wings and Burgers, but many of the items had words Mike didn't know in their titles. Hell, some of the words had non-English characters in them, like "Niçoise". Not to mention the oddball ingredients. For example, there was a Canadian Poutine Burger on the menu, that was topped with Canadian Bacon, Cheese Curds and Gravy. Mike had no idea what Cheese Curds were, and he was in no hurry to find out.

Even the pasta section of the menu, which is usually a safe place for kids, looked rather dangerous at ERIC. The pasta dish titles included such intimidating words as Leeks, Tarragon and Fennel. Mike could see that his four comrades looked as puzzled and dismayed as he felt. He wasn't the only person on stage who noticed their distress and Uncle Dana came to the rescue, offering to help the boys find items it would be safe for them to order.

Things got a lot easier when the boys discovered they would be allowed to split a couple of pizzas with familiar American toppings and a plate of chili that Uncle Dana talked them into trying. They would have a couple of pitchers of soft drinks to wash it all down.

By 1 PM the crew was chowing down on their lunch. The boys ended up with two Brick Oven Pizzas, one with Double Pepperoni and one with Mild Italian Sausage and Bacon. Both were excellent, as was the Cincinnati-Style Chili that Uncle Dana had convinced them to try. This was a local delicacy in the Cincinnati, Ohio area and Uncle Dana became addicted to the stuff during his four and a half years spent living there and playing baseball for the Cincinnati Reds. It was nearly impossible to find that type of chili in Florida, so when they were setting up ERIC five years earlier Dana used his influence as a partner and co-investor to make sure that Cincinnati-Style Chili was the chili offered on the ERIC restaurant/bar menu.

The plate of chili that Uncle Dana ordered for the choir was a Cincinnati-Style Chili 4-Way. The bottom layer was fresh, hot spaghetti, the second layer was the chili. The third layer consisted of finely shredded cheddar cheese and the fourth layer was diced sweet onions. Mike had never had chili on pasta before, but it was quite tasty. It turned out that Cincinnati-Style Chili didn't have beans and was somewhat sweeter than traditional Texas-Style Chili Con Carne. The other four boys all agreed they liked the stuff too, although Timmy picked most of the onions off of his portion before eating it.

Once they finished eating Jack and Timmy wandered off back stage, leaving the three older boys to linger over the last few slices of pizza. T.J. turned over an empty pitcher. He said, "We're out of Coca-Cola again. I'll go refill this thing at the bar - save Peggy some work."

As T.J. headed for the bar with the empty pitcher, Mike said, "Do you think he knows what he's doing?"

Jamey shrugged and said, "Probably. He does live here in the Jacksonville area, so I'm sure he gets in here occasionally. Kids are allowed in here to eat from 11 AM until 6 PM most days. It only becomes a 21+ nightclub at 7 PM."

"I dunno about that, Jamey," said Mike. "T.J. seemed just as confused by the menu as the rest of us this morning."

"True enough," said Jamey. He considered the issue for a bit. "Maybe his mother or grandparents ordered for him when he was here before."

"Maybe," said Mike. He still wanted to ask Uncle Corey some questions about the memorial to Captain Linsey, but the man was clearly busy discussing the show preparations with Uncle Will, Uncle Jerry, Aunt Anna, Aunt Becky, Uncle Alan, Chief Marston, and Adam Childress, the stage manager.

It took him a while, but eventually T.J. returned with a full pitcher of Coca-Cola. Clearly he had worked it out. He filled his own empty glass and then topped off Mike's and Jamey's glasses. T.J. sat down and silently studied his two table mates as he quickly sipped his soda. Pizza must make T.J. thirsty, or perhaps it was the chili? It didn't taste very spicy, at least to Mike's taste buds, but everyone was different.

As Mike finished his final slice of pepperoni pizza, he wondered if T.J. was having any doubts about singing "The Little Drummer Boy". As they broke for lunch Will announced that was where they would start the afternoon rehearsals and Mike, for one....

"What the hell!" exclaimed Jamey. Mike looked at his best friend, who was staring at the glass of cola he was holding in his right hand, a look of suspicious dismay on his face.

"What's the matter?" said Mike.

"There is nothing wrong," said T.J. quietly. "And hold it down, we don't need to draw any adult attention just now."

"There is too something wrong," whispered Jamey. "Somebody spiked this Coke."

"Mine tastes fine," said T.J. He took another large swig of his soda. "I think you're imagining things, Cous."

Mike picked up his glass of soda and sniffed at it. "It smells okay." He took a sip of the soda and... "Okay, it does taste weird. What did you put in this, T.J.?"

"Nothing!" said T.J. He took another large, almost defiant sip of his own soda. "If I had put anything dangerous in it, why would I be drinking it myself?"

Jamey and Mike each took another experimental sip of their sodas. Then Mike said. "How do we know you haven't spent the past few years building up an immunity to Iocane powder?"

"Huh?" said T.J. "What are you babbling about now?"

"Dude!" said Jamey, looking at his second cousin in disbelief. "You've never seen The Princess Bride?"

"No," said T.J., a disgusted look on his face. "I don't watch movies for girls."

"Are you kidding me?" said Mike. "The Princess Bride is one of the best action movies ever made, at least in a fantasy setting."

