Chapter 18

I was ready to fly out of the here the next morning and do a few days of dancing around, picking up and delivering. Instead, I got this babe named ‘Joy’ who was going to show me all kinds of good things about helicopters. She was impressed that I could lift off and set down on a platform and hover without waving around. She was also impressed that I could fly onto the practice field and set the aircraft down exactly on the spot. I raced from one end to the other and even did a flying turn that caused me to dip a little. All in all, I didn’t find flying the small helicopters all that difficult. Joy checked me out on a Bell 210 – basically just the most recent version of the Vietnam-era Huey – that had me a little flummoxed until I realized that I was letting it get to me instead of accepting it was just another aircraft. The woman was one hell of an instructor and made you sweat all the time. We spent the last hour plus of our training time learning all about autorotation. That is some scary shit. She showed me a couple of times and then the bitch cut the power on me when I wasn’t ready. I did what I was supposed to do and actually set down without a slam and bouncing.

She smiled at me when she told me to take it up again, and said, “I won’t worry about you at all if you’ll react that way when the real thing happens. You listen and that’s the way to be trained. I want you to be flying something from our stable every chance you get. Now go home or at least go to the patio and relax. You’re ready to fly anytime.”

I flew courier for the next nine months racking up hours every week. I was flying six or seven days a week and flying eight to fourteen hours a day, but only over ten when there was an important delivery. There were days I would get back to the home airpark early and enjoy some time at the patio, but I was mostly flying.

I continued studying for my Instructor’s rating on the internet. I knew I could probably do it, but I wanted to make sure I talked to John to be certain he thought I was ready to teach.

I continued to fly the courier routes and racked up almost 2000 hours as command pilot. I only needed 1500 for my Airline Transport rating, but I had to be sure. I was there. I was at the pinnacle of what I had begun. I could fly most of the aircraft, fly all our helicopters, and be a second pilot on a 747 or Airbus because I had been able to get simulator instruction. I had flown all kinds of the helicopters, including being one of the flight crew in the giant of the air, lifting huge buoys from the water onto barges. I was confident that I was a good pilot.

I told Steve, “It’s time for me to go home and make peace with my family. You’ve given me an opportunity to be something I wanted to be. I’ll be back and be an asset to your company.”

That parting was one of the toughest I’ve ever had. I considered him, his family, and his friends as my family too. I drove home to Miami with some sad thoughts until I decided to attack the man I thought so much of. I dove into Steve’s head and told him how great he was. I told him he would be my flying buddy forever.

I heard him laughing as I deluged the man with my mental powers. Mercy told me to stop as Steve was having too much fun with my mental happiness.

I told each of Sal’s three girls to love and live their lives as it came, that I might be back, but not to wait for me as they knew what they wanted. I felt each of the three as they accepted my love. Donna seemed to be hurt the most, and I had to love her mentally in order to make her feel better.

I had talked to all my special people, including Peanut who was winning again, by the time I reached home. I mentally hit Gene to get him to make sure that he was helping Peanut become the driver she wanted to be.

I pulled to the side of the garage to give everyone room to move around back there.

Juanita was ecstatic to have me home and gave me kisses that went far beyond those of a nanny. I loved this woman and wanted to give her all the love she deserved. I took them out to that special little restaurant that Sandra and I went to with her family. Grandmother recognized me and came to me, “Sandra thinks she has it bad over you, Chuck, but you have resisted and caused her to become almost violent. I know you have helped the family in many ways, but remember that little girl doesn’t know when to stop sometimes. She is so used to getting what she wants, getting her way, that she doesn’t know how to react. She wants you, but doesn’t know how to have you in what would be a normal relationship. Please let her down gently if that’s what has to be or be gentle with her as you reclaim what she has resisted in giving you.”

Dora had listened, and told the woman, “Chuck is an extremely gentle and loving person, but he will rebel when others attempt to tell him how to run his life. A domineering woman has no chance with him, but a loving and understanding woman will have his love for life. Remember what he has done for your family and for her. He is not someone to make an enemy of.”

That shocked the mature woman, who said, “Don’t get the wrong idea. The family loves Chuck and wants him to be a part of us forever. Let us become friends and let Sandra become lovers with him.”

