Chapter 20

Steve

I had slipped out of bed while the girls were all sleeping soundly. Sue raised her head, smiled at me, looked at the clock, and lay her head back down. While I was taking a quick shower, Kathy joined me and was very amorous this morning. It wasn't long before the shower degenerated into doing her while she leaned against the wall. When we both successfully and enjoyably completed our coupling, we clung to each other as the water rained on us.

Kathy said, "This is nice. Sometimes I just need you by myself. I love the others, but I do like some special attention."

We kissed enjoyably, finished washing, got out to dry, and I shaved. When Kathy and I arrived up in the salon, Ben and Dewey were both on the phone. I wonder who Ben was talking to.

Kathy and I had picked up mugs of coffee in the galley, which was unusually devoid of any women. Ben hung up and said, "That was my contact in Spain. He has another prospective South American gold mine prospect. I'll have to have someone check it out, but it could be something. This guy has made a killing in the mining business. He does go after other minerals, like coal, and I know he recently has been investing in some premium iron ore mines."

Dewey hung up and said, "That was one of our Amsterdam partners in Hawaii. He tells me that construction has begun on the new resort. It will probably take a year, but I am excited about the prospect of owning another resort there."

I asked him, "The way you've been investing over there, are you considering moving there?"

"Not really," Dewey said, as he sipped his coffee. "But I think I'm going to build a house over there so we'll have a place to stay instead of a hotel. It would be nice to have something that would be more laid back."

Chuck, Lisa, and Julie came up the stairway. I was thinking that those three are becoming a set. Whenever it was possible, Julie was with Lisa and/or Chuck. All three of them had coffee, but Lisa went behind the bar and began building the favored morning drink, Bloody Mary's, as soon as she started, Ben said, "Please make me one, Lisa, I think that would taste good this morning."

Before she could even begin another glass, everyone in the salon asked to her to make one for them.

Lisa didn't break her movements, but set up as many glasses as people present, plus two more. She made the Bloody Marys a little weak, but no one would notice when they drank theirs. Lisa handed everyone a tall glass and put two full glasses on the other side of the place where she intended to sit. Lisa had no sooner climbed onto the tall chair when the Asian sisters came up the stairs. The two gave Chuck, Lisa, and Julie kisses, and had to make an effort to climb up on the tall bar chairs. They smiled sweetly at the rest of us at the bar, then immediately sipped on their drink.

Chuck said, "I wish we could have slept longer, but Lisa and I are so wired that we were being too restless for the others. We decided to get up and shower, and you know how that is. A shower draws a crowd on this boat."

Dewey was laughing and said, "I'm sure glad you remodeled this tub with giant showers. I don't think I've ever seen huge showers before on boats like this. At least, you had plenty of room to work with, and I think it was space well used, especially for the people you have with you."

Merlin, Missy, and Beth came up the stairs, all with wet hair. Beth said to Ben, "You missed out on a good shower this morning, Honey. I think Missy and I fulfilled some of Merlin's fantasies. You would have enjoyed it."

Ben and Merlin blushed, but at that second, Mercy came up the stairs and asked, "Who's the bartender this morning? I need something after being wakened by my parents playing in the shower." Mercy looked at her parents with a raised eyebrow. Merlin blushed again, but Missy just gave her daughter an 'I can do that stuff too' look.

I went behind the bar and built the required number of drinks and did some refills for some of the people who had been there a while. I hadn't finished before John and Wanda, Don and Jan, and Dennis and Marie showed up. I raised my glass at them and all six were nodding at me. Juanita came up and gave Sue, Mercy, and me kisses, then climbed up on another stool. She smiled at me, "Hey Gringo, how about some of that lifeblood to a good chica."

That gave me a smile and I immediately made the sweet Latin lady another Bloody Mary.

Seeing as how almost all of the adults were present, I jokingly asked, "I guess you are all curious why I called this meeting."

That brought some laughs, but I added, "Chuck and Lisa may have a problem. They play a matinee Sunday, and you can bet they won't get out of there until six or seven, maybe even later. If a bunch of us go, we'll be about as late with the traffic. The problem is that Chuck and Lisa have another concert on the Riviera. I know it's only a minimum of a twenty-four hour trip to get to Nice where the yacht club is, but that means they aren't going to be able to practice until late Tuesday or Wednesday at the earliest. Chuck, do you think you and Lisa should fly there? Maybe you could fly with the band if you think you'll need the extra practice."

