Date: Tue, 22 Dec 2015 01:41:02 -0500 From: Eff Del Subject: The Oak and the Ash-Chapter 1 A bit of a warning to new readers; This is the beginning of `Book four' of my `Tucker Clan Series' and if you haven't read the previous three books; `Young but Daily Growning', `Flights of Angels' and `Green Grow the Rushes O', I sincerely doubt you will understand and enjoy the story. If you don't have the time to read from the beginning, I suggest you put it off until another time when you are able to do so. The characters and their interplay are the most important part of the story and unless you get to know them, these are not stories for you. While there is gay sex in these stories, it is more implied than graphically described. This is a love story and I like to think it is a tender one but it is erotica not pornographic. As the `book' begins, Jack is newly 17, Sean and Brian are both now thirteen. It begins several months after the end of `Green Grow'. So, here goes, thanks for reading. The Oak and the Ash- Chapter One By Eff Del Nolitimere156@gmail.com Oh the oak and the ash and the bonnie rowan tree, They flourish at home in my green country. I like not the court, nor the city resort, Since there is no fancy for such ones as me; Their pomp and their pride I can never abide, Because with my humor it does not agree. Jack was learning archery and it fascinated Brian so the two of them were spending lots of time out on the lawn with their very hi-tech bows shooting at targets that Daniel had arranged to be set up for them. Richard had provided a very skilled SKUGGA who was highly trained in this art to instruct them. I decided that we needed to find a spot and set up a proper range. I'd made an appointment for Kevin; my head groundskeeper, to meet with Richard as well as the Skuggor archer as well as the boys to choose a safe spot and begin construction. Sean had no interest in archery. He preferred to spend as much time as he could behind the controls of `Dove' flying. He wanted to be the arrow in flight not the archer. It had truly become his joy and passion. Flying alongside him had become almost a full time position for Will Fletcher. Sean had long since logged enough airtime to qualify for his license but the age limit required a certified pilot be in the plane with him because he was too young yet. On a few occasions, Captain Lucas; my personal pilot had also been flying with Sean but business tended to keep Captain Lucas too busy to enjoy the sky with the boy who idolized him. Sean tried to be in the air at least three times a week. He also was spending a great deal of time every afternoon with either Uncle Phil, Chris, Richard or one of the group we'd begun calling `Richard's Henchmen'; Barry, Wolfman and Brutus. There was a new wrinkle to that mix because Wolfman's daughter Claire had left the FBI and was taking over her father's old job as Skuggor Field Director so the crew was getting larger. Jack had just turned seventeen and we'd held a rather magnificent party for him and because of my lack of supervision, he'd gotten gloriously drunk and paid for it the next morning. I wondered when it was going to be Sean's turn. Brian had certainly beaten the both of them to that boyhood ritual. Jack was meeting regularly with either Richard or one of his `Henchmen' but Richard had suggested that a week or two out in the field with Claire might be helpful. We agreed that two weeks next month he'd do exactly that. I left it between Richard, Doc Swaim and (of course) Jack what two weeks they would be. Jack was still too young to enter a SKUGGOR Boot camp but he was so eager, that Richard and Wolfman (particularly) were working on pre-training... especially in martial arts disciplines. Jack and his boxing coach `Sal' Salvatore had surprised everyone because they'd quietly brought Jack's body up to wiry perfection. He wasn't grotesquely muscular but he was well formed and amazingly strong while being still quick and agile. Since recovering from his injuries (which included regaining hearing in his left ear), Jack had not lost a boxing match upon re-entering the Deer Run Team. It was an astonishing record and he was filling up his own shelves in the trophy alcove. Every seventeen-year-old boy in the world dreamed of having Jack's body and his athletic abilities but Jack actually had them. Brian had healed quickly and his recovery was complete. He spent a good portion of every afternoon with Uncle Richard and Chris. He was (hopefully) destined to be the future of the family financial empire. Both Phil and Chris assured me that he had the mind and the instinct for it and he always asked insightful questions and probed deeply as he learned. "He's a little genius Eric. The future is going to be safe in his hands but I pity the people who are going to have to deal with him in any negotiation. He's a killer." Brian was planning upon trying out for the Deer Run swim team but still had his doubts if he was good enough. Sean and Jack assured him that he'd become so competent that he would make the team. Sean was excited because due to the age tiers, the whole `Seven Samurai' should be together again hopefully with the addition of `Spider'. Try-outs were next month. Even though the outdoor