We ended the evening eating in peace and enjoying the meal. I told grandmother not to put Sandra’s and my love into the graveyard yet. She smiled and kissed me on the cheek. Was that the kiss of death, or was that the kiss of something that is yet to come?

I focused on Sandra so I could listen to her. Her Grandmother called and told her of our conversation but Sandra was still furious that I wasn’t responding to her requests to come to her and her demands. She told her grandmother that she was ready to end this charade she had with me. She said it was time for me to go away. Her grandmother cautioned her that I may not be easy to get rid of the way she was thinking but Sandra said she thought I was but a small bug to be squashed. I was glad I had listened in to a woman I thought I was interested in and now knew she was a danger to me and my family.

I made sure the family was down for the night and went on the hunt. I drove the Impala to the storage unit and brought the old pickup out to use. I had my rifle, as well as the M-9, both with their silencers. Anything I did tonight needed to be quiet. I watched my street to make sure that no strange cars showed up. I then went to Sandra’s place which now extended to Benito’s, and found a lot of activity. I watched while trying to figure out what was going on until two vehicles took off. I had a feeling that those two vehicles could be a problem. They went straight to my subdivision, and then parked across the street from our home. I drove by to make sure they were the same ones who left the condos.

I watched from behind the bushes as the group came from the cars and assembled into what looked like an assault team. Problem was, I knew what that meant. The leader died as he took the first step. The second one looked around and died of a hit on the forehead. Number three, four, five, and six all died as they tried to find cover. The two cars were slow to start moving as they didn’t want to run over their people who were already dead. The drivers both died in their cars as the vehicles went another hundred yards and ran into a fence.

I picked up my brass and was instantly gone, leaving by a back route not to be observed or discovered. I went into Sandra’s mind and told her, “You’re next if you try that again.”

I saw her look around and try to figure out where that came from. She didn’t know about the fate her men found, but would in a very short while. I sat at a diner looking into her mind and listened to her haranguing her men who couldn’t stop a simpleton from wreaking havoc on her world. She kept calling and calling her team leader she had sent to attack the house until a policeman answered the phone and demanded who was calling. Sandra collapsed onto the floor wondering how this could be happening.”

I drove to Walmart and bought a throwaway phone. I called her as soon as it was charged enough by using the lighter socket in my truck, and had to leave a voicemail, “Don’t ever try that again. I will not be as gentle next time. Go away, get out of my life, you’re not welcome.”

Sandra broke down crying when she listened to the voicemail. She realized she had cut off any possible reconciliation she could ever have with me. She knew that my response to any form of retaliation would be devastating.

My phone rang. In a very intimidating manner, Sandra said, “I understand and won’t ever try to mess with you again. Ha, ha, ha, you’re an even bigger sucker than I would have thought if you believe that. Now think about this, Asshole. Think how you’ll never bust my cherry. Think of how you can’t possibly hide from me for the rest of your to be very short life. Go try to hide, and you had better hide all your family here and up north while you’re at it, as they are equally dead.

Well, that took care of it. I needed to be Buddy Harrison. I took the pickup down to the trailer park and parked where I always parked. I stopped at a Walmart superstore on the way for some bacon, eggs, and a loaf of bread. I slept the rest of the night and was up early as I figured the neighbors would come calling. They did. I cooked my breakfast and talked to those who were there. The coffee in the tubs was still good so my Mr. Coffee did the trick. I told everyone that I, ‘Buddy’, was only stopping by to take care of a problem. I pulled out a couple pair of the special rubber gloves I had bought when I left.

I stopped by Butch’s and advised him that I was in town, but only for a night or two. That told him I wasn’t there for a social visit.

I called the armorer who had livened up the party for us when we went to Mexico and found he had some very powerful Russian RPGs that would command attention. I bought four and paid in cash. I also bought enough C-4 and detonators to level a few city blocks.

My voicemail was filling up, so I listened and threw them all out and then called Sandra. She amazingly answered and said, “Can we talk? I was talking when I was angry and disappointed. I want to have a sit down to figure out if we’re going to get over this and be special, or whether we should say forget it. Can we meet at the park next to Nonna’s?”

