Wait to Be My Angel

WAIT TO BE MY ANGEL

WAIT TO BE MY ANGEL s Deloras Davis

Writer’s Showcase San Jose New York Lincoln Shanghai

Wait To Be My Angel All Rights Reserved © 2001 by Deloras Davis No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the publisher.

Writer’s Showcase an imprint of iUniverse, Inc. For information address: iUniverse, Inc. 5220 S. 16th St., Suite 200 Lincoln, NE 68512 www.iuniverse.com This work is wholly fictional and any similarity to persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. ISBN: 0-595-72362-4 Printed in the United States of America

Dedication To: My very special love, Dalton Head My children and grandchildren With all my love. To my wonderful friends, Joan, Shirl, Barbara, Sandra, Betty H., Bobbie, Maudie, Judith And THE Birthday Girls; Adalaide, Ann, Bernadette, Donna Jean, Diane, Linda, Madeline, Shiela I, Shiela II, and Susan Who have always been there for me. And…to my ‘Earth Angels’ Betty Gingery, Madeline Mills, And especially…Dorothy Henne Without whose help, this novel would never have been published. *

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SPECIAL LOVE AND THANKS TO

‘The Doc’ who encouraged me years ago to try my hand at writing and has always said…

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he knew I could do it!!

Contents s

Prologue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 Chapter 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Chapter 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Chapter 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Chapter 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Chapter 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 Chapter 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Chapter 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Chapter 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Chapter 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Chapter 10

Back to Present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61

Chapter 11

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65

Chapter 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Chapter 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77 Chapter 14 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85 Chapter 15

Back To The Present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90

Chapter 16

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96

Chapter 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105 Chapter 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112

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Contents

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Chapter 19

Back to the Present. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118

Chapter 20

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122

Chapter 21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127 Chapter 22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133 Chapter 23 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139 Chapter 24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .145 Chapter 25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153 Chapter 26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157 Chapter 27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .160 Chapter 28 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .167 Chapter 29

Back to the Present. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171

Chapter 30

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177

Chapter 31 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .184 Chapter 32 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .191 Chapter 33 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .201 Chapter 34 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .208 Chapter 35

Back to Present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .216

Chapter 36

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .220

Chapter 37 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228 Chapter 38 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .235 Chapter 39 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .239 Chapter 40 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .245 Chapter 41 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .251 Chapter 42 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256 Chapter 43 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .261 Chapter 44 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264 Chapter 45 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .270

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Chapter 46

Back to the Present. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276

Chapter 47

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280

Chapter 48 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .286 Chapter 49 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .292 Chapter 50 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .299 Chapter 51 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .307 Chapter 52 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .312 Chapter 53

Back To The Present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

Chapter 54

Remembering Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .321

Chapter 55 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .327 Chapter 56 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .333 Chapter 57 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .339 Chapter 58 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .342 Chapter 59

Dana’s Accident . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .345

Chapter 60

Back to the Present. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .348

Chapter 61 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .354 Chapter 62 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .363 Chapter 63 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .369 Chapter 64 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .375

Australian ‘Strine’ Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380 About the Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382 Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Prologue s

s he going to stay in that room forever and not come out even for a bite to eat?” the night supervisor asked nervously as she looked toward the Critical Care Unit. “He refuses to eat anything other than light snacks some of the other doctors force on him and he absolutely refuses to budge from her bedside,” the floor nurse answered. Inside the CCU in a private room, Dr. Carlo Evans sat by the bedside of Dana Evans who had at one time been his wife. She was still in a coma after he himself had operated on her two days ago. Previously, two days before, Carlo, as Chief of Staff at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, he had been conducting the monthly meeting when George Rodgers, an Internist at the hospital and a very good friend, rushed in and whispered into his ear. Carlo immediately left the room without excusing himself, his face ashen. “Holy Christ! What in God’s name happened, George?” Carlo asked as they raced toward the emergency room. “Dana was apparently driving here from Memphis. There was a bad thunderstorm, her car skidded on the slippery road and she went crashing over the side of one of the hills just outside of town. She’s in a state of shock, unconscious and it looks as though she may have a ruptured liver and one hell of a concussion!” George told him. “Do you want me to call Michael in? I thought perhaps you would want him to operate if it’s necessary.”

“I

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“You can call him in if you want to but I’m telling you right now, George, if there’s to be any surgery performed on Dana, I intend to do it myself! I’ll need an assistant however, and he’s the most capable guy for the job.” As accustomed as Carl was to the sight of blood, he was not prepared for the sight his eyes beheld as he pushed aside the curtain and burst into the cubicle in which lay the battered and bruised body of his ex-wife. He gasped audibly as he stepped over to begin the checking of her vital signs already registering on the monitor she had been attached to, Dana was covered with blood and her face seemed to be drained of color, His hand was visibly shaking as it reached out to touch her. Methodically, he took one after the other of the instruments needed to make a thorough examination of the injuries she had sustained in the accident. “Oh God, please don’t let her die before we can do something for her. Let her have the determination and the will to hang on,” he silently prayed as he worked feverishly over her. Her pulse was very weak, her hemoglobin was 6.7 and as George had told him, she was comatose. George and the ER nurses aided as much as they could in the examination but it was hard to keep up with Carlo as his hands raced over her entire body checking for other possible injuries. “It’s as you suspected, George…ridged-ness in the belly, a contusion and two broken ribs just above the liver. It’s ruptured all right, god damnit! Her left arm is broken just above the elbow. We’ll splint it for now and set it after we get the liver taken care of,” Carlo said. “Janet, thank God, you cross-matched her and got that blood going…she could have bled out already with that liver in the condition it’s in. Hand me that sterile pack on the tray and quickly prepare her forehead so that I can suture that laceration before we take her to the OR,” he said hurriedly to the ER nurse. “It’s too deep to leave until later.” Almost as quickly as he had ordered the pack, he had a needle and suture material in his gloved hand. He deftly began to sew up the

Prologue

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ugly cut on Dana’s forehead and as he sutured, Janet swabbed away the blood that trickled down Dana’s head toward her eye. She thought to herself as he worked…’He has always sutured so well and hardly ever leaves a scar. It would upset him greatly if he were to mar this particular face. I wonder if he still loves her as he used to?’ she mused. “OK, get her to OR on the double!” Dr. Evans shouted as he tore his gloves from his hands and started toward the scrub room as fast as his legs would carry him. Michael Burroughs was already scrubbing when Carlo burst through the double doors just outside OR 3. “George filled me in on the phone as to what happened,” he said. “Is it as bad as he had predicted?.” “Yes, I’m afraid it is and maybe even worse,” Carlo answered as he also began to fill his hands with antiseptic solution. “I know you feel you have to do the surgery yourself, Carlo, but do you honestly think that’s a good idea?” Michael asked. “I’m as ready to assist as you are to operate but this is a rather unusual situation, don’t you think?” “Damnit, Michael! I above all, know how competent you are with a scalpel, but you know as well as I do that I can’t let anyone else do this surgery. It’s risky business in the first place…I know that. There’s a big chance she won’t make it, so I can’t let anyone touch her but me. You’re as good with the knife as I am but I would feel better about the whole thing if I do it myself. Do you understand?” Carlo tried desperately to explain. He knew that he would probably be acutely criticized by the entire staff if he undertook this operation, for it was strictly against the rules and regulations for a staff surgeon to take any member of his own family under the knife. Even though he and Dana were no longer married, everyone suspected how he still felt about her. They may try to expel him from the staff and take away his privileges, but he didn’t give a damn what they would think. Let them try to expel him. He was Chief of Staff and also Chief of Surgery…it was up to him to make decisions in matters such as this

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anyway. Too, Dana was not his wife at the present time so he felt the Board would not legally have a leg to stand on to oppose him. He also felt that if anyone could pull her through, he and he alone could. He would try to keep telling himself that she was just another patient and not the most important person in the world to him. Yes, damnit, he still loved her and he always would. He would fight Satan himself for this woman and fight he might for he intended to save her this night if he had to sell his very soul to do it! Dana had been moved to OR 3 and the operating room crew was ready and waiting for Carlo when he walked through the OR door ten minutes later. Graham Staff, the hospital Anesthesiologist, was putting the IV tubing into her right arm. He looked up as Carlo and Michael let the attending nurses robe them. “She’s barely holding her own, Carlo, so we need to get started ASAP! Her pressure is fluctuating up and down like a yoyo. She’s hemorrhaging badly internally and you are going to have to get in there to stop it She’s had three bottles of blood already and there’s more on the way,” Graham informed them. “OK you guys…I’m ready if you are!” Carlo answered as he looked from one to the other around the table. The only sound to be heard in the room was the noise of the inhalator as it breathed for Dana. “Scalpel!” Carlo said as the night’s work was begun. The operation took five hours and twice during the surgery, Graham shouted that Dana had cardiac arrested and the surgery had to be stopped while Michael applied electric shock discs to her chest and injected adrenaline directly into her heart. Everyone in the room waited with baited breath and kept their eyes directly on Carlo as Michael worked feverishly over Dana’s frail body. Both times, within a matter of seconds, Graham uttered a sigh of relief and motioned for Carlo to continue. Dana’s liver had looked like a squashed melon when Carlo opened her up and he had never seen so much gushing blood. With the

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adeptness of a practiced and controlled surgeon, he worked intuitively, feeling his way when the suctioning instrument failed to clear the way fast enough. “God damnit, don’t touch me!” he snapped at the scrub nurse as she mopped the perspiration from his brow. His usual control evaded him now and his temper was spring-loaded. Carlo and Michael had always worked well together but this was one time the two sets of hands seemed to be joined to one thinking body for Michael’s assisting hands knew instinctively what Carlo’s operating hands were doing and what they were requiring of his almost before Carlo told him. From start to finish, the operation itself went well but the rest was up to Fate. Finally, the last suture and staple in place, Carlo moved to the side and let Michael take over the job of setting Dana’s broken arm and putting the cast in place. He was both mentally and physically exhausted, yet he refused to leave the room until everything was completed and the nurses were rolling Dana’s gurney toward the Critical Care Unit. He put his arm around Michael’s shoulders and said to him, “We’ve fought many a battle and pulled lots of fat out of the fire in the operating room Michael, but I do believe this has been the hardest one I’ve ever done, barring none! It was hard as hell for me to be totally impersonal in there and I had to keep telling myself that it wasn’t Dana that I had under my fingers or I don’t think I could have finished the case. As always, you were damned good help and if I ever needed good help, it was tonight! Thanks, friend…thanks a hell of a lot!” “I would appreciate it very much if you would contact Dana’s folks…Connie has their number…so that they can come and bring our daughter, Alana. God knows, I hate for her to see her mother like this but she has to know.” That had been two days ago and now Carlo Evans sat by his exwife’s bedside and monitored her vital signs on the Cardiac Monitor machine himself along with the CCU nurses as they came in at inter-

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vals, hoping any minute to find that something had changed and that she was going to awaken and be all right. She was holding her own but was still comatose. As he sat there holding her hand, he thought back to the beginning…

chapter 1 s

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hey had met eleven years ago, a few short months after Carlo’s divorce from his first wife. His friends had been so eager to introduce him to all of the eligible young ladies about town. He had been hounded by the unattached and on-the-make women about town who thought that if they could just hook him, what a wonderful catch the good doctor would make. He had endured a bad first marriage and he was certainly in no way, anxious to settle down again. He planned to make the rounds and have a ball. That is…until SHE came along. He first saw her in the hospital cafeteria and had asked George who she was. “She is here sitting with a patient on the third floor, a patient of yours, as a matter of fact,” George answered with a smile on his face. “The vag hyst you did this morning. A Mrs. Metcalf, I believe. “O-h-h-h yes. I can see the resemblance now. Is she married?” “Now, that, you horny bastard, I don’t know. You’ll have to do a little private detective work on your own to find out all of the particulars about this young lady. Happy hunting!” George said as he turned to empty his tray into the trash barrel. That evening as he was making rounds, Carlo passed the slightly ajar door of room 306 and his eye caught the reflection in the mirror of the young lady he and George had been discussing that afternoon.

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He turned around and went into the room even though he had already checked Mrs. Metcalf earlier on evening rounds. “How is she doing?” he politely asked as he entered the room. “She’s sleeping well now, thanks. The nurse took the catheter and the IV out thirty minutes ago and she has finally settled down,” the lovely young woman answered. “Aren’t you her sister?” “Yes, I am. My name is Dana Engles,” she said as she extended her hand. “You are Dr. Evans, aren’t you?” “Yes, that’s correct. I thought you had to be closely related to Mrs. Metcalf for you certainly do resemble her, “Carlo stated, smiling. “Do you mind if I sit down? I’m waiting for some x-rays and they won’t be ready for a few more minutes.” “Oh please do. I was getting terribly bored just sitting here and I was afraid the TV would disturb Cathy. I hated to leave her here alone the first night after surgery,” Dana said. “Her husband went home to look after the family.” “Do you live here in Atlanta?” Carlo asked, trying not to show his enthusiasm. “Yes, I do now. I have recently relocated here from Memphis where I was employed as an Interior Designer. I was offered a promotion, a larger salary, and many more added amenities which would go with the new position if I would agree to move to this area. I had no real ties in Memphis so I decided to make the change. I have relatives here in town, my sister and her family,” she added, motioning toward the sleeping form on the bed. “Married or single? Since you mentioned you had no real ties in Memphis, I would assume that you are unattached?” “Divorced. Three years ago,” she replied, trying not to show her surprise at his question. “Well, now, isn’t that a coincidence. I have recently become unencumbered myself. Hell to go through, isn’t it?” he teased. “Any children?”

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“No. I’m afraid I wasn’t blessed with any little ones and considering the outcome of my marriage, I suppose it’s a good thing,” Dana lamented. “There’s just my older brother, my sister Cathy, my parents and me.” A nurse technician walked past the door at this time and Dr. Evans asked her to bring two cups of coffee to the room. “Just wait until this gets around the nurse’s lounge tomorrow. We will be the talk of the hospital,” he laughed. “We may as well give them something to really talk about. Will you have lunch with me tomorrow in the cafeteria?” “I suppose I can get away for a few minutes,” nodding her head toward her sleeping sister. “What time?” Dana asked, trying to hide her astonishment at his sudden interest and invitation. “I’ll be through with my last case about 11:45. Give me time to clean up and change from the green monkey suit and I’ll meet you at the cafeteria door at 12:30 sharp,” Carlo said as he rose from the chair. Taking one last sip of his coffee, he turned toward the door. “If you need anything, just call one of the nurses at the station up the hall. I’ll tell them to keep an eye on your sister for you so that you can get some rest yourself. See you tomorrow.” Dana returned to the hospital at 8:00 the next morning after hurrying home for a quick shower and a change of clothes. Her sister was sitting up in bed enjoying a tray of scrambled eggs, toast, juice and coffee when she entered the room. “Hi there. My, don’t you look chipper this morning? One would never know you had been under the knife just a few short hours ago,” she said as she leaned over to kiss Cathy on the cheek. “I thought I would sneak home for a quick bath before you awakened. You had a pretty good night…must be because you had a very good surgeon with an excellent bedside manner.” “How would you know?” Cathy replied. “You have never met the man!”

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“Oh yes I have,” Dana smiled mischievously as she looked down at her sister in the bed. “As a matter of fact, I’m having lunch with him today in the cafeteria. All kinds of interesting things went on around here while you were catching some z’s last night.” “Listen, I don’t remember a thing after the nurse removed that damned catheter and IV,” Cathy said with a sigh. “I don’t think I would have had any pain at all if it hadn’t been for those blasted things. Honestly, I feel great this morning. Hands of gold, that man has! Say…enough about me, tell me how you got acquainted and so chummy so damned suddenly with the most eligible young doctor in town.” Dana recapped the night’s events for her sister and when she had finished, Cathy responded by saying that she, herself, had sort of a crush on the good doctor as many of his other patients had. “Must be his irresistible charm and bedside manner, as you say. I keep coming back for more and more surgery and before long, I won’t have anything else left to remove and there will be no way I can continue to see him occasionally after that!” she laughed. “Guess the only way is to have you get to know him better and bring him around to meet the family. Hey, which reminds me…he’s operated on several members of the family already but wouldn’t have a clue as to who they are unless a big gust of wind blew their skirts up!” Dana laughed along with her sister and then said, “Seriously now, Cathy…tell me about him.” “Well now, let’s see. Rumor has it that his first marriage was not exactly one that was made in heaven and he tried for years to bring himself to leave her but he stayed on a lot longer than was necessary for the children’s sake. His two sons are, for all practical purposes, grown and out on their own,” Cathy informed her. “He won’t be free for very long around here if any of these man hungry bitches have anything to do with it. I hear there’s a line two miles long just waiting for him to give them the time of day…and more, if you catch my drift!”

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Cathy took a long swallow from her cup of coffee and then continued. “He’s quite involved socially since his divorce and of course his picture is in the paper often with a different female on his arm in every one. The competition will be quite stiff…think you can handle it? Seems he has become a confirmed bachelor now that he is a free man again. There’s lots of free stuff out there, you know.” “Well young lady, I don’t see how just one luncheon date can qualify me for the race, do you?” Dana chuckled. “I’ll admit it sounds like quite a challenge and you know how I dote on challenge. However, there does seem to be a bit of chemistry at work here. I feel definitely drawn to him somehow.” Later Carlo noticed with an air of approval that the young lady was very prompt. ‘H-m-m-m, I like that’…he thought to himself as he watched Dana saunter down the hallway toward the cafeteria. One minute to 12:30. His time was always so limited and one of his pet peeves was having to wait on someone. ‘Chalk one up for the young lady!’ he smiled to himself as he followed her around the corner of the hallway. ‘Extremely nice legs and God!…what a fantastically shaped ass! Looks like a ripe pear…firm yet soft enough to provoke a pleasant touch and just right for pluckin’, he smiled to himself as he caught up with her. “Hi there. Hope you’re as hungry as I am, Carlo said as he took her elbow and pushed the door open for her. “Oh, hungry enough for a salad and a cup of tea, I suppose,” Dana said as she graced him with a big dimpled smile. “You won’t get very plump on a meal like that. I like a little meat on my women!” he laughed, looking at her with a twinkle in his eye. “And just what makes you think I am going to become one of your women?” Dana exclaimed. “Oh just a feeling I have,” Carlo said, laughing. ‘Cocky bastard’…she thought laughingly to herself…‘we’ll just have to see about that!’ She had no intention of becoming just another conquest to the man-about-town doctor!

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hey spent over two hours talking that first day at lunch. Carlo’s observations of Dana made him come to the conclusion that this was indeed a very unusual woman and he decided from the beginning that he wanted to see more of her. He found himself telling her things about himself that no one else knew. Carlo told her that he was a child of immigrant parents and had lived a life of poverty as a child. He had vowed at a very early age that neither he nor any member of his family would ever have to stand in a bread line or other people’s clothes, as he had once had to do. His parents were proud people and had searched in vain for months on end for work during the depression. His mother was an extremely good seamstress and finally found work in the garment industry in New York City. She spent many an hour in the evenings teaching her husband to cut and sew and he too, found work, making clothes. This was a far cry from his learned craft as a carpenter but at least it helped to put bread on the table for himself and his family of five. Carlo was one of three children. There were two younger sisters whom he helped to care for while his parents worked. He had wanted to quit school at fifteen so that he could go to work to help the family but his father was adamant in his refusal to let Carlo do as he wished.

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“No way you gonna quit-a the school work! You drop-a out and I break-a you Goddamn neck!” Carlo mimicked his father Antonio. Carlo knew in no uncertain terms that his father meant exactly what he said so he stuck reluctantly with his schoolwork even though, like most fifteen-year-old boys, he hated it. Later however, he worked in a laundry after school to help out. Upon completion of high school, Carlo decided to enter the Air Force and in this way, he provided his parents some relief by giving them one less mouth to feed. From the time he left home at the age of seventeen, he was on his own and spent very little time with his family after that. Carlo was very close to his mother but there had always been a personality clash between he and his father and he never learned to really appreciate the old man until years later. They were both gone now and he only heard periodically from his sisters. Carlo entered the flight program while in the Air Force and became an excellent pilot. It was while he was doing the Air Force stint that he met and married his first wife. From the very beginning, they had trouble but he had made his bed and he intended to lie in it. At times, things were almost unbearable, but he refused to get a divorce because there had never been one in his family and he hated to bring disgrace upon them. Twenty years and two children later however, he changed his mind and got a divorce. The hard years of study and denial had finally paid off for him and he graduated from Duke University Medical School with honors. He had worked hard at his studies and had held down two other jobs at the same time and he often wondered how he had managed to do it. He had even worked as a nurse on the O.B. ward to earn extra money and his fellow students had given him a real razzing when they learned what he was doing. There had been many a time when he had wanted to throw in the towel but his pride and determination would not let him do so. Somehow, he had stuck it out and now, he was one of the most outstanding and talented surgeons in the Southeast.

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Carlo’s first-born son was now in the Air Force and well on his way to becoming one of the top-notch test pilots in the business. “There will come a time when people every where will recognize the name of Shawn Evans, if the young man himself has anything to do with it,” Carlo told her. “He’s a cocky fighter jock and proud of it. I think they are cognizant of the fact that he is an exceptional test pilot in as much as he isn’t afraid of the devil himself and has always been one to take more than the required chances to accomplish tasks.” “Inherent characteristic, or I miss my guess,” Dana laughed. “Please continue. I’m sorry to have interrupted.” “My other son, Ryan, is in his first year of college at Duke and seems to be majoring in tennis and girls. I’m giving him a loose rein for a little while and hope he will get the wild oats sown soon and then settle down to the matter at hand…getting a good education. He’s the typical younger brother and has always felt a bit inferior to the older one. I’m afraid my ex-wife is to blame for that. Shawn was definitely the pick of the litter as far as she was concerned and she didn’t do a very good job at concealing her preference. I wasn’t able to spend too much time with Ryan during the formative years because of my busy schedule, but I have tried to get to know him a little better lately. We have established a fairly good rapport and he feels more comfortable in coming to me now with problems or the like. The difference in the two young men is quite noticeable…Shawn is the extrovert and Ryan is the introvert.” “Nothing wrong with that. You just have to teach Ryan that he’s his own man and has just as many good qualities and talents as the older brother however different they may be. Oh forgive me, I shouldn’t have put my two cents in…you didn’t ask for my opinion,” Dana apologized. “No, that’s quite all right. I like your in-put. Perhaps later, we can pursue this subject. I would like to hear more of your feelings on the matter. “

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“As to my ex-wife…she is living in California, is remarried and leaving me alone at long last.” Carlo concluded. During a lull in the conversation and a bite or two of their lunch, Dana changed the subject by asking Carlo about his name. “How in the world did you get Evans for a surname when obviously, you are very much Italian? I noticed also that both of your boys have Irish names…I find that very interesting. “ “Ah-ha! You noticed,” Carlo chuckled. “Well, you see, it’ s like this…my ex-wife is Irish and she definitely did not relish the idea of slapping one of the long Italian names on her sons so she selected names which she thought, were more suited. As for my last name, I had a benefactor while I was in school who became interested in my career. He was one hell of a nice guy and so well thought of by the Board, the faculty and the students alike. He was a member of the Board of Trustees at Duke University where I attended medical school and he did a great deal of philanthropic work. Someone there informed him of my plight for you see…at one time I had reached the point of nearly having to drop out of the surgical residency program due to a lack of funds. Jonathan Evans decided to sponsor me so that I could finish my program. I promised myself that if I ever made it through, I would change my name to Evans in honor of that fine old gentleman. Unfortunately, he had never married and had no sons. He was as proud of me as if I had actually been his own flesh and blood. He passed away recently,” Carlo lamented sadly. “He was a fantastic person and I will be forever grateful to him. I will always cherish his memory for without his help, I would never have been able to make it.” Carlo added tenderly. “What is your real name then, if it isn’t Evans?” “Would you believe…Gian Carlo Endelacato?” Carlo laughed as he melodiously sang out the name. “Sounds like an aria from an opera, doesn’t it?” “I think it’s a beautiful name. Granted it’s a mouthful but neverthe-less, it has quite a lovely sound,” Dana said. “Do you mind if I

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you Gian Carlo? It’s rather unusual and I like the way it rolls around on my tongue.” Carlo looked at her thoughtfully for a minute savoring the thought of rolling his tongue around on her tongue, and then said, “If you like…be my guest.” Taking a quick glance at his watch, he added, “Damn! Sorry, but I have to get to my office. I’m afraid my girls will kill me if I’m any later. I’m afraid also I haven’t been considerate and have been running my mouth off about myself and my life entirely too much for the last two hours. You must think me an awful bore and very presumptuous. You deserve equal time…dinner tonight?” “Indeed not, quite the contrary in answer to your first statement,” Dana smiled up at him through dark curly lashes. “It has been very interesting and fascinating and yes, if you’re really serious about dinner this evening.” “Of course I’m serious,” Carlo answered mischievously. “I would be an absolute fool not to take advantage of the opportunity of escorting such a beautiful young lady as you to dinner so that I can be the envy of every man we encounter,” he said as he took her hand and kissed it. Dana blushed quite noticeably and smiled as she rose from her chair. “Since you put it that way, Doctor, you leave me no recourse but to accept your kind invitation. What time shall I expect you?” “Leave your address and phone number with your sister and I’ll pick it up on evening rounds. I’ll give you a call as soon as I’m finished. Sorry I have to be in such a rush now but I’m an hour and a half behind schedule. Catch you later,” Carlo said over his shoulder as he left her after paying the check. “Gian Carlo, Gian Carlo,” Dana kept saying to herself as she walked back to her sister’s room. “What an interesting name and what an intriguing fellow it belongs to…we may become better acquainted, after all!”

chapter 3 s

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arlo sat outside Dana’s apartment that evening trying to evaluate his feelings before approaching the door. “Damnit to hell, I’m as nervous as a school boy on his first fucking date!” he said into the cool night air. Thinking to himself, he added, ‘I’m sitting here quaking in my fucking boots like some moonstruck kid and my hands are dripping perspiration. What in the hell is the matter with me? I’ve been through a list of women since I’ve been single again that would plow under the youngest and most virile young stud around and I sure as hell haven’t run across one of them who has affected me like this chick! All I’ve been able to think about since I left her is how she looks, smells and feels to the touch. The vision of her is indelibly implanted in my brain and everywhere I look, I see her face. Is it because I sense and know she isn’t an easy lay that I am so smitten with her or is it because, possibly, just possibly, this young, beautiful woman may be the one I’ve been searching for all of my life? I loved my wife when I first married her, but that love soon went out the window for many sundry and tawdry reasons and I stayed with her as long as I did simply because of the boys. Well doc ole boy…there’s only one way to find out and that’s to get on with it and see where we go from here.’ With that thought still lingering in his mind, Carlo opened the car door, got out and strode up to Dana’s front door. He found that his - 17 -

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hand was shaking just a hair when he reached for the doorbell. “Damnit!” he said under his breath, “What in the hell happened to Mr. Cool?” Earlier that evening Dana had taken extra pains and had been very meticulous with her toilette for her first date with the dashing doctor. She had a natural inherent beauty that was radiant and apparent even without makeup. She used very little blush and powder, allowing the natural glow to show on her flawless complexion. She considered her eyes to be her best feature so she concentrated on them in applying her makeup. Her eyes were a dark, almost violet, blue and she enhanced them with just a smathering of light and dark blue eye shadow. Her lashes were extremely long, dark and thick requiring only a touch of mascara. She used the lash curler briefly and then applied a second coat of mascara. She used a light shade of lipstick so that attention was drawn from her slightly imperfect mouth toward her eyes. Her light brown hair was cut mid-neck length and hung in soft natural curls. Dana cut and shaped her hair herself and kept it just the right length without having to spend a fortune at a salon every week or two. Her obedience to a regular yoga and aerobics regime had paid off and her slight frame carried her 115 pounds rather well. Her waist was tiny and her hips, well rounded. Her breasts were firm and in proportion to her other measurements. Dana prided herself on the fact that at 34, she looked and felt much younger. She was ready and waiting at quarter past eight when Dr. Evans rang her doorbell. Carlo quickly regained his composure as the door swung open and Dana asked him in. “Hi Little One,” he said, using the now familiar nickname he had selected for her. “You look simply gorgeous! Where would you like to go this evening?” “You know that I am relatively new to this area, Gian-Carlo. You decide where we should go,” Dana answered as she gently brushed a wayward curl from her forehead. “I trust your judgment completely.”

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“All right, my lady, I have just the right place in mind. Think I’ll keep you in suspense until we get there, however.” Carlo said as he tried to keep himself from brushing the nape of her ivory skinned neck with his lips as he placed her wrap gently around her shoulders. The ride to the Country Club he had chosen for their dinner engagement was a pleasant one, for the weather was cool and exhilarating. April had brought with it the sweet smells of spring and as they passed the lake, Dana noticed that the water was slightly rippled and the moonlight, as it reflected on the lake, made it look like millions of tiny, shimmering diamonds. “I love this time of year…reaffirms my belief in the fact that all things regenerate and come alive again. Can you smell the already blooming spring flowers?” she asked Carlo as they approached the entrance to the club. “Yes, as a matter of fact I do, now that you mention it. I’m afraid I’ve not been one in the past who takes the time to stop and smell the roses, if you will. Perhaps you can entice me into changing my habits in that respect,” Carlo said as he helped Dana out of the car. He handed the keys to the valet and gently took her elbow to escort her up the stairs to the doorway. “It would be my pleasure, Gian Carlo. Any time.” As they were shown to their table, every eye in the room turned toward them making Dana feel a little more than slightly uncomfortable She knew they were the center of attention and conversation at every table. She carried herself with a determined look of self-confidence and poise as she moved across the room. “Looks as though he has a new one in tow,” came the sardonically made remark from a matronly looking woman as they passed her table. Her companion took a long and enviable look at Dana herself and said, “Tsk, tsk, Tisha, don’t be so catty! Just because you have failed in your every attempt to snare the good doctor is no reason for you to degrade that beautiful young lady.”

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Carlo smiled to himself for he had overheard the conversation and seemed pleased that the ladies had noticed the fact that he had a new friend. He had been pestered and annoyed unceasingly by the matronly lady they had just passed and he had become contentious and less than apathetic when it came to members of the opposite sex who insisted on being so aggressive. He was almost puritanical in his beliefs along those lines. That’s why he had been instantly attracted to Dana. She seemed to exude the aura of impassiveness and was most certainly, in his opinion, of a genteel and lady-like nature. He was sure that their meeting had been no accident. Fate seemed to have had a hand in it. “Buona sera, Doctore Evans. Come Sta?” the Italian waiter said as he helped Dana to sit. “Posso aiutarla?” “Buona sera, Giovanni. Benissimo. Permeta che la presenti a Signorina Dana Engles.” “Buona sera, Sigorina Engles,” the waiter said as he took Dana’s outstretched hand and politely kissed it. “Felice di Signorina. I am delighted to meet you!” “Ci dia la carta, per piacere e per piacere ci porti la carta dei vine,” Gian-Carlo said to the waiter. “You speak Italian beautifully. What did you say to him, if I may ask?” Dana asked after the waiter was out of hearing range. “I asked him if he would please bring us a menu and the wine list. You see, I spoke only Italian until I was five years old and started to school because my grandmother took care of me and my siblings while my parents worked and she did not speak any English. As I grew older, my parents and my older relatives made sure that I did not forget the mother language. I don’t get the opportunity to use it very often anymore except when I visit this restaurant and a couple of others in the city. All of the waiters here are Italian and they help me keep the language fresh in my mind. Do you speak a foreign language?”