pool was still open, Jack and Sean were training Brian in the indoor pool to make everything as realistic as possible. On weekends, sometimes Jack would pick up Ricco and Charlie and the boys would train together. If Jack had ever noticed that every time he left the estate in `Bonny Blue' a SKUGGOR vehicle followed him, he'd never mentioned it. I noticed on those Saturdays when Charlie and Ricco were here for practice, that both boys would inevitably be our over-night guests but somehow Charlie always stayed in Jack's room and the other three seemed to alternate between Sean and Brian's. On those nights, my bed was either empty or filled with Chris. The later condition was the one that I certainly preferred. ************************* "Next Thursday is the christening and launching of the `SS George Chambers' the research ship I've had built to memorialize the man that saved Jack's life. It's the first ship to be launched bearing the `Tucker Survival System' designed by Jack and his consultants." I smiled over at my red haired wonder and he smiled back. "I hope these systems will soon be adopted all over the seagoing world. They are simple to understand, easy to operate and can potentially save many lives. Jack I'm proud of you for sticking to your guns and allowing no compromise. Jack is going to present the ship to the University Oceanography Department but that will take place on the Coast of course. I'd like you two to be there with us but I certainly won't insist. You're both thirteen now and have lives of your own." "DAD! What do you mean? `Course we're gonna go with you guys! Jack is our brother an nothing in the world is more important than family." I smiled because I'd gotten to the point that I could almost read Sean's mind. "Ok, then I'll let Doctor Swaim know that you'll be away for a couple of days." Brian grinned and said; "Remind him that it's a learning experience." We all broke out into laughter just as Martha was entering with a cherry covered cheesecake. "Mrs. Edwards! That looks too beautiful to eat!" She smiled and blushed at the same time. "Well then Sean, I can always take it back into the kitchen and I expect someone else will be able to eat it." "No, Mrs. Edwards it's just that...OK, I'll cut the first piece." He smiled a wide `Sean smile' at her. We giggled as Sean enthusiastically cut and served slices of the sweet creamy treat. We were all in the library sipping on drinks and relaxing because it was just too early to head up to bed. "Dad, I was thinking...next month Jack is going out on his SKUGGOR adventure and Will says I'm ready to try `DUCK'...why don't me an' you and Brian and Will fly up to the cabin?" I sipped my drink and thought about it. I couldn't find a thing wrong with the idea. I'd purchased the seaplane right after our first trip in her and a smiling Sean had named it `Duck'. So now, we had two Cessna's; `Dove' and `Duck'. "Will says you're going to do the take-off and landing?" "Yep, he says I'm totally ready for it an' if you say ok, him an me will do a cupulla days practice an some touch and goes before we all fly." "Sounds like we've got a deal Sean. Neither Jack or Brian have been to the cabin and so, Jack you get gypped but you get to spend some amazing time out in the field and the cabin will always be there for you." He smiled. "Works for me Dad. I'm on my own personal fast-track." "OK then, finish your drinks and its bedtime. Sean and Brian let me know when you want to fly-up to the cabin so that I can let LC and Windy know." ************************* It was Sean who crawled into my bed that night and I hadn't been sleeping so that when his little arms hugged me, I pulled him close to my side. He was wiggling and squeaking which of course, meant that he was crying. I nuzzled his head of raven black hair. "What's up my little man?" "I-It's so stupid b-but I'm afraid we won't be this happy alla time." I pulled him over and onto my chest so that I was looking straight into his eyes. "Well my boy, the truth is...we probably won't all of the time. We'll be sad, we'll even be angry but; we'll love each other and from that comes happiness. That's something that you find when you need it and if you are surrounded by love, it's easy to find." He smiled and kissed me and then rolled to the side throwing an arm and a leg over my torso. Very soon, we were both asleep. ******************************* The flight to San Diego was relatively brief and as we de-planed into what was probably my favorite city, I gathered the boys together and we climbed into the company limousine. The sky in San Diego seemed to always be an impossible blue and the climate was like something out of a fairytale. We arrived at the wharf and became part of the official party that was to tour the new ship. I must secretly admit that I was rather bored. New or old, a ship is a ship...cabins are cabins...decks are decks and cramped spaces are... well, you get it. Besides, my last experience onboard a ship was enough to turn me off for a while. We scampered (albeit cautiously) down the ladders into the below decks of the ship as the young man leading us pointed out specific technical and convenience features. This ship had all the latest technological froo-froos