Written by J.P.G.

{Jacob Finding His Way is partly fictional. As I am writing this story, I am above the age of 21. If you want a story with lots of sex, look elsewhere. This is a love story. Seeing, as it is a love story, sex is in there, but it is in realistic balance in the characters' lives.

Any similarity to any real events, names, or life events is purely accidental. If you are underage, (according to your state laws, a minor), if this literature is offensive to you or to anyone around your viewing area, or it is illegal for you to view such content where you are reading it, stop reading the story.

This story cannot be distributed in any way, shape or form without the author's expressed written consent.}

Story Written by: J.P.G.

Edited By: "Daddy" Rick

Continuity Editor: Ed

Love Scene By: "Daddy" Rick

I have a home page for you to see what the characters look like or what the places look like. If you want to walk in their shoes, please go to: http://jacobmillertex.com/

Chapter 94

From the prior Chapter:

Marco slid his finger out and lubed up more and went to work adding a second finger. Once again Chase was relaxed and there was no real resistance, so he proceeded to go full depth with two fingers. Chase's eyes were closed again and he was growling in pleasure. Marco made sure to continue to stimulate the "G"-spot. Chase, almost instinctively, pulled his knees back toward his chest improving Marco's access. This made him relax and open even more. Marco added a third lubed finger and was about half way in when Chase spoke.

"Marco, it's time...I want YOU inside me. Fill me with your love, make me yours. It's time. Please, go for it. I need you NOW!"

Chapter 95

Marco thought for a moment and felt that Chase was truly ready. He wanted to make sure that there was little if any discomfort. This has to be done right or it could have bad and far reaching consequences.

"What's wrong Marco? I'm ready; this is so right. Please, make love to me!"

Marco realized that Chase is truly ready so he generously lubed his manhood. He put Chase's ankles on his shoulders and got a pillow. "Chase, lift up..." he said. Chase pressed down with his ankles and lifted his butt off the bed and Marco put the pillow under the small of Chase's back. This would ensure that Chase was comfortable and put everything into the proper position.

"OK Chase, you're really sure this is what you want?" Marco inquired one more time.

"Marco, I've never been so sure of anything in my life. Go for it. I trust you."

Marco inched forward into position. He grasped his lubed cock and placed the very tip onto Chase's rosebud. He gently pushed forward and Chase's love port opened to receive him. He went so very slowly a bit at a time. He was carefully watching Chase's face for any sign he was feeling pain but saw nothing but desire and anticipation.

Marco felt his cockhead slip past the ring and he held back to give Chase a chance to adjust. As he watched he still didn't get any indication that there was any pain. He was slowly going deeper when Chase totally surprised him. Chase reached up, grasped Marco's buns and gave a strong pull that caused Marco's cock to go in to full depth! This time it was Marco's turn to inhale through his teeth! The combination of the sensation and Chase's unexpected action totally surprised him!

Chase's eyes were now wide open and sparkling in awe and wonder. "Babe, are you OK?" Marco asked with a touch of panic in his voice.

"Oh Marco, yes! I'm more than OK...I'm in Heaven! Now do what we came here to do! Let me feel your passion and love!"

Marco didn't need any further coaching. He pulled back fully and plunged forward again to full depth. As he repeated the strokes, he sped up the pace but still making sure he was fully long-stroking Chase's love tunnel. He realized that he wasn't getting quite the reaction he was looking for so he lifted Chase's hips up a bit more to improve the angle. On the next in-stroke Chase let Marco know he'd hit the target; his G-spot, dead on.

Chase was gripping the sheet keeping him in place as Marco filled him with all the love in his body and spirit. Chase's cock was streaming precum with his love nut being massaged so thoroughly.

Marco shifted into high gear and began to really power-stroke Chase. Chase called out; "Marco, keep going; don't stop! A few more strokes and Marco saw Chase's cock shoot out huge volleys of hot cum without his cock even being touched.

That put Marco over the edge. A couple more powerful strokes and Marco plunged in all the way and stayed there as he pumped round after round of his seed deep into Chase's body. Chase was still in orgasm as he felt the Marco's love offering filling him. He felt the warmth spread all through him.

Within seconds the passion subsided. Marco lowered Chase's feet to the bed still keeping his rod fully inside. He leaned over, looked Chase in the eyes for a quick moment then locked him into a deep and passionate kiss. Chase wrapped his arms around Marco's neck making sure he didn't pull away.

After a few moments, they broke the kiss and Marco collapsed down onto Chase. They remained that way without a word being said for several minutes. Finally Marco's diminishing hardness caused his cock to slip out of Chase. He rolled off Chase onto the bed. He looked over and saw Chase smiling with complete and total contentment. Marco sidled up to Chase.

"Chase, are you OK?" he asked his voice full of loving concern.

Chase didn't respond right away. He was still coming down from his orgasm high. When he finally spoke he said; "Marco, I have never felt as wonderful as I do right now...NEVER! You have shown me something so unbelievably wonderful. It's not just about what we did, it's about feelings I never knew about."

He paused and it caused Marco to ask; "What feelings exactly, Chase?"

"Marco, I only thought in the past I knew what love was. How wrong I've been. I have never felt anything like this. Tell me that this is real and true; that I'm not dreaming. Tell me that you will love me the way you do right now for all time. I don't know how I could ever be without you in my life, by my side and, yes, deep inside me, making love to me as you did tonight."

"Chase, I will love you as long as you will have me. I have been holding back telling you how deeply I fell in love with you. You weren't ready to hear it. Now I've shown you my love and now I declare that you are my soul mate and partner for life. What we have found is pure magic and this is a once in a lifetime thing. Chase, I'm yours until the end of time."

It had all been said and it was sealed with a long and passionate kiss. Complete and total exhaustion overcame the new couple. Chase was still on his back, Marco beside him on his side. Marco put his arm across Chase's midsection and the two lovers fell into a deep and peaceful sleep.

Six hours later the sun shot a beam into the room through a crack in the curtains. It hit Chase squarely in the face bringing him out of sleep. As he woke he stretched and noted that Marco was in the exact same position as he was when they fell asleep. Chase took a mental inventory of how he felt after having been intimate with a man for the first time. He noted that he felt a bit odd "back there" but nothing of concern. As he moved he realized that he was all crusty with his own, now dry, cum all over him.

Just then Marco moved his arm and it went down lower on Chase's abdomen. That put pressure in just the wrong place. Chase's eyes shot open in alarm as he realized he needed to get up and get to the bathroom before he wet the bed! He gingerly lifted Marco's arm and slid out of bed. He streaked naked into the bathroom, flipped up the seat and let go. Just as he was finishing up, he felt Marco's arms surround his chest. Marco kissed his neck and whispered in a still sleepy voice; "Good morning!" Chase giggled. Marco asked; "What's funny."

"I was just finding you hugging me from behind as I pee somewhat bizarre; perhaps even a bit kinky!"

Marco got the humor and chuckled himself at the point Chase made. After a couple of shakes of his tool Chase hit the flush and then turned to face his man. He put his arms around Marco, pulled him and hugged him. That did it for Marco; he now had the same urgent call from Mother Nature. He quickly danced around Chase and made his own contribution to the porcelain chalice. While Marco was dealing with his nature's call, Chase started the shower. He got the water just right and stepped in. He quickly rinsed off the crusty deposits as Marco joined him in the shower. Marco's actions indicated he was going to repeat the shower ritual on Chase he did last night. Chase was having none of that!

"Whoa there big boy!" Marco stopped and looked at Chase with the quizzical puppy look. "Marco, what's good for the goose is good for the gander. Turnabout is fair play."