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“Only a little Spanish, which I took in school. I’m afraid I don’t ever have the opportunity to use it, therefore I’ve forgotten most of it,” Dana answered. “Italian is a great deal like Spanish…perhaps I could teach you to speak my language,” Carlo said with a twinkle in his eye. “Oh, I’m sure you could…but just what language did you have in mind?” Dana coyly asked. “H-m-m-m…you are a very astute young lady. You know the Italian language is known universally as the language of love and of course there are many motions and body-language that accompany the spoken word…” Carlo replied as he took her hand and planted a light kiss upon it. “Would you just look at that?” the matronly lady across the room said to her friend. “He has already started the ritual and they are barely seated! There isn’t a woman alive who wouldn’t succumb to his charm and charisma, she added sarcastically. “I’ll give her two months max and then he will abandon her for the next quarry, I’ll wager.” “H-m-m, we’ll see. I’m afraid you just may lose your wager this time Pet, for he looks like a man who has already lost his heart.” After their dinner had been ordered and the wine served, Carlo turned to Dana and looked deeply into her eyes. He asked her to take her ‘equal time’ and tell him something about herself.

chapter 4 s

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ana began her story by telling Carlo that as a child, she had always been a loner. She was the second of three children and there were several years between all of them. Her family was not wealthy but was well to do in a manner of speaking. Her father was in the restaurant business and had a cattle ranch also. Her older brother, Howard, took care of the ranch and he and his wife Meg, lived there. There were many horses on the ranch and one of Dana’s favorite pastimes as a child, was to pack herself a picnic lunch, gather up a good book and ride her favorite horse two miles from the ranch to a pine forest. There she made herself a bed in the straw and would read for hours on end. Through the years, Dana maintained her love for horses and continued to ride every chance she got. In later years, when she went to work, she bought herself a horse, Sable Gal, and spent many a long hour riding. This, her therapy, as she called it, would serve her well during the coming years. Often, in her younger years, when time permitted, she would travel around to horse shows and she was the proud recipient of many ribbons and trophies. “I’ve always been an independent cuss, or so my family says,” Dana told Carlo. “Since my sister and brother were a great deal older and younger than I, I was pretty much left to myself. My mother and - 22 -

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father were always having trouble among themselves because my dad drank excessively and there was always a lot of dissension between them. Dad was like a Jeckle and Hyde…when he wasn’t drinking, he was one of the kindest men I’ve ever known, but when he was in his cups, to use the vernacular, he was an absolute demon. An absolute schizophrenic. As a child, I was deathly afraid of him. He was pretty rough on my mother and I hated him for it. I used to really resent the fact that she was always too wrapped up in her own misery to have time for me, but now that I’m older, I can understand why.” “Sounds as though you had a pretty rough childhood also,” Carlo interjected. “Oh, I managed to get through it without too many scars,” Dana replied. “My dad developed a severe heart condition as a result of his excessive drinking and had to stop the habit completely and now, he is a changed man. In their old age, my parents seem to be living a fairly normal life together, thank goodness!” Dana smiled up at Carlo and added that she and her dad had finally made peace and got along famously as long as they didn’t have to spend too much time together. “My marriage lasted for eight years as I told you. Pete and I never really had a lot in common,” Dana continued. “He was sort of an introvert and I’m just the opposite. I am definitely a people person and he was perfectly satisfied to stay at home most of the time when he wasn’t working and seemed to enjoy simply being with me. He would not let me continue to work and I guess I became rather stagnated. I love to be out among people and I had certainly enjoyed working, but I didn’t have much of an opportunity to explore my creativity white we were married. Pete, being the introvert that he was, didn’t like to go out much and we didn’t have many friends. When we did entertain, which was rare, he would not participate in open conversation any more than he felt absolutely necessary. This became increasingly embarrassing and awkward for me so I stopped inviting people over. As the years passed, we grew further and fur-

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ther apart. I volunteered my service to many organizations to help fill up my time and my life. This was very fulfilling for me. Many of the precious little old people that I worked with and grew to love in the hospital and nursing home, remain good friends and we correspond often with each other to this day. I think I have always been a frustrated nurse,” she chuckled. “To continue my story, Pete and I subsequently upon mutual agreement, agreed to disagree, as the old saying goes, and we went our separate ways. I believe he moved to the upper East Coast shortly after our divorce.” “Soon afterwards,” Dana related to Carlo, “I resumed a friendship with a man whom I had known before my marriage. His name was Keith Jernigan and he was an attorney affiliated with a very large firm in Memphis.” As soon as Dana mentioned Keith’s name, she hesitated and there was a slight lull in the conversation. “I have the distinct feeling that there were extremely deep feelings in that relationship,” Carlo said softly, “You don’t have to tell me about it if you don’t care to.” “It’s still very difficult for me to talk about,” she said with a catch in her voice. “You see, he was killed in a horrible train-car accident two months before we were to have been married. It took me a very long time to get over his death…I suppose I never really will,” she murmured sadly. “We were very much in love and I guess we always had been since our early college years. We just didn’t realize it.” “Why didn’t you marry him then, if you don’t mind my prying?” “I don’t really know. He came for a visit at our lake house at my parents’ invitation, and while he was there we had a terrible disagreement and he left. Being as stubborn as I was, he could not change my mind to let him stay. I felt we were much too young to marry at that time for he was still in Law School and pouring over the books most of the time. We would have had very little time with one another. We corresponded for a while after he left but eventually we went our

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separate ways.” Dana closed her eyes for a moment before continuing. “When Keith discovered through mutual friends that I had gotten a divorce, he looked for me until he found me and we picked up our affair where we had left off years before. During the interim time, Keith himself had married and later divorced. When he finally found me again, he told me that he had never loved anyone but me and never would.” Dana’s voice quavered and she stopped talking. Carlo did not miss the fact that her eyes glistened with the slightest trace of tears. Soon she regained her composure and said, “Maybe later, I’ll tell you the remainder of the story but I would really rather not continue this discussion now, if you don’t mind.” Reaching over to take her hand, Carlo softly said to Dana…“He was a very fortunate fellow, this Keith of yours. I have the feeling you are capable of a very deep, sincere ability to love wholly and completely. There aren’t many people gifted with that capability. Too many people can’t or won’t love unselfishly but I would venture to say, you are indeed one of those gifted ones.” “Thank you, Gian Carlo. That was a wonderful compliment,” Dana smiled as she covered his hand with her other one. Following an after-dinner drink, Carlo led Dana into the lounge where an orchestra was playing dance music. The room was filled almost to capacity but Mario, the headwaiter, found them a table over-looking the lake. As they approached the table, Carlo waved to a couple sitting near-by. “Oh ho! I see Carlo didn’t waste any time in becoming acquainted with the young lady,” George Rodgers said to his wife. “What young lady?” “She’s the sister of one of Carlo’s patients. He caught a glimpse of her in the hospital and couldn’t wait to wrangle an introduction. He must have done it entirely on his own. Usually the gals are in hot pursuit of our dashing surgeon but he suddenly appears to have

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found one he wants to pursue. He looks as though wild horses couldn’t tear him away from this one, if I interpret correctly, that look on his face! I wouldn’t want to intrude for he looks absolutely captivated. However, if we see them out again soon, we’ll get him to introduce her to us. I must say, she’s a real looker!” George explained. “As long as you admire her from a discreet distance, my darling…you may feast your eyes to your heart’s content,” Adaire smiled wickedly. Later, as he walked Dana to her door, Carlo took her hand, kissed it gently and asked if he could see her again the following evening. “Yes, that would be lovely, Gian-Carlo,” she answered. “Thank you for a beautiful evening…it was wonderful.” For a long minute, they looked deeply into each other’s eyes. Then Dana said, “See you about the same time tomorrow night?” When Carlo made a slight move toward her to kiss her goodnight, Dana turned, opened the door and gave him her hand. “Goodnight and thanks again,” she said softly. ‘H-m-m-m,’ he thought to himself, ‘chalk another one up for the lady. No first date kisses for this one.’

chapter 5 s

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he next evening when they were in the car, Carlo said, “You know, I’ve been thinking about what you were telling me the other night about your love affair with the attorney. I know it’s none of my business, but you sounded terribly upset about it all and I would like to know more about this young man who obviously captured your heart.” Dana was so shocked by his statement and obvious impertinence that she turned ashen and let out an audible gasp. “Gian-Carlo, that segment of my life is over and the memory is indeed still very painful to me. All I care to say on the subject at the moment is that he was very, very special to me and was suddenly, horribly taken from me. He was killed in an accident, as I told you. Perhaps someday, I will tell you all about it but I really prefer to drop the matter now”…her trembling voice trailed off. “Damnit! Open mouth! Insert foot! Look Little One, I am truly sorry. I had no right to bring up the subject again. I should have let you continue the story whenever you were ready. I apologize. Will you forgive my rudeness? I’m not usually so crass.” “Yes, of course,” Dana answered so softly Carlo had to strain to hear her. “Now please, let’s change the subject so that our evening will not be ruined.”

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Even though Carlo could have bitten his tongue out for asking so personal a question, he was somewhat pleased because now the feeling of jealously over an unknown rival, even a dead one, was eliminated. ‘I can compete with a living, breathing being but surely I don’t have to worry about a ghost…or do I?’ he thought to himself. The evening turned out to be a lovely one and the early conversation was all but forgotten. Carlo took Dana to a quaint little out-ofthe-way French restaurant where they wined and dined until after midnight. He talked more on the subject of his years in study and what a great struggle they had been… “I vowed repeatedly that I would never suffer hunger or worry about what I was going to put on my back ever again,” he explained to her. The look on his face proved to her that he was adamant in his belief that those lean, bad years were indeed gone forever. “As a matter of fact, I have become involved in some very good real estate ventures. My benefactor, it seems, left me an interest in his business. With all of the legal red tape, we have only recently managed to clear up all of the mumbo-jumbo so that I can now take possession of my portion of his holdings. I hope that I can prove worthy of his trust in me to carry on what was fast becoming a not-toosmall empire.” “How can you possibly have time to get involved in another type of business since you are so busy with your medical practice?” Dana inquired. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way!” Carlo laughed. “We have emergency room coverage at the hospital now and I won’t have to spend so much of my time on call. I operate in the mornings and have a few hours in between that and my office hours. Guess I’ll have to give up some of my leisure time but I won’t mind if this business proves to be as lucrative as I think it will.” “Speaking of leisure time, I would like to take you sailing on Saturday if you are available. A friend of mine and I share a 30 foot sailboat and we have a cabin up on the lake. It’s beautiful there this time

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of year and the weather should be just right for sailing. How about it?” Carlo invited with a twinkle in his eye. “Yes, I would like that very much. I could use a day in the country away from my work. That sounds like great fun, Gian-Carlo. Thank goodness, this is my weekend off,” Dana added with a sigh. Dana was awake long before the alarm went off at 6: 00 on Saturday morning. She had been awakened hours earlier by the familiar, frequently occurring dream that always startled and frightened her. She dreamed of Keith as though he were actually there in the flesh and upon awakening, she could feel his presence in the room, and sometimes could catch a whiff of his cologne. Did she imagine it or was it her sub-conscious toying with her mind? The dream was always the same…he would appear, walk directly to her and take her into his arms. His kiss, even in the dream, rekindled the feeling of great, intense love that she had felt for him before his accident. Each time the dream occurred, it was more vivid than before and she would always wake in a cold sweat. She never uttered a word in the dream but he talked of his love for her, told her of plans he has made for them and that eventually, they would be together forever. He would tell her to take care and to be happy in this life and that he was waiting for her on the other side. At this point she would always awaken, visibly shaken by his words and the intense feeling of his presence. ‘Why does Keith continue to haunt my dreams so? I go for months on end without the dream occurring and then, all of a sudden, here it is again,’ she thought to herself. ‘I have always felt in my heart that he was the love of my life and I know that I will love him forever but how can I possibly hope to ever have a normal life and relationship as long as he has power over me even in a dream? My heart, mind and very soul ache for him and our lost love but I keep telling myself that possibly my heart could make room for another kind of love. Keith is gone from me forever and no matter how much I want him back, there is nothing, absolutely nothing, I can do to

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bring about his return. I wish Gian Carlo had let the matter lie and had not questioned me further about Keith. I’m sure the dream occurred again because everything is so vivid in my mind after our conversation,’ she rationalized. Dana nervously put the matter of the dream aside as she ate a bite of breakfast and then began to dress herself for the day’s outing. She selected a pale aqua wind suit with a white shirt and white tennis shoes. Her eyes absorbed the color of the jacket and looked bluer than ever before. She tied her soft brown curls in a low-slung ponytail with a white silk scarf and applied very little make-up. As she looked approvingly at her reflection in the mirror, she wished away the sad look in her eyes. ‘This is the beginning of a new adventure and perhaps the chance of a new life so we will have none of that, my friend! I have the distinct feeling that I must make myself get on with my life and hope there’s a future for me out there somewhere. I must make every possible effort to bring my heart back to life and get rid of this empty feeling,’ she thought to herself. Staring deeply into the eyes of the lady reflected in the mirror, she said out loud very emphatically…“All right Miss Dana, perk up and don’t let anything put a damper on your day. Stop living in the past and get on to the future!” With a determined look on her face, she strode defiantly into the kitchen. She quickly prepared a picnic lunch of pimento-cheese sandwiches, stuffed eggs, ham roll-ups, apples and wheat crackers. She tucked a green and white checkered tablecloth with matching napkins into the basket and gently laid two bottles of Sutter Home White Zinfandel wine in on top of them. ‘Oh crap, don’t forget the corkscrew, dummy!’ she said to herself. Carlo wheeled into the parking lot of the apartment complex and beeped the horn two quick beeps to inform Dana that he had arrived. He was reaching for the doorbell when she opened the door. “Hey-y-y, I’m ready…shall we go?” she sang out eagerly as she handed him the basket.

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The drive up to the lake was a pleasant one, for the spring had brought with it the radiant blooms and buds of the forest trees. Here and there, there were Japanese Magnolias, camellias and azaleas blooming in people’s yards visible from the road. The dogwood trees, growing wild everywhere, were especially prominent, for they were bursting in profusion with white petals and the redbud trees could be seen scattered about here and there in the forest. The median strip was literally covered with a blanket of fuchsia colored clover. The maple, pine, oak and other hardwood trees had completely budded out with new green leaves and presented the finishing touch to a breathtakingly beautiful scenario. The air smelled of honeysuckle under a cloudless sky and the weather was cool but pleasantly so. “God, what a gorgeous day!” Carlo spoke into the onrushing wind. He had lowered the top of his Jaguar convertible so that they could enjoy to the fullest the beauties of the countryside and the warm spring morning. “I ordered this lovely day especially for a lovely lady,” he chortled. “Flattery will get you absolutely nowhere” Dana laughed. She had been a little tense earlier because of the previous night but now she felt a pleasant feeling of contentment settling over her. She found the doctor good company and easy to talk to. She leaned her head back on the headrest of the seat and pretended to listen to the music from the car CD player. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye and appreciated what she saw. Gian-Carlo was lightly tanned on his already olive complexion and had the most beautiful head of black, wavy hair she had ever seen. It was graying slightly at the temples which added a sensual look of distinction. His eyes were round and dark brown but she imagined they could quite suddenly become black and flash fire if he were the typical hot headed Italian she imagined him to be. He was just under six feet and weighed around 175 pounds. He had nice wide shoulders that gently tapered down to a trim waistline. ‘Obviously he takes good care of himself,’ Dana

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thought to herself. ‘He has to be fastidious and temperamental in order to do the work he does. Most surgeons are methodical, meticulous and punctilious in every respect due to their vocation. There is never any room for error in anything they endeavor to do, be it work or play. However, I venture to say, he is a gentle man, long suffering and not malevolent in any way.’ Dana could not help but respect his ability to overcome his incongruous genesis. He had climbed the ladder of success painfully, one rung at the time, under almost cataclysmal odds to attain his goal in life. ‘Yes indeed! This is one hell-of-a man sitting here beside me and if my intuition is right and I can bring myself to let go, we are starcrossed somehow, to become much more than just friends!’ Dana imagined to herself. This was a feeling she would reiterate to herself many, many times in the years to come.

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naccustomed as she was to assuming the role of first mate, Dana quickly caught on as Carlo gave her instructions as to how she could be of help on getting the vessel under way. As soon as the sails were up and secured, Carlo told her to sit across from him in the aft section and promptly handed her a can of beer out of the cooler he had brought along. A gust of wind caught the sails and the boat skimmed along over the water as if it had suddenly acquired wings. The lake had a shoreline of over 150 miles and contained the greenest water Dana had ever seen. As the sailboat glided away from its’ moorings, she couldn’t resist the temptation to slip her sneakers off and dip her pink tipped toes into the crystal clear water. “Jeez, that’s the coldest water I’ve ever seen!” she shrieked. “I was hoping it would be warmer so that we could take a swim later. Guess you will simply have to bring me back up here later on in the summer when it warms up a bit,” Dana coyly said and laughed. “Exactly what I have in mind. I plan on keeping you in tow for quite some time Little One, or haven’t you guessed that by now?” Carlo replied, as he looked her squarely in the eye. Dana turned away from him but Carlo couldn’t take his eyes off of her. She looked just as beautiful today with the breeze tossing her hair askew as she had the other night when she was elegantly dressed and coiffured. Her skin was as smooth as silk and he imagined she tanned to a soft - 33 -

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golden bronze. He could feel the blood begin to fill his loins and a rise in his jeans as his eyes continued to travel the length of her curvaceous body. God…how he wanted her! His imagination began to run away with him and he could almost feel her soft warm body pressed closely to his. ‘Hell, this is not the time to dwell on this sort of thing!’ he mused to himself. ‘If I continue thinking along this vein, I can hoist the spinnaker sail with something other than my hands!’ “Oh Gian Carlo, this is heavenly!” Dana exclaimed exhilaratingly. “How peaceful it is out here and no wonder you love this boat so much. Does she have a name?” “You bet she does. Bob Robinson, a friend and fellow physician, and I bought her a couple of years ago when neither one of us felt we could afford her, but somehow we managed to swing the deal. We named her “Too Much”. We both felt that she cost too much…required too much effort and care but at the time we didn’t give a damn…so we begged, borrowed and paid the price. She has been well worth it all for we both really do enjoy her. Bob and I alternate weeks using her. He has the exclusive use of her for one entire week and then I have the privilege. He bought half interest in the little lake cottage up there on the hill with me so we have a place to ‘get away from it all’ and hibernate. We alternate call for each other also so it works out well.” After sailing randomly about for three hours, Carlo headed the vessel into a tiny cove, lowered the sails and dropped anchor. “This is a good spot for our picnic you so thoughtfully brought along,” he said. “If you’ll hand me the corkscrew and one of those bottles of vino, I’ll pop the cork.” As Dana handed him the wine bottle, Carlo suddenly reached out and drew her to him. Without hesitation, she lifted her face upward and for a long drawn-out minute, they stared into each other’s eyes. His kiss was not the demanding one she had expected but one that was very tender and caring, “I’ll…I’ll get the sandwiches,” she said breathlessly as she turned toward the cabin.

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Their lunch was a leisurely one and they talked of many things, such as what their likes and dislikes were pertaining to music, books, hobbies and travel. “I have traveled over a good portion of this country but I have never been abroad,” Dana related to Carlo. “My job has taken me to some very interesting places so that I could observe the fashions in Interior Design in different sections of the country. I have indeed enjoyed every minute of it for my middle name is…go. I suppose I inherited that from my mother for she was forever throwing my younger sister and me into the car and taking off whenever my dad would have one of his raging fits. My mother wasn’t afraid of anything…another thing I inherited from her. We drove all over this country and even up into Northwestern Canada once. I was so-o-o impressed with the Royal Mounted Police up there. One of them let me ride his horse and naturally Mom took lots of pictures. Now, if I had a choice of any place in the world I could visit, I would select Australia,” she added. “For some reason or another, I feel an intense pull toward that country and one day I’ll get there. Maybe I lived there in another life?” she asked, smiling up at Carlo. “Perhaps…if you believe in that sort of thing. However, I have a hard time imagining you dressed in khakis, a large brimmed hat and boots traipsing through the outback,” Carlo laughed back at her. “Listen my good man…I’ll have you to know I’m just as comfortable in jeans and a plaid shirt as I am in satins and furs…perhaps a bit more so!” Dana quipped. “Oh, you haven’t lived until you visit Italy,” Carlo said dreamily. “That is the country of my heritage. I have been there three times in the past and I never tire of going. It is such a romantic place to visit…the food is delectably delicious, the music is captivatingly lovely and the art treasures are unequivocally the grandest in the world in my opinion. Ah-h-h, to float down the canals of Venice in a gondola with a traveling violinist, an excellent bottle of Italian wine and a beautiful woman is…pure heaven,” Carlo said dreamily. “I

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would like to take you there some day to show you the land of my people. I’m a pretty good tour guide, you know.” “I hear all of the tour guides in Italy are well known for their ‘pinch of approval’ they place on ladies derrieres. Is that true?” “Oh-h-h my dear Little One…that is the epitome as far as a compliment goes for a lady in Italy!…for you see, the guides, waiters and such, only pinch those whom they think are beautiful.” Carlo said kissing all of his fingers of one hand and then waving them toward her. “You would have a difficult time sitting while in Italy for your derriere would be quite sore from all of the pinches, I would venture to say!” “Well, thank you…I think…or was that a ‘back-handed or…sided compliment, Doctore?” Dana laughingly said. They found that they shared many common interests other than travel as they chatted and nibbled on their lunch. Dana told Carlo again of her love for horses and in reply, he said, “I’m afraid I don’t share your interest there, Little One. Having been born and reared in the Big Apple, I never had the opportunity to become exposed to the art of horsemanship. Besides, I have a slight problem with my back, an old skiing injury, and I’m afraid that sort of activity might cause me more trouble than it’s worth.” “There’s a horse show next weekend at one of the local stables. Perhaps you would care to come out to watch me ride. I haven’t had my own cheering section in quite some time. I still ride as often as I can but I’m afraid my work prevents me from doing as much as I would like. I have recently had Sable trailered here from Memphis for I didn’t have the time to fetch her myself. H-m-m-m…wonder who is responsible for my shortage of time. Doctor E…you wouldn’t know anything about that now, would you?” Carlo assumed a sheepish grin and urged her to continue. “I try to get out to the stable at least twice a week, more if I can spare the time and even if I don’t have time enough to get in a good ride, I groom and love on her a lot. She’s my buddy…we go way back

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together. Luckily, a friend of my sister’s has a young daughter who rides Sable every day for me so that she stays well exercised.” Dana concluded. As they talked, Carlo reached out every now and then and gently touched Dana on the arm or leg giving it a little pat or squeeze. “I hope you don’t mind…I happen to be a toucher. Guess it’s the Italian in me…We’re known for things like that you know,” he added smiling. When lunch was finished, the two of them stretched out on the bow of the boat to enjoy the cool breeze. With the constant rocking repetitions of the boat, Dana became very drowsy and dozed off into a light sleep. She awoke to find Carlo raised up on his elbow looking directly down into her face. She could feel his breath on her nose and she wrinkled it as she reached to pull his head down to meet her own. This time the kiss was nothing short of pure, heated passion, shared by the two of them. Carlo placed his hand in the small of her back and pulled her body into the curve of his. His mouth moved from her lips to her earlobes and then drifted smoothly down into the crook of her neck.” “God Dana, you are delicious. It’s all I can do to keep from stripping your clothes off here and now but this is neither the time nor the place.” He pulled himself up by the mast and tried in vain to hide the obvious bulge in his jeans. “Besides, there seems to be a bit of a storm brewing and I think we should be getting back to the marina before it breaks.” The ride back was a fast and blustery one for the wind had picked up and was blowing from directly behind them. Carlo had to hold onto the ship’s wheel with both hands and Dana had to switch sides several times for the boat listed 25 to 30 degrees from the force of the wind. Dana thought for sure they were doomed to capsize for the sails nearly touched the water on those occasions. “Wow-e-e!” shouted Carlo above the howl of the wind. “Now, this is really sailing! The wind does all of the work and all I have to do is

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keep her headed dead ahead. Watch out for the boom Dana, in case it suddenly swings the other way. In winds like this, I never know when they will change directions and I don’t want to have to fish you out of the drink. Unless I miss my guess, we’re going to get drenched anyway before we hit landfall. If you are afraid, you can go down below and close the hatch cover.” Dana looked him straight in the face and yelled over the loud noise of the howling wind, that she was not afraid and that she would stay topside and help him in any way that she could. ‘Spunky kid, this one! Not only is she beautiful but tough as nails,’ he thought to himself. Just as they turned the boat into the marina and headed for the slip that belonged to the “Too Much”, the rain began to come down in torrents. It took both of them to get the sails down from the mast, folded and safely put away in their bags. Carlo made certain that all was made secure and then told Dana to jump to the dock and head for the car. He unlocked Dana’s door, unlocked his side with the button and then ran around to his side of the car. They both jumped in at the same time, slamming the doors behind them. They took one look at each other and burst out laughing. They were soaking wet and their hair was hanging in their faces making rivulets of water cascade down into their eyes. “I’ll say one thing for you, Dr. Evans. When you promise a girl an exciting day, you certainly live up to your word. This has been one hell of an exciting day!” Dana said through her laughter.

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arlo’s cabin was located on the west side of the lake not too far from the marina. When they were safely inside, Dana asked the way to the nearest bathroom. “I desperately need to see a lady about a hat,” she said, gently crossing her legs and making a funny face.” “To your left, down the hall and first door on the right. While you’re in there, take off those wet clothes and I’ll dry them for you by the fire I’m about to build. You’ll find a shirt, robe or something to put on, hanging in the closet in the back bedroom. That is…unless you had rather pull a Lady Godiva!” he laughed, flicking imaginary ashes from an imaginary cigar a la Groucho Marx style. The wind and rain were howling and blowing outside and even though it was only late afternoon, it was extremely dark outside. Dana tried in vain to shake the ominous feeling she had as she looked out the window and watched the trees bend almost to the ground. She could hear thunder rumbling closer and closer and see the lightning crackling all around the lake house. She reminded herself that she was perfectly safe inside the house but her old fear of lightning made shivers and goose bumps run up and down her spine. She wasn’t afraid of many things, but she had suffered the loss of a dear friend years ago who had been struck by a lightning bolt in her presence and she had sustained a healthy respect for the phenomenon ever since. - 39 -

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‘Funny,’ she thought to herself as she towel dried the last few drops of rain from her hair. ‘I didn’t give the lightning a second thought out on the lake…I suppose I was too engrossed in helping Gian-Carlo batten down everything on the boat to get scared,’ she sighed to herself. By the time Dana wrapped herself in a delightfully soft velour robe twice her size and walked barefooted into the Great Room, Carlo had a roaring fire going in the huge fireplace. He glanced up from stoking the burning logs as she walked toward him. Even though she was swathed from neck to toe in the huge robe, he could imagine her softness and curvaciousness underneath. Dana stopped a few inches away from him and turned her back toward the flames. She lifted the back of the robe and leaned slightly forward. “I always wondered why my grandmother, God rest her soul, struck this very pose every time she backed up to a fire. Now I know why…it feels great and my buns are toasty warm!” she purred. Dana seemed oblivious to the fact that the robe had opened at the neck and a portion of her well rounded right breast was exposed to Carlo’s view as he slowly raised himself from his kneeling position. She blushed slightly as she became aware of the direction of his gaze and realized that his rain drenched jeans had become more form fitting than before and they could not hide the fact that he was becoming very much aroused. “Don’t you think you should change from those wet clothes yourself before you catch your death of cold? I’ll fetch my things from the other room so that we can dry all of them at the same time,” Dana said to him, keeping her eyes diverted from his. After Carlo had placed their wet clothing in front of the fire to dry, he put some wonderful easy listening music on the entertainment system, poured each of them a small glass of brandy and sank down beside Dana on the oversized chaise. “Here’s to a wonderful and long-lasting relationship,” he said as he handed her the crystal glass.

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For a few moments, neither of them spoke. They both seemed to be lost in the warmth the brandy had induced and the sensuousness of the somewhat sultry music emanating from the stereo. All of a sudden, an ear splitting roar of thunder, followed immediately by a huge bolt of lightning that illuminated the entire room, interrupted their reverie. Dana sprang up from the chaise as though she herself, had been struck by the bolt. As she jumped, she screamed and spilled some of the brandy down her chin and neck. Carlo reached for her and pulled her gently back onto the chaise and into his arms, trying to calm her. “My God Dana, you’re safe here inside the cabin. The lightning can’t possibly get to you here,” he softly whispered in her ear. Ashen and visibly shaken, Dana spoke…her voice trembling, “Oh, I know that and I’m sorry I freaked out so but I do have a really bodacious fear of lightning. I lost a very close friend to a fiery bolt once and I’ve been deathly afraid of it ever since.” Carlo’s arms tightened around Dana and he pulled her closer to him. “Well, you’re safe here, Little One. Take another sip of your brandy. It will help you to relax and calm down.” Carlo watched the color begin to come back into her cheeks as she sipped the brandy. Dana made no effort to remove herself from his embrace and snuggled even closer as she allowed herself to take advantage of the comfort offered. She felt very secure nestled in his arms. Suddenly, she became aware of the fact that Carlo’s breathing had quickened. She turned to look toward him as he leaned closer to her face. “You spilled some of your brandy down your neck and we shouldn’t let it go to waste,” Carlo mumbled as he bent over her and gently kissed her chin and neck. Obviously, some of the warm liquid had run down the valley between her breasts for Carlo began to nibble his way in that direction. Dana made no effort to stop him and her own breath suddenly began to quicken. She uttered a soft moan

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as Carlo’s lips began to move from the center of her chest toward a slightly peaked and firm breast. “Delicious!” Carlo murmured as he took the erect nipple between his lips and softly curled his tongue around it two or three times. “Delicious, and I don’t mean the brandy!” He raised his head and looked into Dana’s eyes. Carlo could tell by the sensual, dreamy look in those beautiful eyes that she too was becoming aroused. His mouth sought hers and she returned his probing kiss with equal ardor. They were locked in each other’s arms and slid down into a prone position on the chaise. Carlo’s usual adeptness in tying and untying knots failed him as he fumbled with the belt on Dana’s robe. “Damnit” he huskily said. “Wait…I’ll help you,” Dana whispered as she reached for the knot. The robe fell away from her body and even in the firelight, it was quite obvious that she was well endowed. She was chiseled and shaped to perfection, Carlo thought to himself as he gazed upon her nakedness. Their kisses became more passionate as they each searched for and found the probing tongue of the other. Carlo could hardly breathe, his heart was pounding so and the rock-hardness between his legs was beginning to pound with every beat of his wildly pulsating heart. His hands were working equally as fast as his tongue, massaging Dana’s breasts and her belly just above her pelvic bone. With every circle of his hand, Dana rose to and fro to coincide with the rhythm of his movements. “Damn Dana! I can’t stand this any longer,” Carlo almost shouted as he raised himself from the couch and tore the robe from his body. He stood there in all his manly glory and Dana could not take her eyes from his finely tuned form. His body was lean and tanned to a golden hue and his legs, arms and chest were covered with dark, black hair. The dark hair curled its way down to the pubic area and there, she was more than pleased to discover that he was definitely not behind the door when the male endowments were passed out. As

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a matter of fact, she gasped audibly at the mere thought of that fine specimen finding its way where it belonged if they were to get on with their unfinished business at hand. “I’m quite pleased to see that you visibly show your appreciation for the male of the species,” Carlo said as he stretched out beside her once again on the couch. Without a moment’s hesitation, they took up where they had left off only moments before. Carlo rolled over, placed himself above Dana and once again kissed her feverishly. She took his top lip between her teeth and gently bit and nibbled her way across his mouth from top to bottom. Her tongue licked and flicked its way in and out of his mouth and then she turned his head so that she could kiss his ear. Her hot, moist, probing tongue circled the inside of his ear several times and her hot breath nearly drove him crazy. While her mouth was busy with Carlo’s ear, her right hand was busily working its way down his belly toward his thighs. She gently brushed over his penis with her fingertips and Carlo let out a low, soft moan. He was elated but astonished at her intense lack of inhibition and marveled at her obvious aggressiveness. He continued to moan softly as she gently rubbed the inside of his thighs with the palm of her hand. Before her hand left the area, she gently cupped his testicles in her hand and gingerly massaged them. Carlo’s moans became more resonant and he reached down to grab hold of her wrist. “Wait a minute…wait a minute, he panted, “this is all so wonderful but I don’t want to ruin it before its time!” Carlo could feel the explosion of an orgasm working its way to completion and he knew he had to stop and rest a minute. He looked deeply into Dana’s eyes and said, “My God, Dana…you are magnificent!” To Dana, those few seconds seemed like minutes and by the time Carlo could continue, her breathing had slowed almost to a normal pace. However, when he returned to the matter at hand, it did not take her long to become hot, wet and ready again. Perhaps this little

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interim time would prolong the excitement of the much-awaited climax. Carlo once again took Dana into his arms and progressed rapidly into the process of arousing the exciting, sexy, sensual beauty that lay beneath him. Their kisses went from warm to wild immediately and soon Dana was begging Carlo to enter her, “Please GianCarlo…please…I want you…take me now!” she purred. With adroit precision, Carlo gently spread her legs apart with his knee and reached toward her mound of delight with his hand. One touch of his finger on the magic button and she informed him more by motion than by words, that he should meet her passion head on and plunge the sexual wand in for the glorious, satisfying reward they both so eagerly awaited. Afterwards, for what seemed like hours, they lay in each other’s arms communicating only with lover’s sighs of utter contentment. Each instinctively knew that the other was profoundly satisfied and satiated. Their bodies were still drenched in perspiration but the warmth of the sexual release made them oblivious to the fact that the fire was nothing more than smoldering embers and the room had assumed a slight chill. The stereo still poured lovely, sensuous music into the room and added the perfect final touch. Carlo and Dana breathed in sync as though they had truly become as one. At long last, Carlo rose up on one elbow, looked adoringly into Dana’s beautiful, contented, limpid blue eyes and said, “I can’t begin to tell you what I am experiencing at this moment but I would like to give it a try. In the past, the sexual act was always to me, simply a biological release…one that I have immensely enjoyed, but this time, I feel it was something more. It felt more intense, more like a very enlightening, spiritual union. I felt something more than merely a physical liberation for I felt the climax in my heart, mind and soul as well. I can’t put it into words very well because the actual feeling is indefinable. Does that make sense to you?”

