Chapter 24

Sunday morning brought some new insight. I was up and sitting in our kitchen when Marilyn came in to give me a hug. She looked up at me and said, "You know Sal, I sometimes think I'm an idiot for being one of five women who are sucking up to you for your love. Then I realize how much you really love all of us and I know I'm doing the right thing. The way Garth looks up to you and calls you 'Dad' makes my heart sing. I thought that I might abandon these other fickle four, but I do love you, Sal, and want to be a part of our love for each other. Forgive me for having second thoughts."

I hugged the very attractive lady to me and kissed her forehead as she wept on my chest. She was able to come out of it and sat up, asking, "How about some coffee at home before we invade the patio."

With my smile, she got busy making coffee. That answered one of my questions from last night.

Janet and Donna came from Donna's room and walked up to me. They both gave me warm hugs, but it was Donna who brought my head down to hers and gave me a passionate kiss. When our lips parted, Janet pulled my head to hers, and kissed me with enthusiasm that I hadn't felt from her before. She said to me, "I love you, Sal. Donna does too, but she knows that you are mine and will remain mine. She knows that you are special and wants some of that specialness. If you ever decide to love my Donna the way you love me, you not only have my permission, you'll also have my help. How could I ever deny my daughter the same pleasure that you give me?"

Donna snuggled into my arms and whispered, "I know I shouldn't tempt you, and I'll try not to. Gin thinks getting you worked up over us is funny, but I don't want to get you worked up; I want you to make love to me even if it's probably wrong. If there's anyone that you need to worry about, it's Niki, because she thinks that you're some kind of God. I love you, Sal, and I love what you've done for my mom. We are happier right now than we have been since I was in kindergarten. Mom and I both love you, Sal, so keep us, love us, and don't let us go. I'm going to be a nurse soon and make you proud one of these days."

"You already make me proud, Donna. I love your mom and I love you, but in different ways, I love you the way of a parent should. You're a precious person to me and I want you to be happy with yourself through every step of your life. Relax, be yourself, and enjoy, Donna."

Janet hugged me to her and whispered, "Thank you, Sal. The way you talk to her is so special. I know she is moved when you do. I know I am."

Life is good. I was holding a mother and daughter whom I loved and cared for, but I was being offered a cup of coffee by a grinning Niki. Donna said, "See, I told you she would be the one to want to influence you."

Niki just grinned at all of us, and reached up and pinched one of Donna's nipples. "Ow, Niki, what was that for?"

"For telling Sal that I was going to get into his pants. Just stay out of it and let me get what I want."'

The way she said what she did was meant to be funny, and I took it that way. I was laughing hard enough for Janet and Donna to get down. Niki was still standing in front of me with her hands on her cocked hips as she looked at me with inviting eyes.

I announced to them all, "Okay, Girls, enough hurting each other. If anyone is going to pinch nipples, it's going to be me."

I shouldn't have said that, because in seconds I had the twins, Grenaline, Donna, and Niki holding their shirts up inviting me to pinch their nipples. "Okay, okay, I meant that I didn't want you guys hurting each other. You're all inviting, but I'm not about to start doing things like that."

"Oh, Sal," I heard from the twins in unison. Gin and Niki giggled, and Donna gave me a smoldering look that meant that I needed to pay attention.

The mothers were now in the kitchen, laughing. Jeff and Garth were observing with their mouths open.

Jeff broke us up with his comment, "Man, this is better than the Saturday nightie show. What do you think, Garth, was that a sight or what?"

Garth blushed bright enough that if we could have preserved the energy, we could have lit the park up for a month.

We went to the patio for Sunday breakfast. While eating, I heard Donny say something about the programmers working nonstop on something, and had not been out of the lab since Thursday.

Uh, oh. They were not following directions, but I also knew that if they thought they were on the edge of something, they would continue until it either proved impossible or it was a reality.

I went for my cart and rode straight to the lab. The security guard rolled his eyes when I asked if they had asked for breakfast.

I observed four men inside the programming room, Sandy and his three programmers sitting, staring at a screen that showed a continuous string of dots. That meant that a program they had run didn't work. It didn't compile correctly and it wasn't going to without some help.