"It sure is," said Jamey. "It's got sword fights, betrayal, vengeance, and a real giant. Not to mention that it's funny as hell. It's totally rad!"

"It certainly is totally rad," said Mike. He took another sip of his soda while T.J. filled his glass again fron the pitcher. Then he said quietly, "So what did you put in this, T.J.?"

T.J. sighed and said, barely above a whisper, "I put some rum into the pitcher with the Coke. Drink up, we have to destroy the evidence at this point."

"Rum?" whispered Mike urgently.

"Yo, ho, ho," said T.J., grinning. "Drink up, me hearties."

"This isn't funny, T.J.," said Jamey. "This is highly illegal."

"Uh, huh," said T.J., nodding in agreement. "So we better drink the evidence before we get caught."

After a few seconds Jamey shrugged and began drinking his spiked Coke.

Mike suspected that there was a flaw in T.J.'s plan, but he couldn't think of it at that moment. His brain felt strangely fuzzy and it had suddenly gotten extremely warm in the club. He began drinking iced soda from his glass in the hope that it would cool him off.

Sometimes I feel like a man in the wilderness
I'm a lonely sailor lost at sea
Drifting with the tide
Never quite knowing why
Sometimes it makes no sense at all

"Man in the Wilderness" - Styx, The Grand Illusion, 1977

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During the lunch break Will Lane changed his plans after consulting with his parents and the other key players in the core Lighthouse group. The choir was going to be standing far stage right for the majority of the show. They needed to move stage center to take the lead on "The Little Drummer Boy", then move back to their normal location stage right once their featured song ended. It had been decided that they should rehearse both moves as well as the song itself.

So everyone set up in their customary spots and the ensemble launched into the song that preceded "The Little Drummer Boy" in the set list. It was the Paul Simon masterpiece, "Bridge Over Troubled Water" with Uncle Corey singing the lead vocals. Mike had gotten used to the way Lighthouse sounded when covering classic songs like this one, but something seemed odd. Mike knew he wasn't feeling all that well at the moment, but it didn't sound like they were even trying to replicate the original rendition of the song. Then about sixty seconds into the performance Adam came out on stage and stopped the rehearsal. He was accompanied by two sound techs who began working on the pickups for Ray Meehan's 5-string bass guitar and the six string solid body guitar that Dana was playing. Those wireless circuits had some kind of malfunction and the two instruments kept dropping out of the mix.

Mike was not the only person who noticed that the rendition seemed off, apart from any instrument malfunctions. Jamey asked Uncle Corey about the difference as they all waited for the sound techs to get things back in order. Uncle Corey admitted that he could not hit all the high notes that Art Garfunkel sang routinely in the original recording and the live Simon and Garfunkel concerts.

Fortunately just months after the original Simon and Garfunkel release Elvis Presley released a well-received cover of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" that arranged the song in a more gospel style. Since Corey could hit the same notes that Elvis did - just not as well - Lighthouse always performed the Elvis/gospel version of the song.

Soon the sound techs thought they had fixed the pickups. Adam asked the Lighthouse core group to perform a short instrumental tune to make sure that all was well. To Mike's surprise he was very familiar with the song the oldsters performed... it was the main opening title theme to Hawaii Five-O, albeit played in a classic rock electric guitar style. He later learned that it was a cover of the version by a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame group called The Ventures.

The Five-O theme performance convinced Adam that all was well technically. He and his techs quickly moved backstage while the band got back in position. The ensemble re-launched into "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and this time they made it all the way through to the end. Now Zero Hour had arrived, at least as far as Mike was concerned. T.J. would don his drum and the five boys would move to center stage. Mike wasn't worried as much about the physical move as he was about cueing the start of the song and staying in harmony with his fellow choir members throughout the performance of "The Little Drummer Boy." Unfortunately they didn't even get that far.

T.J. turned and bent over to pickup the portable snare drum and set of sticks he had stashed behind his choir position before rehearsals started. Something happened to T.J. as he bent over. He collapsed to his knees and began vomiting on the stage floor next to his drum. Mike was disgusted, but then he started to worry about T.J. since the vomiting didn't seem to stop. Then Mike began to worry about himself and Jamey, too. Could T.J. have accidentally poisoned them all with bad rum? He glanced over at Jamey, who did not look ready to vomit, although he had a strange look on his face and kept blinking his eyes like he was having trouble focusing. Mike himself didn't feel the least bit nauseous, but his brain still felt very fuzzy, so something was wrong. Mike decided that he really should check on T.J. and see if he needed help, but Commander Dan beat him to it. The man knelt next to T.J., who had stopped vomiting, and checked him out.

Commander Dan's reaction was immediate. There was a look of extreme concern on the man's face as he turned towards center stage and yelled, "MEDIC! We need a doctor over here!"

Things started to happen very quickly at that point. Uncle Alan and Commander Andy both began moving towards the emergency. Mike heard Uncle Corey order Adam to "kill the live feed to the P.A." Sure enough, within seconds everything the mic-ed performers said was no longer being broadcast on ERIC's public address system.