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Dana responded by wrapping herself around Carlo and then wrapping both their bodies in the coverlet on the chaise. As she nestled closer to his now relaxed body, she softly intoned, “Yes, my darling Gian-Carlo, that makes perfectly good sense to me for the same luscious, rapturous feeling overtook my consciousness immediately afterward also. They say…real love is like that…real true love, that is. Do you suppose we are falling in love with each other and that someone or something is trying to tell us something?” she added nervously. She prayed silently that her heart would open completely and let the uttered words just spoken, be immutably coming from truth…not just from heated passion. “Believe me, my love…I am not one to tamper with Fate so who are we to argue the point,” Carlo said facetiously as he hugged her more tightly. Just before drifting off into blissful sleep, Dana thought she perceived a slight aroma of familiar shaving cologne in the room…

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fter work the following day, Dana stopped by to visit with her sister Cathy, now at home and recuperating from her surgery. “Well, it’s about time you showed up!” Cathy almost snarled as her sister made herself comfortable on a chair across from the bed on which Cathy lay. “A person could die around here and you would never know it.” “Oh come off it, Sis. I have checked on you several times and Matt assured me that all was going well and that you were improving splendidly. He told me that you were in perfectly good, capable hands with him and the girls looking out for you and for me not to worry. You just happened to be sleeping the times I called,” Dana added. “You’re not fooling me one minute, young lady…I suspect you have been cavorting around with that hunk of a doctor and you just don’t have time for your family anymore,” Cathy admonished with the slightest sign of a twinkle in her eye. “And, I might add, if you have been…I’m really jealous!” “If you mean cavorting, as in frolicking, or if you mean cavorting…ah…as in, ‘fooling around’, then I’m afraid I’ll have to admit to both implications!” Dana said as she lowered her eyes and looked at her sister through long, moist lashes. “You’ve been doing what?” - 46 -

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Dana briefly confided to her sister the events of the past few days and her time with Giari-Carlo. “You know that I have never been a promiscuous person even in this day and time when it seems it is permissible and everyone is jumping into the sack for a titillating ole proverbial toss in the hay, but I’m afraid I succumbed to his manly charms much too rapidly,” Dana recapped breathlessly. “And to make matters worse…I became the primary aggressor in the madness of the moment and he must think I am a real hussy. I sense that he doesn’t approve of women who are loose and easy, as the old saying goes.” “When did this corporal copulation take place and have you heard from him since?” Cathy inquired as she scooted nearer to the edge of the bed closest to Dana. “Tell me, tell me. I want all of the sordid details.” “No way! I am not going to tell you any of the details for then the entire episode would indeed become sordid. I don’t know why I ever tell you anything for you always make it sound so bad. If you’re trying to make me feel guilty, don’t bother…I already feel badly enough without your making it worse.” A couple of minutes passed with neither of them speaking. Then Dana said softly, “We…we made love last night at the cabin on the lake after sailing and running from a terrific storm. At the time, it seemed like the perfectly natural thing to do. It was cold, we built a fire, had some brandy while our clothes were drying by the fire. One thing led to another and the logical ‘inevitable’ occurred. I began to worry about it this morning in the wee hours when I awakened thinking about it and couldn’t go back to sleep. He said some things that made me feel comfortable and confident about it all but upon remembering last night, I’m not so sure he meant what he said…I want to believe him…but…I don’t know,” Dana managed to get out with her voice trembling. “And no, I have not heard from him since…which is a part of the problem.”

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“Dana, that’s asinine! I can’t believe my ears…You?…the one who is always so self assured, so irrefutably cock-sure about everything…You?…You are actually behaving like a dubious, fallible, love-struck, ambiguous kid! I’m not believing you! The mere suggestion or insinuation that man will not contact you is utterly ridiculous and an implausible assumption on your part. C-o-m-e on! I don’t think you have anything at all to worry about. I’m sure Dr. Evans is simply quite busy and just hasn’t had the time to contact you yet. By the time you get home, I’ll wager you will have a call waiting on the machine. Why Dana…I’ve never seen you so nervous and agitated over a situation,” Cathy said remorsefully. “Everyone who knows you is aware of the fact that you are not among those considered ‘loose and easy’, as you call it and I’m sure the doc senses it also. I am aware of the reputation he is acquiring but I also know that he values the uniqueness of finding a female who exudes the fine qualities of a real lady as you do. You were simply remembering what our wonderful, dear, ole mother taught us as we were growing up. Remember? Be a lady in the living room…but be a whore in the bedroom!” Cathy added, laughing. “Yeah, but she meant the whore part in regards to someone you really loved!” Dana snapped. “Look at me, young lady. If my summation is correct…and…I suspect that is definitely the rationale here, you have fallen hopelessly in love with this man, haven’t you?…or am I not reading you correctly after all of these years, my delicate little flower?” Cathy asked. Dana responded by leaning over and allowing her sister to place her arms about her as she leaned her head on the shoulder offered. “Perhaps, perhaps,” she whispered into the softness of Cathy’s neck. “Oh God, please let it be so!” Suddenly Dana raised her head from Cathy’s shoulder. “Cathy, do you smell anything?” “Like what?”

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“Like…a man’s after shave cologne”… It was quite late when Dana finally arrived home for she had remained with her sister in order to give Matt and the girls a little relief and help in preparing the evening meal. She had shooed them out of the kitchen afterward, assuming the cleanup detail herself. This had given her ample time to go over the events of the preceding night in her mind and by the time she reached the sanctity of her own apartment, she was certain she was once again, in complete control of her feelings and emotions. She felt more centered than she had felt in hours, thanks to her conversation with Cathy. ‘H-m-m, no messages on the recorder,’ she mentally noted as she turned on the lamp over the machine. A slight smile worked its way into the corners of her mouth as she walked toward her bedroom. “Sooner or later, that call will come. I feel it in my bones!” Dana offered to the stillness of the room. “It’s my destiny!” she said, trying to convince herself. At five-thirty, Dana was startled out of a deep slumber by the constant ringing of the telephone. She fumbled for the handset, dropped it, picked it up and then pulled it to her ear. In a sleep-shrouded voice, she managed to say hello. “Dana? Dana? Are you awake?” the voice on the other end of the line inquired. It took her a fraction of a second to recognize the voice as Carlo’s and she immediately sat bolt upright in the bed. As she blew a wayward curl out of her eye she answered as calmly as she could manage, “I am…now.” “Dana, I’m sorry to have to call you so early, but I am on my way to the hospital. I have an early case and I’ll be running a little behind schedule by the time I make the drive as it is, so I will have to make this short. I want to apologize for not calling last evening but I didn’t leave the hospital until very late due to the heavy traffic in the emergency room. I was on call and there was an extremely bad accident on the freeway just as I was preparing to leave for home,” Carlo explained to her. “I feel terribly embarrassed about not getting in

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touch with you, especially after our wonderful evening at the lake the other night. I was so afraid you would get the wrong impression and think the evening meant nothing to me. Believe me, Little One, it’s quite the contrary…the evening meant everything to me and I would like to convey to you just how much it meant if you will have dinner with me again tonight.” Without a moment’s hesitation, Dana accepted the dinner invitation and agreed to meet Gian Carlo at the “Vini, Vidi, Vici” restaurant in Midtown at eight o’clock sharp. After hanging up the phone, Dana snuggled down once again into the warmth of the covers, smiling to herself. “Neither one of us has an ice cube’s chance in hell! Destiny, it’s simply our destiny! Plain and simple!” she vocalized into the stillness of the early dawn. “I feel it intuitively!” repeating again the phrase from earlier more convincingly. Dana dressed that evening in a pale pink Boucle wool suit with gold buttons. She wore sheer, nude colored stockings and carried a small hot pink shoulder bag that matched her two inch heeled pumps. Simple gold earrings completed her ensemble. The suit skirt was fashionably cut four inches above her knees and showed her nicely shaped legs to their advantage. After turning full circle in front of the mirror, she smiled her approval, gathered her handbag and keys and headed for her car. While driving, she let her thoughts run rampant. She was relatively sure that Carlo wanted to discuss the events of the night at the lake and hoped he would ask for a secluded table at the popular restaurant. She was a little nervous in regards to the conversation for she was still somewhat embarrassed over how she had let down her barrier and imperiously slung her inhibitions to the winds. She had been very cautious not to let herself become too vulnerable since Keith’s heart-breaking accident and death. Whenever she thought of him, the deep feelings of anguish and pain flooded through her as though a knife had ripped her apart. She had not allowed herself to be put in the position of being hurt again in any way. She had refused

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all invitations and suggestions to meet eligible men because she had felt that the complete love and devotion she had felt for Keith could never be replaced or duplicated. She had actually been quite content to revel in her memories of their love affair and felt as though she would never encounter anyone who could once again awaken those feelings and desires in her. She was zealous in her every attempt to further her career as an Interior Designer and had managed to make quite a recognized name for herself in the field. The fact that she had been so engrossed in her work is what had helped her maintain her sanity during the bad, lonely times. When Gian-Carlo happened on the scene, Dana never dreamt that he could and would rekindle such raging, feverish, rapturous feelings of pure, raw passion as she had experienced in the fervor of their coming together the night of the tumultuous storm. Her susceptibility and openness to his amorous advances surprised and startled her. In the wild ferocity and abandonment of their love-making, Dana found herself lost in her own selfish pursuit of complete release and gratification. It had been such a long time and she had allowed herself to latch onto the all-consuming ravenous waves of ecstasy which had engulfed her. She realized later that she had given as she had gotten for Gian-Carlo seemed to have been as totally and completely satisfied as she. The thought as to whether the actual ‘lovemaking’ had been that…love in the making or was it simply…raw, undiluted lust, persisted to hound her. The answer to that query lay in the forthcoming events and conversation of the evening with Gian-Carlo. After they were seated by the mâi-tre-d at a table in a cozy corner of the busy Italian restaurant Gian-Carlo had selected for their date, the order for wine and antipasto given, he turned to Dana and said softly as he took her hand, “I can’t tell you how happy I am to see you again. I will admit I have had a terrible time trying to concentrate on anything but thoughts of you since I last saw you. For a surgeon, that can be disastrous!” he said, laughing. “It’s rather difficult to cut into

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the image of a beautiful face smiling up at me from a cavernous belly!” he added trying to lighten the tenseness of the moment. Dana tried in vain to stifle her laughter and it took her several minutes to regain her composure. The ruse was not at all futile and they both assumed relaxed countenances. “Thank God I don’t have a weak stomach! After that statement, I wouldn’t be able to eat a single bite!” she laughed. “In all seriousness Dana, I want to tell you that I have never had an experience quite like the one I had with you the other night. I suppose the answer to my dilemma is for us to see as much of each other as we possibly can to see where this relationship will lead us. I want that more than anything in the world. Are you game?” “I think we can begin to see each other, as you say…as often as we can, but certainly you must realize Gian-Carlo, that we both have many conflicting obligations to think of. You told me the other day you were about to become extremely busy with your involvement in the business you inherited from Mr. Evans and you have precious little time as it is with your surgical practice and your office. I have been requested to start traveling more with my new position with the Atlanta Merchandize Mart and I hate to pass up the opportunity…it’s what I have been working toward for a long, long time,” Dana added solicitously, her voice a bit defiant. She was amazed at her hesitancy but it came from somewhere deep within. For an instant, Dana thought she also noted a fleck of uncertainty travel across the doctor’s face but he immediately continued on with his persuasive maneuvers to entice her into a long-lasting, immutable relationship. Using all of the finesse he could invoke, Gian-Carlo continued, “Dana, if I didn’t know better, I would swear that you are harboring some misgivings or doubts in regards to the seriousness of my feelings…or yours. I know how I feel about you for I have never felt like this before in my life!” Carlo pleaded his case. “Please Dana, give your heart a chance to open up to experience and feel what it’s like to be loved and love again. You are much too warm, compas-

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sionate and giving not to allow all of these virtues to be released and shared. I know you are afraid to let go completely for fear of being hurt again, but believe me, I have no intention of hurting you in any way. Italian men do not love lightly, Dana,” Carlo whispered as he looked deeply and searchingly into her eyes, now moist with tears. “I promise to love you forever with every ounce of my being if you will just give me the chance!” “Forever is a long, long time Gian-Carlo…”Dana responded with a sigh as she gently lifted both of Carlo’s hands in hers and warmly kissed his fingertips. “I know it’s time for me to ‘let go’ and allow myself to feel again, but my heart has been frozen for a long time now. It sometimes feels as if it’s dead. That’s why I have thrown myself into my work as I have. I have channeled all of my energies and time toward becoming the best that I could be in my field and that’s the reason I was offered this new position in Atlanta,” she reiterated. “For the last few weeks we have spent a great deal of time together, have become very close, intimately so, and I will admit that I am inclined toward the idea of pursuing our relationship. Years ago I would have thrown all caution to the wind and said let’s go for it…but now…things are different. I’m older, a lot less reckless with my emotions and feelings and considerably more cautious when it comes to matters of the heart…it couldn’t take another bout of trauma. You are the only person I have allowed myself to gravitate toward since Keith’s death. I will admit that there is definitely a great deal of chemistry between us and something or someone in my subconscious keeps pushing me toward you and telling me to…let go and open up, as you say. Give me time Gian Carlo, just give me time. I feel that Destiny and Fate are playing this hand and we should let them play it out as it’s meant to be. We have a pretty good start, I think. We seem to have a lot in common. We enjoy many of the same things and in my estimation, we have the beginnings of an extraordinary sexual relationship,” Dana said, trying to sound matter-of-factly.

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“You don’t mind if I give Fate a little nudge every now and then do you?” Carlo teased. “Our destiny has already been arranged I’ll wager, if the truth were known…I just don’t want it to take very long! I love you, I want you and I need you…we are meant to be together, Dana. It’s our destiny, plain and simple!” Somewhere in the recesses of her mind, Dana recalled saying the same thing to herself. Now, hopefully, she was beginning to really believe it…

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he following few weeks were indeed filled to capacity whenever Carlo and Dana could find spare time away from their busy schedules to be together. They were doing just as Carlo had suggested…exploring each other’s habits, hobbies, likes and dislikes. Too, the exploration of each other’s very souls and bodies was a magnificent adventure each took particular joy and excitement delving into. Together, they had agreed to at least try to enjoy and participate in the playing of sports, games and the like in order to discover a mutual fondness for the different activities each was involved in. Dana took a few golf lessons and tried honestly and fervently to learn the game, but being the creative creature that she was, she felt that chasing a little white ball over five miles of well manicured terrain was, in her estimation, a complete waste of time. She played, good sport that she was, whenever she felt she had to and even played a fairly good game. Carlo told her he was preparing her for the many golfing trips to come. “Fine with me,” she said. “What happens when I get so good at this game that I beat you?” “In your wildest dreams, Little One! That will be the day!” “OH! Is that a challenge, Doctor E? I simply dote on challenge, you know,” Dana laughed.

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“Don’t make statements you can’t back up, my dear! I know you aren’t head-over-heels in love with this game but I will have to hand it to you…you’ve made an honest stab at learning and playing the game. I’m proud of you. The way you wiggle and waggle as you set your ball up at the tee isn’t half bad either!” Carlo mimicked her as he wiggled his backside. “Oh well. Someone told me that one must develop one’s own style in order to play this game and I was just doing what comes naturally,” she retorted. “H-m-m-m, I love the way you do all kinds of things that come naturally,” Carlo said as he looked at her with that knowing look and those sexy eyes. “Coax me and I can arrange a demonstration of…’doing what comes naturally’…for you. Interested?” Occasionally, their play times ended up with a very romantic interlude which both agreed was the finishing touch to a perfect afternoon or evening. Carlo tried only once to be a ‘barnyard cowboy’ as he called it. His retort after Dana asked him how he had enjoyed their first ride on horseback together was…”I don’t think this is for me Dana, or shall I say Dale, as in you-know-who! When I lean forward on this critter, it’s like sandpaper’s on the saddle and when I lean backward, it’s like the nutcracker suite, if you catch my drift!” he said as he swung down out of the saddle with a very painful look on his face. “I’ll stick to golf and you stick to the gitty-up bit. I’m sure we’ll find several other common interests if we keep searching,” he said with a smirk on his face. “As a matter of fact, I can think of one thing we both excel in and enjoy immensely but I’m afraid my posterior will have to rest up a bit before we can play any more serious ‘mattress polo’! Ohhh, my aching butt!” Carlo lied, for that very evening, under Dana’s expert manipulation of the muscles in his buttocks and back as she massaged and stroked them after a long soaking Jacuzzi tub bath, Carlo suddenly

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became the accomplished lover she had discovered him to be. He not only intensely aroused her with his expertise in the use of his gentle and talented fingers and hands, but the very look in his dark eyes as they caressingly commanded a view of her, ignited her into a frenzied, raging fire of her own. The way he looked as his eyes scanned her body from one end to the other with the adeptness of a surgeon’s practiced eye, aroused her to unlimited heights. As they lay outstretched in front of the fire, it was obvious that Carlo had all but forgotten the pain he had earlier been feeling. As he observed her ravishingly beautiful form, he became totally mesmerized in his investigation of the perfection of her figure. Dana followed his eyes with her own and every now and then, he raised his eyes to look deeply into her’s. As he penetrated the very depths of her soul with those piercing brown eyes, she could feel the blood begin to pound it’s way into every portion of her body, pooling in the genital area and creating a desire and fire that she felt intuitively, could never be entirely extinguished. Carlo kissed Dana’s forehead. Slowly and methodically he nibbled and lightly kissed his way around her eyes, gently brushing her closed eyelids with the tip of his tongue. He then moved to her ears and sensually teased her mounting passion with the gentle probing of his experienced moist tongue. With each thrust of it deeper and deeper into her ear, Dana began to moan with intense pleasure. Her ears were one of the most erotic spots on her body and the mere touch of a mouth and hot breath would drive her almost to the heights of an orgasm, if continued. She turned her head slightly forcing Carlo to further his play of passion elsewhere. His mouth moved slowly to her throat and neck where he continued the placement of tiny, nibbling kisses. His hands were busily, gently massaging her now firm, erect breasts. Carlo stopped long enough, looking deeply into Dana’s eyes all the while, to put each of his fingers into his mouth, wetting them slightly and then moved back to the task of delighting those warm globes with firm but gentle tweaks of his now

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moistened fingers. Dana’s nipples became dimpled, firm and stood erect as though begging for more individual attention. Carlo moved over Dana’s body and straddled her on the rug. As he did so, he flattened his hands so that the palms of each covered the rosy, warm domes and he began to press gently on each with a circular motion. Dana reached for and grabbed Carlo’s wrists in her hands and aided him in his pressure stimulation of her breasts. She seemed to be lost in the abandonment of passion for she writhed and moaned rapturously displaying her pleasure. Carlo moved downward over her body but kept his hands in play on the now hard breasts. He bent his head and as he removed one hand at time, his warm mouth took its place. He took the swollen nipple in his mouth and rolled his tongue around and around the pointed peak before beginning to suckle it. Hand and mouth in motion, he knew that he was raising Dana to unquestionable heights of explosive ecstasy and he intended to drive her wild until she begged him to take her body and do with it as he would. Carlo moved further downward to her belly button and placed kiss after kiss upon it, each time finishing the kiss with a twirl of his wet, hot tongue. He then cupped her buttocks in his hands and moved his mouth to her protruding hip bones where he swathed each protuberance with many kisses, blowing his hot breath on her skin as he moved from one side to the other. His tongue traced the line of her hipbone and then retraced its track with wet, swirling sweeps. Dana was uncontrollably writhing and moving, her breath coming in short, swift pants. She raised herself up on her elbows, arching her back and forcing her head back until her throat was stretched to its’ full length. She intuitively knew in what direction Carlo intended to go from here with his conquest of her body and for a fleeting moment, she considered bringing this act of unbridled passion to an abrupt end. However, there was no stopping either of them and she knew it. Instead of pleading with him to discontinue

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his intended route, she moaned softly and stretched herself back out onto the rug. With profound determination, Carlo assumed the continuation of his lovemaking by sitting back on his heels and taking one of Dana’s legs in his hands. He gently raised one foot and placed one of her tiny toes in his mouth. He licked and sucked each toe in turn and then started the same procedure up her leg toward her knee. He bent his head so that he could reach the underside of her knee and thrust that wet, hot oral projectile into the bend of her leg. Sounds of heated passion emanated deep in Dana’s throat and worked their way out into the silence of the room. From the knee, Carlo slowly moved his way upward with delicate kisses placed gingerly on the inside of Dana’s thigh. Dana, in her mind, could hear herself screaming for him to move directly to the center of her legs and give her the finality of his pursuit of the depth of her passion. Instead, she lay perfectly still and waited with baited breath to see what direction his kisses would now lead him. ‘I can’t stand another minute of this torture…please, please…DO IT! DO IT, DAMNIT!’ she screamed at him silently when she couldn’t stand it any longer. Carlo wanted to make this a night Dana and he would remember for all eternity, so instead of going directly to the destination he ultimately had in mind, he moved to the other leg and repeated each exact kiss and movement he had so heatedly administered previously. As he approached the mound of soft hair that covered Dana’s genitalia, he brushed it ever so lightly with his nose and lips and blew directly into the center of it. Dana could no longer control herself and she unconsciously raised her hips forcing Carlo’s mouth closer to her throbbing, swollen, delectable well of delight. With butterfly wing flutters, his tongue flicked its way around those delicious lips ignoring the magical, mystical button that he knew all too well, would bring her to immediate orgasm. He himself, was having a hell-of-a-time controlling the urge to ejaculate but he was determined to make sure Dana was completely, thoroughly satisfied in

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every way before he allowed himself to be brought to the completion of his own desire. Sensing the urgency in both of them, Dana raised her head and reached with both of her arms for Carlo. Her movement caused him to lift his head and look at her. “Are you sure you want me to stop what I’m doing and come up there to you?” he huskily asked. “Yes, oh God yes! I must have you inside me…Now!” she shouted. With one quick leap, Carlo moved into position and as Dana wrapped her arms and legs around him, he entered her. She met his passion, thrust for thrust once again and in a frenzy of wild, abandoned desire, they climaxed together. Too exhausted, too satiated, too comfortable, all either of them could muster enough energy for, was to say in whispers…“Good night…I love you!” “What did you say?” Carlo struggled to get out of his mouth. “I said…I love you,” Dana whispered. “That’s what I thought you said!” Carlo said smiling as he hugged her more closely to him. He watched her until she drifted off into happy, blissful sleep. He then closed his own eyes and allowed sleep to overcome him as well.

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hen Michael Burroughs walked into the CCU private room in which Dana lay, he at first did not see Carlo for he was slumped so far down into the reclining chair that he was almost hidden from view. “Any change?” Michael quietly asked. “Everyone in the hospital is wanting a report on her progress so I decided to come up to see how both of you are doing.” “No, there aren’t any significant changes. She isn’t able to breathe on her own yet but she appears to be fairly stable otherwise, according to the monitor. Her BP is still fluctuating up and down a bit and her heart rate is considerably lower than it should be but that could be caused by any number of things. I feel certain that her physical injuries will heal but I am gravely concerned about her comatose condition. It’s been five days now and she hasn’t shown any signs of waking up. Her parents and Alana arrived last night to visit her and I was hoping the sound of family voices, especially Alana’s, might stir a reaction from her but…nothing. Her poor mother held her hand and talked to her for over an hour but Dana never budged or opened her eyes.” Carlo spoke almost in a whisper, his voice trembling. “Then when Alana took her hand, kissed her mother on the cheek - 61 -

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and pleaded with Dana to wake up, I thought all of us were going to come unglued. I’ve seen this very scenario many times before but it’s different when it’s your own daughter speaking to her mother,” he lamented sadly. “That child is so much like Dana. You could tell the sight she was forced to behold was terribly painful for her as an eight-year-old, but she held the tears back while she was talking to Dana. She managed to retain her composure until her grandmother took her out of the room and into the hallway. I had tried my best to prepare Alana for what she was about to see before she went in to see Dana. For a few minutes, she held onto me and cried and cried. Then she looked up at me and said, “I’m ready now…my mother mustn’t see me cry. She’ll be all right, Daddy. God won’t let her die and leave…us!” “Carlo, you should go home, grab a shower and get some rest and if you are going to stay with Dana for any length of time, you should try to make some arrangements regarding your surgical cases and office appointments. Bob and I will be glad to reschedule your cases and do them for you but you need to talk to your girls in the office about taking this time off so that they can work with us on rescheduling.” “Yes, you’re right Michael…I haven’t given any thought to anything other than Dana but all of that definitely needs attending to. I’ll call Helene at the office and have her contact you and Bob. Thanks,” Carlo added. “Oh yes…let me give you the key to my apartment Michael, and have you stop by there on your way home to pick me up a couple of changes of clothes. I don’t give a fuck what they look like so select whatever you think will do. I’m not going to leave this room except to grab a quick shower and shave when you come back…that is…if you will agree to stay here with Dana while I do that. I would never forgive myself if she were to die, God forbid!…and I weren’t here with her. I haven’t been able to think of anything other than Dana and our life together before and during the time we were married. I have been rehashing all of those years over

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and over in my mind. Oh Michael, what will I do if Dana dies? You know she is the only woman I have ever loved and I cannot bear the thought of having to live out the remainder of my life without her. If and when she wakes up, we must find a way to work our problems out and start over,” Carlo said remorsefully. “At the risk of making you angry Carlo, I know that Dana tried desperately to get you to listen to her regarding your problems before she finally, as a last resort, divorced you. You were so intent on building an empire that you let your marriage to a wonderful woman who truly loved you, suffer and end as a result of your ambitions. After two or three years of trying to persuade you to join her in obtaining some counseling and help, which you so ruthlessly refused to do, she was adamant in her plan to get out of the marriage and your hold on her. Hell Carlo, she was your wife…not just another prized possession. What in the hell makes you think you can change her mind if she survives?” Michael fervidly asked. “How the fucking hell should I know? But, there has to be a way…I’ll think of something! Now get the hell out of here and leave me alone with her!” Michael placed his hand on Carlo’s shoulder, shook his head sadly and then walked out of the room. Carlo ignored the tray of food the nurse brought in and placed on the table beside his chair. He had eaten very little, just enough to get by for his usual voracious appetite had obviously left him. He could tell by the fit of his clothes that he had lost a few pounds but it didn’t matter…nothing mattered to him. He wasn’t concerned with eating, sleeping, or anything else except the condition of his precious Dana. With slow, dragging steps, the haggard and tired Carlo once again took up his vigil next to the bed of his beloved. “Oh Dana…please wait to be my angel! Don’t die and leave me now. I lost you once…I couldn’t bear to lose you again,” he said as he lowered his head and took her hand in his.

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For one brief instant, Carlo thought he heard the soft flutter of wings somewhere in the room. He looked around but saw nothing. Carlo was determined to ascertain somehow, what had gone wrong in his and Dana’s marriage. Had it been indeed, the fault of both of them as she had managed to convince everyone or had he been singularly guilty? He was known for his strict adherence to his ‘one-way-ward-ness’ in making decisions and sticking to them. He intended however, to search the further most recesses of his mind and memory until he found the answer…

chapter 11 s

Remembering Again

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pring was coming to an end and what a glorious one it had been. Carlo and Dana had spent as much time together as their busy schedules had permitted just as they had planned. They had gotten to know each other very well. Well enough, as a matter of fact, to start planning a life together. Carlo persuaded Dana to give up her apartment and move into a larger one near his apartment complex. His spare time was so limited and he didn’t want to spend half of it driving all the way across the city to see her and he felt it was not quite the gentlemanly thing to do to keep asking her to rendezvous with him, driving herself. The city of Atlanta was not the safest place in the world and certainly not late at night when one is alone. She was a bit reluctant at first but with persuasive charm, he managed to swing her around to his way of thinking. “I want you to know that I am doing this on a ‘leap of faith’, to use the vernacular sir, for there is no way in hell I am going to keep moving all over the city in case things should happen not to work out between us,” Dana told Carlo as they were discussing the move. “This is an absolutely gorgeous complex and it has so many extra

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amenities my complex doesn’t have but it is considerably more expensive.” “I know and respect the fact that you are a very independent young lady, but I did offer to pay for the apartment or even the difference but you would have no part of that. You must realize Little One, that there is motive to my madness, you know. When we get married, there will be room for me to move in with you until we can build or buy a house that will suit our needs as a family. You would like to have a child or two, wouldn’t you? Even though I already have two boys and the thought of raising more children at my age scares the living hell out of me but I am acutely aware that you would love to have little ones to nurture and love. You have such a natural, inherent motherly instinct and I’m sure that they would be the most beautiful children in the world if they were to take after their mother.” “Oh-h-h my precious darling! Of course I want to have children but I too have doubts and fears…Remember there were no ‘blessed events’ in my first marriage. I’m not even sure I could conceive,” Dana replied sadly. “I’m not getting any younger either. Isn’t it kind of risky to start having babies in my thirties?” “Not necessarily. With all of the modern technology available today, I’m sure you would have no trouble at all and if you did, there are all kinds of help available. Not to worry, my pet. You know damned well I’m not going to let you do something that is chancy or dangerous. We just have to wait and see what Fate has in store for us in that respect, I suppose,” Carlo answered softly. “And, I’m not even sure we are going to get married…you haven’t asked me yet!” she said, pretending to cloud up to cry. “Oh yeah, I haven’t, have I?” Carlo replied nonchalantly. “Well?” “Well what?” “Are you?” “Am I what?”