Without another word Chase manipulated Marco under the water and got him wet from head to toe. He let Marco enjoy the cascade of warm, soothing water until he got the washcloth gelled and ready.

"Ok stud! Assume the position!" Marco grinned and did as he was told. Chase faithfully replicated all Marco's techniques sending Marco into a new reality. He enjoyed Chase's attentions as much as Chase had enjoyed his last night.

After finishing up with Marco, Chase quickly got himself all sweet and clean, head to toe. With the shower turned off and the glass door slid back, Chase got a towel and dried Marco. After Marco was dry and stepped out of the shower, Chase got a second towel and dried himself. The pair joined up again at the sink and brushed their teeth.

"Marco, you need a shave!" Marco looked in the mirror and realized he really did need a shave. His dark beard was showing big time.

"Babe, I hereby declare today to be a scruffy day. I'll shave tonight before bed so my face is nice and smooth for you at bedtime."

Marco realized that he had nothing in the way of clothes in Chase's room. "Chase, what am I going to do? I don't have any clothes to put on!"

Chase thought for a moment then remembered the fluffy terrycloth robes the hotel provided and there was one he'd never used in the closet. Chase held up one finger indicating `one minute'. He hung his towel over the bar and walked out into the room bare-butt naked. He was coming back with the robe as Marco stepped into the room from the bathroom. Like Chase, he was stark naked. Chase stopped dead in his tracks. He let his eyes feast on the vision in front of him. He wondered how it came to be that this incredibly gorgeous and wonderful man could be totally in love with him. Marco was actually enjoying his visual of Chase equally and marveling at the fact that Chase had really, truly fallen in love with him.

The two finally broke their stares and Chase handed Marco the robe. "Babe, wear this down to your room to get dressed. I'll meet you in the kitchen. I know you have to cook. Perhaps I can lend you a hand."

Marco took the robe, got his wallet and keycard from the pants he had worn the day before. He was heading for the door when he stopped, turned to Chase and asked; "Chase, what if someone sees me leaving your room this time of the morning wearing only a robe? What will they think?"

Chase paused a moment then an absolutely evil grin came across his face. He replied with hardly a hesitation; "I really don't give a flying fuck what anybody thinks! I love you and they can just get used to it!"

Marco laughed out loud as he gave Chase a `thumbs up'. He left for his room to get dressed and head to the kitchen to start his day. On his way down the poorly lit hallway, he walked along the side of the wall as if he was a cat burglar, not wanting to wake anyone. When he reached the elevator, he breathed in a sigh of relief as he wiped the sweat off of his forehead. He started to think as he stood there waiting for the elevator how he and Chase weren't caught, but his bubble was burst when he heard someone behind him clear his throat.

Not wanting to turn around, Marco stood there facing the doors of the elevator on wobbling legs. Then he heard once again the person behind him clearing his throat, leaving him no other choice but to turn and see who it was. Just as the elevator binged and the door started to open, Marco turned and saw Mr. Serna, Jacob's grandfather standing there with a smile on his face.

"Good morning Marco, how are you this bright Sunday morning?" Al asked with joy in his voice as he walked onto the elevator behind Marco. "You are up awfully early for a Sunday morning, aren't you?" Marco just shrugged his shoulders. "None of the boys are going to be up until probably at the earliest midmorning, if not later. So you shouldn't start cooking anything right now. Just wait until eleven or so before you start the day."

Nervously Marco nodded his head, trying to hide himself from Al. He didn't want the head of the main family in the hotel to figure out he was sneaking back to his room from just having sex with his boyfriend all night. There is no way he could bear it that the eldest and most connected person of the Serna slash Hernandez family might think less of him. Little did Marco know, Al didn't think that way of him, even after putting two and two together.

All of a sudden, Al reached over and hit the emergency stop button, scaring the living crap out of Marco. He turned and looked at the young guy standing in the corner shaking. "I really don't know you Marco, but from what I have heard about you from my grandson and his friend Chase, you are a great guy. You think of others before yourself, and that is a rare thing in this day and age.

With that said, there is nothing that happens with my family I don't know. Chase is fully a part of my family since my grandson considers him as a brother. You make him happy, in fact happier than I ever seen that young man. Don't you ever hide yourself, your happiness or love for him or what you guys just did and who you are to each other from anyone. Stand tall and be proud one hundred percent of the time. Those that do that are great people, and those that hide are worthless people in my book."

Marco walked away from the wall and did what Al asked him to do and that is stand tall. "Sir I really love Chase and after last night at the reception and the things that happened afterwards with us, I have no doubt he loves me just as much. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for him, and that includes being honest about what we are to each other. It's just I didn't know where you stood with the kind of relationship that Chase and I have."

Not meaning to, Al laughed at what he just heard from Marco. Once he caught his breath and stopped laughing. He looked the young man straight in the face which looked like it didn't get much sleep. The way Al was looking at him, Marco thought he said something wrong, but when he started to speak in a low voice, he knew he didn't do anything wrong.

"You know all you had to do to answer that concern of yours about where I stand as far as the relationship you have with Chase is look at my grandson. There is no need to look any further than that to put your mind at ease. In my eyes, my grandson is no different than his brothers, sisters, cousins or any straight counterpart. I don't love him any less. I might love him more, but it isn't because of who he fell in love with. It's because I'm proud of what he has done so far in his life. So don't you wonder where I stand regarding your relationship or worry about what I might think or how I'll react. You guys love each other and I say great! Just be truthful and never cheat."

Nothing else needed to be said. Marco now has seen a completely different side of Al; a side that he never knew existed. Now he feels more comfortable around him with Chase at his side or leaving Chase's room. On the other side, Al enjoyed getting to know a little bit about the new guy in his grandson's realm of friends. After the little chat they just had, he felt more at ease with this new young man who is close to Jacob and the rest of the family.

There was another topic Al wanted to talk to Marco about that popped into his mind, but there was no time. The elevator door opened and they found themselves on the first floor. Knowing that there were a lot of people coming and going by this time in the morning, Al decided to leave that topic for another time. He walked off the elevator with Marco, making small talk until they reached the lobby where they parted ways.

Mr. Olson, the Angel Corp. CEO was already waiting for Al when he and Marco walked into the lobby. Al saw him sitting there and immediately called him to walk with him to the restaurant where they were going to have their meeting. Mr. Olson at first found it strange they were going to meet in a hotel restaurant, but he figured that his boss had limited time and that is why.

As soon as they sat down at a far table in the corner, Al got down to business. "Oscar I know I really am not up to date right now on the day to day operations going on at Angel and that I didn't ask you to meet me here to bring me up to date. That is now in the capable hands of my grandson. The reason I asked to meet with you is talk with you about a few things that you may or may not know that are going on with the several businesses in the building."

Oscar was taken aback a bit with what Al said about him not knowing about things that are going on with the other businesses in the building. He least hopes he knows about everything that is happening. He wouldn't be a good CEO if he didn't know about the happenings that are either just in the building that the corporation he is CEO of owns and their headquarters are located at, or his company has ownership in.

"Sir, I think I know where you are going with this." Al leaned forward and let Oscar have the floor. He wanted to see if the guy he hired was as good as he was told he was. "The printing company that is located in the basement is looking for a bigger location to move their operations into. By the looks of it they are going to get that factory located off of Gateway Blvd, East. That means we will have an entire floor vacant and ready to be used if needed.