Uncle Alan reached the stricken T.J. first, even though he started further away and was much older than his son, Andy. The younger Dr. Dunson was sprawled across the stage floor along with Mary Tressler. T.J.'s mom panicked when she realized something was wrong with her beloved only child. She literally tried to run over Commander Andy who made the mistake of not moving fast enough to aid young T.J. Neither adult was injured by their crash, but they did have to disentangle themselves before they could finish their journey. By the time they arrived on the scene Uncle Alan was doing his preliminary examination of T.J. Uncle Jerry and Aunt Becky were already there, concerned about their grandson.

"How can I help, Dad?" said Commander Andy.

Uncle Alan looked up at his son. "Examine the four other lads. Look for signs of intoxication."

"Yes, sir," said Commander Andy. He immediately moved to follow his father's orders.

"Intoxicated?" said Miss Mary.

"He's drunk?" said Uncle Jerry.

"He's drunk as a lord, Jerry," said Uncle Alan. "Don't we have people watching the bar to make sure this kind of nonsense doesn't happen here?"

"We're supposed to, yes," said Uncle Corey. "I'm gonna have Phil look into this personally." Mike knew that he was referring to Phil Litvin, the restaurant manager at ERIC, one of many people Mike met on arrival that morning. Phil's job was to manage the "front of house", which apparently included the wait staff, the hosts and the bar staff. Phil was in charge of everyone involved in restaurant/bar operations apart from the kitchen staff. Max Rochat, the Swiss executive chef of ERIC, was in charge of the kitchen staff and responsible for developing and executing the menu. Chef Max's picture and bio graced the inside front cover of every menu.

Commander Andy quickly completed his task and reported the results. "Two of the other four boys are lit up, too - Jamey and Mike. The two youngest ones are completely sober."

"Well, that's that," said Uncle Corey in frustration. "Let's move the boys, and this conversation, back stage. This is not the kind of show we want to put on for the public."

As Commander Dan hustled Jamey and Mike back stage, Mike looked back and noticed that the thirty or so people eating in the dining room were all paying close attention to the chaos on stage. He also saw Uncle Jerry picking up T.J., who looked rather green around the gills. The big man began to carry his intoxicated grandson back stage. Mike wondered how much trouble they were really in. One glance at the look on Commander Dan's face chilled Mike's blood. They were in a lot of trouble.

Uncle Jerry carried T.J. into one of the dressing rooms and carefully laid the boy down on a cot. Miss Mary then expertly undressed her son down to his underwear. He was covered with a thin blanket so he could sleep it off. Then the full attention of the angry adults was focused on Jamey and Mike. A quick glance at Jamey told Mike that his friend had the same foreboding that he did. They were about to "get it".

But much to their surprise their execution was postponed due to two reasons. First off, the men were currently way too angry to risk laying a hand on the boys. Secondly, the boys were too drunk and out of it to benefit from lectures, and any other punitive action considered necessary. They would be "dealt with" once they had sobered up and the men had calmed down.

Jamey and Mike were allowed to use the rest room before being made to strip down to their underpants and hand in their wireless mic sets before climbing into an open cot. (The room where T.J. was sleeping had four cots.) They were each covered with a thin blanket, then the lights were turned off and the door closed, leaving the room in total darkness.

After a couple of minutes they heard the remaining ensemble troop back to the stage to continue the rehearsal. Miss Mary and Miss Dottie stayed behind to watch over the boys. Both claimed to be too upset to rehearse any more that day in any event. Both ladies removed their wireless mics, then they removed the mics from Jack and Timmy. They handed all seven sets over to a sound tech who had been dispatched to collect them.

Miss Dottie found a deck of playing cards in her purse. This didn't surprise Mike at all - she had been teaching her sons as well as Jack and Mike how to play Hearts on rainy days since last summer. Miss Mary agreed to participate to make it a foursome. Apparently they set up a folding table right outside the dressing room door, which meant that Jamey and Mike had to speak in low tones to avoid being overheard.

"Well, this has been a wonderful day so far," said Jamey sarcastically.

Mike couldn't help laughing, despite the trouble they were in. "You know, I don't mind so much if I actually agree to try something, it goes sideways, and we end up getting spanked for it. At least I had a choice. But T.J. tricked us into this mess, the little rat."

"I know," said Jamey with a weary voice. "I'll give the little brat a piece of my mind tomorrow, for all the good it will do. T.J. is an only child and his mom spoils him outrageously."

"Hey!" said Mike. "I'm an only child too, you know. We're not all spoiled."

"I know that," said Jamey, sounding a bit confused "I didn't say that all only children are spoiled, just that T.J. was. Your parents don't let you get away with much, which is why you're not spoiled."

"At least I have a father," said Mike. "I do feel sorry for T.J. on that score."

"Yeah, me too. Uncle Jerry does what he can for the kid, but at the end of the day Jerry is T.J.'s grandfather, not his father."

"Yeah," said Mike. At that moment quiet conversation back stage became impossible since the band cranked up again, a rockin' tune apparently called "Howling At The Moon" with Uncle Alan singing lead. Mike was quite familiar with the next song they did, "Old Time Rock and Roll" with Uncle Corey singing lead. Then Aunt Becky belted out the lead on "Living On A Prayer", which she had apparently been talked into performing in lieu of "Hit Me With Your Best Shot". Mike thought it was a good change for a Christmas show.