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“Going to ask me to marry you?” “All in good time, Little One,” Carlo said teasingly as he took her in his arms and planted a warm, sensuous kiss on her softly parted lips, quieting her rantings. The remainder of the spring and summer were spent working, playing, having fun and planning. Carlo introduced Dana to all of his friends in the medical profession and to Atlanta society. They were invited to party after party and everyone was buzzing with questions as to whom she was and where she had come from. Many of the socialite mothers in the city were greatly disappointed that Dr. Evans seemed to have found the “Mrs.” Evans before their daughters had had a chance to meet him and properly lure him into the snare of matrimony. Everyone seemed to like Dana for she indeed, had a very pleasant charm and aura about her that attracted people. She was sweet and friendly to everyone alike. Dana and George Rodgers’ wife Adaire, had become very good friends and the two of them spent a lot of time together toward the latter part of summer. They played tennis, lunched together at the many glitzy restaurants in Downtown Atlanta, Midtown and Buckhead. Adaire made certain that Dana was introduced to all of the right people. After all, if she and Carlo were to be married, she would have to become acclimated with the city and its’ people…”Those whom you will be hobnobbing with, so to speak, my dear,”Adaire told her one day while lunching together at the ‘Coach and Six’, a traditional Atlanta restaurant. “It will be wonderful to have some fresh blood in the circle…and I know you are aware that you have become the center of everyone’s conversation…Some of the city’s old families want to know just exactly what your background is,” she laughed. “As if it really makes a damn to most of us. We all have grown to love you and we think you are ‘just what the doctor ordered’…for Carlo. It’s been a long time since his closest friends have seen him so relaxed and happy. I, for one, am glad to have you

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aboard and hope it won’t be too long before you and Carlo tie the knot,” Adaire added smiling. “Have you set a date yet?” “No we haven’t, as a matter of fact,” Dana answered. Carlo keeps evading the subject whenever it’s mentioned. I know he intends to ask me but he is waiting for just the right moment to pop the question, if I know him. We talk about our future together but the actual asking hasn’t come about yet. As a matter of fact, I’m rather glad he hasn’t…for this extra time is giving each of us a chance to really get to know the other. Neither of us wants to make another mistake. I’ll have to admit however, that I’m making a few small plans in my mind. You know, like who I want in the wedding, where I’d like to have it and so forth. I definitely do not want a big wedding for I think that would be a bit foolish and ostentatious at our age, don’t you?” Dana added laughingly. “Perhaps the two of you should just elope. There will be many hurt feelings in this town if they are not invited to the doctor’s wedding,” Adaire said teasingly. “George and I will even drive you!” All she got in return was a dirty look! The following weekend, Carlo took Dana on a tour of the City of Atlanta. Already, he was becoming very much involved with the Land and Building business Jonathon Evans had left him. Later on, he would play a big part in the great expansion of the city…… Carlo explained the growth of Atlanta from what was at one time, just a high-riding ridge of granite on a sub-continental divide that the Cherokee and Creek Indians used as a trail to the trading camps. That was a far cry from that trail to the city of today, a place of great progress where workdays in huge skyscrapers converge into magnetic evenings at outdoor cafes and restaurants. At one time the tallest building in Atlanta was the bubble-topped Hyatt Regency Atlanta, but it had now been replaced as the tallest by many newer, taller ones. “One of the largest is the ‘One Atlantic Center’ or the IBM Building built by Philip Johnson,” Carlo told Dana. “Peachtree Street,” he added, “is divided into three sections. Down-

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town, where skyscrapers form canyon walls along the avenues and streets, Midtown, with its culture and churches, and the ever popular Buckhead, where one may shop and dine to one’s heart’s content.” “It’s about a ten mile trip by auto and what a trip it is!” Carlo stated proudly. “There’s the Coca Cola pavilion which commemorates the first serving of Coca Cola in Jacob’s Pharmacy in 1886. There was a bundle of Coca-Cola money spent on the building of old Atlanta and people in the city are quite proud of that. Don’t ever offer any of them a Pepsi or you may be run out of town on a rail,” he laughed. “In 1897, the Flatiron Building was built and is Atlanta’s oldest standing skyscraper and predates New York’s famous version by five years. I know you are familiar with the name ‘Macys…what lady isn’t?” he continued. “Their building was built in the 1920’s and was restored to its present glorious stature and elegance in the 1980’s…The real key to real estate is location, location, location, the old timers used to say but one developer says that translates Peachtree, Peachtree, Peachtree. One of the other stockholders in Evans’ business tells me that the going rate for prime sites is over $25,000 a square foot and will continued to climb. Hot damn!” Carlo exclaimed excitedly, “That’s very exciting to me. Just think of the potential still remaining in the city!” A slight chill enveloped Dana as she listened to Carlo. He seemed to be intoxicated with the idea of being involved with the further expansion of Atlanta. Carlo drove Dana through the remainder of Downtown and then proceeded on into Midtown and Buckhead. “In Midtown,” he explained, it’s early history contained stories of hoodlums and ruffians alike who delighted in robbing and killing the early settlers. Now however,” he told her, “both high-rise developments, residential and office, reign triumphantly in the area. It is also known as the cultural district of Atlanta.” He pointed out the High Museum, which attracts a variety of art exhibitions from around the entire country and then showed Dana the Woodruff Arts Center and the Alliance Theater.

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She marveled at The Fox Theater where people from all over have enjoyed shows and entertainment since 1929. From Midtown, Carlo drove Dana through the Buckhead area where it is said, ‘Old Atlanta meets Bold Atlanta’. The drive north from town is a very enjoyable and leisurely one. They traveled past breezy outdoor cafes and clusters of quaint and quality shops. Carlo stopped the car many times to show her other points of interests. The nightlife in Buckhead is incomparable, he told her. “It’s a real treat to drive down here, park the car and then walk around for everything to see is here on Peachtree Street or right off of it. After dinner Atlantians come down here and begin at Chops or Frogs, then they go to The Dessert Place or J. Pauland usually end up at some wonderful other places like the Peachtree Cafe, Otto’ s, the Steamhouse Lounge or perhaps finish a perfect evening at Dante’s for some real jazz. All of the Buckhead lounges and clubs fill to capacity as the workday ends. We’ll make the jaunt down here very soon so that you can see for yourself first hand, how exciting Atlanta can be,” Carlo concluded.

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arly autumn brought about changes in Dana’s work environment. She was given more responsibility, which she really didn’t want to take on, but her employers felt that she was the only one in the company capable to work with and train the new personnel hired on to expand the business. The company arranged for Dana to fly to Spain in early October so that she could get an edge on the new Mediterranean décor that was becoming so popular in the states. Her trip lasted two weeks and Gian Carlo called her every night that she was away, pouring his heart out to her and telling her that he would never let her out of his sight again. Both of them were miserable without the other but felt that the time away from each other was a real test of their love. When Dana’s plane landed at the airport, she was so excited that she tripped over a piece of luggage in the aisle and put a bit of a goose egg on her forehead. Everyone on board tried to help as she struggled up off the floor of the plane. “Oh dumb me! You must all think that I am the biggest klutz in the world! I really don’t have two left feet but one would never know that, looking at me now,” she said blushing from head to toe. As Dana entered the waiting area at the top of the embarking aisle, she spotted Gian Carlo waving a huge bundle of red roses. As she - 71 -

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approached him, he dropped to one knee and said in a quivering voice, “My darling Dana…I cannot bear to be without you ever again…will you please do me the honor of becoming my bride?” The group of passengers who had helped Dana on the plane gathered around the pair as the drama began to unfold, along with the many other spectators who had been watching the excited man pace the floor with the bouquet of flowers. “Well…I don’t know, I fell on the plane and got a bump on my head…maybe I didn’t hear you correctly…what did you say, sir? If I am not mistaken, I think I heard you ask me to marry you.” Dana began, as she let the carry-on bag and her purse fall to the floor on either side of her. “This is rather sudden, don’t you think, my good doctor? I mean…we hardly know each other.” Carlo began to squirm on his one knee and turned a crimson red. Not being one to give up a good fight, he continued to plead his case. “Yes, I did ask you to marry me. I promise to give you my undying love and devotion forever and ever……” “Oh, I feel that I should give this some extra time and thought…after all…this decision will affect me for the rest of my life and you wouldn’t want me to make a dreadful mistake, now would you,” she teased. The crowd was eating this little drama up and began to chant and urge Gian Carlo on…“Come on Doc…Promise her the moon!” A little old lady in a tattered coat leaned over, pulled on the sleeve of Dana’s coat and said, “Little lady, if you don’t say yes…I will! That man is quite a catch, if you ask me!” Dana burst out laughing, reached for Gian Carlo’s coat front and pulled him to his feet. “Oh yes, my darling, precious Gian Carlo. I will marry you. I thought you would never ask!!” AND……so they were married! Dana and Carlo didn’t spend a lot of time planning the wedding for they each wanted it to be a simple affair. Dana chose Adaire for

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her Matron of Honor and Carlo selected Ryan for his Best Man, much to his older brother’s chagrin. It was a given that Jamie Sanders, Dana’s good friend and minister from Memphis would officiate at the ceremony. Dana begged, cajoled and eventually threatened Jamie with his life in order to get him to agree to sing two of her favorite songs during the service. He finally agreed, reluctantly. The wedding guest list was small due to the fact that they both knew that if they got started on a huge list, someone in the medical community and social circles would get their feelings offended so they kept it down to just good, close friends and families. The banquet room at one of the largest hotels in downtown Atlanta was the sight of the nuptials and Dana had one of her best friends in her business plan the decorations for the wedding itself and the small reception that would follow. The end results were simple but elegant. Dana selected a silk embossed coral-colored two-piece suit with mother-of-pearl buttons and wore dyed to match pumps. Her headpiece was a small pillbox hat in the same color and fabric as the suit and had a small veil that reached to her chin and encircled her head. Adaire wore a short sleeved, scooped neck, seafoam green dress with a matching jacket made of the same fabric as Dana’s suit. They each carried a small nosegay of white baby’s breath, coral colored roses and fern. Dana’s nosegay had a white orchid in the center that could be removed and used as a going-away corsage. The groom, best man and minister wore brown tuxedos and their boutonnieres were coral roses with a hint of baby’s breath and greenery. Carlo had purposely not presented Dana with an engagement ring for he had planned to surprise her with a special ring during the ceremony. When it came time for the giving and receiving of the rings, Carlo placed a single ring on Dana’s finger. When she looked down at it, she audibly gasped and brought her right hand up to her mouth in shock. The ring was a wide gold band with a three-carat diamond

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in the center surrounded by three tiny diamonds in a triangular design on either side. The wedding guests began to snicker for Dana seemed awestruck and couldn’t move or make a sound. All she could do was stare down at her left hand in disbelief. Suddenly, she reached out and hugged Carlo…much to everyone’s surprise and merriment. Carlo then accepted his ring, held it up to the crowd and did a finger to thumb sign with the other hand. The wedding kiss was one that everyone in the room thought would never end. Jamie touched Carlo on the shoulder and told him that he could continue that kiss a bit later in the evening. With that, everyone stood up and cheered as the happy couple made their way into the waiting crowd. Pictures were taken during the cutting of the cake, the traditional ‘getting of the garter’ and the throwing of the bouquet. As Ryan stepped up to make the toast to the bride and groom, Shawn, his brother, moved away from the crowd. “I would like to propose a toast to two of my favorite people…my father and his new bride. May you always be as happy as you are on this day, give more than you receive and live to be healthy and very old…loving each other until the end.” “Here, Here!!” the crowd shouted in unison. “I have an announcement to make,” Gian Carlo said as the group silenced their banter. “Dana has always had an intense yearning to visit a far off continent and I intend to make her wish come true this very week. I am taking her to the land of her dreams on our honeymoon. Dana, my love…I hope you packed some ‘out-back’ clothes for we are going to Australia. Everyone cheered and clapped as Carlo finished speaking. Once again, Dana was so shocked she couldn’t do anything but open her mouth in astonishment and stare at Gian Carlo. As big tears started to stream down her cheeks, she threw herself into his arms and jumped up and down in excitement.

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“Ohhhhhhh Gian Carlo, you are the most wonderful, thoughtful husband in the whole wide world. I love you! I love you! I love you!” The wedding guests took their turns at coming by to extend their congratulations and as they thinned out, Carlo began to look about the room for Shawn. He leaned over to whisper into Ryan’s ear and the young man nodded toward the balcony off the banquet room. “Would you please ask him to join us, Ryan? I would like to talk to the two of you about spending the Christmas holidays with us.” When Ryan found his older brother, he was leaning on the railing looking down into the busy city below. “Hey fellow…whatcha-doin out here in the cold night air? You’ll freeze your butt off.” “I’d rather freeze my butt off out here than have to cozy up to the new ‘Mrs. Doctor’ Evans,’ if you don’t mind. I think she’s a money hungry bitch and I don’t like her worth a damn. It makes me sick to see how Dad is so moonstruck over her. He acts like a lovesick ram…just waiting to ‘ram’ her young cunt. She must be pretty damned good in the sack for she doesn’t show me much else otherwise.” Shawn hissed. “You’ve been listening to Mother and her group of envious, bitchy friends. If you would just give Dana a chance, you would learn to really like her.” Ryan said. “You can cotton up to her, kiss ass all you like and try to stay on Dad’s good side but I will not succumb to her charms and put on airs. As I said, I think she’s a real bitch and only after Dad’s money and prestige. Bitch, Bitch, Bitch…that one!” Ryan reached over and grabbed Shawn by the right arm, twisted it behind his back and headed him toward the group inside the French doors. “Now you listen to me, Big Brother…you’d better get in there and stop showing your ass or I’ll beat it to a bloody pulp and you won’t have one to ever show again, you hear me? Now, put a smile on your face for Dad’s sake and be pleasant to both of them. Remember, I’m right behind you.”

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“Oh look at those two young sons of Carlo’s. They look so devoted to each other. Isn’t that nice how they walk arm and arm?” a lady remarked to Adaire as the young men reentered the wedding reception. Adaire snickered and replied, “If you only knew! Oh, If you only knew!”

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arlo had reserved a suite in the Ritz-Carlton and as soon as he had diligently carried Dana over the threshold and they were quietly sequestered in the bedroom, he took her into his arms and gently kissed her. “We could have left tonight on our trip but I didn’t want us to have our ‘honeymoon night’ away from Atlanta. Besides, I want you to be able to relax while you make your debut as we copulate as Mr. And Mrs…Come my pet, I called a little earlier and had housekeeping turn our bed down and draw a bath for us,” Carlo whispered as he removed his tux jacket and laid it on a chair. Carlo led Dana over to the huge bed in the center of the most beautiful and elaborate bedroom she had ever seen. “H-m-m-m, and I thought I was good in the art of room décor,’ she thought to herself as she surveyed the room with a practiced and appreciative eye. As Carlo began to unbutton the front of her suit, Dan reached up, took the bow tie from around Carlo’s neck and began to remove the button studs from the front of his tux shirt. Their eyes were locked onto each other’s and neither said anything. The only sound in the room was the sound of their respective breathing picking up the pace as the passion began to rise in both of them. In sync, they reached for the buttons on trousers and skirt, unzipped zippers and stepped out of same as they fell to the floor in a heap around their ankles. Each of - 77 -

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them helped the other remove the top apparel which left them standing there in their underclothing. Carlo unhooked Dana’s teddy and slid the straps down over her shoulders as he bent his head toward the curve of her throat and gently placed a kiss on the hollow there. Dana reached down and unhooked the garter belt that held up her peach colored stockings and smiled slightly as she nodded toward them. Carlo took the hint and sat Dana down on the bed and one at the time, removed the stockings from Dana’s shapely legs. Dana took the initiative and pulled Carlo down beside her as she stretched out on the bed. “Something has come between us,” Carlo chortled as he tried in vain to push his penis down…or up…so that he could get closer to Dana. “H-m-m-m, in your way, is it? Well let’s see…I think I can resolve your problem for you,” Dana said huskily as she rolled over onto the top of her new husband. She raised herself up onto her hands and knees and then sat back very gently, all the while guiding the swollen and erect penis up into her waiting orifice. As she moved toward Carlo’s mouth with her own, her hips gently began to undulate causing moans of delight to arise from the form beneath her. “Control yourself, my love, for this is merely a prelude to what I have in store for this night!” “I have been controlling myself all day…for eveytime I looked at you, I had visions of our wedding night dance heatedly around in my head. I was afraid I would embarrass both of us for it was almost all I could do to keep from pole-vaulting up those stairs to the podium,” Carlo could hardly speak, he was breathing so hard. “Honestly, wife of mine, me-thinks perhaps you should stop that wonderful movement or I won’t have any movement left myself…for later-r-r-r on. Oh dear God, Dana…you’d better stop!” he shouted. Dana reached behind her and placed a finger and her thumb at the base of Carlo’s penis, unstraddled him and lay back down beside him.

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“That should hold everything at this particular stage for a while, darling. Come, let’s take a long, sensuous bath together so that we can resume what we just started properly,” she purred. The bathroom was something out of an elaborate movie…marble, glass and brass everywhere. Three steps led up to a monstrous tub with brass fixtures and a whirling Jacuzzi. As Dana slowly gazed around the beautiful room, Carlo lighted the candles, which surrounded the tub with a very long match and reached to twirl the bottle of champagne, which was resting on mounds of shaved ice in a silver champagne cooler. Two crystal champagne stems sat on the glass topped brass table by the tub. The carpet and sheer drapes were pale peach and sea-foam green. Dana wondered to herself if someone had ordered this particular décor for there were her colors everywhere, even down to the delicately scented tiny soaps shaped like seashells. The full sheer drapes covered one entire wall of the bathroom and the other three were mirrored so that no matter in which direction one looked, one could see the scenario taking place in the Jacuzzi. After turning off the lights in the bathroom, leaving only the soft glow of the candles to see by and pouring each a glass of the bubbly, Carlo took Dana’s hand and led her slowly up the steps and then into the warm bubble filled tub. He sat down and motioned Dana to sit between his legs with her back to him. He reached for her and gently pulled her closer urging her to lean back and rest her body on his. Taking a sip of his champagne, Carlo reached over to a control box beside the tub and pushed two buttons. Beautiful music filled the room and the drapes began to move and separate in the middle. When her eyes adjusted to the sudden change, Dana realized to her amazement that she was looking out over the sparkling city of Atlanta with a lovely full moon hovering above like a gigantic white pearl in the cloudless sky. As Dana languidly rested her head against Carlo’s shoulder, she could feel his heart beating. It had slowed to a normal pace from the tumultuous pounding it was demonstrating a

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short while ago. Neither of them said a word but reveled in the beauty of the moment and the soft rhythmic strains of the lovely music emanating from somewhere up above them. They each emptied their glasses and Dana placed them back on the table. After many moments of ruminating over the events of the day, Dana began to methodically stroke both of Carlo’s legs with gentle downward strokes. She could feel the stirrings of passion in his loins and a smile began to spread across her face. She reached for the new body lufa that had been laid out by the maid, poured liquid body soap into it and handed it over her shoulder to Carlo. “I think you had better wash my back or we’ll be here all night. I’m so-o-o relaxed but I have the feeling that by lying here, I’m missing out on a BIG treat. You wash my body and then I’ll wash yours,” Dana purred. Carlo responded by saying, “I’m getting the better end of this deal for the more you wash me, the more you have to wash!” Laughter filled the room and then the laughter became intonations of quickly building passion as their hands caressed and fondled each other’s bodies now slick and slippery with soap. “My God Dana, you have the most beautiful body…it’s perfect in every way and I can’t tell you how much pleasure I derive from exploring every curve and crevice. Sometimes when I’m alone, I imagine the feel of your skin beneath my hands and it drives me crazy. You have the skin I love to touch…it’s so smooth and silky…h-m-m-m-m, wonderful!” “You’re not alone now, Gian-Carlo. Take me to our marriage bed and touch, feel, and explore to your heart’s content. I think we’ve waited long enough…” When comfortably ensconced in the satin-sheeted bed, Carlo took Dana into his arms and bestowed kiss after passionate kiss on her parted, wet lips as he spoke of his love for her. Both sets of hands began to move about and explore the other’s body. Carlo cupped Dana’s left breast in his right hand and gently but deftly massaged it

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creating a hard-tipped nipple that stood erect. Small goose pimples sprouted all over Dana’s body and she moaned with the pleasure the massage was giving her. Carlo’s mouth moved downward toward the erect nipple and encircled it applying gentle pressure with his tongue. As he licked, sucked and brushed the breast with his active mouth, Dana took his hand in hers and brought it down to her belly. Carlo knew instinctively what she wanted and immediately began to rub her belly in a round, circular motion with the flat of his hand. While Carlo was busy with her, Dana took his scrotum in her hand and gently began to stroke it feeling the orbs inside begin to float closer to each other as the scrotum began to contract under her expertise. She knew exactly how much pressure to apply, creating great desire without hurting him. She moved her hand to his penis and with deftly placed light strokes, she dragged her fingertips up and down the now hard, swollen projectile that she loved so much. Dana arched her back causing Carlo to move his mouth from her breast. He once again moved his mouth upward and kissed her wet, parted lips. Their tongues twirled and probed a little deeper with each twirl. Carlo then closed his lips to encase Dana’s lower lip and he began to suck it. His tongue gently parted her lips and explored the entire area surrounding Dana’s teeth. She had been so lost in the wonderful feeling Carlo’s hand was creating on her belly but suddenly, she became aware of her heightened passion Carlo’s exploration of her mouth was inducing. She lay perfectly still for a moment or two simply enjoying the erotic feeling. ‘Turn about is fair play,’ she thought as she moved her mouth away from Carlo’s and turned his head with her free hand so that she could reach his ear with her tongue. She knew that this move would drive him crazy so she started out with light, gossamer strokes. She gained just the intended reaction and slowly but methodically increased the pressure of her tongue in his ear. Her hot breath, added to the sensuousness of her tongue movements, was about to drive him over the edge and she instinctively knew it.

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Suddenly Carlo rolled Dana over onto her stomach, opened her legs with his knee as he straddled her and began to trek down her spinal column with his extended tongue. When he reached the crevice between her buttocks, Dana moaned with exhilarating pleasure and began to slowly writhe under the ethereal touch of Carlo’s tongue. He nibbled and kissed his way down both buttocks, one at a time, and then progressed in the direction of her right knee leaving a wet trail where he had licked and twirled his tongue down the inside of her thigh. With gentle butterfly flicks of his pointed, moist tongue, he paid special attention to the bend of the back of Dana’s knee. From there, he moved directly to the other leg and gave it the same undivided attention. Soft whispered moans of pleasure began to come forth from the head of the bed and Carlo could imagine the ‘lost in rapture’ look on her face. “H-m-m-m, more…more…more,” she whimpered pleadingly. As Carlo gingerly turned his new bride back over onto her back, Dana sexily said, “That must have been some instruction book you read on the ‘how to find all of a woman’s erotic spots,’ Dr. E.!” “Just doin’ what comes naturally, my dear,” Carlo huskily chortled. “Do you have a favorite? One that I haven’t discovered?” “I think you’ve found all of the ones of choice, darling…just continue on with what you were doing…everything you do to me drives me insane!” Carlo took the cue and immediately placed himself in a position so that he could proceed on to his intended destination. His buttocks were directly over Dana’s feet and as he sat back, Dana tenderly stroked his scrotum as she encircled it with her tiny feet. This time it was Carlo’s turn to utter sighs of arousal as he rolled his head from one side to the other and closed his eyes, enjoying her mild titillation of his balls. His already erect penis began to swell even more and stood out like a rapier ready for the lunge into soft skin. Slowly Dana moved her big toe slightly to the rear of Carlo’s scrotum and placed it on the smooth skin she found there. She carefully

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began to massage the area with a light circular motion and obtained the exact reaction she had hoped for. Carlo vociferated uncontrollably and grabbed Dana by the ankles. “Do you want me to wake the entire hotel with my shouting? You keep that up and I’ll shoot my wad prematurely and neither of us wants that…right? Now, where was I?” With that, Carlo stretched himself out as he gently separated Dana’s legs with his hands. He eased himself up so that he was in a position to reach her hip area with his mouth and began to tickle her hip with the wet pointed tip of his talented tongue. He swathed each with circular sweeps as he licked and kissed his way from one to the other. He could feel the muscles of her thighs begin to tighten and he heard the sound of her fingernails as they raked across the sheet. All of a sudden, Dana grabbed a handful of sheet in both hands, arched her back, lay back and slightly raised her hips toward Carlo’s face. “Oh-h-h Gian-Carlo…please…please…” her voice trailed off into another longing sigh. Carlo slowly lowered his head and delicately blew his hot breath into the protruding mound of soft hair beneath his mouth. As he did so, Dana unconsciously moved her legs a little farther apart so that Carlo could proceed toward his ultimate goal. With straightforward precision, his aim reached its mark and his tongue favored the smooth velvety tissue with light, floating, butterfly strokes. His sensual mind told him that rough, swift treatment would only delay the inevitable orgasm that he sensed was imminent. With controlled, adept proficiency and skill, Carlo meticulously explored thoroughly the warm, wet crevice so passionately offered him. Within a matter of seconds, he acquired the reaction he eagerly searched for and felt the little button begin to grow and harden. Dana shuddered slightly trying to control her urgency to climax. Gently, very gently, Carlo kissed the swollen lips and raised himself up beside Dana. He looked into her eyes, now vitreous with extreme passion and desire. Without uttering a sound, Dana reached for him and drew him up into

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position and with a nod, motioned for him to accomplish the consummation of their lovemaking. Smiling, Carlo rose to the occasion, entered her and with each matched thrust, he whispered…“I love you…I love you!” Later, lying in the comfort and warmth of Carlo’s arms, listening to his steady breathing as he slept, Dana closed her eyes, took a long, deep breath and smiled as she recognized the aroma of a familiar after shave cologne. ‘He approves…I’m free!’ she thought to herself as she drifted off into blissful sleep.

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he first leg of the flight from Atlanta had been a very relaxing one for both Dana and Carlo for they were coming down from the high of the wedding and reception the day before. They flew first class in the 747 and after they were served a wonderful champagne, steak and omelet breakfast with all of the trimmings, Dana dropped off to sleep. Carlo decided to let her slumber for the long trip ahead of them would be tiring for her. He wanted her to be fresh as a daisy when they arrived at their final destination in Australia. He was almost as excited as Dana in anticipation of the adventure they were going to share in the country down under. Carlo had contacted an old friend of his, Stephan Tanger, editor of THE TIMES newspaper in Melbourne and a veteran of World War II same as he, shortly after Dana had told him of her dream to one day visit Australia. He informed Stephan of his confidential plans to take Dana there on their honeymoon. Stephan told him that he would line up some activities for Carlo and his new bride that would certainly hold the promise of an interesting, exciting and memorable honeymoon trip for the two of them. After conversing with his friend, Carlo realized why Dana had been so interested in visiting the Continent for Stephan promised to mail the information he divulged on the phone to Carlo so that he could see for himself what all the continent had to offer. - 85 -

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The flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia took a little over seventeen hours and started out in the early evening. There was a gigantic full moon with a few scattered white puffy clouds hanging about here and there that presented a breathtakingly beautiful scene over the Pacific Ocean as they flew. Once again, the happy couple was comfortably encapsulated in the first class section of an airliner and convinced themselves that this would be more like a romantic party in the air with all of the amenities presented to them during the flight. It soon became evident that Carlo and Dana were newlyweds so after an hour or two of toasts to the bride and groom, the other passengers left them to themselves to cuddle and coo in their own little private corner of the cabin. “I can’t tell you how extraordinarily happy I am, Gian-Carlo. This all seems like a wonderful dream and if it is…I hope I never wake up,” Dana laughingly said as she sipped on her champagne. “Here I am married to one of the most successful surgeons in the Southeast…the most wonderful and handsome man in the universe and I am actually on my way to Australia. I simply cannot believe this is all true. Pinch me and see if I’m really awake!” “No, my Little One…you are not dreaming. We are actually on our way to the land of your dreams and believe me, you are really awake and so far, enjoying every minute of it all. I derive such pleasure in listening to you and watching you for you are like a little girl with a new toy on her way to a fairyland somewhere in a mystical world. Have you ever figured out why you have such a yearning to go to Australia?” “No,” Dana replied with a quizzical look on her face. “I only know that I have always felt that I should go there for some strange reason…rather like part of my destiny or something like that. I feel this strange pull toward that continent and I don’t know why. Sometimes I feel as though there is something I’m supposed to do there or find there…oh, I don’t know…I wish I knew what the attraction is. Perhaps we’ll solve the mystery while we’re there. I hope so…maybe

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then I can finally dislodge this feeling in my heart…a longing or need that has been imbedded there for as long as I can remember,” Dana lamented. “At any rate, I am thrilled beyond words that you elected to take me there and what a wonderful excuse…a honeymoon!” “Well, I’m delighted that you are so happy with my selection. I rather wanted to see Australia myself for my friend Stephan spoke of his homeland so warmly while we were in the service together. It will be interesting to see for myself the things he spoke of and find out why people who go there develop such an attachment for the country. I’m sure I will derive just as much pleasure as you in exploring and seeing the sights.” “Did you know that the continent is known as the ‘Continent that went Walkabout’ because it moved from Antarctica moving northward and started on its’ separate way 65 million years ago?” Carlo asked. “I’ve been doing my homework and was mesmerized by the books and tapes I found on the subject. For instance, Australia has a unique origin as a place of crime and punishment. Convicts were imported from England and Ireland and used like slave labor for punishment for their crimes. The convict decades lasted from 1830 to 1877 and the last convicts died in the 1920’s. Sheep replaced convicts as Australia’s primary industry in the 1880’s and the sheep still outnumber the people…now isn’t that amazing?” “Gracious, Gian Carlo! You really have been doing your homework. I can’t believe you have done such in-depth research…I’m proud of you,” Dana said with a chuckle. “I also discovered an interesting fact that you might latch right onto…almost all of the world’s supply of opals come from Australia. Having been born in October and the opal being your birthstone, I thought you might find that little bit of information lucrative for you. I will really have to watch you as we pass the jewelry stores for if I know you, you will want to take home just a ‘small’ sampling of the

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Aussie’s treasures from the earth, am I correct in my assumptions, Little One? h-m-m-m-m-?” Gian-Carlo taunted her. “You think you’re so smart, do you?? Well, I learned a thing or two about the continent myself, Mr. Smarty! For instance…in the 1850’s, gold trebled Australia’s population; Literacy is virtually 100% in the country, which I applaud…too bad we can’t say the same about our country. Workers earn 4 to 6 weeks vacation every year and voting is compulsory. A fact that I found rather disturbing was that Australians spend two times as much on gambling as they do on national defense. Another little bit of info discovered and something you will find intriguing but disturbing is the fact that the tropical sun gives fair skinned Aussies the highest rate of skin cancer in the world. Remind me to buy a large brimmed sun hat the moment we land, will you?” Dana grimaced as she spoke. “Not that I’m trying to ‘one up’ you…but I also learned that the Aussies have a thirst that still ranks the country first in alcohol consumption among English-speaking peoples. They put away a tremendous amount of booze every day and they start to imbibe at a very early age.” “Hey,” Carlo continued, “I’m told that the Italians came in numbers to mine the gold and later to cut cane in the hot north, and their descendants today are the largest group after the British and the Irish. You don’t suppose I just might have some long lost relatives ‘down under’, do you?” Carlo added, laughing. “I’ll save the remainder of my history lesson for another time and place if you don’t mind, my darling. I’m frightfully sleepy and there is nothing to look at out the window of the airplane but dark water and an awful lot of it so I think I will drift off into nitey-nite land,” Dana said sleepily. Before he could answer, she snuggled down into the pillow she had crushed into his shoulder and neck and almost immediately began to breathe slowly and regularly which indicated the beginnings of a shallow sleep state.

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Carlo gingerly placed a kiss on her forehead and wished her happy dreams before leaning his head on hers in order to drift off into a much-needed period of rest himself. The soft whir of the jet engines lulled him to sleep almost immediately.

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eorge Rodgers and Graham Staff rode up on the elevator together to stop in to see the status of how Dana’s condition and how Carlo was holding up under the strain of being with her night and day. He still refused to leave her side even though it had now been six weeks since the accident. “Have you come up with any more ideas as to what’s keeping Dana locked into the coma?” Graham asked. “I’ve checked and double checked her blood gases and the whole works and it still remains a mystery to me.” “No. We’re still running extensive tests but they are all conclusive in the fact that her condition, physically, is improving. All of the injuries are healing slowly but nicely but she is in such a deep coma and doesn’t show any signs of rising out of it any time soon. You know, I really don’t understand it at all. Her head injury was a bad one but from the looks of the x-rays and scans, I don’t think it could have caused enough trauma to keep her down for this long. Carlo called in a couple of specialists to do some more tests and they have come to the same conclusion. There really is no medical reason for her deep sleep. It is indeed a mystery,” George said with a puzzled look on his face. “One we had better find an answer to soon. Carlo is - 90 -

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about to lose it himself…he isn’t getting enough sleep and rest and he refuses to eat very much at all. He’s had me bring clothes for him from his penthouse and the only time he leaves her alone is when he takes the time to shower, shave and change his clothes. At any rate, his temper seems to have mellowed somewhat, thank God! He was like a raving maniac here for a while and all of the nurses were threatening to quit if he didn’t stop ranting and raving at them. One of the nurses has held out and is spending most of her time attending to Dana’s needs, meds, etc. She relieved the Nurse Tech from her duties of bathing Dana. She said she would feel more comfortable with the case if one person alone serviced the patient. I’ll have to hand it to her…she certainly is dedicated and seems to really take Dana’s comfort and care to heart. Her name is Belinda Jacobs. Do you know her?” “Yeah…I know her. I hope it’s true dedication that is prompting her interest in Dana’s case.” Graham said rather sarcastically. “What do you mean by that?” Before Graham could answer George’s query, the elevator door opened and two people entered. The next floor was theirs and they exited and walked the few feet down the hall to Dana’s room in silence because there were several people milling about. Carlo was at Dana’s bedside, holding her hand and talking to her when they came into the room. “How’s she doing?” the two doctors asked in unison as Carlo looked up. “Damned if I know! I have examined her from one end to the other and her injuries are all healing well. A little slowly but that’s because of the inactivity of her body. She seems to be responding nicely to all of the medications administered for healing purposes and to fight infections but she remains in this god damned coma. I get no response from her at all when I talk to her or touch her. I’ve talked to her for hours on end, hoping she’ll come around but…nothing.” Carlo said, his voice faltering a bit.