What a shame that she should put her grandmother into this situation. These people were so cruel although loving. I hoped Grandmother would be long gone.

I went to the location and found the ideal spot to fire the RPGs. I set twenty charges with wireless detonators that would activate all at once if someone messed with them while I wasn’t there. I could simply dial the number and they would all go off at once. The charges were around the restaurant and in the parking lot where the family and bodyguards would park. No one would be exempt.

I watched as the people began to assemble and clustered around the restaurant. Sandra showed up and acted like Patton surveying how they were all set up. I could see her smiling when she used her finger to slash her throat to demonstrate what she wanted. Well fuck you too, Lady.

The waiting was probably worse on their end as there were a couple of dozen people wandering around trying to figure how a single person could cause this much grief. I called Sandra when it was time for our appointed meeting.

She asked me, “Are you coming, Honey?”

“Um, I’m worried this may be a trap. Can you help me with that?”

“Oh, come on. I couldn’t do that to you. Come to me and I’ll be yours forever.”

Yeah, well I don’t think so. I saw her hunker down behind the framed wall outside her grandmother’s restaurant with the phone to her ear.”

I fired the first RPG off, and it probably took her and a bunch of her people out. I fired the second one, hitting the same place and then placed the third and fourth in strategic places that had more men.

I was in my pickup and used the throwaway cell phone to call the detonator. The entire complex, including Nonna’s restaurant disintegrated. That was horrible, but it was what was necessary. I watched from a third of a mile away and saw the police and fire departments respond. There were several vans that came to pick up the remains of those who had been blown to bits.

I knew that I would be questioned because she had recently called my phone so many times. I was a disabled vet living peacefully in a nice neighborhood.

Swapping vehicles wasn’t difficult, and I was home using my Impala. The police did come, and I even took a polygraph that tested negative. The Miami underworld was in a tizzy for a while, but eventually figured out who wanted to be on top. I was sorry that it had to end this way, but it was another ‘Oh Well’ moment. Dora thought it was probably appropriate for someone who was harassing me so much, but didn’t even consider that her loving brother could do such a thing.

This was one page of my life that I had heard the last of.

I went to bed that night and thought good thoughts to Peanut, knowing that she needed the encouragement to win this next race. I gave her my picture in her head and smiled at her as she went to sleep curled up in the little ball she slept in if she wasn’t with me. There was this nagging picture in my mind of one of the pit crew who was really sweet on her. I devoted entirely too much time trying to peer inside someone I didn’t know. It was as if I was inside his head all of a sudden, and I could feel his personal caring for the driver of the car he kept working on. Peanut was always a sweetheart, and I told this man to be patient and let nature take its course.

I projected pictures of this man to Peanut, and thoughts of what he could be for her, from then on. He wasn’t tall, dark, and handsome, since he was a short guy with a very loving face. I made sure his face was in her dreams and that she thought of him as she won each race. I wasn’t surprised as she began getting and giving hugs when she won and placed in both the truck and car races. I was being successful with women, except for myself.

I was tossing and turning at home, worrying about how my actions could affect those in the house. Mercy’s, Missy’s, and Etta’s all came to me at the same time. All three said things that were supposed to make me feel better about my actions. Etta finally said, “You protected your family, as well as our family here. We are all thankful and know that you meant it to be something that wouldn’t follow you or us. Chuck knows, and he’s in law enforcement. I think he also knows you’re a person who deeply feels the need to take care of family.

Dora called a couple of days after the incident, and told me, “We had a guy hanging around our parking area at the condo and at the club. He was definitely watching us and I was about to sic one of our guys on him. He vanished and hasn’t been back since your former love interest was blown to bits. I’m glad the guy is gone so that I don’t have to carry a gun all the time again.”

Sis came to see me at the house, but didn’t stay overnight. I made sure Juanita was okay and then traveled back to north of Tampa to rejoin the family that had adopted me.

I was given a gala welcome home the Friday evening after I arrived back in Tampa. There was a lot of praise about all the various companies before Steve took the microphone at the conclusion, and softly said, “One of our people who’s had several interruptions to his goals is Chuck Miller. The man literally worked day and night to learn and get his flight hours to progress. This Chuck has become a commercial and instructor certified pilot, and has just obtained his Airline Transport Pilot rating.”