The fourth song the band rehearsed was called "Tupelo Honey" featuring Chief Marston singing in the lower registers. He wasn't quite a bass, but he was a very low baritone. Mike found the man's voice strangely soothing. "Tupelo Honey" was a much quieter song than the songs preceding it in the set list. Mike never heard the songs after it because he fell sound asleep during that song.

Welcome to my nightmare
I think you're gonna like it
I think you're gonna feel you belong

"Welcome to My Nightmare" - Alice Cooper, Welcome to My Nightmare, 1975

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Mike sat bolt upright in bed. He had just woken from a nightmare... or more accurately a series of nightmares. The first nightmare he remembered was actually more weird than scary. He had been in a boy's choir singing Christmas songs with a second-rate rock and roll band in a huge nightclub populated by a bunch of strange characters. But that wasn't the weirdest part. Somehow one of Mike's choir-mates tricked several of the boys, including Mike, into drinking alcohol he had stolen from the nightclub bar. Of course they got caught and were about to get their asses busted when the nightmare ended.

Getting his ass busted would have been a picnic compared to what happened to Mike in the second nightmare, which was quite scary. Mike was a guard standing night watch in some sort of military camp, probably a US Marine Corps encampment. Unfortunnately he had not been alert enough and allowed an enemy commando to sneak up behind him undetected. His first warning was when a strong hand covered his nose and mouth, keeping him from crying out as a cold steel combat knife plunged into his back over and over again. As he sank to the ground, the life force leaving his body, Mike wondered why he had been killed for real during what was only supposed to be a training exercise.

That was scary, but the third and final nightmare he remembered was downright terrifying. Everything was dark and Mike couldn't open his eyes or speak. Apparently he was completely naked, lying on a cold metal surface. A man with a Scottish accent was talking nearby, speaking at length about some esoteric medical topic that Mike didn't understand. Eventually the long-winded story ended and the Scottish man had a brief conversation with an American man as they moved closer. To Mike's horror, they were discussing the autopsy they were about to perform on Lance Corporal Damico! Mike desperately tried to communicate with the two medical examiners, but he was unable to move or speak - it fact he didn't seem to be breathing. So how could his brain still be aware of his surroundings, and how could he possibly feel the doctor, apparently the Scotsman, touching him? Oh, no! As the medical examiner's knife began to slice open his chest, Mike felt agonizing pain and screamed silently in his mind!

Mike sat bolt upright in bed. He had just woken from a series of nightmares... or had he? The place he was in was completely dark. Nearby a child was crying and moaning. The bed he woke up in wasn't terribly comfortable. He could sense, rather than see, that he was quite close to some kind of wall or barrier. On the other side of the barrier he could hear voices talking. Some were excited, others were angry. What the hell kind of place was this? Eventually Mike was forced to conclude that "hell" was the likely answer to his last question. Either that, or he was in a fourth nightmare. He crossed himself and began silently praying for his soul and for forgiveness, on the off chance that it wasn't aleady too late for that. If he was dead, Mike wondered if anyone had bothered to call a priest to give him last rites.

Suddenly there was a familiar voice in the darkness. It was his best friend, Jamey. "T.J., are you okay?"

The crying T.J. whined, "Noooo! I'm sick and I have to pee!"

"Hang in there, Cous," said Jamey. "I'll go see if I can find your mom."

Hearing the other boy's voices brought Mike right back to the here and now. He now knew that the first "nightmare" he remembered wasn't a dream at all. That's what had really been happening.

Suddenly Mike's cot shook and Jamey yelled, "God dammit, that hurt!"

"What's wrong?" said Mike as he prepared to get up and help his friend.

"Ahhh, I stubbed my toe. It hurts like hell."

"You need help, Jamey?"

"Nah, stay put. Last thing we need is more than one person wandering around a completely dark room. We'd probably just run into each other."

"Good point," said Mike. "Be careful until you can get a light on."

"Oh, I don't need a reminder about that... my throbbing toe is reminding me constantly."

After a few seconds there was a click and the overhead lights came on in their dressing room. Mike snapped his eyes shut. After hours in complete darkness the sudden light hurt his eyes. He wasn't the only one, either. T.J. moaned loudly in reaction to the change. Mike estimated it took at least thirty seconds before could open his eyes in the lighted room without feeling pain. He looked around the room. T.J. was lying in his cot with an arm across his face, presumably to protect his eyes from the light. Jamey was standing in front of the light switch next to the door rubbing his eyes slowly.

"My eyes are back in business, Jamey," said Mike. "You want me to go find Mary?"

"Somebody go get my mom, now!" said T.J., imperiously.

"I guess you should go, Mike. My eyes are still adjusting."

"Take your time, Jamey," said Mike. "I'll get her."

Mike got out of bed and moved towards the door. A quick scan of the room failed to detect their clothes. He was just gonna have to go out there wearing nothing but a pair of sky blue briefs. C'est la vie. He opened the door and stepped out of the room... and was totally stunned by the number of people in the hallway. Clearly the band was on break, or maybe they had finished for the day.

"Hey, you're awake!" said Uncle Corey. "Feel better?"