but it was still a ship. Our guide stopped and explained the new life-raft system distributed throughout the ship going into great detail about the design and the important distribution and he glanced at me as he proclaimed that these were the `Tucker survival systems'." I quickly waved my hand negatively at him. "Sir, I'm sorry but you've got the wrong Tucker." I grasped Jack's shoulder. "This is the man behind the `Tucker Survival System' and this is the man who will turn this magnificent vessel over to the University today in honor of the wonderful Doctor Chambers." There was a spattering of applause and Jack blushed as only he (and perhaps Martha) could blush. The actual ceremony lasted about forty-five minutes. There were prayers delivered by some `Reverend whoever' then the obligatory children's choir, some fat assed representative from the University who probably had never even met Doctor Chambers and then finally Jack. He stood to the microphone with amazing confidence. "Doctor Chambers did far more than save my life and the lives of so many others. He changed the way I look at the world...the land and the ocean. He understood the importance of the relationship between the earth, the vegetation and the creatures that dwell upon it and he tried his whole life to define and correlate the importance of all of those relationships; especially those in the sea. He knew that understanding them was the key to saving and preserving our planet. He died in the process of trying to learn more about some of those relationships but more important to me...he died saving my life. This new great research vessel is state of the art and Doctor Chambers would certainly have loved it. I'm sorry that he'll never walk her decks or share in her future exploration, but I'm happy that any exploration she's involved in will bear his name. I'll treasure him for my entire life. Now, his niece; Lisa Chambers will officially christen this ship." A girl of about fifteen stood up and swung the champagne bottle at the hull. She certainly had a swing and the bottle burst on the first blow. The `SS George Chambers' was officially launched. ************************* I'd decided to surprise Jack (and the other boys) for lunch. I quickly loaded them into the limo and though they didn't have a clue what was going on, we headed northeast. We'd been driving for about 25 minutes before Brian asked; "Where are we going Dad?" "Well Brian we've just entered Escondido and in a few minutes we'll be having lunch at someplace very special." When he heard the name; `Escondido', I knew I had Jack's attention. Isolated from the unattractive development and industrialization that small cities so often acquire, the Stone Brewing complex was in a relatively lovely location even though it actually occupied a great portion of an industrial park.. The signs on the building were unobtrusive but Jack zeroed in on them at once. "Stone! We're really at Stone! How cool is this?" The building was large and baffling from the outside but once we entered, it was stunningly beautiful in its public parts. The other two boys understood his excitement but entered with a bit less enthusiasm than Jack. `Stone India Pale Ale' was by far Jack's favorite beer. All three boys were fascinated as our clever but informative guide took our group through the brewery. Jack was grinning like crazy as the tour ended. "How great was that?" he asked no one in particular. They hadn't checked him for ID and so, we were standing with the rest of the small tour group for our two sample glasses. The brewery was rather famous for its extremely strong tasting dark ale that they affectionately named; `Arrogant Bastard'. I'd made certain that one of Jack's samples was of this ale. He took a sip cautiously. Jack had no real experience with dark beer let alone heavy ale. "Man! I've never tasted anything like this!" I smiled, "If you continue to enjoy beer, that may never be your favorite Jack but occasionally, it will remind you how ballsy beer and ale can be." "The second sample we'd selected was their regular `pale ale' sometimes referred to as `American Pale Ale'. He liked this much better but with a grin he said; "Good... but I like their IPA the best." Sean and Brian were (of course) excluded from this part of the tour but I winked at them and they understood that they wouldn't be left out for long. Jack and I drank our two samples and then the four of us walked into the inviting Bistro Gardens. As we were walking to our table (which turned out to be a smooth surfaced rough edged slab of quarried stone), I realized that Jack couldn't legally drink in California either. A perfectly `cream and sugar' young lady came up to take our order. "Well, we'll need some time to peruse the menu but please bring me four IPAs and the boys will just have water." She was no dummy and she nodded her head with a big smile. We all agreed that we would have the `Mojo Pork' which sounded adventurous enough to the four of us and I slowly slid a glass of beer to each of them. They grinned and without my saying anything, they pulled their glass of water close and then took a sip of their beer. The lunch was so good that it was probably better described as amazing. I paid the