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“I can’t understand it for I know she can hear me and with her healing bodily as she is, and her cranial injuries no worse than they are, there just isn’t any logical explanation for this whole god damned, fucking situation,” Carlo explained, almost losing his usual iron-clad demeanor. The other two doctors looked at each other uncomfortably and shrugged their shoulders. “We’re just as baffled and puzzled as you are Carlo, but there has to be an answer somewhere. There isn’t a similar case anywhere in the medical books. I’ve researched the problem and I haven’t been able to find anything comparable anywhere,” George stated emphatically. “Well, keep on thinking and looking for an answer. I know you’ve been on the horn with several other specialists all over the country and in Europe to no avail. We’ve tried everything they have recommended and then some. Now, we must try some of the Asian specialists. Their tactics, techniques and medical knowledge I have the utmost respect for and at this point, I’m ready to try almost anything.” George and Graham agreed to Carlo’s suggestion and left the room leaving him once again alone with the unconscious woman he loved more than life itself. “Oh Dana, please, please hear me and make a concerted effort to work your way back to me. I know I was so wrong in letting you leave me before but I absolutely could not bear it if you left me in this way. Hang on, Little One! Hang on! We’ll find a way to help you if you can just hang on long enough,” Carlo whispered as he once again took her hand. He looked up as the door quietly opened and the figure of a man appeared in the soft light of the room. “Gian-Carlo, it’s me, Jamie Sanders. I got your message through Dana’s mother and got here as soon as I could. The two doctors out in the hall filled me in on our lady’s condition when they learned

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that I am her minister and dear friend. It’s good to see ya but l’m extremely sorry it has to be under these circumstances.” “Good to see you too, Jamie. Thank God you’re here! I know how much your friendship means to Dana and I thought you might bring some comfort to her by your presence even though she doesn’t respond to anyone’s voice or touch. She can hear even though she is in a deep coma so why don’t you speak to her, Jamie. I know she would want you here by her side at this time,” Carlo said as he made room for Jamie at Dana’s bedside. Jamie took Dana’s hand in his and remained silent for a few minutes. His eyes scanned her face with such tenderness and love even though it deeply pained him to see her lying there so lifeless. Then, quietly he spoke to her…“Hey Sweetness. Seeing ya here like this is so hard for me. You who have always been so full of life, always in such laughter, always quick to give of yourself…I have to realize that this body that I know and recognize is not really who you are. You are a wonderful being, a wonderful spirit that will forever transcend heartaches and even death. You have been a friend and I truly give thanks for your being in my life. I love you.” Sadly, Jamie continued…”I don’t know if you’ll pull through this one or not, but whatever you decide to do, I’m here! I’m here to hold your hand…I’m here to hold it to help you over or to pull you back. Whatever ya choose, I’m here. If ya wanna let go, it’s okay…I want for you what’s best. I love ya enough to release you. But, my friend, if you wanna stay…I’m here as always!” Jamie gently placed his hand on Dana’s forehead, bowed his head and offered this prayer…“Heavenly Father-Mother God, at this time I release any fear thoughts surrounding this situation. I now affirm and know that there is only love at this very moment. That there is no sickness, there is no death, only transformation. Please be with this child of yours and surround her with your loving, healing light of ‘Pure Being’…I speak the words and I bring it into manifestation that all is well and good with this woman…this friend. Blessed

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Spirit, she is one whom I love…be with her now…I bless her and I release her. Thank you, Father-Mother God and so it is. Amen.” As Jamie finished his prayer, Carlo felt a sudden slight, soft breath of air as though someone had just moved past him. He looked around the dimly lighted room but saw no one. Jamie was watching him from across Dana’s bed and smiled at the quizzical look on the doctor’s face. “No need to be alarmed, Doc. I felt it too. It’s only Dana’s Guardian Angel assuming her designated place at the right hand side of Dana to protect her as she makes her final decision.” “What final decision are you talking about?” “There’s a lot going on with Dana that you nor I can really know and comprehend but believe me, she’s learning her lessons very well while she is in this sleep state. She and her true self, her God self are struggling trying to decide which would be the best route for her to take…the one back here or the one toward the Light,” Jamie explained to Carlo. “You know I don’t believe in all of your and Dana’s mumbo jumbo about angels, goings and comings and such. It’s just a bunch of poppy-cock as far as I’m concerned but if my Dana believes in all of this stuff and you think it will help to bring her back…then continue on with whatever you were doing. For God’s sake, don’t let me stand in your way” “All of this…Dana’s accident, her coma, everything is…for God’s sake, Carlo. Trust me. We must keep an open mind and have faith that all is well with her and whatever the decision, it will be the right one for her ultimate good,” Jamie entreated. “Maybe I’m being selfish but I’m not ready for her to be my angel…not just yet, anyway. Would it help if we held hands over her bed and silently prayed in our own way?” “Can’t hurt,” Jamie said smiling as he reached for Carlo’s hand across the small form lying so still on the bed.

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Carlo swore to himself that he heard the rustle of wings again in the room.

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he day was bright and sunny when Carlo and his new bride arrived in Sydney for the summer season was in full swing at this time of year. The airport was located six miles from the downtown area of Sydney and before hopping a cab to the hotel, Carlo and Dana rode the airport bus over to the domestic terminal so that he could make arrangements to rent a small twin engine plane for their private use while on the continent. Not only were they going to use it to explore, but Carlo intended to use it to participate in the Royal Flying Doctor Service while he was there. He would need the plane to fly himself, Dana and their supplies into the bush country in the Outback. This would give them an opportunity to depart whenever they wanted after assisting with their services. The Flying Doctor Service was utilized to provide medical services for people in remote areas. The service covers two-thirds of Australia, with physicians operating from bases equipped with radio stations for communicating with distant ranches and settlements, and a hospital, air-ambulance, and nursing staff. Australia has nearly 1100 hospitals and many of their staff volunteered a lot of their time to the Service thus providing help and care to those who otherwise would not be able to receive it. Carlo had requested through the Australian - 96 -

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Medical Society that he be allowed to participate while on this trip and had received permission to do so as long as there was one other surgeon along on the same cases. Dana had asked permission to go along as his private technician and he and the Society had agreed. They were told that their trips into the outback were scheduled for the second week of their stay. Having gotten the flying itinerary out of the way, the honeymoon couple hired a cab and headed for Downtown Sydney Harbor. The hotel was perfectly situated within walking distance of the City Center Shopping areas that Carlo knew would please Dana and it had magnificent and spectacular water views from most of the suites and rooms. The hotel offered its guests a relaxing ambiance, first class facilities and very friendly service. It had a five star rating and Carlo had made sure that the accommodations were the finest to be had for nothing was too good for his new bride when she visited her ‘dream’ country. Carlo handed the bellman a gracious tip and then lifted Dana into his arms and swept her across the threshold of the luxurious suite of rooms. From every vantage point in each of the four rooms, they could observe a truly superb view of the harbor. “Gian-Carlo, I have never in my life seen such beauty in a city. It’s as I have heard…Sydney is absolutely one of the world’s great cities. I can tell that already and we haven’t even been out of this room yet. If I know anything at all about you, I am certain that you have arranged for us to see and take in everything of any importance and interest while we are here, am I right?” Dana queried. “Well, I have researched it all quite thoroughly with the help of Stephen and two world renowned travel agencies. If you don’t see everything here that you wanted and expected to see…don’t blame me…for I will have done my best!” Carlo retorted, laughingly. “I’m sure I’ll see it all and then some…as I said…if I know you. I overheard someone in the Lobby say that the Summit Restaurant is a glorious place to dine…why don’t we start the evening off there?”

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Dana purred. “Tis said it sits high above the city and has spectacular views of the city and the surrounding areas.” “Either you have been sneaking a peak at our itinerary or you can read my mind…that’s exactly where we have dinner reservations tonight at 8:00 sharp. Why don’t we unpack, take a little nap to rest up after the flight, get a relaxing bath and then press on to the Summit for dinner? I know you must be tired and you will want to stay up late. If I know you, you’ll want to see half of the city before daylight tomorrow!” “Oh you!! I can’t help it if I’m so thrilled and excited that I can hardly keep still a minute. I feel that this is one of those ‘things’ that I’m supposed to do in this lifetime for some reason or other and the sooner we get moving around here, perhaps the sooner I will discover what the heck it is!” Dana exclaimed fervently. After unpacking and putting away their things, Dana turned toward Carlo for she intuitively felt his eyes upon her. She could tell by the look on his face and the enticing look emanating from those dark eyes that he had no intention of taking a nap at this point. She walked seductively over to him, kicked off her shoes, pulled up her skirt and straddled him on the chair. She reached up and ran her fingers through his black, wavy hair and began to kiss his face. She worked her way downward from his forehead to his eyes on which she placed light, gentle kisses. She then carefully nibbled at the area underneath his eye and worked her way across the bridge of his nose to the other eye. Taking Carlo’s face in her hands, she lifted his chin upward so that she could get to his mouth. As she opened her wet lips to encircle his, Carlo reached up and cupped both of her breasts in his hands and began to gently squeeze them. Almost immediately, the nipples became hard and rippled and he knew he had struck a very familiar chord. Within a matter of moments, Dana began to squirm around and moan softly. Their kisses became more demanding causing Carlo to fill the vacant area just below Dana’s crotch with the growing firmness of his pulsating cock. Dana began to stroke

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herself with his hardness and she felt herself begin to get warm and damp. Without uttering a sound, Carlo lifted Dana into his arms and carried her to the bed. “I thought we were about to experience a first…” Dana said, breathing heavily. “I thought we were going to slip by without making love before we went out!” “What?! And screw up an old Italian tradition? Not on your life, my darling Little One,” Carlo said as he removed the remaining articles of their clothing and lay down atop his eager, passionate wife. The following morning found Dana and Carlo aboard a giant sailing Catamaran for the early coffee cruise in order to see the highlight points of interest and history of the harbor, the city and the foreshore. The boat glided them past the famous Sydney Opera House with a roof that looked like seven gigantic sails. The architecture was indeed breathtaking and extraordinary. There was a wonderful restaurant located in the building and Carlo planned to take Dana to it later in the evening for dinner and a show. The afternoon was busy with a visit to Darling Harbor, a place where Sydney celebrates. The modern waterside harbor was only five minutes from the City Center so they walked there. The air was filled with the sounds of laughter and merrymaking all around them and Dana marveled at how many hand-in-hand, arm-in-arm couples they encountered on their meanderings. “This city seems to embrace such a warm, loving feeling which people everywhere seem to pick up on. Everywhere I look, I see expressions of love and harmony. Makes me feel glad to be alive and here in this wonderful place with the man I love,” she said giving Carlo’s arm a gentle squeeze. At the Harbor they visited many world-class attractions, walked through the Chinese Garden, and languidly strolled and browsed through some of the 200 shops in the complex. Before returning to the hotel in order to dress for dinner at the Opera House, Carlo insisted that they stop by the Pumphouse Tavern for a Happy Hour

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cocktail or two. He decided that they would take in the sights and sounds of Sydney’s nightlife after the show at Bobby McGees, another of Sydney’s ‘in’ nightspots. Dana and Carlo slept in for a while the following morning and were treated to a delicious breakfast in bed as per Carlo’s instructions to the Concierge of the hotel. Dana stretched herself upon awakening, a la Scarlett O’Hara…just been had…style, and beamed up at Carlo as he placed the heavily laden tray over her lap in the bed. “You could at least give a lady a chance to modestly cover herself before requesting that she sit up to partake of this multitudinous feast. You must not be planning on feeding me again today if you expect me to ingest even a portion of this meal!” she squealed with delight. “Eat well, me little mate…for the day is well planned and there will be little time to waste on mundane things like feeding one’s belly!” Carlo boasted. Casually dressed, they set out on the day’s excursion beginning with a tour of the “Rocks” on Sydney’s harbor side. Adjacent to Circular Quay, The Rocks is the site of Australia’s first European Settlement. They found that the colorful streetscapes and elegantly restored buildings housed a wide variety of specialty shops, restaurants and entertainment places. They visited the Earth Exchange, the Suzannah Place, the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Rocks Market where Dana oohed and ahhed like a young schoolgirl on her first ‘big-city’ outing. Carlo delighted in watching her amazement at the sights she was beholding. Later in the day Carlo and Dana found their way to the “Powerhouse Museum” which was one of the world’s leading museums with over 25 exhibitions describing human achievement, science and technology, decorative arts and the everyday life of Australians. Both of them marveled at the exhibitions found later at the Sydney Aquarium at Darling Harbor. They took the glass tunnel to the fascinating Shark Exhibition and looking up, they could see many different sizes

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and shapes of the many species of sharks found in the azure waters of the Pacific Ocean. Hand in hand like the lovers they were, they strolled through the Mammal Sanctuary until closing time at sunset. “We had better be getting on back to the hotel so that we can rest up a bit, get a shower and be ready for the Gala we will be attending in the Ballroom of the hotel at 9:00 this evening,” Carlo said solicitously. Dana shot him a quizzical look, which read…a game of mattress polo before or after this time??? “What do you think, my pet’?” “We’d make a fortune if you could only market the ‘horny pills’ or whatever it is you’re taking is…what I think, my Italian Stud!”








Attired in formal tuxedo and elegant, flowing gown, Carlo and Dana entered the gigantic Ballroom promptly at 9:05 and found Stephan and his wife awaiting them. “There is no formal receiving line here. Stay close and I will see to it that you meet the bulk of them,” Stephan said as he ushered Carlo and Dana toward the bar. During the course of the evening, they were introduced to Prime Minister Robert Henley and his wife, Muriel who welcomed them to the ‘Down-under Continent’ and thanked Carlo for his interest in the Flying Doctor program. Senator Jason Grant, minister for resources, spoke to them of the crisis in minerals and agriculture in his country. Dana was pleased to learn that there had been a woman elected by a federal Labor Party to the cabinet and she asked to meet her. Senator Belinda White was a genteel, charming lady and Dana realized what an asset this lady was to the peoples of her country simply by conversing with her. Belinda indeed had so much compassion and deep regard for her people’s needs and she intended to ‘have her say’ on their behalf. ‘My kind of woman,’ Dana said to herself as she shook Belinda’s hand after their conversation.

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Two other women gained Dana’s respect when she learned who they were and what they stood for. Grace Nelson, who was headmistress of Sydney’s Ascham Girls’ School told them how she had seen educational progress and also the appearance of many new problems creep into the system. She said that students were more intent in ‘finding themselves’ instead of competing, learning and excelling in their studies. Dennis Jasper, a science minister in the Henley cabinet, agreed with Grace by saying that he felt that there was definitely a link between racism and education. It seemed that when minority groups began to excel and do well in schools, the real resentment toward them began to formulate. Novelist Elizabeth Congleton, who lived in the Italian quarter of Melbourne, agreed with him wholeheartedly. She related to the small group gathered around Carlo, Dana, Dennis, Grace, and Stephan that there were minority groups consisting of Vietnamese, Chinese, Filipino and Indonesian peoples. She stated that it was not yet known how the old Aussies would react if one day the foreign-born would become the majority and consist of not whites but mostly Asians. Hopefully, she said that all concerned prayed that the difficulties and problems would be minute and solvable without any real trouble. Dana and Carlo were greeted with warmth, charm and grace by the entire group at the Gala and were startled when introduced by Premier Henley from the podium during the introduction of the dignitaries. Carlo’s success and subsequent notoriety as a brilliant surgeon interested in the research and cure of cancer had preceded him to this country. A fellow physician and researcher, Dr. Rachel Rischer later explained to Carlo that her research had shown that long-term exposure to ultra-violet rays suppresses the immune systems of many of the outdoorsmen in Australia due to the fact that so many of them were fair skinned and were exposed to too much tropical sun in their work. She told him that Australians have the highest rate of skin cancer in the world. He suggested that they get together

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later on in the trip to discuss her research methods and she gladly agreed to do so. “Where is that sun hat we were supposed to buy me when we first got off the plane?” Dana whispered to Carlo. “First thing on the agenda tomorrow!” Carlo whispered back. The evening’s entertainment was presented by various groups of Ballroom Dancers of all ages. There were many very young children who danced and Dana marveled at how gracefully and artistically they performed. There are many schools of Ballroom Dancing scattered all about Australia and it is considered quite an art there. “Makes me want to take my ‘toe-tapping’ shoes out of storage and whirl around a bit myself,” Dana said to Carlo as the fourteen piece orchestra began to tune up for the night’s dancing party. “I used to be pretty good at that sort of thing, you know.” “Doesn’t surprise me one bit, my sweet, for you are a very good dancer,” Carlo answered as he escorted her out onto the floor. Dana became aware that several of the Ballroom Dancers were watching them as they swirled and twirled to the beautiful strains of the music. As Carlo led Dana back toward their table, one of the young men approached them and asked Carlo’s permission to dance with Dana. “If the lady so desires, yes of course,” Carlo answered as he gently placed Dana’s hand in the young man’s waiting, outstretched one. Dana smiled as she nodded her head in consent. The orchestra was playing a rumba and as the young man led Dana onto the floor, he lifted her hand and with a slight motion, indicated to her that he wanted her to spin around under his and her hand. Then he guided her into position in front of him, placed his right hand in the small of her back and took her right hand in his left hand. Immediately, they glided into the rhythmic steps of a romantic Rumba. Dana was a natural born dancer with an inherent talent for most any kind of dance beat. The young man surmised such after observing Dana and her husband dancing. Not once as they glided, dipped, cross-stepped, twirled and swirled, did Dana miss a beat or a

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step. She was a bit of a ham so she played the dance to the hilt as she swayed and moved gracefully and alluringly to the romantic rhythm of the Latin music. The other dancers slowly stopped dancing and formed a ring around them as they increased the difficult steps of the dance. Carlo was absolutely mesmerized as he watched his beautiful bride exhibit her talent for the dance. ‘God, this is one talented lady, this bride of mine,’ he smiled to himself and beamed as others around him made complimentary comments to him about Dana. ‘Wonder what other hidden talents she possesses?’ He would discover the answer to that question within a matter of days…

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he morning after the Gala, Carlo and Dana packed the rental plane and headed Southwest to the totally planned city of Canberra. The city is part of the Australian Capital Territory, created when the Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901. There are no towering buildings, no billboards, no neon signs or traffic jams in the city of 300,000 people. The inhabitants are quite proud of the fact that Canberra is extraordinarily different from other Australian cities for it is inland, has no major industry and is well-ordered in design. They revel in the fact that their city is a city of government, exuding an atmosphere found only in national capitals. The city is built on a rolling plain in an amphitheater of the Australian Alps and Lake Burley Griffin is said to be the magnificent, beautiful centerpiece. The city is also internationally known for its renowned architecture and many of the country’s finest Aboriginal and European paintings. The happy honeymooning couple visited the Canberra Space Centre in the afternoon. The complex is part of NASA’s deep space network and Carlo wanted to view the graphic and audiovisual displays at the visitor center for he was soon anticipating Shawn’s announcement that he would be entering the Astronaut program. Carlo intended to visit the other facilities NASA had in the states

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upon his return so that he could better know what to expect whenever Shawn confided in him as to his intentions. The following day found them en route to the Avalanche Homestead that is located 27 miles southeast of Canberra. They spent some time looking about the ‘working sheep and cattle’ property. Carlo even tried his hand at shearing a sheep in a game of speed and skill. “I’ll tell you one damned thing…this is nothing like performing surgery…this blasted animal won’t lie still and cooperate!” he excitedly stated to the group watching him perform. “Well now Doc! We don’t provide any anesthesia for these jumbucks on this station. We’ll give it to you though, Mate. You’ve given it a ‘fair dinkum’ at the ‘dinke-di,” the head qrazier laughingly told him after the finish whistle was blown. “Don’t worry darling, I won’t tell your friends at home that you have no talent as to shearing…but just look at the beautiful abstract pattern in design you have created on that poor unsuspecting little ‘jumbuck’animal,” Dana quipped as she held her sides in laughter. “Let’s see if you have better luck at throwing a boomerang.” Dana had a chance to laugh even harder at Carlo’s attempts at the boomerang throwing game for three of the four times he tossed the oddly shaped missile, it returned to smack him smartly on his torso before he could master the art of catching it as it spun dangerously overhead. “Nope, me Mate-love…this is definitely not your forte. You’ll simply have to find another way to demonstrate your expertise to these wonderful Aussies! You might as well pack up your ‘swag’, call your ‘dingo’ and ‘shout’ for your fellow ‘blokes’. “And just where did you learn to speak ‘Strine’* so fast and so well, me pretty?” Carlo shouted to Dana over the loud laughter from the crowd. “Oh, I forgot to tell you that I purchased a little book on the language of these people before we left the states and I have been practicing behind your back. I was rather hoping I would run into Paul

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Hogan while we were in the country and we could “Crocodile Dundee” it a bit!” Upon awakening the next morning, Carlo reached over to stroke Dana’s back with his fingertips. He gently ran them up and down the curves of her body and reveled in the beauty of her nudeness. She lay on her stomach with her right arm extended up above her head and her left arm curled downward by her side. As Carlo slowly and languidly traced the curvature of her ribcage, waist and hips, Dana began to stir under his sensual touch. “H-m-m-m, I’ll give you two hours to stop that wonderful caressing. I can feel the warmth beginning to creep its way into every cell of my body and we both know where it will ultimately settle and require more immediate and profound attention, my sexy Italian stud!” she seductively purred. Carlo gently turned her over onto her back and continued tracing the outline of her body with his fingertips. “You have the most exquisite body Dana, and I can never get enough of touching, smelling and tasting you. Your individual and alluring scent can enrapture me even more so than your magnificent beauty. Your body has such a delightful, sweet, pure smell. I can almost become intoxicated whenever I catch your own special scent. And your taste…my God…you taste like the nectar of the gods. Never in my life have I ever experienced such sweetness. You are like honey…wherever I seek out your taste. I love you, my wonderful beloved wife,” Carlo whispered into Dana’s ear as he tenderly brought his mouth into play to add to the seduction of the moment. He nibbled on her earlobe and serenely began to trace the canals of her ear with his damp, warm tongue. He gingerly circled the projectile down into the deep cavity and twirled it as he expelled his hot breath into her ear at the same time. Dana began to writhe underneath his touch…then reached for his hand and placed it between her legs as she implored him with her eyes to hasten his foreplay and get on with the business at hand. “I thought you didn’t like quickies,” Carlo huskily said.

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“Well, there’s a time and a place for everything Doc,” Dana answered as she pulled him over on top of her and made herself ready for the approaching maneuver which she knew would allow Carlo to strike his mark. Afterwards, they lay in each other’s arms and enjoyed the rapture the expenditure of their passion had created. Dana began to snicker and laugh quietly. “You know, I have often tried to find the words to define and explain that marvelous, glorious feeling an orgasm creates but I find that sensation to be one bodily reaction that is truly inexplicable. There just are no words to truly describe that euphoric, erotic sensual delight that is brought on by that explosive and satisfying climax. Have you ever wondered about that?” “No, I don’t think I have ever thought to question that particular subject but leave it to you, my dear little Libran ‘looney tuner’, to dream up some crazy wonder like that!” Carlo retorted as he doubled over with laughter. “Now, get your quizzical fanny out of bed and let’s get ready for our day in the sky…we’re going to go hot-air ballooning and we have to be out there on the meadow at 8:00 sharp. There was motive in my madness, my dear…we indulged in that little game of mattress polo just now so that you would be perfectly relaxed for your first open-air ride in the sky. And…by the by…I enjoyed the wonderful interlude too!” “Oh you…” Dana said as she threw the pillow at him. *(See back page of book for “HOW TO SPEAK STRINE”) The next few days found them exploring Marvelous Melbourne and its’ friendly elegance. The city had Old World charm, sophisticated beauty and elegance. There one could wander down broad, tree-lined avenues, stroll through formal flower covered gardens, admire large, stately buildings, boat on the Yarra River or shop in the many elegant and fine boutiques. Both Dana and Carlo found Melbourne to be a wonderful city which encompassed a financial center, a culinary mecca, a haven for theater and the fine arts, a gathering place for multi-cultured peoples and an intriguing sports capital.

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They made it a point to visit Carlton, the thriving Italian community in Melbourne. The community is circled by Melbourne University, restored Victorian homes and the largest collection of Italian restaurants in Australia. Carlo felt right at home in this area and was elated that he could practice his Italian dialect in many of the restaurants and be perfectly understood. One of Dana’s favorite spots they visited was the AustraliaGate SensorVision Theatre at the Southgate leisure and arts center in South Melbourne. This is Australia’s first multi-sensory theater which presented “Experience Australia”, a 50-minute journey through the continent’s history from the Dreamtime to Melbourne as it is today. She sat mesmerized as she watched the documentary unfold on the big screen and commented to Carlo afterwards that she felt as though she had been there before…that old familiar feeling crept into her mind as she sat enthralled with the unveiling of the history encompassed here. On their ninth day, Dana and Carlo flew to Adelaide, the gracious lady of the south. During the tour they saw and were entranced with the elegance of the city’s fine architecture, stately homes, beautiful parklands and gardens. They visited the Festival Theatre, the Japanese Gardens and Adelaide’s Casino, which had been converted from an old railway station to an elegant casino offering a wide variety of games as well as an outstanding restaurant and several bars. From there they flew on to Kangaroo Island. They parked their airplane and went aboard the touring plane in order to explore in a group, Seal Bay National Park and historic Reeves Point. At the National Park, they walked safely among the sea lions in their natural habitat and fed fish to some of them in an enclosed area. Dana had a ball listening to Carlo try to mimic the funny little animals’ sounds and silly antics. “Hey buddy, I think you missed your calling…you could have been a mime as well as you imitate these little fellows,” she said as the tears from her laughter rolled down her face. “And me without a camera to record this for posterity’s sake!”

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After a barbecue lunch, they traveled on to Rocky River Homestead to visit emus, koalas, kangaroos and the rare Cape Barren Geese along with many other animals and fowl particular to Australia. Dana begged Carlo to let her ride one of the kangaroos but he would not relent nor give in to her pleas. “I have heard that these animals can kill a person with just one strike of that huge tail and I am taking no chances on losing my bride now that I have finally found her. I have a hard enough time with your riding those other so called ‘domestic’ animals you call horses. No mam, it’s simply…no mam…and no amount of cooing and rolling those seductive eyes at me will change my mind.” Dana gave up on trying to argue with him and moved on to hold and pet one of the koala bears. Carlo elected to fly on to Tropical North Queensland to visit Cairns and Alice Springs. It was a three-hour flight and Carlo gave the controls over to Dana so that she could gain some OJT in the cockpit and handling the controls. “When we return home, I am going to arrange for you to take some private flying lessons and the AOPA Pinch-hitter course. I’m thinking of buying a small plane and I want you to know how to get us back on the ground in the event anything ever happens to me while at the controls.” Without batting an eye Dana tightened her grip on the controls and listened attentively as Carlo explained about the radio and instrument panel. Within minutes, she was able to keep the plane on its’ course, flying straight and level. Never in her wildest dreams did she realize that just this little bit of instruction would save their lives in the days to come. The honeymoon couple checked into the Novotel Palm Cove Resort where for the next three nights, they spent a memorable and exciting time at the popular resort located on beautiful hundred-acre property. They took advantage of the sports club, the gorgeous beach, rainforest walks, the golf course, tennis courts and several of the resorts swimming pools.

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As Carlo said, he intended to take advantage of everything offered there and not waste a single minute doing it. Dana wondered where in the world Carlo mustered up all of the energy he expended participating in all of the activities and then danced and engaged in games of ‘mattress polo’ in the evenings. “Whew! He can outlast me and I’m the one who is supposed to be in such excellent shape! Must be that Italian blood…wonder if he would consent to giving me a transfusion?!” she said out loud to herself. At the conclusion of their stay in North Queensland, they flew back to Ayers Rock\ Alice Springs area and from there, they would fly into the Outback to participate in the Flying Doctor program.

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arlo made the necessary preparations upon returning to Ayers Rock for he and Dana to take a personal guide to climb the “Rock” and tour the base of the world’s largest monolith where the guide explained in detail the intricate background of the Aboriginals’ paintings and ancient occupation sites as they trekked along the rocky, hot trails. From the vantage point on top of the Rock, they delighted in the stunning spectacular desert colors enhanced by a magnificent sunset. Following their all day excursion, they relaxed in the evening with a true outback experience to enjoy dinner by campfire with lores, stories and legends of the “Dreamtime”, the complex Aboriginal creation saga which refers to the beginnings of life and its continuation into the future. Everyone was spellbound as they listened to the tales told under a clear, beautiful, starry sky. One of the elders of the Gagudju tribe told in limited English the saga of the creation story of his people. He told the entranced group that long, long ago, before time could be counted, the world had no shape, that it was soft and wobbly. Then, at the beginning of the Dreamtime he continued, Warramurrungundji came out of the sea. A female being in human form, she created the land and gave birth to the people. She gave them their languages. Other creator beings came. Ginga, the giant ancestral crocodile, made the rock country. Marrawuti, the sea eagle, brought water lilies in his claws and - 112 -

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planted them on the floodplain. He told them that it is said that Marrawuti, the sea eagle, snatches away the spirit when a person dies. Djuway, the bowerbird, keeps the initiation ceremonies, and Ginga, the crocodile got his bumps on his back when he was blistered in a fire. As the old one spoke, his words were spoken very softly in very short sentences but they had a poetic directness. Each of the listeners sat mesmerized as he continued the intriguing tale. He told of the great spirit ancestors whom, once they had completed their creative acts, put themselves into the landscape, where they remain to this day. He said that Warramurrungundji is a white rock in the woodland and that Ginga is a rock outcrop textured like a crocodile’s back. These places are called Dreaming sites and still contain the power and energy of the Dreamtime. In all of these things, the old one stressed, all living things are as one. He said, “Earth our mother, eagle our cousin. Tree, he is pumping our blood. Grass is growing. And water. And we are all one.” He added that when the ancestral beings had completed their creation, they told the people, “Now we have done these things, you make sure they remain like this for all time. You must not change anything.” Thus the people were charged with the custodianship of the land and all living things. It is what the Gatgudju call ‘looking after the country.’ The Dreamtime then is the cohesive force that keeps man and his environment in harmony. It has done so for perhaps 2,000 generations of his people. Life is as bountiful in Kakadu now as it ever was, the curator told the group. Because they are an integral part of nature and the land, because they are the land, Aboriginal people cannot understand why anyone would want to alter or destroy it…what would amount to killing the life-force. As one of the other elders said, “White man got no Dreaming. Him go ‘nother way…Him got road belong himself.” To the Aborigines it is a road contrary to nature and leads to eventual destruction,

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Carlo and Dana’s attentive group were told in the closing of the evening’s story-telling session. The group was exceptionally quiet on the drive back to the Novatel Resort. It seemed to Dana that each was somehow lost in the mystical past of these intriguing early peoples of the continent and none of them wanted their silent reveries to be disturbed or broken. She herself felt a deep kinship with these wonderful people who seemed locked into an interesting time and place of the past. When the door of their suite closed behind them, Dana turned toward Carlo and said, “I am so looking forward to our trip into the Outback and an encounter with the Aborigines. I feel such an intense longing to mingle among them for some strange reason. Perhaps this is one of the reasons I have always felt that I should visit this continent. Do you suppose I am to learn something from them or that I, although I can’t imagine such a thing…am supposed to help or teach them something?” “I don’t know Little One…only time will tell. But you know how intuitive you are so we can rest assured that there is some real reason for you to feel as you do. I’m delighted that you agreed to come along to help as my assistant in the Flying Doctor service. This will give you a close, one-on-one opportunity to obtain all of the first hand information you want and need from these people,” Carlo answered. “I watched you this evening as the elder related the story of the Dreamtime to the group. You were absolutely captivated and seemed to be far, far away as the story unfolded.” “I know…I felt it too. It was as if I was actually there whenever all of the things took place with their ancestors. Boy, I really got into all of the history of these folks. Is that strange…or is that strange?!” Dana said with a far-off look in her eyes. The next day found them en route to Cairns again by bus in order to board the ‘Coral Princess’ for a four-day cruise through some of the most scenic parts of the Great Barrier Reef. While on the cruise, they experienced the best of all worlds…a safe, truly memorable wil-

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derness encounter in first class comfort, a unique and exciting Australian adventure aboard one of the most luxurious and beautiful cruise ships in the area. The ship was a magnificent floating state-ofthe-art mini cruise ship that accommodated 54 passengers on four decks with outstanding, modern and up-to-date amenities. The cruise incorporated soft adventure and expedition-type encounters with marine life and expeditions into the rainforest and mangrove environments as well. All of the crew was trained in marine biology so that they could provide information and guidance in the reef area and other environments they visited. A dive instructor was aboard to assist with all of the water sports, which included fish feeding, snorkeling, coral viewing, and scuba diving. That night the ship anchored at Sudbury Reef Lagoon for a leisurely enjoyed evening of dining and dancing. The second day of the cruise the ship continued on to Nathan Reefs so that the guests could further explore the extraordinary Great Barrier Reef. They enjoyed more water activities around the Dunk Island Resort and lunched there. The evening was once again spent on board ship with yet another elegant dinner followed by games and a talent show. “Here is another chance for you to ‘strut your stuff ’ by twirling around on the dance floor if you can find a suitable partner to dance with,” Carlo grinned as he pretended to glide around the floor of the cabin with an imaginary partner. “Just don’t ask me…you know I have two left feet when it comes to all that fancy foot-work!” “No, I don’t think I care to play Ginger Rogers again tonight…besides, I’d rather dance with you than anyone I know and please don’t be-little yourself, my dashing doctore’…you do quite well on the dance floor. You can certainly do a mean ‘jitterbug’! Ijust glad you’ve gotten too mature, shall we say, to swing me up and over your shoulders as I’m certain you learned to do in the Big Apple when you were growing up!”