I also know about the buying of the Auto Zones and Dewayne heading up that part of the company. The only problem I see there is who will help your son Tony running the Seven-Elevens now that Dewayne will be concentrating on the Auto Zones. Plus I need to know if Dewayne is going to give up his stake in Seven-Elevens, or will he keep his part of the company."

"Wow you do know everything that is going on with the companies that are in our building. Even the companies we really don't have a say in, but ownership in, you know what is going on. You are really proving everything that I was told about you when I was looking for a CEO, for which I'm thankful." Both of the men laughed as they relaxed in their seats.

"Getting that confirmed takes a lot of stress off of me, allowing me to do my job in Austin." Al looked down at his legal pad where he had scribbled a few notes down. "Now as far as Dewayne giving up his part ownership to the Seven-Elevens, he won't. No matter how many companies he heads up, he will always have what he has now and gets in the future.

On the other concern you raised I figure that Mr. Moore can step in and play a bigger role than he has played so far. He is already in place and knows the ins and outs of the Seven-Elevens. The boys seem to admire and respect him. So who better to step up and help run that part of the company?"

"I don't know why I didn't think of Mr. Moore myself. He is already in the mix of things with the Seven-Elevens. In fact, he has been involved since Dewayne and Tony took over ownership. It won't be asking much of Mr. Moore to step up and run the day to day operations since he pretty much is doing that right now."

"Exactly right it won't really be a change at all to Mr. Moore's duties. The only real change he will have is Dewayne not being there. Other than that, he should be okay." Al and Oscar nodded their heads at the same time. "Now let's move on to another concern I need your help on. You already know about Alex and Matt wanting to buy a building and what building they want. There is no doubt in my mind that they are going to get it. The only problem is the building they want to buy has a vending company in it already and they have no idea how to run it."

Immediately a name came to Oscar's mind. "That isn't a problem at all because I know the right guy to tap to help run that company. In fact I believe the last I heard he is here in El Paso running the Coke bottling company. Tomorrow I will stop in and speak with him. If we can steal him away from Coke at a good price, I will get it done."

Liking everything he was hearing, Al didn't object to a word that was said. "I will leave that and the other things we discussed in your capable hands Oscar. I know by doing so I have nothing to worry about as I make my way back to Austin with the Governor in the morning." Oscar thanked Al. "Now that the business part of this meeting is done, let's have something to eat!"

Oscar never said no to a free meal. Al got up and walked into the kitchen to see who was back there and asked them to whip up what he and Oscar wanted to eat. When he returned to the table and rejoined his CEO, they talked and laughed all through their meal. Nothing was said about the business, just family and other items they never talked to each other about before. By the time they got up and headed their different directions, they knew a lot more about each other than they did since the day first started.

As Al was heading up to relax his with his wife Virginia, Jacob, Dewayne and several of the guys were barely coming down to start their day. Even though they didn't get much sleep, they got up early so they could go down and get the Governor's old house ready to be moved into. Jacob wanted to be in the house by the week's end, and in order to do that he needed to see what they had to get so they could live comfortably.

By the time Jacob, Dewayne and the others that came down with them had finished eating and were heading out, several of the others asked if they could go. No one objected, so they waited for them to have something to eat before heading out. With them, the only ones that weren't going that were going to live in the house was Alex and Matt. Even though they wanted to go, they agreed with Jacob and Franseca that it was best for Alex to stay since he was still in a wheelchair. Alex hated it, put up a fight, but eventually caved in to the wisdom of his mother.

Jacob liked getting input from everyone that was involved in a decision of this size. Just like when he and Dewayne started to get the blue prints of their new home drawn up, they got everyone that was going to live in the house their opinion. Even though the final decision was Jacob's, he did like hearing from everyone. At the end of the day he kept their advice in mind whenever he did make the final decision. That's why now he hated leaving without two of the guys that are going to live in the house. They won't be able to give an opinion.

That aside, Jacob was a little worried that Alex and Matt might decide to move on their own since they now have their own millions. Through their conversation they had on Friday evening, Alex let Jacob know about the settlement when he went for advice. Jacob felt bad still about that night because he didn't give the time to Alex he would of liked to since he caught him between things. It was hard that day and the day of the wedding to get a minute with Jacob.

On top of that Jacob kept asking if Alex was still going to move in to the new house now that he has his own money. Each time he asked, Alex said nothing has changed as far as where he and Matt were going to live. Sadly that is all Jacob heard. Now he feels bad about not able to help Alex with the main reason he stopped him that day. So as he made his way out to the truck with Dewayne and the other guys, he made a personal promise to himself that he was going to do what he could to help Alex with his money as soon as he got back.

The drive from the hotel to the Governor's old home wasn't long since it was still early in the morning. Even though there was traffic on the roads, it wasn't a lot since it was mainly those that liked to go to early mass. It surprised Jacob that there wasn't that many since El Paso is really close, if not right on the Bible Belt of Texas.

Jacob didn't notice that they had pulled into the driveway of the Governor's old home at first. It took Dewayne tapping him on his shoulder several times to pull him out of his own mind. When asked where he was, Jacob tried to play off he heard them calling out for him and was just ignoring them, but Dewayne and a few of the guys knew better.

Not wanting to destroy the day by starting an argument with Jacob, he let it go and asked the guys to do the same. Standing there in the driveway, they looked at the house they were going to be living in for at least the next month if not more. It didn't look too bad. It also didn't look too small from the outside either. However they knew by experience you couldn't judge a book by its cover because it could be totally different once they opened it, and boy they weren't wrong when they did finally walk in.

At first, the house looked like any other house that has been empty for several months. There was dust on the floors and on the walls. The smell hit them right away when they walked in. Not a stinky smell, just one of those smells that happens in a place that has been closed off without venting out the air for a while. However that all changed when they made their way up to the rooms. Not all the rooms, only one in particular.

One by one the guys made their way to where Jacob and Dewayne were out, and just like them they didn't walk into the room. There was no doubt the room they were staring into was Josh's old room by the remarks written on the walls that made the guys sick to their stomach, besides the smell of what only could be crap somewhere in the room. The guys tried to see where the smell was coming from when they poked their heads in, but they couldn't stand the smell.

"It looks like there is more work than just cleaning that needs to be done before we are able to move in!" Jacob chuckled as he moved away from the door. "I would like to have this room cleaned up first before any other in the house." The guys looked at Jacob with a confused look on their faces as they joined him at the foot of the stairs. "Come on you guys you have to be thinking the same thing I am. Someone got in here and were asses. I don't want Josh or anyone else in his family to find out about this shit. Let's clean it up it so they don't."

It made more sense now that Jacob explained why he wanted that room cleaned first after he explained himself to the guys. They didn't object and they agreed with him. With that, the guys split up and looked at the rest of the house before meeting back in what they thought was the living room.

"Okay I figure it will probably take us a good day or so to get this house cleaned up if we all pitch in." Everyone nodded agreeing. "As you guys know I would like to be completely moved in by the end of the week, before heading off for Spring Break. So I figure in order to get that done, we use today to clean the house and start moving in tomorrow."

"Jacob aren't you forgetting one thing?" Jacob looked over at Dewayne with a confused look of his own. "You promised Ralph yesterday that you were going to help his mother move into Alex's old place since he couldn't do it. You know with him having to be at the hospital with the rest of his family and little sister."

Jacob looked down at the ground, angry with himself that he forgot the promise he made to his oldest friend. There is no way he is going to let his friend down when he needs him the most. But at the same time he wants to be in the house before he leaves to Disneyland. The only way that is going to happen is if he spends the day cleaning the Governor's old house.