Chuck was nodding and said, "I keep forgetting about another concert on the Riviera. Somehow, I think their agent has booked more than one. He's really riding the popularity of the group right now. Probably smart, but they are going to be beat by the time the group gets back home."

Lisa added, "If we were only doing one or two shows, then traveling to the next venue, we could probably handle the strain, but three days in row is really going to sap us. When we get done with the Riviera, especially if we have two or three concerts there, Chuck and I are going to need oxygen and traction."

Chuck held up his hand and pulled his cell phone from his pocket. He dialed and after waiting for what was probably several rings, Chuck said, "Late sleeper, huh?"

While grinning, he listened to whomever he was talking to. He said into the phone, "How many shows are we doing on the Riviera and where are they? Are they all in Nice or spread out?"

Chuck was listening with his eyes darting back and forth, taking in what he was being told. He finally said, "Thanks for the information, you can go back to bed now, but you probably need to get up and make sure everything is set up at the stadium. " There was another pause before he said, "Okay, I'll see you with the guys at practice."

Chuck looked at Lisa and said, "Another three the same as here, except after Friday and Saturday night is in Nice, and we're playing in Cannes for the matinee on Sunday." Chuck looked up at me and asked, "How far is it from Nice to Cannes?"

Dewey helped me out and told him, "Less than fifty miles, about the same distance as it is between here and Rome, plus it's less than fifteen miles to Monaco; Nice is right in the middle. I'm partners in resorts and casinos in all three locations, all with the same group of people. While we're there, we are going to do some damage when we hit those casinos."'

I smiled at Dewey's determination to teach some greedy partners a lesson. I hoped we could do that for him and I hoped there would be no repercussions for him.

Taiying said to Chuck, "Sing and I will give you special massages this weekend to help you. You both need to exercise to keep your energy up as well. Why don't you both go to the exercise room and walk or run for about fifteen minutes this morning. It will really help your adrenaline and stamina later."

Lisa looked at an almost full glass and at Chuck's before saying, "What do you think Kemo Sabe, should we forsake the firewater for some exercise?"

Chuck took a big gulp of his drink before setting it back on the bar, and got off his chair to head below, with Lisa and Julie following. Sing was smiling and quietly said, "We are supposed to make sure they get their exercise. We are good for both of them."

Ed showed up and said, "We came by this morning, even though the ladies decided not to tour today. Some may want to take a short trip before going to the concert."

Sue said, "I'm not sure, but if you have something interesting that isn't demanding, I'm sure Merlin would like to see more of Rome, and Glenda and Martin may go. It needs to be something low key and not a ton of walking."

Ed asked, "How about another visit to the Vatican museum for a couple of hours. We didn't get to see very much when we visited before. I think I can get us in without having to stand in line again. I do have an in with people there."

Sue said, "I'll go ask Glenda and Martin and see what they say. I'll get the kids up to see if they might want to go. Taiying, why don't you go ask your other women if they might enjoy a gentle day at the museum. Tell them they will be back in plenty of time to get ready to go to the concert."

Ed offered, "I have to pick up four kids of a man Chuck is doing a favor for. We can pick them up on the way back to the boat so the kids can meet and have some fun with yours. I'm sure they speak enough
English they will be able to communicate. The schools here begin teaching English during the first year."

I elbowed Dewey, "I'm going. Come with me as I'm sure the museum is very fascinating."

Dewey nodded and said, "Sounds good to me, I'll go get the sisters up."

Glenda came to the top of the stairs, "I have breakfast ready, the kids are already eating. Sue just told me about going back to the museum. Martin and I want to go too."

Ed was smiling, "This is good; we're going to have a nice group of people. I'll make my call to make sure we can get in my special entrance. Perhaps Steve and Dewey might have a small offering for the museum. That always makes the museum people happy."

I knew that a contribution always oils the way, so I pulled some large Euro notes from my pocket and handed them to Ed. "Will this be about right?"

Ed smiled, "Perfect."

A few minutes later, Chuck and Lisa came up the stairs as Chuck was checking his watch. Chuck said, "See you guys this afternoon. Our ride to the studio should be waiting for us." I watched as he walked down the dock and talked to one of the security people out there.