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Carlo awakened early the following morning, left Dana sleeping and strolled around the deck before stopping topside for a continental breakfast of coffee and pastries. He had arranged for Dana to have her light breakfast served to her in bed this next-to-the-last day cruising the Reef area. When he approached their stateroom, he could hear her speaking. “Whom were you talking to just now,” Carlo queried as he opened the door to their cabin, seeing no one else in the room. “I wasn’t talking to anyone else. I was just doing my daily affirmations. I have done them very quietly when I was alone ever since we’ve been together for I wasn’t too sure you would understand them and why I recite them. Oh, don’t worry…it’s not witchcraft or mumbo-jumbo, darling. They are simply positive, mind-setting affirmations that I do daily to help me maintain a positive search for spiritual truth and progression. Besides, I feel that I need to say them especially now since we will soon be going into the Outback and into the Aboriginal lands. They are a very spiritual people, you know.” “Oh!” was all Carlo muttered. After a minute or two, he turned to her and said, “Better get up for we are approaching the Family Group of Islands, the only tropical rainforest islands on the Australian Coast and I’m sure you won’t want to miss anything. Bring your camera topside for we will see the Coral Princess’ exclusive Pelorus Island with its magnificent fringing reef, beach and rainforest. Bring a sun-hat for we will be going to a beach barbecue later in the afternoon. I’ll do the honors with the suntan lotion after we go ashore. You have already gotten a little too much sun and I don’t want you to go home with freckles and a peeling nose,” he chortled as he removed the tray from her lap and bent to plant a wet kiss on her lips. The wonderful trip aboard the Coral Princess ended with their sailing into Townsville Harbor the fourth morning out. Instead of meandering through the town with the rest of the ship’s guests, Carlo and Dana flew back to Alice Springs immediately after lunch.

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He was anxious to seek out the doctor who would be flying with them in their rental plane to advise them of the locations they would be servicing in the Flying Doctor program. The planned trip was already a week late. Carlo went to the main terminal office, located the doctor’s name on the physician’s roster, gave him a quick call and proceeded to gather the lists needed for supplies. He planned to have the plane loaded and ready for take-off at 06:30 the next morning. He intended to get an early start for it was a long way to their first destination in the far Outback. Doctor and Mrs. Carlo Evans registered at the Plaza Hotel Alice Springs and immediately set about unpacking and then repacking for their trek into the Bush and Outback. The plan was to stay seven days and nights out there and fly to as many isolated towns, missions and homesteads as they were needed before returning to Alice Springs. “Pack lightly Dana, for we will be in safari clothes and scrub suits most of the time we are away from here. No need to take along all of your make-up and such…just the necessities are all you will need for we definitely won’t be doing any grand socializing out there. Besides, me proud beauty…you don’t need any of that stuff anyway…how can you possibly improve on perfection?” “Flattery will get you everywhere…” Dana purred as she seductively sidled up to her sexy husband. “Yeah…and we’d better take advantage of this opportunity while we can for we don’t know where or with whom we’ll be sleeping after today for a while,” Carlo replied as he dropped a handful of clothes onto the floor and reached for his wife and led her to the bed. Dana was already breathing hard by the time she hit the sheets and Carlo soon matched her deep, passionate breaths as he removed the last of her clothing and placed himself into position for the afternoon’s delight.

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wilight was setting in and Carlo walked to the window in Dana’s room to gaze out into the cool early evening. It was time for visiting hours and he watched as people entered the main door of the hospital, some of them carrying bouquets of lovely flowers. He had made arrangements with Dana’s favorite florist to deliver several containers of colorful flowers to her every few days so that when she awakened, she would not awaken to an empty, drab, colorless hospital room. He wondered if anyone would come to visit his sleeping exwife tonight. Her visitors had lessened in numbers lately for she had been in this damnable coma for three and one-half months now and he knew it was extremely difficult for their friends to come by to see her when they knew that she could not speak or respond to them in any way. At least every other weekend Dana’s parents came, bringing Alana to visit her mother. It was heartbreaking to see them in such pain as they spoke to and reached out to touch the small still figure they encountered lying on the hospital bed. Alana especially was suffering but she always managed to retain her child-like composure as she offered news of her friends and school to her mother’s seemingly deaf ears. Never the less, she talked to her mother as if she were listening and hanging onto every word she spoke. Just before leaving - 118 -

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every visit, Alana sang a little song to Dana…one of their favorites they used to sing together each night before going to sleep. It had to do with…“Heavenly Angels lovingly and constantly watching over each of us and helping us to withstand the most difficult times…Always there…to watch over and to care…” Everyone who happened to be in the room at the time of the song could not manage to refrain from weeping at the tenderness in which the young child sang to her mother. Carlo had gone back to work only part-time for he could not bear to leave Dana’s bedside for more than a few hours at the time. He took only a few carefully selected surgical patients so that he could complete his cases by noon, clean himself up and then have his lunch served to him in her room every day. He would remain with her for two or three hours, hold her hand, gingerly stroke her brow and rub her arms and legs all the while talking to her tenderly and sweetly. He would tell her how terribly sorry he was that they had ever parted and how he longed for her to awaken so that they could be together again and start a new life. He spoke to her of his failure to realize that he had neglected her in the past for his own selfish reasons in order to further his newly found business career in the land development business and his stubbornness in not allowing her to help in his grief after Shawn’s accident. He swore adamantly that if she would just wake up, he would spend the rest of his life trying to make it all up to her. He would give up all of the other business involvements. He vowed and promised to do whatever it would take. He would give her anything she wanted…do his utmost to be a kind, considerate, understanding husband and father and to semi-retire from his lucrative surgical practice in order to spend more quality time with her and their daughter, Alana. Over and over he reiterated these things to her hoping that she would somehow hear and believe his covenant. The door to the room softly opened and Belinda Jacobs, the nurse who had assumed all duties regarding Dana’s care entered.

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“Oh Doctor Evans, I didn’t realize you were still here this evening. I’m working an extra half shift tonight so that I can put Mrs. Evans through her range-of-motion exercises so that she doesn’t get stiff during the night. I’ve been keeping very close watch on her Dr. Evans, and I haven’t noticed any change in her.” Carlo realized she intended to discuss Dana’s condition and he motioned to the nurse to join him on the other side of the room so that their words would not reach Dana’s ears. “I appreciate your extra concern for my wife, Miss Jacobs. You seem genuinely interested in her comfort and well being. You are an extremely dedicated nurse and your breed is indeed a rarity today. Her family and I appreciate more than you will ever know, the extra time and the extra things you do for Dana. They have not gone unnoticed.” “Thank you Dr. Evans, you are very kind to say so,” the nurse smiled up at him. “Do you suppose she is ever going to come out of this coma?” “Yes, she will wake up…I know she will…she has to. There is so much for her to live for…so many people who love her and are waiting for her to come out of it,” Carlo muttered tiredly. “She has such a strong faith and such a will to live, I know in my heart that God would not let her leave us like this. We will find a way to determine the cause of her deep sleep and rectify the problem, no matter what it takes.” Belinda fidgeted from one leg to the other and folded her arms in front of her mid-section as she looked up into Carlo’s face. “Do you think there is something other than a physical problem here, Dr. Evans? I thought you all had performed endless tests on her and found nothing. Do you suppose there is something…else?” the dark haired nurse inquired. “At this point we are not at all sure about anything. As I said, Dana has a very strong belief system and somehow or other, I’m cer-

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tain her Guardian Angel is here right now, at this very moment, watching over her.” The nurse squeezed herself a little tighter and nervously looked about the room. “Well, some people believe in such things and for them, I’m sure it’s very comforting to feel that someone…or something…is constantly standing by to protect them from all harm. As for me, I don’t subscribe to any of that nonsense…but,…whatever it takes, I guess.” At that precise moment, Carlo noticed the draped sheet on Dana’s bed moved ever so slightly as if a breeze had just ruffled it and he saw Miss Jacobs shiver a bit. “I don’t think we should doubt or question what we don’t truly understand, Miss Jacobs. And we surely shouldn’t be discussing this matter within Dana’s earshot.” Without uttering another word, the nurse returned to Dana’s bedside and continued on with the exercises she was to perform on the patient to keep her circulation going. Carlo watched in silence as she put Dana through all of the required movements. Never once during the procedure did she look up toward the doctor and she did not say a word to Dana as she worked. As Miss Jacobs moved to the sink to once again wash her hands, Carlo spoke to her. “If you are all finished, I’d like to be alone with my…I mean…with her for a while before calling it a night.” When the door closed behind the nurse, he re-positioned himself at his exwife’s bedside and gently and compassionately took her limp hand in his. “I love you, my precious Little One. Please let my words reach your heart and soul and let my strength become your strength so that you wi11 return to those of us who love and need you. Oh dear God, please let it be so!”

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arlo had painstakingly packed the twin engine plane himself so that everything would not have to be unpacked at each stop on the planned agenda. Most of the medical equipment, surgical supplies and medications were being transported aboard the larger plane that belonged to the Flying Doctor Service. However, he had packed two large bags with his…tailored especially for him. There were surigical instruments, some of his favorite supplies, medications and a portable battery operated sterilizing unit. The plane was packed to capacity from the area directly behind his and Dana’s seats and the supplies were arranged so that he would have easy access to them from the rear door of the airplane. He had requested that the four back seats be removed in order to have more room for the equipment and found that he had allocated enough room to spread everything out and not have to search through the entire load to find needed materials in case of an emergency. Precisely at 06:30, Carlo advised Dana to tighten her seat belt and taxied out onto the runway belonging to the Flying Doctor Service terminal. “O.K. my lady-love…off we go on another adventure! We couldn’t have asked for better weather for the report predicts clear and calm throughout the day. It will take several hours for us to - 122 -

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reach our first destination far into the Outback so you might as well busy yourself with some reading or take this time to write all those cards you collected for the folks back home. I’ll be quite busy reading instruments, the map and looking at the terrain so take advantage of this time while you can. I’ll let you take the controls later on so that you can get the feel again of this plane. That will give me a chance to rest my back and stretch about a bit. All right with you?” “Aye mate! Your wish, in lieu of…order…is my command, sir! I am really looking forward to this trip so I doubt that I will be able to do anything more laborious with my time other than look at the beautiful scenery of this picturesque country. I can’t believe that I’m actually going to experience it first-hand for I always thought I would have to ensue it vicariously. Which…of course, only proves to me that Fate does indeed work in mysterious ways in our lives. I know you think sometimes that I am too loquacious whenever it comes to my obsession with this continent and its’ people but I can’t help but feel that somehow or other, I am connected to them…that my fate is interwoven with theirs. My intuition counsels and advises me that my feelings involve the Aborigines in particular…for some strange, nebulous reason. I know you don’t fully comprehend my feeling this way and to be perfectly candid and honest with you…I don’t completely understand it either. I only know that I feel a mystical affinity or magnetism here that has enticed me all my life. You can’t imagine how elated I am that I have finally realized my dream and you, my darling, have made it all possible.” “Just remember Dana, there isn’t anything that I wouldn’t do for you if it is possibly within my power to do so. I love you and I want you to be able to explore your heart’s desire in whatever realm it falls into. You have a remarkably incredible mind and your heartfelt compassion and love for others is a quality more people should be custodial to. I certainly do not consider you to be maudlin in any manner whatsoever in these passions you harbor so benevolently for these people. I am greatly moved by your feelings of sympathy and the

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inexplicable empathy that you feel. You are basically such a giving, caring person, Dana. You would have made a great physician, my angelic person!” “Hey, I’m no angel. I simply follow my Libran star. We Librans are just naturally born to be caring, giving and extremely unselfish in our actions toward our fellow inhabitants of this spinning sphere, Doc. I do whatever I am instinctively led to do whenever it comes to administering to other’s needs. You’re right…I would have made a fine physician…do you suppose it’s too late to pursue yet another dream?!” “Knowing you…I wouldn’t be a bit surprised or astonished to learn that someday you might entertain that notion. One is never too old to follow a dream…so…dream on, my dear, dream on!” Dana busied herself by dreamily leaning her head against the cockpit window and letting herself drift off into her imaginings and fantasies of how she would be relating to the strangers she would soon be encountering in the bush. The first stops on their agenda took them to two small isolated communities where there were no medical facilities anywhere near by. The others had already set up the tents that would be used for examinations, treatments and surgical procedures. Carlo made several examinations that had previously been thought to require surgery but found that they could be treated with medications instead. When informed of such, the patients’ looks of sheer horror at the thoughts of surgery turned into relaxed grins and sighs of happiness. One of the other patients did need surgery to correct a blockage in the bowel and Carlo expected Dana to roll her eyes and decline to help with this particular case. However, one of the regular surgical nurses had fallen ill and there was no one to fill in for her except Dana. “What’s with you, Doc? I came to help out in any way that I can and so what if that includes having to shovel a little shit around for you while you are gouging around inside the patient’s belly removing

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a piece of distended, gangrenous intestinal tube? If I turn green, I’ll just turn green. Now, let’s get on with it, Doc. You just tell me what you want me to do, and I’ll do it.” “Hot damn Dana! You never cease to amaze me, kid. The other nurses bet me that you would indeed rise to the challenge like a trueblue trooper so I guess I owe them a steak dinner when we get back to civilization.” Immediately following that case, Carlo re-broke a young boy’s arm that had previously been broken in an accident and had not been set. It had knit back together at a grotesque angle and was unusable to the boy. Dana later admitted that although there was no blood involved in the procedure, the sound of the grating and grinding together of the bones, made her feel a little bit queasy. No one was the wiser for she contained her ill feeling and the mask hid the fact that her composure had slipped a bit. Carlo dismissed the other nurse and asked Dana to assist him in applying the cast to the boy’s arm. As the boy came out from under the anesthesia, he marveled at her ability to comfort and calm the young child. Her voice was soft and gentle as she soothed the little one’s fears and soon his cries subsided and he listened intently to Dana as she successfully distracted him from Carlo’s work. After they finished with a simple excision of a growth on an old man’s back, Carlo pulled his gloves off and assisted Dana with the removal of hers. They walked arm in arm back towards the sleeping tent and once inside, Carlo reached out and encircled Dana in his arms. As they held each other tightly, he said to her, “Oh, my beloved wife. I love you so much. I finally feel as though I have been awarded the best prize in the entire world. Not only are you beautiful, wise and wonderful…but you are so versatile, so multi-talented. I never know what to expect out of you next. Thanks for all of your splendid help today, darling. I know you must be absolutely worn to a frazzle by now. Let’s walk down to the community bath-house, grab a quick shower…such as it is…and then leisurely stroll down to the eating

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area for some well deserved supper. The camp engineers have set up a tent just for the two of us and we can snuggle together in our oversized sleeping bag until we fall asleep.” “You don’t have to ask me but once, Gian Carlo, for I am really bushed. Lead on, me love, lead on!”

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he next two days found Carlo and Dana stretched out to capacity as far as strength and energy were concerned. They slept very little for the farther into the Outback they flew, the more needy patients there were to see. Many of them had some very serious problems and the surgeries they required took many long, painstaking hours under the conditions they had to work with. The makeshift surgery tents were poorly ventilated and the heat was almost unbearable. The FD Service provided excellent lighting facilities needed for the operations in giant fold-up overhead lamps and the sterilization compartments for the instruments were outstanding. Carlo was impressed with all of their equipment and tried to make the best of the situation although this was a far cry from modern surgery suites. He felt exhilarated and happy over the fact that he was able to join in with such an outstanding group as the FDS for it was a real labor-of-love to bring medical help to these people who lived so far away from civilization, as most people knew it. The third day found them deep into Aborigine country. Many of the people needed only general practice treatment but Carlo was called upon to perform two chest cases with the help of the other attending surgeon, Drew Stanton. “Not the greatest set-up in the world, is it Carlo?” Drew said through his surgical mask. “It’s difficult to carry a lot of equipment - 127 -

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deep into the heavy woods so we do the best we can by bringing it as close as we can to the people farther in. Most of the patients are carried to our camps by other members of their groups on makeshift stretchers or are literally carried bodily. Most of the time, we are able to save them but sometimes, they are too far-gone for the surgery to save. It’s really a shame for there are so few of them left who practice the old ways. Most of the younger generations have moved into the towns and off of the reservations. Can’t really blame them…this is a hell-of-a-life out here in the bush.” “I’m surely glad to see that the younger ones at least, are trying to do something with their lives. Are they accepted in the towns?” Carlo asked knotting the last stitch in a patient’s chest and nodding to the surgical nurse to finish sterilizing the area so that they could dress the wound. “A bit more-so than in the past but they still have a long way to go. We have to give them credit however, for they have a lot of intestinal fortitude and do their best to tough it out. They have enough of the old beliefs instilled in them and they believe that eventually, the good spirits will show them the way and open new avenues for them and their families.” Dana sat out a couple of the cases for the nurse who had been ill had gotten better and was working with the team. As she sat outside the surgical tent, she noticed that several of the Aborigine men were standing just off to the side of the forest staring at her. They did not utter a sound…just stood like statues, staring at her. Unbeknownst to her, her head was blocking the sun from the sight of the men and the apparition gave the startling appearance of a halo surrounding her shoulders and head. She was sitting cross-legged on a mat and did not move anything at all but her head from side to side to see if anyone else was in the vicinity. Seeing no one, she tried to act nonchalant but couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous and awkward with their fixed stares upon her. She remained in that position for what seemed like hours until Carlo and the surgical crew exited the tent.

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Looking up, she saw that the tribal men had vanished as if with a puff of wind into the heavy trees. Carlo reached down, took her by the hand and pulled her into a standing position. “Hey, Little One…what’s with you? You look as though you had seen a ghost. You’re pale as a piece of ole southern cotton…you o.k.?” “Yeah, it’s nothing, really. I just experienced a strange thing sitting here waiting for you.” She explained what had taken place only a short time ago. “I felt like I was being looked over to see if I would make a tasty morsel for someone’s dinner,” Dana whispered, snickering nervously. “Don’t worry, my dear,” Drew assured her. “These people are definitely not cannibalistic. They were staring at you and were simply captivated by your beauty, I’m sure. They don’t see too many fairhaired beauties way out here and I’m certain you are fascinating to them with your blue eyes, fair skin and light hair. They mean no harm.” For the next two days Dana had the distinct feeling that everywhere she went, eyes were following her, yet she could see no one when she let her own eyes survey the area around her. At times she actually shivered from the eerie feeling that overcame her as she walked around the camp. On the last night in that particular area, Dana and Carlo sat around the campfire longer than the others after the finish of the day’s work taking care of patients. From out of nowhere, two old Aborigine men appeared in front of them. They were dressed only in loin clothes and each carried a spear. They stood perfectly still and just stared down at the doctor and his wife for several nerve-wracking minutes. Carlo slowly rose to his feet and gently pulled Dana by the hand to a standing position beside him. I help you with something?” The two men remained perfectly still for several more minutes never taking their eyes off Dana and completely ignoring the doctor.

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“Let me try…”Dana began. “Good evening. Is there something we can do for you?” she spoke in a very soft, almost whisper of a voice. For some incomprehensible reason, she felt very comfortable and relaxed in the presence of the two small men now…a far cry from the eerie feeling that had possessed her earlier in the day. One by one the two men reached out a hand and touched Dana on the forehead and then traced a straight line downward from her shoulders to her wrists. As they removed their hands from Dana’s, they stretched their hands up in the air and touched each other’s fingers together. They held this position for a couple of minutes, then turned and left as they had come…quietly and without saying a word. Early the next morning, Carlo and Dana awakened with a start to find the two same men staring down at them in their sleeping bags. The door to the tent was still laced shut and there was no sign that the lacing had been tampered with. Dana looked over at Carlo with disbelief in her eyes and sat up on her cot. “How in God’s name did they get in here and how long have they been standing there?” she whispered. “Beats the hell out of me!” Carlo said as he pulled his trousers up and fastened them. He walked past the two men and unlaced the door. The Aborigines made no move to exit until Dana shooed them out with her hand. “Please go on out until I dress and I will join you in the courtyard momentarily.” Carlo was talking to Drew Stanton when Dana came out to join them. The two Aborigine men were standing directly outside the entrance to the tent and followed right along after Dana as she walked toward her husband. For the first time, the older of the two spoke in the dialect of his people. Several times he motioned toward Dana and then toward the deep forest beyond the campsite. Drew turned to Dana and Carlo to explain what the old man had said.

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“It seems these people have taken a great liking to you my dear, and have come to invite you and the good doctor to a corroboree in your honor. They sense that you have some kind of special, mystical powers and that you are filled with a great Spirit, akin to theirs.” “They want to invite us to a…what?” Carlo interjected before Dana could respond to Drew’s remarks. “A corroboree is a ceremonial dance often reenacting great deeds of the creator heroes or historical events of their people such as hunts and the like. It is a great honor and a privilege to be invited to attend such a ceremony and few are ever asked to witness the ritual. I know you had planned to depart this morning for your next stop but I would highly recommend that you take them up on their kind proposal. As a matter of fact, it would be an insult if you were to refuse. We can postpone moving on to the next stop for one more day. I’ll send a couple of our bearers along with you with your sleeping gear for they will want you to remain overnight in their habitat. The ceremony is always held at dusk and then continues around a campfire.” “I will be most honored to accept your kind invitation,” Dana said to the two men as she bowed toward them. “We happy Lady Spirit come to see old ceremony. Be back when sun lower in sky to bring you to sacred ground-site where dance.” With that disclosure, the two men bowed to each of the two doctors and raised hands toward Dana as they bowed to her. The forest seemed to swallow them up as they entered the thick foliage. “Well, I’ll be damned! Looks like you may just find out what your tie is with these people after all, Little One,” Carlo said as he smiled slyly at his wide-eyed wife. “Come on, we may as well go pack again for this little trip. Wear some heavier pants and boots for we will be going deeper into the Rainforest. I’ll say one thing…being married to you is one big adventure after another. I never know what to expect next!”

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“Stick with me, kid. Lots more excitement to come! And…by the way…bring your surgical bag with you. For some weird reason, I feel we just may have a need for it.” Little did Dana know just how true those words would prove to be…

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t was mid-afternoon when the three elders from the Aborigine community suddenly appeared to take Carlo and Dana into the forest to observe the corroboree. As promised, Drew arranged for two bearers to accompany them to carry equipment through the dense woods. “If we’re not back in two days, send out a search party!” Carlo quipped as he reached for Dana’s hand urging her to follow in behind the small, scantily clad men. They walked for almost two hours before coming to a large encampment located near a huge cliff. From the center of the cliff, a beautiful waterfall cascaded downward creating a mist that covered the entire lower half of the waterfall. There was a large clearing where several huts were built which resembled old-time American Indian ‘wicki-ups’. The Aborigines had built a campfire and were already beginning to congregate around it. The women and children squatted on their haunches in the big circle and the men gathered off to the side, many of them with spears in their hands. The oldest of the elders who had escorted the doctor and his wife to the camp, bade them put down their belongings and join the others in the circle around the fire. The sun was beginning to sink on the horizon and the crimson glow from the setting sun and the firelight cast a rather eerie look on the scenario. Although no command was given, the men began to stomp their feet and chant as they circled - 133 -

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the glowing embers of the fire. Each held a tree or bush branch and shook it in time with their chanting. One by one they began to turn their bodies around and around as they danced and some raised and lowered their arms toward the evening sky as in salute to the Divine Beings of their heritage. Dana sat mesmerized by the ambiance of the ceremony and felt as though she was spectator to an unparalleled religious rite being performed by a very special sect of humans. She felt intuitively that once these next few generations of this race of people were gone…they would be gone forever. Her feelings of remorse and sadness grew deeper as she watched the performance. Several times she stole a glance over towards the women and children and noticed some of them were silently weeping. Her own heart ached for she felt such a deep feeling of closeness, kinship and compassion for the little people. Carlo noticed Dana’s sadness and smiled tenderly as he patted her hands folded in her lap. When the dance of the corroboree was completed, the elders and the younger men sat cross-legged on the ground with the others and the fragile figure of Digger Spirige, the bearded, gray-haired older elder, began to speak. He spoke to the cliff and the plummeting waterfall in a ringing voice, like a messenger from another world. He spoke in his own language announcing to the spirits there that he had brought visitors and petitioned the spirits approval. Smiling, he once again turned toward the gathering and regained his place in the circle. As he intoned another part of their ‘story’, he looked directly at Dana as if he were speaking only to her. He told her that she and her husband were privy to this observation of their ceremony because his tribe sensed and felt a spiritual closeness and relationship with her that they had never encountered before. He told the group his people felt that she had been sent by the Divine One to show them a lesson that could only be taught to them by a Holy One. As he spoke, Dana felt the hairs on the back of her neck and arms begin to rise and her heart rate quicken.

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Digger nodded toward one of the women in the group who rose and then moved with the other women toward a smaller campfire off in the distance. Within minutes, they returned with servings of fresh fruits, nuts and boiled fish. Carlo and Dana were handed clay plates piled high with the delectable food. “I suppose we are to eat with our fingers as if eating fish and poi,” Carlo said looking about to observe how the others were eating. “When in Rome…” Dana nodded in agreement as she licked her fingers and grinned. There appeared no time allocated for any conversation between the guests and the tribesmen for a short time after completing the meal, Digger and two others led Dana and Carlo to a beautiful spot directly by the huge pond where their tent had already been set up. They said their goodnights and enclosed themselves in their ‘nightshack’, as the Aborigines called the tent, and went to bed. The next morning Carlo made his way quickly to the fireside where Digger and the others were squatted, obviously discussing the events of the previous night. “I do not want to intrude on any of your spiritual areas or sanctuaries but if it is permissible, I would like to climb up onto one of the rocks overlooking the pool below the waterfall to take some photographs,” he said politely to the elders. “Yes. We take doctor high up so he can make likeness of our sacred ground. In your way, you help remember for others the ways of our people, thank you. I guide you myself. Lady Spirit go too?” “No, I think I will let her rest up a while longer for the trek back to our camp later in the day. May we go soon?” Later, Dana came out of her tent rubbing her eyes from the night’s sleep and as her eyes became accustomed to the bright sunlight, she looked around for Carlo. He was nowhere in sight and her heart sank as she quickly thought to herself that he might have gone off somewhere without her. To her dismay, she learned from one of the bearers that her suspicions were rightly founded. She followed with

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her eyes the direction in which the man pointed with his spear and was instantly horrified when she realized that she was looking at the sheer face of the cliff near the waterfall. “Damn that Carlo…he can’t pass up the opportunity to try something daring and dangerous even out here in the wild,” she said into the wind. Almost before she got the words out of her mouth, she heard Carlo’s scream come from the direction of the cliff. “Oh my God!” she yelled as she ran toward the sound. From out of nowhere, a young Aborigine man appeared at her side to lead her into the thick brush. As they ran, Dana’s arms and face stung from the thrashing of the branches and foliage against her skin. Twice she stumbled and fell but regained her footing immediately before she lost sight of her guide. Halfway up the trai1 leading to the base of the cliff, Dana and her guide met Digger and two other men carrying Carlo in a makeshift sling. He was conscious but had a bad scrape across his forehead and was holding his right arm with his left hand. He was covered with wet, slick moss from the rocks. “What in Heaven’s name happened to you, Gian Carlo?” she gasped as she reached his side. “Are you all right, darling?” Carlo’s face was white with pain and he grimaced as he spoke to her. “I was climbing up the rocks to get a better view for some pictures and I slipped on the wet and slimy surface. I couldn’t get a grip on the slippery damned things so I fell several feet and broke my arm.” “What are we going to do, Gian Carlo? How in the world are you going to set that break? You can’t do it by yourself and the other doctors are way back at the other camp!” “Well…shit and shinola!! Guess who’s elected, my pet? You’ve always wanted to be an Angel of Mercy so now’s your chance,” Carlo said clinching his teeth from the pain.

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“Hey, now wait a minute,” Dana stammered. “I don’t know anything about setting bones…all I know how to do is patch up something with a roll of gauze and adhesive tape, ole buddy!” “There’s no time like the present to learn,” Carlo said as the perspiration ran into his eyes. Carlo gave instructions to Digger and his men to cut some long branches from one of the trees encircling the camp and asked them to strip the bark off after cutting them to foot lengths. He then selected the straightest of the branches and had the men split them into two pieces. Dana brought the medical bag over to where Carlo was lying on his cot and began to assemble the wrappings needed to hold the splints in place on Carlo’s arm. Listening attentively to her husband’s instructions, Dana drew a sedative into the syringe, cleaned off a spot on Carlo’s hip and injected him with the drug. As he relaxed, he advised Digger to grasp his shoulders and hold onto him so that he would not move as Dana pulled with all her might on the wrist of the broken arm. “Oh Carlo, I can’t do this! Remember how I almost fainted when you set that child’s arm the other day? What if I pass out before I get the bones back together?” “You’ll do just fine, honey. Get ready and when I say pull, place your foot against that boulder, grab my wrist with both of your hands and pull with all of your might. It’s not a bad break, so it should pop right back into place without too much trouble. You can do it…I know you can. Now, are you ready?” With that, Dana placed her left foot against the boulder and reached out for Carlo’s wrist. Digger wrapped his arms around Carlo’s shoulders and braced himself against the cot. “O.K. now……PULL!!” Carlo shouted between clinched teeth. Dana pulled with all her might and she heard the familiar grating of one end of the bone against the other. She was perspiring profusely as was her poor husband there in front of her. “Is it in place?” she shouted.