"Look Jake let's do this. You and I, plus a couple of the other guys stay here and clean up this house. That should be enough to get the job done by the end of the day. The others head back to the hotel and helps out Ralph's mother with her move. That shouldn't take long and once they are done they come back here and help us out on getting the house ready. What do you think?"

Thinking the idea was good, Jacob went along with Dewayne's suggestion. Once that was settled, they didn't need to ask the guys to volunteer to go where they were needed. They did whatever Dewayne told them. Within minutes everyone knew where they were going and what they were going to do. They headed out to get their day started.

By noon, Jacob, Dewayne and the other guys that stayed at the house had got all the cleaning supplies they needed from Wal-Mart and were hard at work. Between Jacob and Dewayne, they had Josh's old room cleaned up and beginning to get the rest aired out by one. When three rolled around, pretty much the rest of the house was cleaned, leaving only the patching of the walls and painting where needed in a few rooms of the house.

They had started the patching when the others that had left to help Ralph's mother move returned. Once they jumped in, the work that was left got done a lot faster. To Jacob's surprise they had the whole house done, patching, painting and all by seven fifteen. Even though there were still a few things left to do, Jacob told the guys to call it a day. They wanted to finish what was left, but finally agreed that work they didn't know how to do could wait.

It didn't take long for the guys to conk out in the truck once they got in. By the time Dewayne pulled onto the freeway, everyone except Jacob and him were asleep. This time Jacob didn't get lost in his thoughts, instead he talked to Dewayne the entire way back to the hotel. They didn't talk about anything really important. They just talked to pass the time.

Once they got back to the hotel, they settled in for the evening. Nothing huge or dramatic happened. Jacob went and spoke with Alex on what they found when they first walked into the Governor's house and then what they did. From there he joined his boyfriend and the rest of the guys in the theatre room and watched movies the rest of the evening.

Everyone thought the upcoming week was going to drag on since they couldn't wait for Spring Break to start, but how wrong they were. Monday flew by in flash. Before any of them knew it, they were heading home or to work at the print shop. That was the only part of the day that kind of dragged on, but once they got started working, it flew by almost as fast as the day did.

Tuesday went almost as fast as Monday. Since Jacob hadn't had a chance yet to speak with Josh or anyone in the Lopez family, he went looking for him during lunch. It wasn't hard to find him since Jacob knew his routine. If they weren't in the cafeteria anymore, more than likely you could find them out in the stadium if it isn't too cold, which today it wasn't.

As he approached Josh and his group, Josh's security stopped him. At first the security asked simple questions, but when they asked Jacob to allow them to pat him down, Jacob's security wasn't going to have any of that. They stepped between Jacob and Josh's security and stopped them before they laid one finger on the person they were hired to protect.

"Gentlemen, there is no need to search my client." Josh's security took a couple steps back, stunned that another student had private security protecting him at this school. They thought their client was the only one that had that privilege. "Every student that attends this school has been cleared and checked. None of them are a threat to our client or the Governor's children. Not only that, as you all know each student goes through the check points at each door entering and exiting out of this school." Jacob's head of security glanced at Jacob and then back at the security agents of Josh's he was speaking to. "And come on, these are high school students that are good friends. Why can't we let them be just that, high school students?"

Just then Josh turned around and saw what was going on with members of his security detail and his friends Jacob's detail. He quickly walked up to see if he could do anything to defuse the situation, but it was hard for him to get a word in edgewise. The two sides were going back and forth, not letting anyone get a word in. After trying for a few times, Josh gave in and waved Jacob around the security details. Neither of them saw what the boys were doing at first.

"Sorry about this Jake, it has nothing to do with you." Josh chuckled wrapping his arm around his friend's shoulders as they put some distance between them and their security. "Those guys normally work nights, so they have no idea who is clear and who isn't. Plus they have been in a little bit of hot water with John for being too laid back with security. So now they are trying to prove they have what it takes to be security for the Governor's family."

Jacob understood and wasn't bothered by what just happened against his friend and it put a smile on his face. He sees that he is not the only one having problems with his security and getting them to the point where he wanted them. The current sitting Governor is having the same problem, and he is able to pick from a wider pool of agents.

"No worries my friend, I have had a few of those mistakes since I got security." Jacob chuckled as he looked back at the security agents who weren't measuring who had bigger balls anymore. They had made their way to the boys and took their positions around them. "Wow it looks like they have solved whatever issues they had." Both of the boys started to chuckle at the same time as they glanced quickly at their security details.

"Anyway I didn't come looking for you to talk about our security details. I wanted to thank you and your family for the use of your old home and for being guests at my parents wedding. Please can you also pass on my thanks to your father and the rest of your family as well?" Josh nodded his head. "Most importantly Brandon, man does that guy have a set of lungs on him. It looks like singing is in the Lopez blood!"

"You're not lying there Jacob on that! Brandon really did a great job singing on Saturday, but that wasn't a surprise to me at all!" Josh's facial expression quickly went serious. "It should be me thanking you for letting Brandon sing at your parents wedding." Just as quickly Josh's expression changed, Jacob's did as well, to a confused look and Josh saw it.

"I'm sorry if I am confusing you, but you shouldn't be thanking me or Brandon for letting him sing on Saturday, it should be us. You had no idea how he sang, but you did it anyway on my word on the most important day of your parents' lives. By doing so, you not only built up my brother's confidence in himself, but you helped him get rid of some of the stage fright he had. Plus he has had a hell of a time this last year! You know what I'm talking about."

"Yes and there is no need to go into detail about that subject at all." Jacob didn't want to dredge up memories that not only brought out the anger in Josh, but hurt as well. So he quickly moved away from that subject. "Now as far as who should be thanking who here it's without doubt me. Yes, when I went to you and asked you to sing at my parent's wedding, you turned me down. I understood why. You were getting ready for your tour. There was no need for you to help me find someone else, but you did and boy was he good. So my friend, seriously, I thank you!"

"I think it is best that we agree to disagree on this subject and move on. We are both hard headed and we won't drop this until we get the other to agree with what the other feels." Jacob nodded his head. "Good that's settled, let's talk about another subject. I have heard through the grapevine that you, your family and friends are going to be up at California when I'll be performing. Is that correct?" Jacob nodded his head once again. "Why didn't you tell me? I will make sure you get front row tickets to my show that Saturday, okay!"

"That is awesome!" Jacob grinned reached from ear to ear. "We will be looking forward to it my friend. In fact, it will be the highlight of my trip to Disneyland since I have pretty much been there once before." This time Josh looked at Jacob with a confused look on his face. "Oh you might not know about the trip I took last year to Disneyworld. They say there isn't much difference between California and Florida, but I guess we'll see."

The two boys kept talking among themselves as their security agents stood guard a few feet away. Every so often if you were looking on, you would catch the two teams staring daggers at each other. It is obvious to everyone that they didn't resolve anything before going back to what they were supposed to be doing, and that is guarding their clients.

While the boys talked about what they wanted to do in Disneyland and their security agents took quick glances at each other, Ralph was at the hospital with his mother and a few of the family. Ralph hadn't left the hospital since his dad was taken in. No matter how much his mother asked him to go home and rest, he refused. Even Nancy tried to get her son to go home and rest a little when she popped in to see how he was doing Monday. However, he didn't go home when she asked either.

Nancy wanted to be there for her son, but felt very uncomfortable at the hospital where the man that hated her is fighting for his life. She stayed as long as she could, but felt it wasn't enough when she did take her leave. However, she couldn't stay because the family of Daryl and some of Emily's were coming and going. She felt in the way and at times not welcome because of the glances she was getting from them.