"Yes sir," said Mike. "My brain doesn't feel fuzzy like it did before."

"Good," said Uncle Corey. "Are the other two awake as well?"

"Yes sir, but T.J. says he's sick and he's asking for his mother," said Mike, scanning the crowd in the hallway for Miss Mary but coming up empty. "I don't see Miss Mary around here anywhere."

Chief Marston said, "Miss Mary was on stage talking to Will a few minutes ago."

Uncle Corey looked at Mike and said, "You can't go out on stage dressed like that, Mike. We don't do burlesque shows here."

Chief Marston chuckled and said, "I'll go get Miss Mary, Mike."

Mike was too confused by the Admiral's burlesque comment to even respond to Chief Marston.

"Thanks, Chief," said Uncle Corey.

"Glad to help, Admiral," said Chief Marston. He turned and began to bulldoze his way through the crowd towards the stage. "Gangway! Make a hole! Comin' through!"

Uncle Corey took pity on the confused Mike and explained, "Burlesque was a kind of variety stage show they had in this country in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It featured women doing striptease - taking off most of their clothes, but not all of them. There were also comedians telling racy jokes and stories."

"Racy as in naughty?"

"Exactly, Mike. Naughty as in sexual, but it was only really naughty for the time," said Uncle Corey. "A hundred years later those stories would seem tame by our standards. Just like it's not technically illegal for you to go on stage dressed like that, but speaking for the owners of this club, we don't allow that sort of thing here."

"Yes, sir," said Mike. Suddenly he heard a commotion behind him. He turned to see what was happening. Nothing was immediately apparent. There were too many taller people in the way for him to see what it was.

"Oh, nuts!" said Uncle Corey. He switched his voice to command mode. "Mike, get behind me, NOW!"

"What is it?" said Mike, still not seeing anything although the commotion was getting closer.

"Move it, boy!" said Uncle Corey. Mike kept staring at the crowd, wondering what could possibly be causing such a commotion. "Michael!" Suddenly Uncle Corey's strong hands picked Mike up and set him down next to him. This happened just in time as it turned out. Before Mike's feet were back on the ground Miss Mary came bursting out of the crowd running at full speed and barreled through the space where Mike had been standing a second before. She careened into the dressing room to check on T.J.

Oh, so that's what caused Uncle Corey to fall back into command mode. He read the situation playing out before him and realized that Mike was in danger where he stood. Oops!

As soon as Miss Mary was safely through the door Uncle Corey released Mike. He then gave the boy a light smack on the back of the head. Mike flashed an angry look at the Admiral, which faded from his face when he saw the look of bemused frustration, bordering on anger, on the old man's face. Suddenly Mike felt very ashamed. Uncle Corey warned him of the danger but he didn't listen or obey. In a way it was much worse than the alcohol thing since nobody had warned him about that... at least not until it was too late.

"Michael," said Uncle Corey, speaking slowly and carefully, clearly laboring to control his temper, "did you hear me order you to get behind me?"

"Yes, sir," said Mike. He realized an explanation was in order. "I was... confused?"

"Confused?" said Uncle Corey, grabbing Mike firmly by the shoulder. "There seems to be a lot of that going on here today. Let's see what we can do to unconfuse you... and your fellow bootleggers."

You can look but don't touch
But no you can't resist
Don't you ever think about the consequences
Guys like you never do
That's the kind of stuff boys are made out of
Bad boys get spanked

"Bad Boys Get Spanked" - The Pretenders, Pretenders II, 1981

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Waiting to be punished was never a picnic. Awaiting the pre-punishment questioning could be even worse, particularly if you're not exactly sure how bad things are gonna get. As Mike stood in a backstage hallway, his nose pressed against the wall and his hands on his head, he was kicking himself for not asking Jamey some important questions back when they were in the dressing room and free to speak. Jamey was standing nose-to-the-wall next to him, but they had been ordered not to speak while T.J. was in a nearby office being questioned. They were being guarded/watched by an unknown number of adults so they had to remain silent.

Commander Dan was a very serious man who spanked his sons when they needed it. Both Jamey and Timmy were willing to go far out of their way to avoid a spanking from their father. Mike could sympathize with this attitude since he felt the same way about potential spankings from his own father. They were most definitely something to be avoided.

This was not the first time that Mike and Jamey had gotten into serious trouble together. But on previous occasions they had been back in Virginia Beach, where both their families resided. Mike had been turned over to his own parents to be dealt with at home. So he had never been spanked by Commander Dan. He strongly suspected that was about to change.

After an unknown amount of time... that seemed an eternity to Mike... T.J. was escorted back out into the hallway and Jamey took his place in the office being questioned. Terrific, he was going to be questioned last. As he stood there listening to T.J. sniffling nearby Mike decided he would take his spanking like a man - or at least try to do so. He had few illusions about his chances of success in that effort given how angry Commander Dan was about this entire affair. But he would try not to cry anyway.

After an interminable wait - that passed all too quickly - Jamey was brought back out in the hall and Mike was escorted into the office. There he faced three men seated behind a desk. Uncle Jerry was flanked by Uncle Corey and Commander Dan.