I got up and went below to have some breakfast with the rest of the family and friends.

The surprise was that the place was jumping. The kids were excited about going back to Rome and about the concert tonight. When I sat at the big table, Greg came to sit next to me. He said, "Momma said that we were going to the concert with some real Italian kids. Do you know who it's going to be, who they are? Do you know how old they are? Will they be able to speak English? I don't know any Italian; I know Spanish, but no Italian."

The kid was excited and full of questions. I told him, "I really don't know how old they are, but it's possible they might be older than you. I doubt your mothers would let you go to a concert with strangers until you're older. What do you think?"

Greg sat there a few minutes, screwing up his mouth as he thought about it. "I'm older than some of the kids, so it might be alright for me to go, but someone like Bonita, the triplets, or the twins would be too young. I see what you mean. It'll be fun to meet some real Italian kids anyway. We haven't met anyone from here and all of us like to meet new kids and play with them."

Greg took off about the time that Mike, Mercy's oldest, came to sit in the same chair. He asked, "Do you know anything about the kids that are going to the concert with us? Maybe we could call them and they can go to the museum with us. Do you think they are our age?"

The kids were really curious about some Italian kids. Ed was eating with us so I asked him, "Did Chuck call these folks yet? Have you?"

Ed said, "I talked to their mother already and she told me their grandfather, Giovanni Martinelli assured her they would be well taken care of. I'm a little nervous about being responsible for some more kids, but the mothers, your ladies, will help me watch them."

I asked Ed, "How about calling their mother and see if they can go with us to the museum. I'd bet they would enjoy meeting our kids and going to the museum with us."

Ed was a little hesitant, but pulled out his cell phone and a piece of paper, and made the call. He was speaking for a minute or so, when he asked me, "The mother would like to accompany us to the museum and if we had another ticket would like to go to the concert."

I told Ed, "No problem. Find out if she speaks English and if her husband would want to go."

Ed spoke to the woman for a few minutes, and had a sour look on his face. I could tell he wasn't happy about something. He finished the call and reached for his coffee mug. After a drink, he said, "The mother speaks English, but the father has left his family. She said he told her he was leaving and she hasn't seen him for over nine months. She says she was going to apply for a divorce, but it's something that is frowned upon in our culture."

Ed was shaking his head when he said, "Knowing her family, I wouldn't be surprised if the lady finds out she's a widow. She is the youngest daughter of Giovanni. I wonder if it was an arranged marriage. That might explain her lack of emotion she had when she told me. Not good, not the Italian way."

When the galley and tables were cleaned up, everyone on the boat and some from the Irish Bell were ready to go out for a short trip to the museum. Ed had called for another bus, sending the first full one ahead. Two security people got on the first bus, and I saw two getting on board our bus with us. We drove toward Rome, but detoured into a nice neighborhood, stopping in front of a good sized home. Ed had been on his cell phone and went to the front door. A woman came out and headed to the bus, accompanied by four kids looking to be near my kids' age."

When Ed entered the bus with the woman, I stood up and welcomed her. I told her my name was Steve Sharp and pointed and introduced Sue and Mercy, who were sitting together up front, telling her their names. She said, "My name is Gina Martinelli. Since my husband has vanished, my children and I are resuming our family name. The children are my son, Giovanni, named for his grandfather, and Sophia, and these two are cousins, my sister's children, Gioia and Mario, they also are without a father."

Greg had come forward and waved at the four kids, he said to them, "Come sit with us kids. Your mom can sit with our moms."

The four children looked at their mother for permission. She spoke in Italian, and the kids smiled and moved past her to go to the back of the bus where a bunch of our children were sitting. The woman, Gina, turned to me and said, "I'm sorry for speaking in Italian, I wanted the children to understand. They are good with the English, but just like Italian, your words can mean many things some times."

Mercy got up and moved across the aisle to where I had been sitting with Dewey. He had moved back to sit with Ben. Sue said, "Sit with me, Gina; we can get to know each other."

As we sat down, Mercy flooded my head, "She is very beautiful, isn't she?"

I was startled and looked at Mercy as if she was crazy. She leaned over to me and whispered into my ear, "You won't believe what Sue is thinking right now, and Gina almost drooled over you when she got on the bus."