bill and tipped our lovely serving girl quite generously. We all walked out very happy and satisfied. We'd stopped in the gift shop and purchased some silly stuff like a couple of tee-shirts for each of us, a few beer glasses and a `Stone Brewing Co.' ball cap that Jack just `simply needed'. As we drove back into the city, I told the boys that we had all of tomorrow because we'd be leaving the early morning of the next day. I proposed a range of ideas from the lighthouse, to old town, to La Jolla. As well as hokey but tourist stuff like `Sea World', the Zoo and the `Wild Animal Park' In the mix I threw in the idea of Blacks Beach. They knew nothing about Black's Beach so explained it to them. "So you mean that there's a place we could go swimming in the ocean naked?" "Well, yes there is but, since this world is mostly ocean, I would bet that there are lots of places you can go swimming naked. As to Blacks Beach here in San Diego, I've got to tell you that the walk down to the beach is very hard and the walk back up is harder still. The cliff is 300 feet almost straight down and though the trail is usually well maintained, going off the trail can be very dangerous. It's officially known as the `Torrey Pines Glider Port Trail' but most people refer to it as the `goat trail. The clothing optional part of the beach is about a mile and a half long and it's glorious. I also have to warn you though, that the ocean temperature is usually rather cold. It won't be like our pool at Joyous Gaurde." They huddled together and then rose up grinning at me. "Well, have you come to a conclusion?" "Well Dad, the Wild Animal Park sounds intrestin'" Sean said "but to be honest..." "Nude Beach!" they were in almost perfect unison as they spoke. I grinned at the glorious three of them. "OK, so in the morning we'll find some place to get some sandwiches, some water and then be ready for the `Goat Trail' and I'm not kidding it'll be rough going down and hell climbing up." It was cute because they were so excited and I couldn't help but share their joy. *********** They actually sprang down the treacherous path almost bouncing downhill along the steep trail that descended the high cliff, while I was extraordinarily more careful and frightened for their safety. I had to keep in mind that these were three agile athletic boys. They were waiting for me on the beach and I smiled at their anxious anticipation. "To the right boys. You're on the City Managed part of the beach right now so; any nudies from there and to to the left get arrested. The State managed `clothing optional' beach starts about 100 yards to your right." They giggled and ran down the snow-white beach and finally turned around looking for permission. I nodded and they quickly spread out the towels they'd brought in their small backpacks and in almost miraculous time had stripped and were dancing naked under the sun. I held my breath as I looked at them. Three teenaged boys of undisputable beauty enjoying the sun, the wind and...well, the world. Without a word, the three of them ran into the surf and squealed. "Man! That IS cold!" Brian almost howled. Yea it is Spider but when we fly up to the Lake, Dad an me will take you to the Grotto and that water will make this feel like a bathtub." Sean giggled. Despite its temperature, they stayed in there for at least twenty minutes enjoying body surfing in the rolling waves before finally returning to shore and spreading out on their towels to warm in the sun. "I feel like I just had a massage even though I've never had a massage." Brian sighed as he stretched his long legs. "Dad, that's right, Brian's never had a massage." Sean looked at me almost accusingly. I nodded my head feeling a bit guilty. We'll take care of that after we get home I said softly. "That was one of the most fun things I've ever done." Brian exclaimed and Jack and Sean quickly agreed with him. We'd eaten our sandwiches and layed out in the sun. They'd completely dried off and the sun was sinking towards the horizon. It didn't take a wristwatch to know that the afternoon was getting late. "OK guys, it's time to put your shorts on and climb the goat trail and it will be a workout...I promise you. The climb up the dune is rigorous and taxing. Fit as we all were, it was a physically trying experience. About three quarters of the way up, I smiled to myself and thought that `this was why there were no fat people down on Black's Beach'. The boys and I were resting at one point and Sean commented; "You know Dad, when you first mentioned `glider port' I didn't realize that you were talkin' about hang gliders. Those guys are flyin' right over all the naked people on the beach. Do you spose that's why they do it?" I laughed and told him I doubted it. Hang gliders and paragliders were people who wanted to fly but usually couldn't afford a plane although many found it a pleasure on its own...probably as close as a human could get to being a bird. "I'll tell you guys a funny story though: when I was a freshman at the University, a couple of friends and I came here for spring break and we were lying out in the sun, naked as we all just were. I had my eyes closed almost asleep I think, when, just to my left, I heard a heavy plop and `scrunch' noise and some guy exclaimed `Fuck!'