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Carlo reached up to feel the area on his arm where the break was and shook his head negatively. “It’s almost there but not quite, Dana. You’re going to have to manipulate it with both of your hands to work it into place.” “Oh dear God, Carlo! I can’t. Perhaps it would be easier if you were not my husband but I don’t want to hurt you…you’re the person I love most in the entire world!” She knew she was talking ridiculously but she couldn’t help it. All of a sudden, Dana looked across her husband into the eyes of the Aborigine elder holding onto Carlo’s shoulders and she was filled with an instant calmness. Her breath slowed and her hands quit shaking. The little old man nodded to her as he spoke. “You Spirit Lady…filled with how-to-know from one stronger than you. Believe and nothing is not do.” Dana felt as though she was floating and she instinctively became aware that he was right. She walked to the side of Carlo’s cot, placed her hands on either side of the break in his arm and gently maneuvered the bone into its’ rightful place. “Done!” she murmured as she bent her head and silently said a thank you prayer to the one ‘stronger than she’. Carlo led her verbally through the procedure of splinting his arm and arranging the carefully tied lengths of gauze to hold it into place. Just as he finished, he fell asleep. Dana sat down beside him, exhausted but happy that the ordeal was over. She turned to thank Digger but he had silently slipped out of the tent. Little did Dana suspect that this was the first of her ‘doctor dealings’ while she visited the outback.

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ana talked Carlo into staying in the Aborigine camp for another night before heading back to join Drew and the others. Digger sent a runner with a note from Dana explaining the delay so that they would not worry needlessly. “How are we going to get the plane back to Alice Springs?” Dana asked of her husband as they were preparing for the night’s rest. “I don’t think you are able to fly it by yourself with your arm broken as it is.” “There’s nothing wrong with my left arm and my two feet, sweetheart. I can manage the wheel with just one hand and the rudders just fine but you will have to help me get her into the air and take charge of minding the controls. You have helped me enough to know what to do and I will be there to guide you every step of the way as I did with setting my arm,” Carlo comforted her as she looked at him with a grimace on her face. “Oh come on…it’s a piece of cake!” Dana gave Carlo a couple of pain pills so that he would rest and get some sleep. She knew that his arm was aching quite badly and without the medication, he would toss and turn all night. He would need to be as alert as possible for the flight would indeed be very stressful at best. It was difficult enough to have to sleep on the ground in the sleeping bags and she was having a hard time getting to sleep herself. She considered taking something to help her sleep - 139 -

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but decided against it. ‘One of us has to be wide awake tomorrow in order to get that plane off the ground safely,’ she muttered to herself as she plumped up her pillow for the umpteenth time trying her best to get comfortable. They were up at the crack of dawn and upon exiting their tent, they were surprised to find that all of their equipment had already been packed and made ready for the trek back to the main camp. Digger and his little group had prepared a small breakfast of fruit, nuts and a cake-bread made by the women. They ate hurriedly and said their good-bys to the gathered group of men and women whom they had come to see participate in the Corroboree. One of the women approached Dana and presented her with a small, lovely, polished gemstone hanging from a leather string. Dana bent and allowed the woman to place the pendent around her neck. She took the woman’s small hands in both of hers and thanked her for the gift. She then looked from one to the other of all those gathered there and bowed slightly, all the while smiling as she looked into their eyes. “Thank you, thank you…I shall treasure this gift forever and remember fondly, the wonderful time we shared with you.” The trip back to the main camp was a long and hard one for they had to stop several times for Carlo to rest. His usual stamina evaded him in the intense heat for his arm ached badly due to the makeshift splinting. It would bother him until such time as he could get it properly attended to with a cast to hold it in proper alignment. Drew met them as they approached the camp. He advised them that the largest portion of their group had flown on to the next sight. He had waited for them to make sure Carlo was up to continuing on with the work at hand or if he was going to return to the Flying Doctor Headquarters early because of his injury. “No, I want to continue on with you if you will see to the proper casting of my arm. I’m certain it will be all right and give me no more trouble as soon as that is done. Dana’s my ‘good right arm’ anyway and she can assist me in doing regular examinations and

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some minor surgery if need be. I would feel very badly if I had to call off the remainder of this portion of our trip simply because I had the misfortune to get an ‘arm snap’!” Carlo said emphatically. As the other doctor cast his arm, Carlo explained to Drew how they were going to manage with the plane. “I’ve had to fly with worse injuries than this during my combat time in the war so this will be a breeze……After all, I have a fantastic co-pilot with me and between the two of us, we can manage ‘bloody well!’ as the Aussies would say.” Dana was a little nervous the next morning as they watched the remaining equipment loaded into the belly of the plane and made ready to taxi out onto the grass runway. “Are you sure we can do this, Gian Carlo? You’re doing great so far but it’s a little blustery out here and this plane is going to rock and roll as it’s blown around a bit by the wind. I know you could handle it under ordinary circumstances…but baby…this ain’t ordinary circumstances!” “Where’s your faith in me, Little One?” Carlo said as he grinned at her quickly and then returned his gaze to the control panel. “You just do exactly as I say and we’ll be fine. Are you ready? Set the altimeter to 300 feet field elevation. Place both of your hands on the wheel and rest your feet lightly on the rudder pedals so that you will be ready if I need you to help me with those. That will help us maintain our headway. Now, take hold of the throttles and gently push them forward as I tell you to, just enough to get us out to position on the runway.” The plane eased out and Carlo lined it up, placing it in the correct position for take-off. He leaned over, kissed Dana quickly on the mouth and said to her, “O.K. my love, push the throttle all the way in and then grab the wheel with both of your hands. Let me do all the work on the rudders.” Dana pushed the throttles in with her left hand, then whiteknuckled the wheel with both hands and held on for dear life. When the plane had reached take-off speed, Carlo calmly told her to gently

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pull back on the wheel in unison with him and before she knew what was happening, the little plane rose off the ground and was airborne. The wind was whipping about but the two of them managed to keep her straight and level as they gained altitude. “O.K. Now, raise the landing gear, adjust your air speed by pulling back on the throttles a bit. Look at the compass and head East to 09.0 degrees. Now, see…that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Carlo reached over with his broken arm and patted her with the hard cast a time or two to reassure her. “And now Little One, put her on auto-pilot and take the load off your mind. I’m keeping my eyes on everything and will tell you if I need you to do anything more. The air is pretty calm up here and I can manage fine with my left hand. We’re set for a while so…not to worry!” “Well…that was the easy part! It’s the ‘getting down’ I’m worried about!” Dana said, frowning. It took an hour and a half to get to the next location on the planned itinerary and as they approached the landing field, Dana began to squirm in her seat and small beads of perspiration broke out on her upper lip. She knew she was more than a little nervous for the hair on the back of her neck bristled and stood on end. Carlo circled the field twice so that he could calm Dana down a bit before instructing her in the landing procedure. “This is it, love,” Carlo said as he came out of the approach on an extra long final. “We’re all lined up; you’ve got us down to the correct approach altitude and we’re all ready to set her down. I have my hand on the wheel along with yours and I am in complete control of the rudders. Decrease your air speed a little more, put the gear down and drop your flaps to approach position. Easy…easy…a little bit longer and we’re about to reach the beginning of the runway. 0-o-o kay…we’re about ready to touch down. Help me ease up just a hair on the wheel…that’s it, that’s it…easy does it…Yes! Touch down! See, my pet…a piece of cake…just like I said!” Carlo exclaimed happily as he began to press the brakes to bring them to a complete stop.

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“Dana…Dana! Hey You!! You can let go of the wheel now, darling. We are safe and sound on the ground,” he laughed, looking toward his wife who seemed to be somewhat frozen in her seat, her hands still clutching the wheel of the plane. “Are we having fun yet??” Dana said laughingly as she turned to face Carlo. “That was a bit scary, Gian Carlo. I think I’ll go back and take some more flying lessons when we get home. No telling how many more times you’ll have me take charge of a ‘winged miracle’ before you’re done with me. Amelia Earhart, I’m not but I’d rather be safe than sorry, to put it in the vernacular!” “Hey listen, you’re a natural, kid! There aren’t too many women who would even try to do what you just did. They’d have put their hands to their foreheads and fainted with a good case of the vapors. You’re tough, my precious wife. If you were a man, I’d say you had a beautiful set of brass balls for you have enough guts to try most anything…once. I’m proud of you! Not only are you beautiful and talented but you’re spirited and tough as nails in a pinch. Thanks, buddy!” The next two days were filled with patient examinations, inoculations and some very minor surgery, which Carlo did with the assistance of Drew and the surgical crew. Dana assisted with the instrument sterilization and surgical packs making sure that all were made ready and in the proper order for each procedure. She was as tired as the rest of the crew at the end of the second day for it was extremely hot in the make shift surgery suites even with the fans going full force and she felt as though the mask were going to smother her. After stripping off their gloves, Dana and Carlo exited the tent arm in arm. “Boy, am I glad that’s over,” Carlo exclaimed. “This damned cast is heavy and I have to pretty much hang it down most of the time. If it were on a prop, it would get in the way of the others as we operate so I have no choice but to leave it this way. Thank God, we’ll have a few days to relax and have some more fun when we get finished here and

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get back to Alice Springs. We’ll go back to Melbourne and Sydney for a bit of a holiday instead of going to Cairns and Sudbury as originally planned. It wouldn’t be much fun for you to explore the reefs alone and I can’t get in the water with this damned cast. Sorry to have spoiled your fun-in-the-sun time, darling.” “Don’t be silly, Gian Carlo. I couldn’t care less about snorkeling or scuba diving without you and I’d much rather go back to the big cities and play a bit more. Besides…you promised me an opal or two, remember?” “I was hoping you had forgotten that pledge! Only kidding…only kidding! If anyone deserves a treasure or two, it’s definitely you, Dana. After all you’ve had to endure on this part of the trip my dear, your wish is my command. Just remember we have to fly home and you can’t carry too large a load home!” “Oh you…” Dana said as she rested her head on Carlo’s shoulder as they entered their tent for the night. Dana tossed about for over an hour after Carlo had fallen asleep for she couldn’t shake the foreboding feeling that this primitive outback was not finished with her yet!

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arly the next morning, Dana’s shower was interrupted by loud shouts and a lot of commotion just outside the bath tent. She hurriedly wrapped the bath blanket around her and stepped to the opening of the tent to see what was going on. Much to her amazement, Digger and two others stood directly in front of the door flap as she swung it to one side. Several members of the surgical team were running toward them shouting for the men to move away. No one had seen them enter the camp and how the Aborigines knew who was in the shower tent, none of the group could figure out. “We come see Spirit Lady,” Digger began to explain as the group crowded around them with Carlo leading the pack. “Need to return to home camp. Child very bad sick. Medicine man no help to small one. Mother ask for Spirit Lady. Will not agree anyone else take care her girl.” “Digger, we will be glad to return with you to your camp but if the child is ill, I or one of the other doctors must take a look at her to determine the cause and what should be done about it,” Carlo responded. “We walk day and night to come fetch only Spirit Lady for she only one our great spirits say make girl o.k. Need no one else come.”

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“Now wait a minute, Digger!” Dana interrupted clutching the huge towel closer around her still damp body. “I am not a doctor! I only help my husband and the others. If there is anything seriously wrong with the child, I wouldn’t know what to do or how to treat her! I cannot go with you alone. I will agree to go only if my husband and his associates accompany us so that the child can be properly attended to.” Dana stated emphatically, “but…that’s the only way I will go!” “Husband Doc come but no other,” Digger said to her after conferring quietly with the other two elders. “Must now go…Medicine man say child have two day more or will die. Mother say she let no one near girl but you. You only one to bring girl back for long and many moon years to come. Child no speak, lie still in mother’s arms and make strange noises from eat place,” Digger said, pointing to his mouth. The next thing Dana knew, she and Carlo were once again in flight on the return trip to their previous medical stop. She had handled the plane on take off by herself with Carlo giving the instructions. “There is no wind this morning so you shouldn’t have any trouble getting her air-borne,” Carlo had told her as they had prepared for take-off. “This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of in my life, Gian-Carlo! I haven’t a clue as to what I can possibly do on my own there with that Aborigine child. I have been more than willing to assist you as much as possible on this trip but I am certainly not trained nor prepared to make a diagnosis…a proper one at that. Why did you tell Digger that I would see that the child would be made well again upon our return to their camp? Don’t you realize that they may be very, very angry with us if the child can’t be helped and God forbid…she were to die? They may boil us in oil and have us for dinner or something worse! I don’t care what Drew told us before about them not being cannibals,” Dana frantically shouted above the roar of the engines.

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“Relax Dana. There probably is nothing seriously wrong with the child that we can’t fix with a little treatment of some sort so don’t get your panties in a wad before we see exactly what we’re facing when we get there. You must remember, you made quite an impression on those people…they really do consider you as some kind of goddess or spirit lady, as they call you. After you set and splint my arm, they really thought you had some special powers or magic. Everything will be all right, you’ll see. Remember too, this may be why you felt so strongly that you must come to this continent…you just may be fulfilling some sort of destiny with these people. Now, sit back and relax…I’ll take the controls until we get ready to make the approach and landing. Cheer up, all is well!” “I wish I could share your enthusiasm, but I can’t shake this feeling of something foreboding awaiting us on the ground. Stick close, my love…don’t you dare leave my side” Dana pleaded. They soon had the grass landing strip in sight and Carlo talked and assisted as before in getting them on the ground. “Hey, you’re getting pretty good at this, Little One. I think you are about ready to join the Mile High Club!” Carlo said laughingly as he jumped down off of the wing and handed Dana one of the medical bags. “The what’?” Dana said as she cast a quizzical look in his direction. “Don’t worry…I’ll tell you an about it later. Just think…you get a prize and everything when you become a member of that club!” Dana couldn’t help but notice a twinkle in her husband’s eyes as they walked toward the huts. One of the women guided Dana and Carlo to a large thatch covered pavilion nestled in the rear of the camp. When they neared the entrance, another of the women tried to block Carlo from going inside. From out of nowhere, Digger appeared and waved the scantily clad woman aside. Dana and Carlo looked at each other in utter amazement and astonishment for it had only been a couple of hours

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ago that they had left Digger and his two followers behind at the other medical sight. “Hey, now wait just a damned minute,” Dana said as she laid a trembling hand on Carlo’s arm. “Didn’t we just leave them behind and didn’t Digger tell us that it had taken them a day and a night to get to where we just left? I don’t get this…what’s going on here, Gian Carlo?” “Don’t ask me, Miss Priss. You’re the one with the ‘mystical’ powers, remember? You tell me…cause it sure beats the hell out of me!” Digger ushered them inside and over to a cot on which lay the frail form of a small girl. Her mother clutched the child’s hand and as Carlo knelt and reached toward the child to examine her, she brushed his hand away glaring ominously and angrily into his eyes. Carlo made another attempt to touch the child but the mother slapped his hand away and placed her arms across the child’s body. “It’s all right,” Dana soothingly intoned to the woman, “My husband must first examine…look and feel…the girl before I can do anything for her. Please trust him. He means no harm to her.” As she finished speaking, she took the woman’s hands gently in her own and moved them away from the bedside. “Let us watch and listen to the white medicine man so that he can tell me what to do for your baby.” Carlo methodically and slowly touched and examined the patient, making certain that he covered every portion of her torso before looking up into Dana’s eyes from across the bed. Dana instinctively knew from the look on his face that things were a lot graver than he had suspected earlier. Her eyes widened and she gasped audibly as she realized that they were facing a big problem here. Carlo smiled at the child’s mother, nodded to Digger and with his good hand, took Dana by the elbow and led her out of the pavilion. “Wha…wha…what is the matter with her, Gian Carlo?” Dana asked with a quaking voice.

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“It’s a hell-of-a-lot worse than I ever dreamt it would be, obviously,” Carlo said through clinched teeth. Why didn’t I insist that Drew accompany us as he suggested? I could kick myself for not allowing him to come with us. This kid needs surgery and needs it quickly! We’ll have to fly her to our next med camp and get Drew and the surgical team to do the case. I’m not able to do it one handed and I didn’t bring the right equipment for anything as big as this. God damnit! What a fucking mess this is! Come on Dana. We have to tell them what’s going on and get her to the others. Time is of the essence here…as Digger’s medicine man said! Damnit! Damnit! Damnit! “Are you going to tell me what is the matter with her or not?” “I’m sorry Dana. Yes…here is the situation. It appears that the girl has a tumor in her lower esophagus and it has all but cut off her ability to breathe and swallow. It is imperative that she is operated on immediately or she won’t live very long.” When Carlo explained the predicament to Digger, the Aborigine man simply looked from Carlo to Dana without saying a word. He stood for several minutes in silence looking deeply into her eyes. Dana was shivering when he first looked at her and then she began to feel a calmness engulf her entire body. She heard Digger speak but his voice seemed to be coming from far, far away. “Spirit Lady make girl no sick. She take knife, cut problem, girl be better. You no take girl from here. She die for sure you take her in air bird. She…no…go!” the old man said calmly but sternly in a monotone voice. “But you don’t understand, Digger. Dana is not a doctor…she does not know how to perform surgery and I can’t do it with one arm in this cast! Besides, I have no anesthesia to speak of with us and the girl will have to be put to sleep to have the tumor removed.” “Your lady will listen you speak as when arm she make better for you. No need your medicine for to make body sleep…we make potion for her…she no wake for many hours. Spirit Lady only one

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cut on little one and will do here with mother, father and elders beside her to drive away evil spirits. Before Carlo could open his mouth to argue with the old man, he was surrounded by tribesmen who were brandishing spears in his direction. He knew there was no need to try to persuade them to allow him to remove the girl elsewhere. He returned to the airplane and removed the essential bags and what equipment he had with him and dragged them back to the pavilion. Dana had remained standing by the child’s bed almost in the same position he had left her in. He spoke to her, instructing her to help him set up the things needed for the surgery. She moved as though in a trance but did everything she was told to do. She washed her hands in the boiled water, dried them on sterile towels and stood motionless as Carlo robed and gloved her. The child had been moved to a table, which had been placed on blocks so that her body was at the proper level for Dana and Carlo to work. Carlo administered a strong sedative by syringe to the child’s hip. Digger moved to the side of the bed and allowed the child to breathe in a sweet smelling vapor that steamed from an incense bowl. “Child no wake now…Lady do what need to do…child no wake now.” All of a sudden, Dana’s eyes cleared as she looked at Carlo and she motioned for him to place the scalpel into her outstretched hand. “Lead me through this Gian Carlo…I’m ready.” With Carlo’s words instructing her as to every exact move, Dana quickly and adeptly made the incision in the child’s abdomen directly below the area where the rib cage meets at the sternum. From there, Carlo led her through the entire procedure assisting her as best he could with his left hand. He suctioned and mopped the excess blood as Dana cut around the area where the tumor was lodged. With precise strokes, she deftly sliced the growth out and away from the lining of the esophagus, tied off the bleeders as instructed and then sutured the incision together. Not once did she

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appear to be nervous or confused and performed the case as though she had been doing this sort of thing all her life. As she completed the last suture, she turned from the makeshift operating table, tore off her gloves and walked silently from the pavilion. Carlo turned to follow but Digger laid his hand on his arm and detained him. “Spirit Lady need time to self. Divine Spirit still with her. She need feel presence for time longer. She then be right for talk with you. She is gifted lady. We honor her for life here and will tell children, grandchildren and more grandchildren of white Spirit Lady who came as promised to save one of our people. We tell story of her as we have told stories of our people since Divine One put our people here. We knew she come. Have wait long time. She special gift to you…treat good.” With that Digger turned to join his people in their chanting around the small child who was now resting and breathing normally on the small cot in the firelight. Carlo watched for a while and then drew Digger aside to advise him on how to care for the child during recovery. An hour later found Carlo standing in the doorway of the tent the tribesmen had raised for him and his wife. He watched quietly as Dana lifted her head and stared with tear filled eyes into his. “Oh Gian Carlo, I know what I just did in that pavilion but it was as if I were hovering above that table watching the whole procedure from somewhere up there. But how…oh how, could I have done it extemporaneously? I knew that it was me down there cutting on that poor child and doing everything you told me to do with great expertise but I knew intuitively also that someone other than you or I was guiding and directing that little scenario. ‘One stronger and more powerful than me!’ Digger said! My ever present Guardian Angel was there, also reassuring me that everything was in Divine Order and that the child was going to be all right. She kept telling me that I was fulfilling some sort of destiny between me and these people…a destiny that had been preordained an eternity ago. It’s all so strange but I now know that this is why I was supposed to come here…for

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these people…to give them some kind of hope, hope for a future they are not too sure of. “Well, I’ll tell you one thing, my sweet, precious Little One…I have never witnessed such talent with a surgical case under such adverse circumstances before in my entire career. You were simply wonderful in there and performed as though you had been doing this sort of thing all of your life. I’m very proud of you. I didn’t have to do too much of anything. You carried the whole thing…it was absolutely miraculous how you instinctively and intuitively knew exactly what to do almost before I instructed you. As I said…I’m very proud of you and God!…how I do love you!” With that remark, Carlo pulled Dana into a standing position, took her in his arms and kissed her passionately.

chapter 25 s

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ana glanced out of the cockpit window as she was helping Carlo climb to cruising altitude and noticed that Digger and his tribesmen had formed something with their bodies that vaguely resembled a heart and all were waving. She knew in her heart that she would always feel a certain amount of kinship with these primitive little people and would be forever grateful that she had been able to experience these wonderful, mystical few days with them. She knew also that she may never see them again or ever return to their country but there would always be a connection between her and them that she would treasure forever in her memory. Carlo spent the first half-hour of their flight laughing and talking to Dana trying to help her assimilate the events of the last few days. “Hey lady…just think how lucky you are. You may never get to be First Lady of the good ole U.S.of A. or Queen of some other country but you will always be a Goddess here in Aborigine Land. These people will tell stories of you from now through the ages…you will be revered as all of their ancestors are. You know, I think I knew from the very moment I met you that you were different…some one who was really special and I feel so blessed that you have elected to spend your life with me.” “No, Gian Carlo. I’m not so special. I just try to do what I know is right for everyone. I suppose I have some sort of talent or gift when - 153 -

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it comes to benevolence for others for I have always tried to give more than I get. As I have told you before, I am happiest whenever I am doing something for someone else and I never expect anything in return. That to me is what unconditional love is all about. I can’t bear to see anyone hurting or in pain…be it physical or emotional. The little kindnesses I do come back to me in many, many ways. They flew in silence for a while and Dana noticed that they were climbing to an even higher altitude. “I’m putting this bird on automatic pilot and I want you to climb over here into my lap facing me.” Carlo said seductively. “Gian Carlo! Are you daft? This is madness…there’s no room for me there because of the steering wheel, you idiot!” “O-o-o-h yes there is…”Carlo crooned as he grabbed a lever under the seat and gently slid it backwards several inches. “See? Plenty of room. Now…get your lovely ass over here, pronto! Better remove your lower garments first, however.” Dana smiled wickedly at her husband and then complied with his wishes. She quickly removed her boots, socks, and then eased out of her trousers and panties. Carlo reached down with his good hand and unzipped his own trousers exposing an already swollen, pulsating penis. “God…look at that thing! It hasn’t been used in such a long time, it can hardly wait to ravish your body. It has a mind of it’s own, I tell you…springs to attention without the slightest provocation. I’ve had a hard time…pardon the pun…trying to keep him under control for the past week, my pet!” As Dana straddled and positioned herself onto Carlo’s lap, she leaned forward and kissed him passionately. She reached upward and unbuttoned his shirt and spread it wide so that his entire chest came into view. She leaned back, unbuttoned her own shirt, and removed it along with her bra. “If you insist that we do…‘the wild thing’…up here, then I insist that we do it right. I like to feel your naked body against me…makes me more passionate, don’t ya know!?” she purred softly.

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In a matter of minutes, Dana’s breath had quickened to match Carlo’s pace and she knew that she was approaching the point of passion that would demand more physical contact. She placed Carlo’s free hand between her legs and asked that he gently stroke her. She raised up on her knees as he complied with her wishes and lowering her head backwards, she let out a sensual l-o-n-g sigh. She reached down and took Carlo’s penis in both her hands and gently but firmly squeezed it a couple of times. She intuitively knew that if she kept it up for very long, he would have his orgasm and she wanted that to wait for her so that they could climax in unison. She leaned over toward his face and kissed him once again with open, hot lips. Her tongue probed deeply and feverishly into his waiting mouth. Slowly, she scooted forward a little more and raised herself up so that Carlo’s hard, erect projectile was directly beneath her vagina. With great care and expertise, she maneuvered the glorious organ into her wet, waiting orifice. The motions were slow and precise at first but then began to build to a rapturous crescendo. “0-o-o-o-h…yes…yes!…YES!” Dana shouted as she expended all of her energy toward the powerful orgasm she was experiencing. Carlo could not move beneath her but there was no need…she had managed to accomplish for him what they had both so eagerly awaited. When he could breathe comfortably again, he looked up into her flushed face and said…“Congratulations…you are now an official member of the Mile High Club! That wonderful episode was your initiation.” “Well hot damn, Sam! I never knew there was such a wonderful organization! What a magnificent idea and o-o-oh, what a glorious prize!” Dana answered him, grinning from ear to ear. “Hey buddy, I won’t tell if you won’t tell!” By the time they reached the airfield that belonged to the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Alice Springs, both Carlo and Dana had regained their respective composures and alighted from the plane cool, calm and collected. Only when they got into the taxi to travel

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the short distance to the hotel, did they look at each other and burst out laughing.

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fter deciding to turn in the rental airplane in Alice Springs instead of Sydney, Carlo finished all of the necessary paper work and called over to the Flying Doctor Service to advise them that he would arrive there shortly to give them a full accounting of his services while in the Outback. News of their adventures, including Carlo’s broken arm, had preceded them back to the main office and everyone there was full of questions as soon as they walked in the door. Some of the people had heard strange stories from the deep Bush country but had laughed them off as folk-lore. Here in their midst was living proof that weird happenings really did exist. They couldn’t wait to hear what had actually occurred. At Carlo’s prompting, Dana shyly recounted the events and all the while she spoke, he would from time to time, glance over in her direction with a grimace on his face indicating that he thought she was leaving entirely too much of the story out. As soon as he finished his paper work, he joined the little circle and offered his rendition of the exiting events. After he finished, the shocked, spellbound and bewildered faces turned in unison toward Dana who lowered her head and blushed to the tips of her toes. “My husband likes to stretch the truth just a wee bit. All I did was follow his instructions both in setting his fracture and performing the simple surgical case on the little girl. Anyone of you could have - 157 -

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done the same, had it been you!” she exclaimed in a calm, quiet voice. “Oh Mrs. Evans, you are much too modest. There is no way those of us who are not trained in those procedures could ever do what you did out there! We are all in complete agreement…there is no bloody way in hell that we could have performed as you did under such adverse circumstances. Three cheers for the doc’s missus…Hip, hip Hooray! Hip, hip Hooray! Hip, hip Hooray! Not only will the Aborigine people tell the tales of the fair haired Spirit Lady but you can rest assured…we will do the same to our wee little ones for the years to come. What a wonderful pleasure it has been to work with the two of you,” one of the medical technicians announced to Dana and Carlo. On the ride to the hotel Dana was very quiet and pensive. Carlo put his good arm around her and encouraged her to put her head over on his shoulder. “What’s the matter, Little One?” “I don’t know about you Gian Carlo but I have had enough of this ‘land down under’ if it’s all the same to you. I was thrilled beyond words in coming here but I’m just not in the right frame of mind to gad about and make merry any more at this time. If itall the same to you, I’d really like to go home and not remain here as you had planned, for another two or three days. I’m elated to have been here but I feel a bit drained from it all and I would rather get on a plane and head home…to our new life,” Dana lamented wearily. “Of course, my sweet, precious darling. We’ll have a nice relaxing dinner in our room tonight and we can head home tomorrow. I’ll change our reservations as soon as we get to the hotel and I don’t foresee any difficulty in doing so. I’m rather anxious to leave also and I think anything else we might plan to do here would be rather anticlimatical anyway.” Dana slept deeply that last night in Australia. So deeply in fact that she did not even dream. Her heart and soul were full of her accomplishments here in this far off country that had drawn her like

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a beacon. Her desire to indulge in a little portion of her destiny had finally been fulfilled and she could rest now.