I yelled, "Hey!"

Four startled men looked up at me.

"I gave you instructions on how to work, and this isn't part of it. All of you get out of here this instant, go to the patio where you will eat, have some coffee, then go home, take a shower, and go to bed. No one will think of work until tomorrow morning and only then will you tell me what you were working on. After that, you're banished to the beach, bar, or any beauties you can talk into bed. Now get."

I reviewed what they had been working on and saw that they were looking for a way to remotely trigger enemy SAMs and misdirect them. That would be a hell of a tool for an attack fighter bomber. Actually, it would be significant for any aircraft flying within a zone where anti-aircraft weapons might be launched.

I ran the program with tracking three times to see what they had missed. I sensed the problem was with insufficient input variables, so I set the parameters to look at more information and ran it again.

It was closer, but still no cigar. I watched as the program used all of the input, then reacted, but it didn't or wouldn't avoid the SAMs. We needed to have more anticipation that was tied to the SAM and the response attack on the launch site. The constantly changing conditions as the weapon was fired caused the SAM to respond at the same time that the drone fired to neutralize the SAM and SAM launch site. That information had to be computed, locked in, and used to fire within two seconds. That is close.

It could be done, but we would have to make a bunch of assumptions that should be correct, but no one would know right away. War is like that though, as you sometimes knew exactly what the enemy was doing and you sometimes didn't. I rewrote the program to update every millisecond, while gathering continuous information, until the final predetermined firings. As soon as we knew a SAM was going to be launched, we would continuously input data right up to and including the point of firing at the SAM and the emplacement where it was fired from.

I ran the program through about five times and made notes as to what I did. The guys had come upon one hell of a defensive problem, and had solved it except for a couple of minor items. I'll bet they would be pleased that I found the missing link when they came back in the morning.

Since this was Sunday, I washed and polished the cars, carts, and now the motorcycles. I was cleaning my mess up when Sandy Flowers and the three programmers pulled up in his cart.

He walked up to me as if he was ready to pick a fight. "Damn, Sal, don't do all of our work for us. We would have found it, but you walk in, figure out what we're doing, see the problem, and rewrite the code to make it work. If you can do that, what the fuck are we here for?"

I looked at Sandy and the men, and then said, "My job is to keep you men working intelligently. Working nonstop from Thursday thru Sunday morning isn't intelligent. Even I would become inefficient after being awake for that long. My job is to keep you men fresh and productive. You are precious minds for us to use, and we will no longer have you to use if you mistreat those minds and bodies."

Sandy told me, "Okay, I'll agree with you, but we sometimes need to figure things out on our own. Let us do that and finish something, Sal. You're constantly coming in, finding the error, and rewriting a program that works while we're still trying to compile our code. Give us a chance to finish it, okay?"

"I will, if you will work within the hours I set for you. Now, take that program to the next level and figure how to get all of that code inside the minimal memory size that we've been allotted. I'll check on you, but I won't be here for a week or so."

I heard Sandy grumble that I would still have ears and eyes over the entire complex. I might, but I didn't know how to access that. I reminded them, "Do what Steve always tells me. Work your normal hours and don't screw with your intelligence by overdoing it. Work a regular day, then go enjoy some relaxation. You should know that we might start going to lunch and the gym each day to make sure you guys stay in shape."

There were groans from four men. I told them, "Just think how happy your women will be with your renewed vigor. Now go enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and only do what I told you to do tomorrow; no more all-nighters unless I'm there with you."

I told Sandy to hang back for a second. When the others were gone I told him, "Relax, Sandy; you and the guys are worth your weight in gold. Steve is making me take a vacation, and if you guys keep this up, I'll do the same with you. Don't overdo it, because I meant what I said. You and your men are too valuable to mistreat."

"I, uh, we want to be the best, Sal. We want to be like you and be able to see everything at once like you do. This is important to us, Sal, so we're probably trying too hard."