. I looked over and there was a paraglider pilot in all of his equipment...flight suit, helmet and of course, his glider itself. He'd misjudged the wind and missed the top of the cliff. He had to pack up his parasail and climb the goat trail carrying everything he'd landed with. I thought for a moment about offering to help him but then I realized he hadn't even apologized for almost landing on top of me so I decided `fuck him'. I've often wondered (after making the climb with all that equipment) if he'd ever flown over the cliffs again." We reached the car and even the little boys were puffing. "So, I warned you didn't I?" "Yeah Dad, but it was so much fun that it was worth the work. Thanks." "You're welcome Brian. It's back to the hotel, showers to get the salt off, dinner, and then bedtime. We're flying home in the morning." That was greeted with a great sigh of appreciation because home was where they truly wanted to be and frankly, so did I. We ate dinner in the gas light district of old town and the boys appreciated both the ambiance and the historic importance. "We'll come back here some time and enjoy everything about this wonderful place guys." ********** I was getting used to the idea that Sean would be up in the cockpit for take-off and landings. We left beautiful San Diego in a great rush and Sean was soon back in the cabin with us. We didn't have a flight attendant today because the actual flight was relatively short so, I asked the boys what they wanted to drink. I smiled because I already knew. I walked back from the galley with two beers and then two Glenn Fiddich over two ice cubes. "I can't believe we actually went to `Stone' Dad. It's the best beer in the world and now I actually got to see where it's made." I rubbed his arm as he sat across from me. "I wanted to do this for you Jack. I know that it's your favorite beer although it may not be the `best beer in the world' since we were going to be here I wanted you see it because it's a lovely brewery but I also wanted you to see that brewing beer is actually a rather simple process and I wondered if you'd like to try it." He stared up at me wide-eyed. "Think we could Dad? I'd love to try it!" Brian immediately was into the mix. "Me too Dad! That sounds so neat. It would be so much fun." "Well, the truth be told Brian, most of it will be downright boring but Doctor Swaim will approve because it will be a chemistry experiment and of course a..." The three of them giggled and shouted out at the same time; "A LEARNING experience" We collapsed against each other in a bundle of laughs. Shortly, I got the signal from Captain Lucas and I indicated to the boys they should buckle their belts and prepare for landing. Sean gave me a quiet look and I shook my head. I knew that he wanted to go up into the cockpit. "Too late little man. We're already in our descent. Sit down and buckle up." He smiled and sat next to my seat and pulled his belt tightly against his little waist. Jack held Brian's hand as we softly lost altitude accompanied by some actually significant air bumps which Jack quietly reassured Brian was normal and all right. As we touched down, there was nothing but joy on Brian's face and we climbed out of the plane to find John waiting there with the limo. "I never thought about lunch John so, how about we stop at that little Italian place just down the road and we can all devour some pizza?" The boys whooped in glee and John just smiled. "You're the Boss Eric." Three large pizzas and I'm not sure if I got more than two slices! (Well ACTUALLY, I'm certain that I got at least three). Those boys were like eating machines and John did OK as well. I swallowed the last of my beer. The three boys had soft drinks and that seemed fine with them. We rambled up the little hill to the parking lot and onto the limo and climbed in. I waved my hand at John in an imitation of the royal manner. "Home James." I'd used my very best British accent. He grinned and in almost perfect cockney replied; "Yes sir, yes m 'lord right awaiy govn'er." I giggled and collapsed into a puddle of boys. ************************* "Sorry you two, your first massages were a private thing and Brian deserves the same. Go to your room or some room and read or watch TV or something. Brian, go down to your room and come back here in nothing but your boxer briefs." His eyes were wide as the proverbial saucer because he didn't really know what to expect. "Kay Dad." and he hurried out the door of the massage room to his bedroom. "Have fun Spider! We'll see ya later." Sean said as he and Jack headed out of the room. "Dad, Tadpole and I are going down to the music room to practice a little. Since I was blown up, we're rusty playing with each other." I smiled warmly. "That sounds like a perfect idea you two. Stop into the library and get something to drink. Brian and I should be about an hour and then, I'm putting him in the Jacuzzi so you guys can head up here in about an hour and a half but please take the time to have a good practice. Which instruments are you using?" "Since we're only going to be in the music room Dad, we thought we'd use the old ones. Neither of us have used them for a while. I love my