There was just a few hands applauding, and the crowd then erupted into hollering and whistling to go along with the applause. Steve waited, and then said, “Chuck Miller has been checked out and is now a helicopter pilot, but alas, the man doesn’t know what he’s going to do next. What will we have Chuck do?”

A hush came over the crowd, and then someone yelled, “Find him a woman or three, and get him married. He’ll have a hell of lot to do for the rest of his life.”

That broke up the crowd who was laughing as well as hollering, applauding, and cheering. Steve held his hand up, and said, “He’s resisted some of the finest we have to offer so far. I think that it’s time to use Chuck to run around the country and countries for me, and tell people that S&S should be considered the company to do business with. This should give Chuck time to figure out what he’s going to do with his life. Will you travel for me, Chuck? I would really enjoy you being my envoy.”

I smiled at Steve and softly said to him, “I’ll give it a year to see how it goes. The only problem that I see is being away from this place right here. I love all you people and somehow know that my family will be here in the future.”

Saturday morning was the usual startling apparel for most all the women. I loved the two redheads who looked like twins and wore T-shirts with strategic holes that let a nipple pop out. The way both would sit in one of the chairs and show their sparse red-furred center while sliding a finger up and down the furrow was more than most men could handle. Shawna knew that I was fascinated by her red-furred center, and sat in her husband’s lap and played with herself as she grinned at me. Her husband, Charlie, said, “Just throw her over your shoulder and take her inside. My God, she’s been asking for it for at least a year. You, my friend, are more man than me to be able to resist.”

I smiled at the couple, and told them both, “I really think you guys are wonderful, and I’m ecstatic to be able to be around you.”

The mountain of a man said, “All you need now is a bike, and you’ll really be a part of us.”

A guy named ‘Hank’, who I had met earlier said, “I think I know where Chuck #2 can get a bike. It’s going on the block tomorrow, so we should get there early and buy it before the auction. I know it to be a good bike in good condition. Come early and we’ll go get you a ride. Do you have a motorcycle endorsement on your license?”

It was amazing, but I had gone to the two schools to learn to ride correctly as a teen a long time ago. Mom and Dad had made that a condition to my getting a bike, so I met those conditions so that I could ride. Those were the rice rocket days. It was all Harleys now. I told the man that I had a motorcycle endorsement on my license. We had to celebrate with another beer from the dispenser that seemed to never run dry.

Steve said, “We need to keep some big bottles of tea here for you,” when they all went home. “I can tell you don’t want to keep drinking. Ask the ladies and they will help you. You’re not the only one to dodge the booze and beer. Hank is determined to get you a bike in the morning. Do you have enough cash, or can I help to get this done?”

“I have it, Steve. I have a stash that should be good for this. Now I’ll have to find my own place so I can have a place to keep the bike.”

Steve said, “Not right away. See if you’re going to ride with these guys and us before you decide. I’m ready for a ride, so let’s get you a bike and roll.”

I slept with the thought of riding. I think I must have disturbed Sis, as she was banging in my head in the morning. “Are you going to buy a motorcycle? Will it be like before or one of those neat choppers like the people at the trailer park have? Do you still have that motorcycle in the garage? You never did tell me where it came from.”

I had to tell her that I didn’t know what kind of bike I was going to look at, but I would tell her after I went to check out the bike Hank wanted me to get.

The discovery that Sunday morning breakfast was very different surprised me. Steve told me to warm up my cup and come help almost as soon as I had a few sips of coffee. He gave me two huge bowls of potatoes to slice and dice so that they could be fried. Glenda was making what looked like enough biscuits to feed an army by keeping trays of biscuits going into the ovens. Steve was frying bacon and busting eggs into one of the bowls that had previously contained potatoes. Steve had me begin making pancakes, saying that it was the kids’ favorite but a lot of the kids weren’t here today. I filled six big platters with stacks of pancakes and stirred the potatoes in bacon grease, while Steve cooked the scrambled eggs and Glenda made gravy.