Once they took Daryl up to the ICU and Emily and Ralph had a chance to talk to the doctor that was in charge, they were filled in on Daryl's condition in more detail. Even though they brought Daryl back, the ICU doctors didn't feel that he was going to make it through another twenty four hours. So they advised Emily to call any family that could get to the hospital in that time frame to say their final goodbyes, and that is exactly what she did. By midmorning Monday, Daryl's father, mother, brothers, sisters and other family members that lived in El Paso were at the hospital paying their respects. By two Emily had a priest down to give Daryl the last rights.

With all the family there sitting vigil throughout the day and through the night, nothing had changed in Daryl's condition. As the sun came up, the family started to leave to go home and start their day of either work or school. Those that didn't work or go to school stayed, but took turns leaving the hospital to shower, change and grab something to eat. They didn't want to leave Emily or Ralph alone during this trying time.

However things went from worse to a little better during shift change. The main ICU doctor came on and was doing his rounds when he stepped in and saw Daryl. Looking him over from head to toe, the head of the ICU doctors didn't say anything. Even his facial expressions didn't give anything away during his examination. It was like he was ice, because there was no change in his expression. That really gave Emily and those in the room the creeps.

Finally when he was done examining Daryl, he took Emily and Ralph out of the room. "Good morning, my name is Dr. Lewis and I'm the head of the doctors here in the ICU. Before I talk to you about anything else, let me explain why I asked you out here. I believe that patients can hear everything that is said around them. They can even feel the emotions that their family and friends are feeling. No matter how bad they are, I believe this. So I prefer to talk to their family outside no matter if the news is good or bad." Emily and Ralph had no idea how to respond to that, so they just nodded their heads.

"Okay then, let me get right down with it. Before examining Mr. Rawson here, I spoke with the doctor that was on duty last night and I have to agree with him that Mr. Rawson is in a very critical condition right now. For now let's put aside that he was down for close to thirty minutes in the ER, he lost a lot of blood and he still isn't doing much on his own." Dr. Lewis looked into the room. "All those lines you see on the screen are there because we are making them. If we were to turn off the machines that are connected to your husband, he would die.

With that said, he is fighting very hard to stay alive. There were a few bumps through the night with Mr. Rawson dealing with all the meds we are putting in him to keep him alive." Emily looked at Dr. Rawson with a confused look on her face. "Let me try and explain this better for you and your son ma'am." Once again the doctor pointed to the machines in the room.

"When he was brought up to us from the ER, he was at the highest of all six meds that can be given to a person to keep their heart going. We want to get him off of these meds if we can before we take him down to run our tests. We still don't know what the main cause of this is, and we won't know until we can get an MRI and many other tests that can't be done up here."

"I don't understand why you can't get those tests done now!" Emily said in a shaky voice. "I mean he is stable now, which means you can get to work on finding out what happened. The longer you wait the more chances whatever is going on in him could get worse, right?"

"You're right and your wrong at the same time Mrs. Rawson. Your husband is far from being in a stable condition. As I said before, he is very critical. In fact, I believe he is the sickest person we have here in the ICU right now, and that is saying a lot. If we take him down and start running the tests we need to run, and he codes while those tests are being done, we can lose him. Those rooms are not set up to cope with things like that. Up here if he codes again, we can react in seconds and have a lot better chance of keeping him alive."

"Dr. Lewis I think you are misunderstanding what my mother is trying to get at. I think what she wants to know, and what I want to know is by not getting these tests done sooner than later, it would hurt my dad more in the long run. After all you guys really don't know what you need to treat him for and because of that, he isn't being treated."

"No he isn't being treated because we are busy trying to keep him alive right now. Mr. Rawson is really sick and we are in the dark why. We are still working off of what the ER doctors believe happened, but as time goes on we are ruling things out without the tests. For example we are sure Mr. Rawson didn't have a stroke, but so many things happened yesterday evening that led us to believe he had one in ER.

For now we are going to try and get him to start breathing on his own and move him off the meds we are using to keep his heart pumping. The longer we keep him on those meds; he will develop a whole new set of complications causing problems we don't want to even think of." Dr. Lewis looked back into the Daryl's room. "And right now we are pulling him off of those meds slowly. He is down to four, and hopefully by evening he will be down to one or two."

Neither Emily nor Ralph fully understood what Dr. Lewis was explaining to them. It sounded to them like a different language, not English. However, they didn't keep the doctor from the rest of the patients in the ICU. They thanked him and his staff for everything they have done and will do, as they went back into the room to be at Daryl's side.

Ralph didn't leave his father side. He sat there all day and throughout the evening on Tuesday. He only left to use the restroom and grab something to eat really quickly. Other than that, he stayed glued to the seat in his father's room. When the sun started to set, his mind started to wander to places he didn't want to go. Places that he never thought he would go on either of his parents.

His father hadn't shown any kind of movement all day. At times it looked like he was getting worse by the amount of times the machines went off. Then at times it looked like his father was going to snap out of it and wake up. However, the times that it looked like it was getting worse shadowed the times it he looked like he was going to come through this. Because of that, Ralph couldn't keep the dark thoughts from creeping into his mind.

Back with Jacob and the guys, they started to pack their things to begin moving to the Governor's old house. The only thing holding up the move was furniture; there was none. Jacob didn't want to buy any new furniture because it would be a waste of money. He wanted to move into his new house with brand new furniture, no old furniture from the old house or the hotel.

Going back and forth for little over an hour on how to resolve that problem, with help from Joey, Jacob found a solution. Between the two of them, they found enough furniture around the hotel that wasn't being used to furnish the house. When the day came that the new house was done and ready to move in, the furniture would be brought back to the hotel and put back where they got it from, storage or the rooms that weren't being used.

With that problem solved, the guys worked until nine moving furniture from the hotel to the house. When they finally called it quits for the night, they were surprised that they were almost done getting the furniture moved in. Seeing that, there was no longer any doubt in Jacob's mind that they were going to be moved out of the hotel on his time table.

Wednesday nothing really big happened exept for the travel agency Jacob was using to take care of the trip to Disneyland had delivered the package he was waiting for. He was already getting worried that he hadn't received it. Just before he was called down to accept the package, he had just finished telling Dewayne if it didn't arrive by the end of the evening, he was going to take the morning out of school and go down to see what the holdup was. Now with the package in hand, he could breathe a little easier and not have to miss any school.

He didn't tell anyone except for Dewayne that the package had arrived. It was business as usual, or at least the new usual the guys have got accustomed to. Those who weren't working at the print shop helped out Jacob and Dewayne on the move as soon as they got out of school. The others that did work tried to help with what they could when they got back to the hotel, but it was already too late when they walked into the doors. They did what they could packing at the hotel before being called down to join the others for dinner.

Jacob didn't say anything until some of the guys got up to head to their rooms. "Hey guys, can you please stay for just a few more minutes?" The guys that had gotten up and made it half way to the door turned around and sat back down. "It's official now! We're leaving for Disneyland at eleven forty five Friday night!" Jacob held up the huge envelope for everyone to see.

"I have in my hands the plane tickets, hotel reservations, passes to all the parks and everything else we need to have an awesome Spring Break vocation." All at once the guys asked to see. It wasn't that they didn't believe Jacob. They just wanted to see with their own eyes what they have been talking about for weeks. "Okay, okay I'll pull out the stuff and show you guys, but I won't give you your passes or anything until Friday, okay?"