new violin and Sean loves his new Martin but, there's something about the tender sweet feel of good old wood under your fingers." I nodded my head and smiled. "I know how you boys feel. Although my Steinway is only slightly older than your fine old Martin D-18 Sean, it feels so welcoming, soft and responsive compared to playing newer pianos. Go have fun boys and before you leave for your time with Claire Jack, perhaps the three of us could practice something to surprise everyone the next time we have a party." Sean grinned brightly; "I'd love that Dad! You never play enough anymore." They left and I turned my attention to Brian who'd returned to the massage room wearing only a pair of light blue boxer briefs. I'd had time to select the oil; it was lightly scented with pear wood which I thought might just suite this boy and I had it warming. I'd also turned on the `waterfall wall' and started the ambient natural noises recording. Once he was in the room I turned the lighting down to a soft orange. Not too dark so that we couldn't see but almost to a `last few moments of sunset' thing. I smiled at the brown-haired boy. "Don't worry about this Brian. You certainly will enjoy it. Slip out of you briefs and climb up onto the table. Lie on your tummy, place your face down into this hole, and leave your arms at your side. Once I begin the massage, I want you to relax completely. I'll do every bit of the work...you just lay still and enjoy it." "Kay." He climbed up onto the table and handed me his underpants because he didn't know what else to do with them. I took them and laid them on the stone shelf. I helped him turn onto his stomach and guided his face down into the padded opening in the table. "Now relax because I'm going to start. Remember, I'm doing all of the work." "Kay Dad." I worked warm oil over his shoulders and down his strong little back and gently worked it against his skin. I then paid attention to his neck, shoulders and then down his wonderful arms. I progressed to his back working slowly past each ridge of his spine slowly and firmly and he moaned as I did so. The next stage was kneading the glorious mounds of his young ass and I did so slowly, firmly and sensuously. I worked slowly and deliberately. None of my motions were random. He was purring as I worked my hands down the length of each leg spending extended time on each calf and then working my hands over each foot and even each little toe. "I'm turning you over now OK?" "Uh Huh." He sighed and I flipped him onto his back I re-oiled my hands and worked my way down his torso bypassing his groin and working the front of each athletic leg. I took a careful and long time on him. "So now sweet boy, this is the Tucker ending to a massage and it's just for the family OK?" "Y-yeah Dad." I helped him pull his knees up and then I oiled his little starfish as well as my forefinger. Slowly, I slipped it into him and probed until I'd found the magic button. I stroked it softly and he began to moan out of control. My right hand was still slick with massage oil and I wrapped it around his entirely rampant little dick and began to stroke it slowly. My index finger continued to massage his young prostate and soon, he was writhing and almost crying. His explosion came seconds after and he collapsed onto the table whining. I reached into the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water. "I'm going to fill the tub and you sit here and drink ALL of this Brian. Understand? Also, don't try to get off the table. I'll be right back." "Y-Yes Dad." I smiled as I walked to the bathroom. That might very well have been the most sensual thing that little thirteen year old boy had ever experienced in his life. As the tub was filling, I returned to the massage room I raised him from the table and carried him down the hall and laid him gently into the hot water. "I'm going to turn on the bubbles and make you some hot chocolate. No alcohol right now. Your brothers will be up in about twenty minutes and then, I expect you'll sleep pretty darned well." He smiled dreamily up to me. "Thanks Dad, that was fantastic. I feel like I'm made of spaghetti." I grinned at him; "That my son, is the ultimate goal of every masseur." ********************************************** "So Jack, you understand that this is potentially dangerous? The SKUGOR don't wait for trouble to happen, we try to sense it out and nip it in the bud most of that action happens here in the field. Most nights, nothing happens but some nights it's like fireworks. That's how this world goes on Jack. Still game to try this out?" "Yes Miss Claire. That's why I'm here. I want to learn from the best." My heart swelled as I smiled. "See you in two weeks then Jack. You be safe and keep Claire safe as well OK?" With no embarrassment, he kissed me on the lips and stepped back. "Excuse me Claire." I said as I gathered him into my arms and hugged him. "Do good work you two." I said that as I turned and walked to my car hoping not to weep. My little boy seemed to have a propensity for placing himself in harm's way and it seemed that I needed to get used to that. I also knew that he couldn't be much safer in the entire world. He was at the heart of SKUGGOR operations and he was