With a smile, I said, "I understand, Sandy. I also always felt inferior, and made sure that I tried harder than anyone else. I'm ecstatic at the way you and the men have produced, and gave you a project that will take all of your expertise to complete, but you guys found or thought you found a solution to the reactive response for SAMs. You were on the right path, but the solution was to gather more information within milliseconds of the SAM launch. Your next task is to shrink the program to fit, or redesign the hardware to make it fit. Enjoy doing that, then get on the project I wanted you guys to work on."

Sandy shook his head, "This is just like in school; you were always teaching even when you were chewing us out. It's tough to stay pissed at you, Sal. I try, but even the guys see your point. We'll shrink this, then do your project."

Sandy walked around Steve's house to get to the patio, where I figured his wife, the other Sandy, would be waiting.

Jeff came out of the house and up to me, "Okay, Sal, or will you listen if I call you 'Dad'?"

I had to grin at the tall, good-looking kid.

Jeff continued, "When can we leave for Costa Rica, and what kind of aircraft can we take?"

"Look at who will be going. We have the five women, you six kids, and the two babies, fourteen of us all together. What aircraft is going to work for us?"

"I've been thinking that we could use a Gulfstream. Actually, any that are available would be good."

I told Jeff, "We might want to circulate among the group on the patio to see if anyone else wants to travel with us. We might need a bigger aircraft and I just happen to know that we just recently took in a real nice 737-300C in a luxury configuration on consignment."

Jeff excitedly told me, "Heck, Sal; if you take that, I'll ride and you can get someone else to fly."

"Well, let's see who wants to go down there for a week to ten days, and we'll go from there. You know we can always take a 19 seat King Air. That would handle everyone, plus some extras."

"Oh yeah, Sal, I didn't think of that one because that would be a long slow flight, wouldn't it?"

I had to agree, "Not bad, but I think a little less time in the air would be a bonus."

Jeff headed to the patio and I went inside to use the PC in the office to see if Mom and Dad were home.

It took only a second to log onto Mom's kitchen PC. Sure enough, Grandma and Mom were making something. I softly said, "What are you making, anything good?"

Grandma jumped and grabbed her chest as Mom turned to the computer, laughing. You have to be more careful with your grandmother, Sal. She's not used to you sneaking up on us."

"Sorry, Grandma, sorry, Mom, I wanted to give you a call and see how you guys were."

Grandma said, "You know there are things called telephones that you could use to announce yourself."

"I know, Grandma, but you'll see me if you turn to the computer screen on Mom's counter."

Grandma took in a quick breath, "Can you see us the same way?"

"Yes, Ma'am, I can. I can't smell what you're cooking, but it looks good."

Mom dryly said, "How long before you invent smell-o-vision over the computer."

I laughed, but considered the idea. "Not practical, Mom. It would take too much hardware to define the contents of the air."

Mom laughed and said to Grandma, "See what your grandson says when you ask him a ridiculous question. He's as bad as your son, his dad."

"Hey, you two, I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go down to Costa Rica with me. I'm going to fly down this coming week for seven to ten days. Do you want to go? We can either stay at a fancy resort or a big home on the island. Chuck even has a big condo on the Costa Rican mainland."

"Who will pay for all this, Sal?" Mom was always conscious of what the price tag was.

"It's kind of a reward for the work I've been doing, Mom. Even if Steve wasn't paying for it, the bonus he gave me would cover it multiple times. How about it, do you two want to go to an exotic resort for a visit?"

Mom said, "Let us talk to the men about it, and we'll get back with you. Call back this evening and use the living room PC. I'll make sure it's on and the camera is focused on the couches."

"Okay, Mom. I hope you guys can get away for a while. It should be fun."

When I went to the patio, Charlie was organizing a work weekend out at Duke's for two weeks from this weekend. That would work for the family to go to Costa Rica and be back in time to participate. I told Charlie all about the trip, and he said that it should work out. He said he already had about twenty volunteers, but most importantly, he had Jonah supplying food and Steve supplying cold beer. The cleanup detail should be a good party.