Everyone agreed as they got up and surrounded the table where Jacob was at. He pulled out a set of passes and allowed the guys to pass them around. They couldn't believe it. Even having the passes in their hands, they couldn't believe it. With everything that has been happening, they all expected something was going to happen to torpedo their plans.

Those thoughts weren't a stretch, but now it could be put on the back burner to a point. Even though the package with all the items they need for the trip has arrived, Spring Break is still a few days away. A lot of things could still happen in those few days and even during their trip to Disneyland. None of them have really had good luck lately.

Meanwhile as the boys were taking turns looking at what was in the package, over in Colorado Tom and David were quietly sitting in Tom's room at the Rehab Center. They were talking about their first days there. Things were so different from the weather to the scenery, nothing was the same anymore. Neither of the boys liked it, but they knew they had to get used to it because they were going to be there for several months.

Their conversation floated back to their first day and what happened to Tom to get him there. At first the conversation was going back and forth, but not long into it David seemed to take it over. He did all the talking. Telling Tom what he saw and felt when they first got there. How bad he and his parents felt when the EMT'S had to put him under in order to get him on the plane. And what they were going through the first hours and days they were there.

Neither David nor Tom's parents wanted them to give Tom something to knock him out, but they understood they had no other choice if they wanted to get on the plane. However, they didn't think what they gave him was going to keep him knocked out as long as it did. He didn't come back to the land of the living until late Sunday evening, which was starting to worry Tom's parents and David; maybe even more so with David.

At first, the doctors told them not to worry and to use the time while Tom was sleeping to settle in to the house that Jacob was able to rent for them. Another surprise they didn't know Jacob had done for them until they were getting on the plane. The house was just a couple blocks away from the rehab center where Tom was, which would make it easier and faster for them to come and go when they needed. They also would never have to watch the clock to try and not get stuck in their morning or evening traffic rush hours being that close to the center.

Having the house so close to Tom, there was no need for a vehicle, but Jacob wouldn't bend on that either, he got David one anyway. As he told David before he left El Paso he didn't want to hear that he or Tom's parents got lost trying to use the public transportation in a city they didn't know. Hesitantly they accepted the car and house from Jacob, but they still felt bad doing so.

With their suitcases at their side, they thought about doing what the intake staff recommended them to do, but they refused at first. They didn't want Tom to wake up in a new place without a familiar face in the room. If it was them and the last thing that they remembered was freaking out about getting on a plane and then waking up in a totally different place than they were before being knocked out, they would be scared and lost. Hopefully with familiar faces being in the room this would help Tom adjust to his new surroundings.

However after sitting there for almost three hours and seeing no indication from Tom that he was going to wake up they decided to take the staff's suggestion. As quiet as they could, they left the room. Once in the hallway, they grabbed their suitcases and headed out of center and down the couple blocks to their new house.

It wasn't a bad house at all. In fact, it looked like a new house, or at least a house that was maybe a couple of years old. The front yard had grass that was starting to turn green with flower beds under the windows that faced the road. When they walked in, they walked into a pretty good size living room that was furnished with very nice furniture. Every room in the house was furnished with new furniture. It was a four bedroom house, with two and a half bathrooms, kitchen, den and a huge back yard that was decked out also with brand new furniture.

After taking a quick tour of the house, David and Tom's parents picked a room and threw their suitcases in them. They didn't bother to unpack. All they wanted was to get back to Tom and be there when he woke up. However, as they started their walk back to the Rehab Center, all at once they felt hungry. Not knowing were anything was, they chose to grab something to eat in the Rehab Center cafeteria before heading to Tom's room.

All through Saturday evening and night, David and Tom's parents took turns staying in Tom's room, but he never woke up. It was the same through Sunday morning and early afternoon. By early evening, Tom started to show signs of life. He woke up for a few minutes asking the same questions, where was he, what time was it and so on before falling back to sleep again. It wasn't until almost seven Sunday evening Tom woke up and stayed awake.

Just as David and Tom's parents feared, Tom was confused and terrified when he first woke up. The only thing that kept him sane was seeing familiar faces around him. It took almost an hour before Tom settled down, but even then he was angry with his parents and David for allowing the EMT'S to give him something to sleep. No matter how they tried to explain to Tom why they allowed it, Tom wasn't willing to listen. He didn't like the feeling he had with his mind in the clouds and his entire body all numb. Never before in his life had he felt the way he was feeling right now and never wanted to feel like that again.

The next couple of days didn't take much of their conversation because nothing really happened. Monday was more of an orientation day for Tom, David and Tom's parents. Tom didn't get to see anyone on the doctor's staff or the physical therapy staff until Tuesday, but neither of the two sections of the staff took more than two hours being with Tom.

Right after breakfast on Tuesday, the doctors came in and examined Tom before laying out how they plan to go about getting Tom walking again. It was a detailed plan, a hard plan, but a plan that looked like it could work as long as Tom followed it to the T. He couldn't afford to get lazy or refuse to do what the doctors are asking him to do if he wants to walk again.

After lunch the physical therapist staff walked in and did their own examination of Tom. Theirs was a little longer and more detailed, but when they were done, they also set forth a detailed plan. Just like the doctors, it was a hard and very physically demanding plan, but if anyone could do it, it was Tom and he made that crystal clear to the physical therapists.

Once they left, no one else came in and talked with them. It was pretty quiet the rest of the day and throughout Wednesday and that is what was confusing Tom and David at this point. They kept going over the first couple of days to see if they missed anything, but each time they got back to the present, they were as lost as they were when they first started. The only conclusion they could arrive at is that Tom's therapy and treatment will get into full swing at the beginning of next week because they wanted to start it off at the beginning of the week in order not to mess up their schedules.

Thursday dragged on for everyone. >From Tom and David in Colorado, to Jacob and the guys in El Paso, each minute felt like hours. Jacob figured that was going to happen the closer they got to the end of the week, being that Spring Break was the following week. By lunch, the guys just wanted the day to end. However their wishes weren't granted because even the lunch hour seemed like eternity to them. The only one that lunch hour did seem to fly by for was Jacob.

As always he spent the first half with the guys in the cafeteria eating, but the second half he went to the ROTC building. Nothing at first was out of the ordinary. He went about doing his normal routine, checking on his companies, his battalion staff and then the teams. Just as he put down the reports on recruits for next year, Colonel Pigeon walked out of his office and gave him the once over. Just as the colonel turned to walk back into his office, he called out for Jacob to follow.

Figuring that the recruit reports were going to be the topic, he grabbed them and started to think of ways to increase the number of new cadets for next year. However, as soon as he walked in and saw that he and Colonel Pigeon weren't alone. He knew this meeting wasn't going to be about recruiting because Colonel May was sitting there behind Pigeon's desk looking at totally different reports than the ones Jacob was carrying.

"Good afternoon Mr. Hernandez, thank you for coming in." Colonel May spoke, but never lifting his head to make eye contact. "I know this is neither the place nor the time to take on this subject, but by you being a student still, it's hard to make an appointment with you at your office. When you are there that is when my day has ended." Finally Colonel May looked up; put aside the paperwork he was looking at and made eye contact with Jacob.

"I understand by what Colonel Pigeon has told me that you want to meet with me about next year's support from your company. Where we left it last I understood you weren't going to pull your support now that you own not only the McDonalds but the car dealerships that are currently giving to our battalions. Please tell me that hasn't changed. I'm already having a problem on keeping the other sponsors on board, something about the economy being unfavorable, and so and so on!"