Uncle Alan was the fourth man in the room, sitting off to the side next to a table where some medical equipment had been laid out. This scared the hell out of Mike. Do they expect to punish him so badly that he will need medical treatment afterwards? Mike suddenly wanted to run from the room screaming. But he didn't want to look like a pussy, particularly in front of these men, who had served (and were serving) their country honorably. If he took a coward's path here his father might find out about it. Mike would rather die a thousand times than break that great man's heart.

As it turned out Uncle Alan was there to perform a basic physical exam of Mike before he was punished. Mike's vital signs were recorded. Uncle Alan shined a small light in Mike's eyes and tested his coordination. Then came the really embarrassing part. Mike had to drop his briefs for the old "turn your head and cough" routine. With his underpants still down Mike had to turn around so that Uncle Alan could examine his butt. Mike supposed that they wanted to make sure that his butt was okay before they started to damage it.

Mike was ordered to pull up his briefs and Uncle Alan told the panel that Mike was sober now and appeared to be in excellent health. They could proceed as needed. The judges all thanked Dr. Dunson for performing that duty. A few seconds later Mike found himself standing at attention and facing his judges.

First off Mike was asked about where the boys got the rum they drank. He had decided to tell the truth no matter what. The last thing he needed was to be caught lying to these men and give them a reason to punish him even more.

Mike cleared his throat, "The rum came from the bar, but I don't know any details. T.J. took our empty Coke pitcher over to the bar to refill it. Jamey and I didn't know he put rum in there too until we had started drinking it. T.J. convinced us that our best bet was to finish it off before any adults found out what happened."

Uncle Corey said, "So you and Jamey knew right away that something was wrong. But you kept drinking it even after you learned there was rum in there?"

Mike knew they were dead, "Yes, sir. We didn't want to get caught so we had to drink it."

"Michael," said Commander Dan, "did it occur to you that you could just stop drinking and leave the pitcher there? Chances are good that it would have just been emptied out and put in the dishwasher when they bussed the table."

"Oh yeah," said Mike. "We didn't think of that."

"Would you say that you were confused?" said Uncle Corey.

"Yes, sir. My brain was real fuzzy and it was hard to think."

"I see," said Uncle Corey. "Was your brain still fuzzy out in the hallway a few minutes ago when you disobeyed my orders and nearly got yourself run over by Miss Mary?"

Mike hung his head. He wanted to disappear into the floor. "No, sir." He looked Uncle Corey in the eye, "Thank you for saving my life, Uncle Corey."

Uncle Corey gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "It's been my job my entire adult life to protect the lives of innocent civilians, even the ones who are acting stupidly."

"Yes, sir."

"I'm disappointed in you, Mike," said Commander Dan. "I've known you for several years. You're a very intelligent young man. You need to learn to use those brains to keep out of trouble."

"Yes, sir."

"I suppose you realize that you've earned a spanking?" said Commander Dan, "Along with your two cohorts."

"Yes, sir."

"We have a slight logistical problem here," said Uncle Jerry. "We want to spank all three of you at once and get this over with. I trust you approve of this since it saves you from having to wait your turn?"

"Yes, sir."

"So noted," said Uncle Jerry. "I will be spanking my grandson, T.J. Dan will be spanking his son, Jamey. You know that Dan has permission from your mother to spank you, if needed?."

"Yes, sir."

Commander Dan said, "My father, the Admiral, has volunteered to spank you so you don't have to wait until I'm finished with Jamey. Would you object to this substitution?"

Uncle Corey looked less angry than Commander Dan and he didn't fancy waiting, so Mike said, "I don't object to that subsitution, sir."

"Very well," said Uncle Corey. He looked over to Uncle Alan. "Doctor Dunson, would you be good enough to bring the other two boys in here?"

Uncle Alan leapt up from his chair and snapped to attention. He saluted, very badly. It reminded Mike of Mr. Bean, or maybe even Barney Fife attempting the gesture. Uncle Alan said, "Sir, yes sir! Three bags full, sir!" Then he lurched towards the door in a clumsy attempt at marching.

Mike could barely avoid laughing at the performance. Commander Dan actually chuckled and shook his head in disbelief. Uncle Corey and Uncle Jerry looked at each other, rolled their eyes, then chuckled as they shrugged. Apparently the two retired flag officers had seen this kind of bizarre behavior from Uncle Alan before.

Mike looked at his three judges and was flabbergasted. Uncle Alan had defused all the tension in the room with a simple, brief comedy routine. Mike had no delusions about the pending spankings not being painful. But Uncle Alan lightening the mood, even a little bit, could only have helped the three convicts.

Within a couple minutes T.J., Jamey and Mike found themselves over the lap of the man who would spank him. T.J. had objected to baring his bottom, but his grandfather was having none of that nonsense. Uncle Jerry stripped T.J. below the waist with his own large, scarred hands, then tipped him over his knee.

Mike and Jamey had each stepped up next to the right leg of the man who would be spanking him and voluntarily - if a bit reluctantly - dropped their own jeans and pulled down their briefs. Mike bent over Uncle Corey's knee and one of the hands that so recently saved him from harm guided him until he was in the proper position. Mike looked up and could see Jamey bare-bottomed over Commander Dan's lap. He realized that was offering a similar display to T.J., who was over Uncle Jerry's lap behind him.