learning what he needed to learn. ********************* The little red capped Cessna vibrated fiercely as it strained against the water. I had no qualms or fears; Will had required Sean take off and land the seaplane several times and the boy seemed comfortable with the process. Taking off and landing on water was different than it was from land although I only understood the difference theoretically. Shortly, Sean had us airborne. Will let out a loud guffaw and turned to me. "See, what did I tell you Eric? I'm only here because the law requires it. Sean is the pilot. He has this down cold. I'll help you navigate Sean. That's all you need me for." In a little over an hour, Sean said; "That's the lake coming up Dad. Do you want to fly over Raccoon Cove again?" I grinned. "Absolutely Junior Birdman! Let's get the Commodore's attention." He circled tightly but stayed well above the tree canopy. Will had taught him quite well. After flying over the beach and the cove, he headed for our end of the lake. There was one bump and small bounce on the landing at the mouth of our cove but nothing frightening and very soon, we were headed to the dock. LC and Windy were standing there smiling and indicating to the left. To my surprise, there was a new addition to the dock that they'd obviously constructed to accommodate `Duck'. Man! I certainly had great people working for me. Those two used hooks to pull the Cessna to the dock and then lowered a ramp to the passenger door. Will stepped out first with a big grin while Windy tied the plane fast. "Well this is just perfect guys!" Will exclaimed as he walked over the ramp." LC smiled and said; "After last time, we did some research and once we'd heard that Eric had bought this plane. We decided to build it to make coming and going easier." I introduced a very wide-eyed Brian (who I suspect never knew a place like this could exist) to my two wonderful caretakers. "Sean, show Brian around the cabin and the property. Then, you two can take one of the small boats out into the cove. We'll take him out onto the lake tomorrow." "I've got a `whaler' at the dock right there Sean and it's all gassed up for you. Unless you'd like to use a canoe in which case, there are three on the rack down the beach." "Thanks LC!" Sean yelled as he and Brian scampered into the big building. I looked at my Rolex. "It's a little early guys, but someplace in the world, it's happy hour. Why not here?" "You're the Boss, Boss." Windy laughed as the four of us followed the boys into the cabin. "I hope that nobody objects to catfish for dinner tonight? LC and I caught a bunch yesterday and they're in the kitchen waiting to be fried." "Windy my friend, I've never had a meal here that wasn't wonderful." He smiled back at me. "Then go sit on the deck. I'll be the bartender, LC will start warming things up in the kitchen and one of us will help the boys with the boat since this will be Sean's first time doing a `whaler' alone. We're planning dinner for just about sunset. That's how we tell time out here on the lake Will." At times like this, I sometimes thought that I should turn control of the day to day running of the Magnus Venatus to Richard, and his `henchmen' and Phil and Chris and just bring the boys up here forever...but I knew that was just a foolish dream and beyond that the boys needed to grow into their own destinies and couldn't hide from them. I sat down in a beautifully carved oak rocking chair and accepted a glass of good scotch from Windy and Will did the same. These chairs had been commissioned by my father from a local artisan. They were both elegant and rustic. The frames were thick but carved in such a way that they didn't feel heavy or cumbersome. There were six similar chairs on the porch and I'd thought about commissioning at least six more, but the man who'd done the work was sadly very ill. Some local folks had suggested that I speak to his son and I considered doing that this trip. If his son could create stationary chairs that matched his father's rocking chairs, the porch would be very well appointed. I gazed over the property. The sun was about three quarters down the sky but soon, it would be behind Devil's Horn Mountain and all we would see was a horizon of yellow and orange as the mountains themselves turned from blue to purple and then grey to black. It occurred to me that I'd probably have two thirteen-year-old boys in my bed tonight. There couldn't be much wrong with that could there? (to be continued) MERRY CHRISYMAS! For those of you who have followed the saga so far and who have kindly urged me to attempt a fourth book, I must tell you that this time I didn't need to be urged that hard. I've actually fallen in love with these characters and I knew even before I finished `Green Grow the Rushes' that I would try for a fourth book if my health allowed it and since I seem to be in another period of remission, we'll see how it goes. I hope you'll enjoy this and if you do, you'll provide me with feedback but this time, I won't be ranting and raving about it. If feedback dries up, I'll just take it to mean that the fourth book was a bad idea...I sincerely hope it isn't though. Also please support this forum by making a contribution to NIFTY