"No sir you have no concern regarding the support my company is already giving the brigade. It helps my company as much as it helps the battalions to tell you the truth." That put a smile across Colonel May's face. "But I do want to make some changes." The smile disappeared quicker than it appeared. "My company is getting bigger by the day, which means I can afford to do a little more for my community. I thought about what I can do, but this program and my school stayed in the forefront of my mind."

Colonel May got up from his seat, walked around the desk and sat in the seat next to Jacob. "I love my school and this program. It has done so much for me, so I want to give back what I can. In order to do that, I was thinking that I would like to be your only sponsor for all the units in the brigade." Not only the smile returned across May's face, but it was a lot bigger. "I knew at first there were a few kinks, but they got worked out and now there is no problem as far as getting the money from Angel Corp. to the school accounts to pay for what they need."

"That is true; we haven't had any problems with your company since we talked months ago. In fact your company has become the only one that we haven't had to worry about when it came down to getting the money. With the other sponsoring companies it feels at times we are pulling teeth to get what was promised. With that said, may I ask how it will work with your company sponsoring the entire brigade? I mean, will it be like this or..."

"I know what you are worrying about, and trust me nothing will change as far as the amount that is given to each battalion. After all I was the one that came up with what is needed to comfortably run each battalion." Jacob went into more detail on how the sponsorship of his company will work for the ROTC units. Not once did Colonel Pigeon or May interrupt Jacob as he went into detail, they loved everything he was saying. "So as you can see it will work just fine having one sponsor for it all. What do you think Colonel May?"

That shouldn't have been a question because it was written all over the Colonel's face, he loved the idea. For the next fifteen minutes they went over how it was all going to work, not in complete detail, but enough that both understood. Just as the bell rang, they came to an agreement in principle and set up another meeting at Jacob's office the Tuesday after Spring Break.

Since the meeting had nothing to do with his position in the ROTC program, Jacob didn't wait to be excused. He thanked the colonels as he got up and started to make his way out. As he reached the big steel door, he turned and made sure the meeting time was okay with Colonel May before wishing him well. When he looked over at Colonel Pigeon, he could tell the Colonel was lost, but wasn't angry that he was leaving without asking to be excused. Seeing that, Jacob turned and made his way out of the ROTC building and over to the main building to finish the school day.

Just like the morning, the rest of the day did drag on, at least until they got back to the hotel. There was still a lot of moving to be done, and it all had to be done this evening since they were leaving for Disneyland the following evening. Every guy available pitched in, and by ten everything that needed to be moved out of the hotel over to the new house was moved. The only things that were left were the suitcases of clothes that were going with them on the Disney trip and their changing for the next day. Other than that, Jacob was able to move on schedule.

When the sun came up next morning, Ralph thought it was going to be another good day, but how wrong he was. Before all this happened with his foster father, he was looking forward to this Friday because he was going to go to Disneyland with his oldest friend and his boyfriend. Now his plans have changed and is about to change even more than it already had.

His mother had already gone in to see his father, so when she came out with tears rolling down her cheeks, Ralph new whatever was going on was not good. He walked over to his mother, engulfed her into a bear hug and waited for her to settle down before asking why she was crying. It didn't take her long to settle down, but she didn't tell Ralph anything either. She instead told him that he needs to go with her to speak with the doctors, nothing more was said. It wasn't because she didn't anything more to say, it was because she had no more information.

The walk up to the ICU room felt like miles for both Emily and Ralph, but the wait for them to open the door was even worse. They pushed the button that alerted the staff there was someone at the door waiting to come in, but it seemed to take them longer to buzz them through than the times before. When they did, the walk over to Daryl's room was the longest walk Ralph has walked in a long time. He felt like his legs were in quick sand, and the closer they got to Daryl's room, the harder it was for him to continue. On top of that, the feelings he had were one's he hadn't felt before.

When they walked into the room, there were several nurses working on Daryl. They didn't make eye contact to Ralph or Emily. They went along doing what they were supposed to as if they had never walked into the room. Ralph looked down at his father he knew by the way his father was this meeting wasn't going to be good. The color his father once had was gone, his arms and legs were covered with some kind of cloth, and he wasn't breathing right at all plus by the looks of it he was on all the meds again. There were over ten IV bags going into his father.

Ralph was brought out of his thoughts when he heard someone clearing their throat. He turned and saw the head of the ICU doctors, Dr. Lewis and his staff walking in. He extended his hand and automatically Ralph took it. Even though Dr. Lewis didn't say a word, Ralph was able to confirm by the doctors look what he was already thinking, it wasn't going to be good.

"Well I really don't know where to start here." Dr. Lewis spoke in a low voice as he made his way to the head of the bed, by the machines. "When I first met you guys I told you that Mr. Rawson here was the sickest person here in the ICU. Being down for close to thirty minutes in the ER really didn't help. Being on all the machines and medicine isn't helping. What did help was his will to live. His will to live is there, but his body isn't."

A steady stream of tears now is rolling down Emily's face. "We're all surprised after the first twenty four hours that Mr. Rawson was still with us. Seeing that he was fighting, we tried everything we could to help him along the way. From meds to all these machines, we tried our best to bring him through this, but after looking at him this morning, I have to ask you guys to make the hardest decision that you will ever have to make in your lives."

"No Dr. Lewis..." Ralph yelled out, interrupting the doctor. "This can't be it! Look at the monitor, he is there. All those lines are telling us he is still here, still fighting to stay alive. Please isn't there anything else you can do to help him along the way!"

"Son we have done everything humanly possible to help him. When we brought in the dialysis machine, we told you it was the last resort." Dr. Lewis pulled back the cloth that was covering Daryl's right hand and arm. It was all purple and it looked like the skin was actually falling off the bone. When he lifted the arm, fluid started to leak in a steady stream from the elbow. "I explained to you guys yesterday that we needed to get the liquid out of his body. Every bit of liquid we are putting in him, is staying in him. That is result of the meds we are using to keep his heart going, something we warned you on day one.

As far as what you see here on the monitor..." Dr. Lewis tapped the screen. "We are the ones creating it all. The machines connected to Mr. Rawson is breathing for him, keeping his heart going, but everything else in his body has already shut down and there is no way now we can get them started again. We told you this might happen when he was first brought up here. Now I am here telling you the worst that we prepared you for is here.

Mr. Rawson's body is shutting down. No matter what we do from this point on, we can't stop what is happening. I know it is hard to bear especially with a strong man like you're father and how quickly it all happened. He is no longer with us at this point. His body is still breathing and pumping a little bit of blood because we are making it happen. Now you guys have to make the hard decision and give us permission to turn off the machines."

Dr. Lewis walked around the bed and over to Emily. "I wish we could do more for your husband and family, but there just nothing else we can do, please understand that. Don't keep Daryl here in pain, let him go." Doctor Lewis softly patted Emily on the shoulder. "My staff will stay outside to wait for your decision. Once you make it, please let them know and they will let me know."

With that, Dr. Lewis and his staff walked out of the room, leaving Ralph and Emily alone with Daryl. Emily bent over and kissed her husband in the forehead and then his lips before whispering something in his ear. Her head fell next to Daryl's and laid there as she wept. Ralph had no idea what to do, so he just stood next to his mother, gently rubbing her shoulder as he started to cry. Neither of them moved or said a word for close to thirty minutes. It was Emily who moved and talked first when the silence broke.

"We need to call back the family so they can say their goodbyes once more and so that those that want to be at his bedside when he takes his last breath can be here." Emily spoke between cries as she wiped away her tears that were coming down like a river. "I don't want your sister here. I don't want her to remember your dad like this. She should remember the strong man that he was, not this shell of a man who is lying on this bed."