I looked at her and said, "No," emphatically. When I looked toward Sue, who was talking to Gina facing my way, I looked at her and shook my head and mouthed "No." No way, no way, do we need to get involved with an Italian lady who doesn't know where her husband is. I had the feeling that this lady, and this Giovanni, might be from a powerful family that I probably didn't want to know anything about. I needed to talk to Chuck as he knows about these people.

Mercy leaned to my ear again, "This person is not involved in what her family does, and the children are innocent, of course. I'm sure she knows her father is an important person within the world he travels in, but she is not a part of it."

I asked quietly, "How do you know all of this?"

She said, "I know from her mind. Mother is inside her head, giving her calming suggestions so she is relaxed with us. Chuck was thinking about these kids last night and he said the same thing, the children are innocent. He didn't think about this woman, but he trusts this Giovanni person."

The only thing I could do was to shake my head and hope Sue minded me. I have not been an ogre with her about the way she collects women friends, but I didn't think it would be a good idea to have a pair of Italian panties notched on her bedpost. Mercy punched me and whispered, "We're not that bad. We just enjoy having some fun and I do think Gina is gorgeous. She is really built, too." She was that.

Oh my, just what I don't need is a bunch of horny women on the prowl. You would think that they would be happy to have the five of them and me. They have all Chuck's women and those ladies at the park that they enjoy for variety. They sure don't need an international plaything. Besides, I've heard these Italian women are very protective and jealous, so she wouldn't be a good candidate for my women.

Mercy said, "You're thinking all wrong, Steve. Gina is very open and very gentle. I love the way her mind gives out warm friendly signals. Do you know she's attracted to Sue? Just look at her devouring Sue's cleavage. That woman is on the verge of attacking her right here. I think she's been without for too long."

"Christ, Mercy, quit talking about it. She's going to hear you and that's just what we don't need. A woman who feels she might be taken advantage of, or feels that we might be predators."

Mercy just smiled, and I could feel Missy trying to give me calm warm feeling, while Mercy teasingly smiled at me.

While we were driving to the Vatican, Ed passed out the headsets again, telling us he had charged all of them. In her halting English, I heard Gina say, "This is good, I will hear English from Eduardo and will be able to know what items are named in English."

We reached the museum in a short time and saw the very long line of people already cued up waiting to get in. The main entrance to the Vatican Museums is through a doorway in a bastion in the walls that surround most of Vatican City, and the main exit is through another doorway through the old defensive wall about 100 feet to the right. This early in the morning, no one was leaving the museum yet, but Ed took us to the exit and we walked right in. Ed handed the doorkeeper an envelope, and proceeded to lead us to the first exhibit he wanted us to see. The Vatican Museums – they call them that, plural, museums – are in a former papal palace and are made up mostly of the papal collections of paintings and sculpture, mostly displayed where the popes put them over the centuries. Some of the paintings are frescoes that are permanently part of the walls of the rooms in which they were painted long ago. There are also some collections of miscellaneous sculptural and architectural fragments from ancient Rome dug up around the city over the centuries.

Part of the former palace is called the Belvedere, Italian for "pretty view", though we couldn't tell much about the view. Ed showed us a headless, armless, legless marble torso of a muscular looking man and said this was called the "Belvedere Torso", and had inspired Michelangelo and other artists to depict similar figures in their paintings and sculpture. "You will see in the Sistine Chapel similar frescoes of similar tensely twisted torsos, only they'll have their arms, legs, and heads," Ed said. He also showed us a beautiful clean, smooth white marble statue of a man, explaining, "This is the Apollo Belvedere, a Roman copy of a bronze Greek statue. It was found near here centuries ago and became part of the collection." We proceeded through the palace, through one ornate passage after another, until we came to a set of rooms with painted walls – painted with paintings, that is. "These rooms were frescoed by Rafael, one of the greatest painters of the Renaissance. Fresco is a painting technique in which the colors are applied to fresh wet plaster and become a permanent part of the wall as the plaster dries. This wall here is probably the most famous, called "The School of Athens", supposedly showing ancient Greek philosophers – but Rafael filled it with portraits of his fellow Renaissance artists. Here is Leonardo da Vinci, over here is Rafael's self portrait, and this bearded fellow looking miserable on the steps is Michelangelo – he didn't get along well with Rafael."