Mike felt Uncle Corey's left hand putting a slight amount of pressure on his upper back, effectively pinning him to the old Admiral's lap. He looked back over his left shoulder. Uncle Corey no longer looked angry, but he did look determined. Maybe Uncle Alan's act did help a bit.

"Eyes front, youngster," said Uncle Corey. "You'd better hang on for the ride."

"Yes sir," said Mike, barely above a whisper. When he felt the Admiral's right hand resting on his backside he took a deep breath, looked down and grabbed hold of the rung of the chair.

"On three," said Uncle Jerry. As a percussionist, Jerry was used to keeping time during a performance. "One..... two.... Commence fire, fire at will!" Three loud Smaack!!!s resounded in the relatively small office. T.J. began howling and kept it up through the entire spanking. The three spankers quickly got slightly out of sync. So Smaack!!! Smaack!!! Smaack!!! rounds of three spanks were heard, with eventually the spanks overlapping.

Jamey and Mike weren't making a sound at first. Smaack!!! Then Uncle Corey began increasing the power of the spanks he was delivering to Mike's bottom. Smaaacck!!! He even reduced the time between spanks, although Mike had to admit to himself that he could be imagining Smaaacck!!! that part of it. Uncle Corey also randomized the location of each spank. Smaaacck!!! But eventually Mike's entire backside felt like Smaaacck!!! it was going up in flames. Smaaacck!!!

Finally Mike remembered to look up. Jamey's bottom looked as red as Mike's felt. Smaaacck!!! Clearly Commander Dan was hitting his best friend with powerful spanks, and Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! much faster than Uncle Corey was hitting Mike. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! Jamey was kicking with nearly every spank and apprarently Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! had been for some time. His best friend had kicked his jeans down to where Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! only his right foot was holding them up. Mike's write briefs were down by his ankles and would clearly not last long once the jeans Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! were gone.

Mike could still feel his jeans bunched up at his ankles. He couldn't feel Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! his briefs and assumed they were puddled down on top of the jeans. Suddenly the old Admiral changed tactics and gave Mike three quick and hard spanks in the same spot. Smaaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! Smaaacck!!! "Owwww!!" No fair! The target of the triple spank was sizzling hot! Mike could no longer keep from making noise and he felt the tears leaking from his eyes. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! Another part of his desperately sore bottom was set to sizzling. "OOwwww!! Please stop Uncle Corey!" He realized that he was kicking now after every triple assault. Smaaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! "Wahhhhhh!!" Mike began bawling and the tears were streaming down his face now. So much for his taking this spanking like a man. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!!

Mike finally became aware that Jamey was howling too. Mike looked up and Jamey had kicked his jeans and briefs off and was now kicking freely. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! Tears and snot were now running down Mike's face and he was bawling even louder than before. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! It felt like Uncle Corey had taken a blow torch to his poor bottom. He felt his jeans fly off and then he was able to kick more energetically. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! He felt his blue briefs follow the jeans and now he could kick freely. Smaaacck!!! Smaaacckk!!! Smaaaacckk!!! But kicking didn't help one bit.

Eventually Mike heard the best order he had ever heard in his life. Uncle Jerry said, "Cease fire! All units, Cease Fire!"

Uncle Corey almost immediately stopped spanking Mike and said, "Acknowledged." Commander Dan continued spanking Jamey and after a few seconds Uncle Corey said, "Cease fire, Commander! Weapons tight."

Commander Dan finally stopped spanking his son and said, "Aye, aye, sir!"

Mike was spent. He just lay across Uncle Corey's lap sobbing and leaking tears and snot from his face. His backside was a burning cauldron of pain. He eventually became aware that Uncle Corey was softly rubbing his back through his shirt with the left hand while the right hand very gently rubbed his fire engine red bottom. As Mike laid there crying himself out he realized that he had just had his first official navy spanking, complete with military jargon!

Mike vaguely remembered reading something about boys actually serving in the navy hundreds of years ago. He wondered if this was how those guys were punished. Jamey once mentioned that Uncle Corey had written a couple of history books about the navy since he retired. Mike wondered if those books covered boys in the navy. He would have to check.

You bitch about the present and blame it on the past
I'd like to find your inner child and kick its little ass
Get over it
Get over it

"Get Over It" - Eagles, Hell Freezes Over, 1994

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Twenty minutes later the three miscreants had been forgiven, gotten themselves together and presentable, and were helping to load the band's instruments back in their vehicles. Mike noticed something odd as they approached the Admiral's Range Rover. Uncle Corey had arrived that morning with four guitar cases, but he was going home with only two cases. What happened to the other two guitars? Mike was hesitant to ask Uncle Corey about it even though the recent unpleasantness ended on a surprisingly friendly note.

As Mike was putting his pants and underwear back on, the Admiral gave him a friendly pat on the top of his head, and not in a condescending manner. He said, "Try to think twice before you break the law again, Mike. My son Danny thinks you are an intelligent boy. I have no reason to doubt him. So you need to make better use of that good brain that God gave you. Don't waste it, I've seen that happen far too many times."

"Yes sir," said Mike, who was still sniffling at that point.