Ralph didn't disagree with his mother. As they walked out of the room, they informed Dr. Lewis of their decision and time frame before leaving the ICU. After making all the phone calls, it wasn't until early afternoon that almost everyone had gotten there. They took turns going in and saying their final goodbyes. It wasn't until after four the last family member walked in, Daryl's younger sister. She went in and said he goodbyes to her older brother before everyone else joined her in the room with the priest.

It took a few minutes for everyone to settle down, but once they did, the priest began. He said a few words before giving Daryl his last rights. As he spoke there wasn't a dry eye in the room. None of them understood what happened. All they could console themselves with is it is God's will that he be taken this day and they can't question that.

Once the priest was done, he left the room and Dr. Lewis walked in. He reconfirmed with Emily that this is what she wanted to do. Once he got her confirmation, he walked over to the machines, and one by one he turned them off. Before leaving the family alone in the room, he turned off the alarms so Daryl could pass over without a whole bunch of alarms going off.

For the next forty five minutes, they stood around the bed watching Daryl struggle as he took a breath. Every other breath, it looked like it was his last, but he fought to breath another. The cries were getting louder as time went by. The tears were getting more visible in everyone's face and at one point a couple of Daryl's family couldn't stay and watch him pass away. They walked out with heavy streams of tears rolling down their cheeks.

Daryl's older sister was on one side of the head of the bed, and Emily was on the other. Every so often, Daryl's sister would wipe the sweat off of her brother's forehead and the tears away from his eyes. She whispered to him it was okay to go, it was time, but he kept fighting to stay, but that didn't stop her from telling him again and again as she caressed his forehead.

Forty minutes after the machines were turned off, the first line on the monitor flat lined, followed by the second, and a few minutes later the third line went flat. Just as that line went, Daryl took his last breath and his head fell to the right, causing everyone on the room to cry out loud. They knew he was gone and they were never going to get another chance to speak with him again.

TO BE CONTINUED...

WRITER'S CORNER:

{Welcome back one and all to another chapter in the saga of `Jacob Finding His Way'. Finally in this chapter the time line moved a lot faster than the last chapters I have been writing. It actually covered almost a week, which I know you guys are happy. It is finally where you guys want it, Spring Break, lots of fun in the sun with the guys to come.

The start of the chapter began where the last chapter ended, the love scene. I read it and I loved it, which shouldn't have been new to hear. I really do hope things stay good between Chase and Marco, but only time will tell. Chase was once straight and that could always haunt him, who knows except me and my evil mind how far I want to take each character.

From there I took you to the morning with Al and Marco in the elevator. Both of the guys got to know each other better. Marco got to know the Al we all know, and Al got to know a little more about the new guy around his grandson. I agree with Al's advice to Marco and hope that Marco takes that advice; he hasn't led anyone wrong so far.

Al had a meeting with the CEO of Angel Corp. and a lot of questions were answered. We now know who is going to come in and help Tony with the Seven-Elevens; no big surprise there at all. We also found out about Dewayne's ownership in that company. On top of all that, we found out that the CEO knows someone that can help Alex and Matt run the vending company that is in the building they are going to buy. For that plot you need to read `Beneath the Mask'.

Jacob and the guys are finally moving into the Governor's old house, just like Jacob wanted in the time frame. At first they found a huge mess that we all knew about if you are reading `Shadow of My Father'. If you're not, please go on over and read it or you will be lost as far as how the house got the way it did. Glad that Jacob and the guys fixed it up without going to the Governor or the Governor's boys to doing it.

You also had a chance to pop in and see Tom and David and how they were doing. As of right now a plan has been set to get Tom to walk again. Yes you read it right, walk again. They believe Tom will be able to walk again as long as Tom follows their instructions. Knowing Tom the way I do there is no doubt that he will do just that.

All you knew already from several chapters ago that Jacob was going to sponsor the entire Brigade. The only ones that didn't know were the schools and Colonel May until now. Jacob sat with the Colonel and told him his plans. The Tuesday after Spring Break it is going to be in writing and official. The only question I have is Jacob going to demand that he is the only sponsor, or will he let them have others along with him.

Now the ending of the chapter, what can I say about it. Throughout the chapter we visited with Ralph and his family at the hospital and it looked good, but the tides changed at the end. As I stated in the last chapter this plot actually happened in my life and man, when I wrote the ending of it, it tore me apart. I relived that horrible day, one of two days I never want to relive so far this 2012 year. This wasn't about my mother, but my second mother and how it unfolded. Almost exactly as I written it how it unfolded, and that is why it brought me to tears.

It really feels like I'm leaving a lot out in my writer's corner. If I have I know "Daddy" Rick will put it in his Editor's Corner. I know at times the chapters I write slow down and only cover a day or two, and I'm thankful you guys stick with the stories. The only reason that happens is because there is so much going on in the story and I have no other choice but to do that. But whenever I can, I will speed up the timeline and cover a lot more time.

As always I can go on and on about the open plots in the story! If I do that, I can actually write several more chapters. So many plots can take a turn at any time. You might think it is going to go one way, but is ends up going another. Don't miss anything, or you will be kicking yourself for it. If I missed anything in my summation, my editor will hopefully go over it in his.

There is a so much to answer in the chapters to come. Stick around and keep reading the future chapters, and enjoy! Please email me and let me know how I am doing at jacobmillertex@aol.com, Thanks!}

EDITOR'S CORNER:

I have "adopted" Chase and Marco in my mind. You might have figured that their coming together was written from true life experience(s) I've had. If you thought that, you're spot on. Advice most often given to aspiring authors is to `write about what you know'. Crafting the love scene was an amalgamation of great things I've had happen in the past.

Jacob left the question open if Chase and Marco will make the long haul. I don't often assert my opinions on plot outcomes but in this case I will predict that Chase has truly found his reality and happiness. He won't be haunted by his straight past. He is going to move forward in his newly found reality and not look back. He's realized that he wasn't being faithful to his true, inborn sexuality.

I'm glad Marco had the conversation with Al that he did. It bolstered his confidence to openly declare his love for Chase. It seems from Chase's parting remark to Marco that he will walk boldly and proudly in his newly found status.

Speaking of Al, he's a sharp ole bird! He doesn't miss a thing. He keeps a finger on all the things going on within his realm and extended family, both business wise and on personal issues. He also tested Oscar to see if he was as observant and found that he was on top of things. There were no surprises for either party in the meeting.

Jacob's desire to get moved out of the hotel and into the house was an ambitious undertaking with everything else going on and with the amount of work the house needed. It seems everyone is as anxious as Jacob to move so they all pitched in and got it done. I was pleased to see Joey step up to help out with furnishings for the temporary residence.

I really feel for Ralph and his family with having to go through Daryl's passing. He took the hard way out for sure. I have lost loved ones but I've never had to make a hard decision. I can't truly begin to imagine how that would feel. I hope that if I were faced with a situation of that nature that I would have the strength to make the right decisions. I do well in a crisis and stand up and manage things, but I've never had to make a life ending decision. I hope I never do. Being as I'm not young, this focused me on the fact I need to get my wishes down on paper to insulate my loved ones and not to potentially put anyone in a position to have to make hard decisions on my behalf.

Well, we are FINALLY up to Spring Break! I hope all everyone involved has a great time and there's no drama. Knowing Jacob as I do, I think that is hope that will not be realized. Now, what in the world is going to happen? Whatever it is, I know that it will put all of us on the edge of our seats.

Until Next Time,

"Daddy" Rick