I spoke with each of the ladies to get their wants and desires regarding the upcoming trip. They all seemed to prefer the quiet home on the hill of the main island rather than the resort. Jenny told me, "Brandy showed us pictures of both the main island and home. The way she talks about those people makes me want to stay there. Chuck's lady, Julie, says she's going with us, since she always needs to visit her old homestead. We need to get more info on her and what she meant."

Abe came up to us and said, "Alice and I would like to come if you guys have room. Mark said he had room for us to stay with him while we visited. What do you think; will there be enough room on the plane?"

I told Abe, "We will have enough room even if we have to take a 737. You're welcome to come with us. Make sure we're not leaving anyone behind, Abe."

Steve joined me at the bar while I had a scotch with Jenny, Marilyn, and Janet. He said, "You guys could take a prize winner with you, and they could have an extra day or so for their vacation prize. They'll stay at the resort and you won't see them after you land. I did want you to talk to Chuck's Italian father-in-law, since he might want to go down there for a visit. He has some friends who work for the resort down there. That would mean you would be taking Giovanni and Mesa, his sister or wife, whatever she is."

I smiled at Steve and said, "Well, we've gone from the Phenom 300, to the Gulfstream, to the 737. Is there anyone else that wants or needs to go?"

Steve said, "Just check around, you never know. I think we could almost have a shuttle between here and there if we planned it."

The time was right after supper, so I went back to my home office and logged in to the living room computer. I said 'Ding' loud enough for all of them to hear.

Grandma smiled and said, "Much better, Sal. You didn't scare me to death this time."

"Okay, everyone, what's the deal? Who wants to go to Costa Rica with me?"

All four adults raised their hands and simultaneously said, "I do."

I laughed, they laughed, then Mom said, "I already called your charter office to get a ride to Tampa or where you are. We're getting a ride at three tomorrow afternoon on a plane that's coming back from Los Angeles. The girl on the phone said we would have to play chess with the hostess on board, but there would be some food left for us if we wanted it."

"You guys fly first class, don't you?" I was laughing at how fast Mom had picked up on what CS&S would do for them.

Dad said, "Only because we have a genius son who is creating weapons to keep the world safe. Thank you, Sal; I'm excited to go to Central America."

Mom said, "Your grandfather and grandmother have decided that we want to stay at the resort. Would you make reservations for us? We don't have to have a prestigious room, just a regular room close to the water."

"Mom, all the rooms are close to the water, and all of the suites are the same. There are no small rooms and there are no suites that are bigger than the others. The top floors suites are supposed to be able to be connected together when big families like Steve's or Chuck's go, but every suite is the same."

Grandma surprised me when she asked, "Can you find out what movie stars are going to be there while we're there? I'd love to see them up close and casual."

It was Granddad who turned the tables, "Me too, Sal. I want to see those starlets in those tiny bikinis. If I can talk her into it, I'll get Minnie to go to the nudie beach. She would turn some heads, I tell ya. She could be one of those what do you call it, cats, oh yeah, cougars."

Poor Gramps, he was punched very soundly by his wife of nearly sixty years.

Dad was laughing, but received a severe look from Mom. Dad said, "I suppose your mother has forgotten the good times we had at your hot tub. I won't forget the sight of her enjoying herself for many years."

Dad should have kept his mouth shut, as he received a harder punch than Gramps did.

I decided to tell Dad and Mom about the motorcycles. "I had the opportunity to buy a motorcycle to ride the women around on. The deal was so good, that I bought one with a sidecar and one without. I took a safety course and have been riding to make sure I ride correctly. So far so good, and I'm looking forward to giving you a ride on my motorcycle, Grandma."

Grandma was grinning, "I used to ride behind your grandfather when he had one of those. He never had a sidecar, but I could enjoy riding in one of those too. You'll have to take me to one of the motorcycle gangster bars with all of the crazy people if we go for a ride."

That was from my grandmother. What do you say to that?

"I'll do that, Grandma. We'll go drink some beer and be with the great unwashed and crazy bikers."

"Good, Sal. I love new adventures."

Mom told me, "You better hang up on us quick or you're going to be too busy playing with your grandmother to fly us down to Costa Rica."