"Speaking of God, I noticed you wear a silver medal around your neck," said Uncle Corey. "Is that a Saint Cristopher medal?"

"Yes, sir," said Mike. "My family is Roman Catholic."

"I see," said Uncle Corey. "Do you usually attend Christmas morning mass?"

"Yes, Uncle Corey. But I can skip it this year."

"Well the Lanes are all Methodists," said Uncle Corey, "So are some of the Farnhams. But we are all Protestant. You would be quite welcome to attend Christmas Morning Services at our Methodist church."

Mike considered this idea for a few seconds. "That sounds like an interesting idea, Uncle Corey. But I should probably call my Mom and check it with her before I go."

"Absolutely!" said Uncle Corey. "But there might be another option. Uncle Dana is Roman Catholic, and I think he has mentioned attending Christmas mass before. If Dana is planning to attend Christmas mass this year, perhaps he would be willing to pick you up Sunday morning to go with him."

"Okay," said Mike. That seemed like the safest option if it was available.

"We'll ask him," said Uncle Corey.

As it turned out, Dana was still a practicing Roman Catholic, He was happy to pick Mike up on Christmas morning and take him to mass at his church.

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Thursday evening they enjoyed an Italian buffet for dinner, prepared by the Lane's private chef. Dinner was served family style, and featured classic Italian seafood dishes like Linguine with Clams. Mike was not a fan of clams - or mussels or oysters, for that matter. Fortunately for the four boys there was also a large casserole dish of Lasagne al Forno with a Beef Ragu and a big dish of Fettucini Alfredo, so they were okay.

There was also an Antipasto platter that had the best proscuitto Mike had ever tasted - and he had an Italian grandmother! Mike asked Chef Manny Calhoun about the cured Italian ham. It turned out to be Proscuitto di Parma, one of the most rare and sought-after imported Italian hams. Mike realized he could get used to this hanging around with rich people, particularly ones like the Lanes who are laid back about the whole money thing. They just quietly enjoy the best of everything they care about.

After dinner they retired to the living room to digest their food and chat. Mike was finally able to ask Uncle Corey about the photo of a surface ship he had seen in Captain Linsey's memorial. It turned out that Uncle Corey and Uncle Jerry had led a write-in campaign to persuade Congress to name a new naval vessel after their friend Eric. The two friends had been hoping for a submarine, but those are all named after American cities or states these days.

What they got was USS Eric Linsey (AS-41), the lead ship in a new class of submarine/multi-purpose tenders. This ship had been funded by Congress and was scheduled to be laid down in 2017, Launched in 2019, and Commissioned in 2021. The two new tenders of the Eric Linsey class were designed to replace the Emory S. Land-class submarine tenders that had been in service for 40+ years.

Jamey sat at the Walter grand piano for an impromptu lesson from from his grandmother. Aunt Anna played both violin and piano for Lighthouse.

Mike wandered around the large living room and eventually he noticed a large painting on the wall. It depicted a well-dressed couple dancing in some kind of garden. On closer inspection, Mike realized that the couple in the painting were Uncle Corey and Aunt Anna -- when they were quite a few years younger.

Commander Dan came over, "Do you like it, Mike?"

"Yes, sir," said Mike. "Are those...."

"My parents? Yes!" said Commander Dan. "They posed for that painting back in 1985. I was only 7 years old, but I still remember the smells of that vineyard."

"Oh, it's a vineyard," said Mike. "Is it in California?"

"Yes, it's in Napa County, California. Dad was serving on a cruiser that was home ported in San Diego, so we flew out from Virginia Beach and met him at the Oakland airport."

"Who was the artist?" said Mike. "Anybody famous?"

"No," said Commander Dan. "She eventually became well known in certain circles, but she never broke out nationally or internationally as a painter. Her name was Yvette Palomer. She was a French-American painter and the mother of Dana Flatley."

"Uncle Dana's mom? Wow!" said Mike. "She was a very good painter."

"Yes, she was," said Commander Dan. "It's one of my parents' favorites. It hung on the living room wall of our home in Virginia Beach all the time I was growing up there. When they moved to Jacksonville they brought it with them."

"Do they own a lot of paintings with themselves in the picture?

"Nope," said Commander Dan. "This is the only one. But Dad does have a specially commissioned painting by a different artist in his office. The Admiral doesn't usually allow children in his office apart from his grandchildren. But since your Dad is a serving naval officer I'll try to arrange a tour of the office while we're down here."

Jamey and Mike eventually tired of all the adult chat and said "Goodnight" to everyone. Then they went upstairs to the Club House and played foosball until they were so tired that they had to get off to bed.

As he lay in bed waiting for sleep to come, Mike thought back on the crazy day he had just experienced. He met so many new people, and hoped that he would still remember their names tomorrow. He had learned lots of other things as well, the most important one being to never consume any food or drink that T.J. Tressler had prepared!

Author Note: The author will not get a chance to complete the next episode in time for Christmas 2017. So look for Episode 3 - working title "Comfort and Joy" - to be published in December 2018.

The author welcomes comments from readers. You can contact Bobby Watson by e-mail at: mrbwatson (at) gmail.com
Please be patient - Bobby doesn't always check his e-mail every day.