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he trip home from their honeymoon was a long but pleasant one. Dana and Carlo discussed the events of the trip and each admitted that they would indeed return to that wonderful continent even after all of the exhausting and somewhat dangerous experiences they had encountered. Dana’s mystical involvement had satisfied her attachment she had always felt and now she could relax and relish her memories of the time spent with the wonderful ‘little people’. All in all, the trip had been a favorable one and one they would long remember. Carlo took a few extra days off to help Dana arrange storage for the many mementos and purchases they had shipped back to the States…things they would eventually use to help decorate the new house they planned to build. His broken arm would take at least six weeks to mend and he would have to refrain from doing any surgery for a while. He planned to put the interim time to good and advantageous use for he knew that as soon as he walked back into his office, he would be hard put to find any extra time for anything but seeing patients, performing the many surgeries that would be scheduled and getting back into the swing of things with the new land development business. The land deals were beginning to come fast and furiously and the fellow members of the group would depend on him to make a lot of the final decisions. He seemed to have an excellent head - 160 -

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for business. Unusual, for most physicians don’t have that knack and the group seemed delighted with his additional talents. Dana became very active in the Hospital Auxiliary, volunteering several hours a week for she seemed to have a natural talent and gift in relating to those who were in need of emotional support. She was a very warm, thoughtful, compassionate, and giving person and she was touched beyond the point of mere compassion for people. She had discovered this on their trip in helping Carlo take care of the patients and her involvement with the children and little girl she attended in the outback. Too bad she didn’t have the time to go back to school for she would love to become a doctor but she instinctively knew that Carlo would never agree to the many long hours and years it would take to accomplish that dream. She was having a hard enough time getting him to agree to letting her continue to work in her own field. However, the seed was planted in her mind and she vowed somehow to find a way in which she could serve mankind with the latent talent she had discovered she possessed. The week of Christmas, Dana busied herself with plans for a gala family Christmas dinner. This would be the first for her and her new husband and she intended to make it a memorable one. She finished all of her shopping and she and Carlo spent a romantic evening putting up the tree two nights before the big holiday. It would be a bit crowded in their present apartment but she knew they could manage for a few days and she and Carlo were both eagerly looking forward to Ryan’s visit. Ryan arrived on Christmas Eve and would be with them for five days. Carlo made arrangements to be close by those few days so that he and his son could become better acquainted. They had not spent much quality time together in the past and now that Ryan was a ‘young man’, Carlo found that he could relate to him in a more mature, manly fashion. Dana invited her mother, father, her brother and sister and their families to join them for late afternoon Christmas dinner. She made

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preparations for the ladies to join her earlier in the day so they could cut, chop, mix, bake and cook without any interference from the men while doing so. Cathy’s husband Matt, invited the gentlemen over to his house to watch…what else?…ball games, so that the ladies could have the run of Dana’s house to get the meal prepared and the table set and decorated in holiday fashion. Time for dinner arrived and when the sumptuous meal was finished, the men retired to the living room so that the ladies could spend a little time having coffee and visiting around the table before cleaning up the table and kitchen. “I don’t know why we make such a big deal over this holiday meal…it takes so damned long to prepare it and thirty minutes to devour it…dessert included,” Cathy intoned laboriously as she carried a stack of dishes to the kitchen sink. “I know. It does take an awful long time to prepare it but in the long run, it’s well worth the effort,” Peg said to her stuffed and miserable daughter. “Everything was absolutely delicious and you really outdid yourselves, my dear gourmet daughters. We couldn’t have had a grander dinner anywhere!” “I’ll concur with that statement, me dears,” George O’Daniels said as he sneaked over toward the dessert table. “Me thinks I’ll just have a wee bit more of that delicious pecan pie, me wee bit of an Irish lass of a daughter made. Tis truly the best in the entire world. You’ve quite a talent there, lass!” “George O’Daniels, you just carry that large Irish frame of yours directly back into the other room without another slice of that pie. I’ll not have you belly aching to me all night long. Tis two pieces you’ve had already,” his lovely wife responded. When everyone gathered once again as twilight set in, Cathy sat down to the organ in the living room and began to play Christmas carols. One by one, the others joined in a circle around her and all began to sing. In a matter of minutes, Dana shushed everyone else

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and motioned for them to stop singing and listen to Ryan as he finished the last chorus of “Oh Little Town of Bethlehem.” “My goodness, young man! You have one of the most beautiful voices I’ve ever heard. Will you sing my favorite “Oh Holy Night” for us?” As he nodded his consent, Dana said to her sister…”Cathy, the music is in the bench there.” As the family moved to find comfortable seats, Dana turned off all of the lights in the room except for the small lamp on the organ and the Christmas tree. Ryan’s melodious voice filled the room and everyone there felt the blessedness of the message the song invoked. Carlo pulled his wife in closer to him on the sofa and she gently laid her head over on his shoulder. At his father’s encouragement, Ryan repeated the same carol over again and each person in the room sat mesmerized by his gentle and gorgeous rendition. When the song was finished, a pin could-have been heard dropping to the floor. “What a perfectly wonderful ending to a very special day!” Howard finally spoke, breaking the spell cast by the soft lights and the beautiful song and music. “We best head for our own stable. Thanks for everything, everyone. Goodnight.” “I have a special gift for you Dana,” Carlo whispered to her after the last of the guests had departed and Ryan had retired to the upstairs. “But I thought we had distributed all of the gifts from under the tree after the family arrived this morning?” Dana remarked as she looked bewilderedly at her husband who was reaching in the drawer of the desk beside the tree. He walked to her and handed her a festively wrapped small package. The card read…’To one who has special mystical powers over all whom she encounters…especially…me! I hope to remain under your spell forever. I love you, Gian Carlo.’ With great care Dana untied the bow and gingerly removed the paper from a small box. Her hand went to her mouth and she gasped in utter amazement as she looked upon the most beautiful pendent she had ever seen. It was an iridescent Opal surrounded by deep blue

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sapphires and fiery, glittering diamonds hanging on a 20 inch gold chain. The Opal was a rare and unique one for it had several colors intermingled with the cloudy white natural color. As it was twirled about, the colors changed like a kaleidoscope. “Oh my God, Gian Carlo, I’m speechless! This is the most gorgeous, prismatic piece of jewelry I have ever seen. I adore it! I love it! Oh, you precious, wonderful husband of mine! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” “I wanted you to have something special to remember your dream-trip and I selected the stones myself while we were in Australia. I had called ahead before we left on our trip and had the gemsman gather several stones for me to choose from after I arrived. While you were in the sauna one afternoon, I sneaked out to take a look and make my selections. I designed the setting myself. I hope you are pleased and you will cherish it always as a reminder of our honeymoon and the special accomplishments we, especially…you…encountered in Australia.” “You know that I am thrilled beyond words. Our honeymoon is so very special and it will forever remain so in my heart and memory. This will always be a constant lovely reminder. Whenever I wear it and touch it, I shall think special thoughts of you and the time we shared there. Oh, Gian Carlo…you are my life and I love you so!” The next few days were spent relaxing and having fun with Ryan. The fellows played golf and the three of them went sailing on the “Too Much” twice. The weather was cold but clear and with heavy sweaters to keep them warm, the dampness from the lake didn’t bother them too much. The evenings after dinner, Dana excused herself and retired to her bedroom so the two men could visit and spend some quality time together alone. “My studies are coming along quite nicely and I am finally beginning to settle down into the curricular matters at hand. I think I have finally caught up on the ‘skirts and booze bit’,” Ryan laughingly told his father. “I’ve decided to try to get into Pre-Med for I want to be a

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physician like you, Dad. After hearing your story about the trip to Australia, I feel somehow drawn to that field. I think I would prefer general surgery for in that manner, I can be of more service than if I specialize in say…heart or orthopedic surgery. I’m sure those specialists make a hell-of-a-lot more money but that’s not why I want to do general surgery. I feel that there is a much larger need there. Perhaps someday, we could practice together, whada-ya-think?” “You don’t know how happy I am to hear you say that, Ryan. It will be a long, hard pull but I am sure you are up to it and can succeed once you have made up your mind and it sure sounds as if that’s the case. I’m proud of you son, congratulations,” Carlo said as he embraced Ryan. “I’ll be glad to help in any way that I can. Let me know when you decide where you want to attend school and I will put in a good word or two for you. Now, tell me about your brother. I was not too pleased with his actions and attitude when he was here for the wedding. What’s his problem?” “Oh, he’s been listening to idle gossip and he has this idiotic idea that Dana is in this marriage strictly for what she can get out of it. I tried to convince him otherwise but you know how god damned stubborn he is. Once he gets an idea in his mind, it takes an act of congress to dislodge it. I think the only way he’ll ever be convinced otherwise is for him to spend some time with the two of you so that he can see firsthand for himself what kind of loving, responsible, caring person she really is.” “God damn your mother! She’s the ‘idle gossip’ he’s been listening to. Her and her snooty, know-it-all, snobbish, bitchy friends here in Atlanta! If anyone of them would just take the time to get to know Dana they would find out that she is truly an outstanding human being. All of those women associate their own selfish feelings and desires with every other female without looking beyond ‘hear-say’ and none of them have the slightest clue as to what a genteel lady of class really is. Curse them all!” Carlo shouted and shook his fist into the air. “It may take some doing and some time, but I will change the

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way Shawn feels about my wife or he can go to hell with the rest of those who profess not to like her. She is here to stay…I love her and I have never been happier in my entire life.” “Well padre, for what it’s worth, I think you’ve got yourself quite a jewel there and I, for one, like her tremendously. We’d better hit the sack for we have an early tee time in the morning. Dana’s going to play with us, you know” “Did you say Dana…is…going…to play…golf? Well, I’ll be damned! Say Ryan, you must have genuinely made an impression on her ladyship yourself for she doesn’t really like the game. Oh well…just which one of you is trying to make brownie points?”

chapter 28 s

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ven though they were extremely busy in their selected fields and endeavors, Carlo and Dana spent a good bit of their first year of marriage searching for just the right location to build a house. They finally decided on a large lot in the new area that had opened up on the lake not too far from the marina where the sailboat was moored. There were many, many trees on the property they selected and Dana threatened Carlo with his life if he arranged for any of them to be cut down without her approval and consent. Although her field of expertise was in interior design, she had an uncanny good eye for landscaping and lawn decor as well. “Tell you what, Little One…you select several plans that you like and we’ll have an architect friend of mine design one for us with all of the great wonderful features I’m sure you’re going to find in the new house plan books. We can decide on exactly how many rooms we want, whether or not we want a one or two story house and what style we desire. When we reach an agreement on all of that, then…my dear, you are on your own,” Gian Carlo told her frankly. “I trust your tastes completely and you can select whatever your heart desires as far as appliances, carpeting, fixtures, and the like are concerned. I have just two requests as far as that sort of thing goes…I need one room for an office-study with lots of bookcases, a private phone/FAX line and all of the amenities a home office should have. I - 167 -

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also need a room large enough for an exercise gym and other equipment. Agreed?” After weeks of diligently searching through literally stacks and more stacks of house plan books, Dana finally selected several plans and between the two of them, she and Carlo reached an agreement on the ones they both liked. Carlo’s friend, Richard Cason, an architect who had won acclaim for his work in the Southeast, drew up the perfect blueprint designed specifically for their needs, the locale and the climate. The house was to be large and spacious for neither of them liked the idea of being confined to small spaces with little room to move comfortably around in. The plans showed that the entrance opened to a sun-drenched loggia in soft colors, which would look out into a central courtyard and pool. Each room was to have a character of its own, while maintaining harmony with the rest of the environment. Dana used her expertise in interior design to expertly blend local treasures with new and unusual decor available to her from an abundance of resources. For example, the sparkle of an elegant antique crystal chandelier would be dramatically reflected in a glass-topped dining table, and an ornate writing desk would find a perfect home in an otherwise sleek contemporary setting. Dana would later on, spend many long hours at that desk putting her new endeavor into place. Dana put her attention to detail to use to the greatest capability and all of the corners and niches to their best advantage in the architectural elements of the home. The final result would be a welcoming, warm, and comfortable home where the eye would be treated to one creative delight after another. In the blueprints, there were arched windows and graceful columns that tended to elevate the home to an elegance not typical of two-story homes such as the one planned. Downstairs, the expansive great room would feature an 11 1/2 foot stepped ceiling and a fireplace flanked by built-in storage and utility areas. The breakfast

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room and master bedroom would have access to a covered porch and the great room would have access to a terrace and the pool. Showers for pool users were to be provided just outside the garage entrance to the wet room. Dana and Carlo agreed that the three of them had done an excellent job of planning the house and they were eager to get on with the construction. They surmised that would take the better part of a year. Sometimes the two of them would make the trip out to the property to check on the progress of the house as it was being constructed. Upon occasion, Dana would surprise Carlo with a packed picnic lunch and the suggestion that they spend a few secluded hours at the lake cottage after they had surveyed the new house and its progress. “H-m-m-m, and just what do you have in mind, my little hussy, as if I didn’t know?” “Well, my darling, I thought we might mosey on up there and take the opportunity to share a little afternoon delight, play doctor, play house, mattress polo or you know…just get into some good old down home screwing!” Dana purred seductively, looking at him with those gorgeous blue eyes that turned a beautiful violet hue when she was sexually aroused. “Are you game…h-m-m-m?” “I’d be out of my mind to refuse an offer like that, Little One. It isn’t too often that we can steal an hour or two alone in that crowded and cramped townhouse we are in at the present. I do enjoy your squeals of delight and those sensuous moans and groans that emanate from your delicious mouth while you are consumed with the act of…screwing, as you so wantonly put it. You do precious little of that anymore because you are so damned self-conscious worrying about the neighbors hearing you through those paper-thin walls. Come on, I’ll race you to the car…last one there is a cock sucker!” “What vile language you do use, Dr. E.!” Dana shouted. She knew damned well that Carlo could out-distance her in a heartbeat!

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As time went by after their honeymoon, Carlo discovered that Dana was indeed what her mother had taught her to be, a ‘lady in the living room and a whore in the bedroom.’ She was not shy in any way with him and was certainly not inhibited in her lovemaking. She knew what she wanted and she was not embarrassed to ask for it. Together, they explored each other’s bodies and learned every erotic spot on each. Never in his life had he experienced such fiery passion and complete surrender in any of his previous lovers. He loved it when she would seduce him with ‘that look’ of hers at a party which, in essence, meant…let’s get the hell out of here, go home, strip and play a hot game of mattress polo! At those times, he couldn’t get her out of there fast enough…

chapter 29 s

Back to the Present

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amie sat at his desk waiting for the phone to ring on the other end of the line. It rang five times before someone answered. A soft, sweet, young voice spoke to him. “Hello, this is the O’Daniels residence, Alana speaking.” “Hi gorgeous. This is your Uncle Jamie. How’s my best gal?” “Oh, Uncle Jamie! I’m so glad you called. Grams and I have been hoping you would get in touch with us ‘cause we just got back from Atlanta day before yesterday. We went to visit Mommie at the hospital.” “That’s why I’m calling. I knew ‘yall were going up to see her and I wanted to know if there was any change in her condition,” Jamie said kindly in his southern drawl. “No, not that I can tell. I sat on her bed, held her hand and talked to her like I always do when I’m there but she still doesn’t answer me or squeeze my hand like she knows I’m there yet. She will…I just know she will…soon,” the little girl wistfully said. “Perhaps I should let you speak to Grams. She will know exactly what to tell you…you know…in doctor language. I’ll talk to you again soon, Uncle Jamie. I love you! Hey Grams! Telephone. It’s Uncle Jamie.”

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“I love ya too, Alana. Keep your chin up and keep the faith, Pookie!” the young minister reassured her, using the pet name he used for her. It amazed him how grown-up and mature the eight year old little girl always sounded. “Thanks darling. Jamie?” Peg O’Daniels said as she took the phone from her granddaughter. “How nice of you to call.” “I’ve been thinking of yall for several days and wondered what, if anything, you have found out on your visit to see Dana the other day?” “Oh Jamie! There seems to be no change and that is such a mystery. All of the doctors at the hospital where Dana is have done extensive tests. They have called in several specialists and have talked to other specialists in Europe and in several of the Asian countries. No one seems to have a clue as to what the primary cause of the coma is. Dana’s physical injuries are healing well…the therapists are keeping her body limber and moving with the Range of Motion exercises and she is being fed with the tubes and IV’s. Still, there is no sign or movement to show that there is any real life encased there in her body. Her EEG tests were good so we know she isn’t brain dead. They keep telling me that she can hear even though she is in such a deep coma so I talk to her practically the whole time I’m there with her. When I can’t talk any longer, Alana takes over. Bless that precious child’s heart…she speaks so calmly and softly to her mother and all the while, she rubs and soothingly strokes Dana’s hands and sometimes, her feet. She insists that we keep Dana’s finger and toenails clipped, filed and polished with clear polish and her legs shaved. Always before we leave, she sings the little song that they sang together every night at bedtime before the accident. She refuses to give up on her mom and she is really an inspiration to the rest of us. She smiles and laughs with us as she always did but at night, after she has gone to her room, I hear her crying. Please continue to pray for her, Jamie. She needs your prayers as well as her mother does.”

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“You know that I will, Peg. Even though I’m not her real uncle, it’s a real pleasure and a joy for me to have her consider me as part of her family. Dana and I’ve been such close friends for a long, long time and we feel as though we’re really brother and sister. It’s not often that a minister can have such a close relationship with one of his ‘flock’ but Dana and I share a special spiritual bond. That’s one of the reasons I’m calling, Peg. I had the strangest dream last night and I feel that I should make a trip to Atlanta to talk to Carlo about it. I don’t know whether or not it’ll shed any light on the matter but I feel that I must speak to him about it,” Jamie said eagerly. “Well yes, by all means, you should go to Atlanta, Jamie. Tell me about your dream,” Dana’s mother implored. Two days later, Jamie drove his car into the underground parking lot at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. He found his way by elevator upstairs to the sixth floor and exited across the hall from the nurse’s station. He walked to the end of the hallway and entered Dana’s private room. He softly knocked and passed into the room when he heard Carlo’s entrance command. After pleasantries were exchanged between the two men, Jamie walked to Dana’s bedside, took her hand in his and spoke to his cherished friend. “Hi sweetness. It’s your ole buddy, Jamie. I just wanted to tell ya once again that I’m still here for ya and that I know, I feel…that this ordeal for you is about over. At this point, we’re not certain which way it’ll go, but as I told ya before, I’m here to help you, whatever, your decision will be. Keep your heart and your closed eyes on Spirit and He will lead you in the proper direction for your ultimate good. Ya know that I love ya and will always treasure our closeness in the Spirit and our devoted friendship. Stay with the Light Dana, and all will be well. And…so it is!” Jamie intoned to the peaceful figure lying so still on the bed. With a nod toward Carlo, both men silently moved away from Dana’s bedside and over to the large window at the far side of the room.

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“Peg called last night and informed me that you would be coming today to visit with Dana and she told me that you wanted to speak to me while you were here. I took the afternoon off from the office so that I could be here in Dana’s room when you arrived. I’m still only doing limited surgeries and office visits instead of full time for I cannot bear to be away from her bedside too long at the time. I want to be here if possible, whenever…whatever…happens,” Carlo lamented, bowing his head. “What is it you wanted to talk to me about?” “Ya know that Dana and I have a special, mystical, Spiritual bond and I understand that you don’t truly comprehend things of this nature but trust me…it’s possible. Somehow or other, the two of us are spiritually or mentally attuned to one another and many times in the past, we’ve been able to plug into that mystical connection and know when the other is in danger or that something is amiss. For the past week or so, I’ve had an intense feeling that Dana was trying desperately to contact me and I haven’t been able to shake that feeling. A few nights ago, as I told Peg, I dreamt about Dana and her Guardian Angel. Her Angel is with her constantly here in this room…always standing at the right hand top of the bed. I’ve noticed whenever I’ve been here to visit that there is never anything there in that particular space and now I know why.” “Go on…tell me what else you dreamed,” Carlo implored nervously. “In my dream, Dana’s eyes opened and she was able to look around the room but still could not speak or move. The Angel was visible in the room also and what a beautiful lady she was. A soft golden light surrounded her and her gown and robes were pearl blue with golden threads woven throughout. Her long golden tresses were hanging in curls but pulled slightly back from her lovely face with a golden ribbon. Her right wing was spread outward around the head of Dana’s bed, protecting her charge. Her smile was the most radiant I’ve ever seen and she nodded to me as I approached the bed. Dana

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didn’t move but looked directly into my eyes and I could tell that she knew exactly what was going on the room. I asked her if she had been able to hear everything that had been said from the time she arrived at the hospital after her accident. She blinked twice and I surmised that this indicated a…yes. To make sure, I asked her if she knew who I was…she blinked twice again. Then I asked her if she knew what day it was…she blinked once. I asked her if she wanted me to ask her more questions and she answered by blinking twice. My queries did not make much sense in the beginning and I could tell that Dana was becoming a little agitated…she wanted me to get down to brass tacks so I changed my line of questioning.” “Is there a physical reason for ya to be in such a deep sleep’?” I asked quietly. Dana blinked once. “Is your mind clear and can ya remember things?” Dana blinked twice. “Is there some reason other than medical that causes ya to remain in that deep sleep?” Dana blinked twice. “What is it? What is it then” I asked of my dream partner, forgetting that she could only answer with ‘yes’ or ‘no’ blinks.” “Dana’s eyes darted from mine up to the Angel’s eyes silently imploring her guardian to speak to me but the Angel only smiled and looked back toward Dana,” Jamie continued. “Dana’s eyes blinked several times in quick succession as if she were urging me to ask more pertinent questions. I was at a loss as to what to ask next, but something prompted me to carry on with my investigation.” “Dana’s eyes stared deeply into mine and then moved downward toward the needle stuck in her arm. She then followed the tubing with her eyes until they settled on the IV bag hanging on the stand on the left side of her bed. She immediately looked back into my eyes and then moved them back and forth from the needle, to the IV bag and then to my eyes. As she did so, she blinked twice…paused for a few seconds and then repeated her movements several more times.

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“Are ya trying to tell me that there is something in the IV solution that is keeping you asleep’?” I asked her in my dream. Dana blinked twice…and…then…I awakened!” Jamie completed his telling of the dream nervously wringing his hands. “That’s one hell-of-a-dream, Jamie!” Carlo spoke soberly. “However, that’s preposterous. You’re right, I don’t believe in your mental telepathy goings on with Dana and don’t you think we have exhausted every avenue imaginable in test after test with Dana’s blood gases, organs, tissue and the works? If that were the case, and it’s highly unlikely in the first damned place…we would have found a trace of some substance, whatever it was…in the lab tests. We have found nothing. Absolutely nothing.” “Well, I felt compelled and driven to come to speak to ya about it at any rate, Carlo. I couldn’t sleep well if I had simply chalked it up to a nightmare or some such nonsense and not told ya about it. I felt that Dana wanted me to discuss the matter with ya and the dream was her voice speaking to me in the only way she’s able to communicate. She knew that I could and would be her channel,” Jamie reiterated solemnly. With that, Jamie walked over to Dana’s bed, bent down and gently kissed her forehead. “Hang in there, Sweetness. I love ya and I’ll be back to see ya soon.” “Thanks for coming, Jamie. It’s always good to see you,” Carlo said with his arms folded across his chest and turned to walk back to the bedside of his frail ex-wife. As Jamie walked slowly toward the door, it opened and the nurse who had assumed many of the duties pertaining to Dana’s case entered. She did not speak but smiled sweetly and nodded to him as he departed. Jamie stopped dead still in the doorway for he thought he distinctly heard the rustle of wings in Dana’s room. Hearing nothing more, he closed the door behind him and left forlornly to begin the long drive back to Memphis. Perhaps if there was anything to his dream, Dana would try somehow or other to contact him again.

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hen Dana went back to work after her honeymoon trip, she decided to join a large firm, “Southern Sophisticates”, located in one of the better sections of Atlanta. Adaire and George Rodgers’ builders completed their new house a few weeks after Dana returned to work and they contracted with her firm to decorate the house. Dana was the sole designer and had free rein to order from whichever houses she needed, in order to finish the task. When completed, the results were breathtaking and had the entire Medical Society’s Auxiliary seeking Dana’s talented services thereafter. Her talent was a natural one and whatever style the home, she designed the interiors with perfect taste, elegance and beauty. Of course, costs were never an object with her clients for they were some of Atlanta’s wealthiest. She became almost as well known in her field as Carlo was in his. Carlo’s arm healed and soon he was back at work also, not only in the office and surgery, but he became deeply involved with the Evans Properties, Inc. business as well. More and more of his time was spent in the evenings after office hours in the tower offices of the Evans Building on Peachtree Street. Because of his involvement with the founder, who had also been his benefactor, it was not long before - 177 -

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Carlo was elected President of the ever-expanding company. It appeared that the old man’s foresight had proved correct…Carlo was indeed a mastermind in the business field as well as a talented surgeon. Through his leadership and encouragement, the company acquired many large tracts of land in and near the city which later would become huge shopping malls and multi-storied office complexes. As Dana’s popularity spread as Atlanta’s leading interior designer, she was invited to more and more of the prestigious gatherings, parties and clubs. She went at Carlo’s insistence but she was not comfortable in doing so. The main reason she consented to go to these parties, functions, etc., was because she felt that somehow it would help both her and Carlo’s businesses. She much preferred to stay at home nights and weekends to spend some much sought-after quality time with her husband but there was precious little time for that, she soon learned. She knew that Carlo loved her deeply and was very proud of her accomplishments but she longed for the time when they could both let up some in their respective jobs and tell the rest of the world to ‘take a hike!’ The only good thing to come out of all of the pretentiousness was the fact that she met and formed lasting friendships with several ladies. They later formed a birthday club and called themselves the ‘Chatty Cathy’s’. The group continued throughout the years to celebrate each other’s special days lunching at different restaurants around town. For a while, they met at each of their houses where they could take off their shoes, kick up their heels, tell shady stories, laugh as loudly as they liked and get a little tipsy if they wanted to. These were wonderful times which became locked into Dana’s memory…fun times that she could recall and think fondly of in the years to come. Strange that her closest friends were not wives of any of the doctor’s or wives of any of Carlo’s business associates. Her closest friends were Rhonda, her horseback riding buddy, and Shannon Guidry, who had lived in the same apartment complex Dana lived in

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when she first came to Atlanta. Dana established strong bonds with these two women. Both were confidants and Dana shared many of her grievances and heartaches with her two closest friends. No one else in her circle of friends knew or suspected in the years to come that things were not always ‘great and wonderful’ in the Evans household. Whenever Carlo and Dana managed to slip away for some time alone, it was indeed wonderful and as it was in the early times of their marriage. They were enraptured with each other’s bodies and minds at times like those and would lose themselves in the magic of…just being together. Because Carlo’s time was so limited, he purchased a twin engine airplane to use for the land development business and to enable them to sneak away from time to time to rest up and recoup from the stress and strain of their busy practices. Dana often talked Carlo into flying off somewhere for an exotic brunch somewhere on the spur of the moment. They flew to New Orleans many Sundays to have brunch at Brennan’s or Commander’s Palace. Dana loved the Palace for there was always a roving violinist or jazz ensemble there to enhance the meal. She reveled in the romantic ambiance the music added to their precious few hours alone away from everything and everybody. They would spend several hours lingering over Bananas Foster for dessert and looking deeply into each other’s eyes, reaffirming their love. Other times, they flew up to the Cape for a hurried weekend of Lobster gouging. Lobster was one of Carlo’s weaknesses and Dana used this to her advantage in luring him away for a day or two. Usually all she had to do was mention the tender, succulent crustaceans, melted garlic lemon butter, lick her lips and say, “Wouldn’t you just l-o-v-e to have some of that sweet meat in your mouth?” and he was ready to take off into the wild blue yonder on a moment’s notice, damning business, etc. D J, one of the girls in the birthday group, was an accomplished pilot and Dana would talk Carlo into letting her pilot his plane and

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fly the group off somewhere for an ‘all girl retreat’, as Dana liked to call these trips. There were eleven ladies in the group and they could never all get away at the same time so there was always room for at least six of them in the plane. The husbands were a little leery at first about letting their wives fly alone but Carlo assured them that the girls would be perfectly safe. What wonderful memories they all established on these trips…they were like young school girls, laughing, giggling and acting giddy and silly. On one air excursion to North Carolina with Vince and Shannon Guidry, Carlo and Dana experienced a problem with the airplane and weather. A sudden, violent afternoon thunderstorm engulfed them and there appeared to be no way out of it. The turbulence was the worst Carlo had ever encountered and even with the plane on autopilot, it rose and fell, twisted and turned, bounced and buffeted all over the dark, threatening sky. Carlo constantly observed the radar screen and talked to the tower at the nearest airport but it was a good distance away from their position. To add to their problems, smoke began to billow from underneath the control panel. Vince was flying the co-pilot seat and Dana and Shannon were in two of the back seats. Dana knew that Carlo had all the help he needed up front for Vince was an accomplished pilot himself. Both men were exceedingly busy trying to keep the plane right side up and to find out where the smoke was coming from. “What in the hell is the matter with this damned bird? I can’t control her too well in this turbulence and we are losing altitude on top of everything else.” Carlo shouted over the roar of the storm and the engines. “I’m not sure, Carlo. I heard a loud snap a few minutes ago just before the smoke started but I don’t know what it was or where it came from,” Vince answered nervously. “Holy Shit, Vince. We’re going to have to set her down somewhere. Help me look for a clearing down there.”

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By this time, the two women in the back were frozen to their seats and clutching each other’s hands. Little shrieks of fright emanated out of their respective mouths every time the plane lurched upward or lunged downward. “What the hell do you mean…you’re going to have to set her somewhere, Carlo? I don’t see any place to put her! There isn’t an airfield anywhere near here and you know it!” Dana shouted between coughs for smoke was beginning to get to her. “I see a pasture or stock field down there and we’re going to have to get down there as soon as possible for we won’t be able to see in here too much longer. Just try to stay calm, hold on tight and…pray!” “Oh my God!” Shannon cried. “Are we going to die? God, Dana. I’m so scared. Hold onto me!” Carlo and Vince were busily watching the instruments and talking to the tower to let them know the location where they would land the crippled plane when all of a sudden, Carlo shouted to the others to brace themselves. The next minute found them bouncing up and down the grass covered rows in a huge pasture. Carlo and Vince both were holding onto the wheels and trying to keep the little plane from flipping over. It was impossible to apply the brakes for the tires would just grab and slide on the saturated grass. The rudders were full down which helped to slow them down a little but they were still clipping along at a rather brisk speed. Purses, small pieces of luggage, papers and such were flying all over the cabin as the airplane went up and down the rows. “Brace yourselves!” Carlo shouted again as the plane plowed through a rickety, old fence. This seemed to slow them down a little and then Carlo shouted the same command again. This time, the right propeller caught the next wire fence and the plane dragged the fence and posts several yards and then was spun around to face the opposite direction when the fence reached its’ final length at the gate.

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“Holy Crap…and…then some!” Vince said as they came to an abrupt stop. “Get out of your seats and get out the back door,” he shouted to the two girls. He and Carlo both were busily turning off all the power switches as they made ready to exit from the front of the airplane. “What? And ruin my new hair-do?” Shannon bellowed as she unfastened her seat belt. “This is no time for jokes, lady!” Dana shouted as she grabbed Shannon’s arm and jerked her out of the door into the pelting rain. The two men followed by jumping off the wing and running over to their wives. “There’s a shed over there a-ways. Let’s make a dash for it,” Carlo yelled as he grabbed Dana’s hand and led them away from the plane. All four were soaking wet. After standing there staring at the airplane for what seemed like hours, they all turned, looked at each other and burst out laughing. “What’s so damned funny?” Shannon vociferated. “My hair’s a mess, my outfit is ruined and thank goodness, it’s raining ‘cause I just peed my pants!” “Well, if it’s any consolation, my friend…I just peed mine also!” Dana offered to the group standing in the downpour. “What’s the matter with your hand, Dana? It’s bleeding,” Carlo queried as he raised her hand upward. “Shannon was holding my hand so tightly, she dug her nails into the palm of my hand. It’s all right…I’ll survive. Speaking of surviving…I’m so thankful we’re all o.k. What happened up there, guys?” “Some kind of electrical malfunction but I’m not sure just what it was. There was an awful lot of smoke but whatever it was, it didn’t burst into flames, thank God! We’ll have to get someone out here from the Atlanta hanger repair shop to determine exactly what the cause was. We could have limped to the nearest airport if it hadn’t been for that damned storm.”

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“I don’t think there’s too much damage. Looks like only the prop from what I can see from here,” Vince said. “There shouldn’t be too much of a problem in flying her out of here if they can repair the problem with the electrical system.” “Well, in the meantime, we need to get out of this rain and head for a motel somewhere. We’ll worry about making arrangements for getting her back to Atlanta when we get dried off and some other clothes on.” Several cars had stopped along side the rural road by the fence so that the people could stare at the plane and its’ former passengers in the cow pasture. Two of the men walked over to Carlo and his entourage and asked if they could be of any service. The drenched couples gladly accepted a ride into the nearest town and the closest motel so that they could dry off, settle their nerves and recount the nervewracking events of the day.

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ana maintained her love for the equine sport and as often as possible she visited her mare at the stable she had selected near her home. She never let her time with the horse interfere with her time with Gian-Carlo for he was not too thrilled with the idea that she had kept the mare after they had married. He was afraid the horse would tie them down too much whenever they decided to take a trip now and then. Dana reassured him by telling him that the stable staff was well versed in caring for horses when the owners were not present and that Sable would fair just fine. While Gian-Carlo was working at the hospital, the office or out on the golf course, Dana spent a good bit of her spare time at the stable. Time did not always permit a long leisurely ride but she managed to get in a couple of short rides a week when she was not on a trip to the market or working on a job. Not only was it great exercise but it was also emotionally therapeutic for her. She could lose herself and any worries that might have cropped up from her work by putting a lot of TLC into the caring of the mare she loved so much. In a way, the horse took the place of the child Fate had denied her. Sable enjoyed their visits together almost as much as Dana. There was a wonderful rapport between them and they could communicate with one another without Dana speaking a word. On their long rides, Dana would let go of the reins and let them rest on Sable’s - 184 -

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neck. Commands were given by leg pressure but Dana was never obliged to give many for the mare instinctively knew what Dana wanted and expected from her before the commands were given. There was great love between this tiny woman and the huge beast. Dana had stuck to her guns when the subject arose about her selling the mare. She simply could not bring herself to part with Sable for they had been together for a long time and it would have been like tearing off her arm to lose the mare at that point in time. Sometimes Dana would allow herself time to do nothing more than bathe, trim and groom the horse. She would brush the chestnut coat to a bright luster until it shone like polished, reddish-gold copper in the sunlight. Other times, she would only take the time to work the mare in the round exercise, training pen that helped to keep Sable in excellent shape and form. Whenever she did have the time to ride, Dana would take a familiar trail out towards a little running stream, where she would dismount and lead Sable around a portion of the small lake that the stream fed into in order to cool her down before allowing her to take a long drink from the clear, bubbling stream. The water was icy cold and Dana didn’t want the mare to drink before cooling down for fear of her getting stomach cramps and colicking. Once in a while, Dana would carry a swim suit and towel along in her back pack, tie Sable to a near-by tree and take a cool refreshing dip in the icy waters herself. When she came out of the water, she would put the mare on a long lead rope she carried tied to the saddle horn, and allow Sable to graze while she dried herself in the warm sun. These were her private times…times in which she could go within to the secluded center of her being that belonged to her and her alone. Here she found solace, peace and serenity that could not be found any other place. When she had lived in Memphis, her dear friend and minister, Jamie Sanders, had taught her how to find that place. After a session of ‘getting centered’ as she liked to refer to her serene trip into her inner self, Dana always felt refreshed, revitalized

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and able to face whatever happened her way. These times would prove to benefit her tremendously in the years to come when she would be torn apart with mental anguish and heartache once again as the result of her love for a man. Jamie and Dana had become great friends during the time following Keith’s accident. Dana had never been an extremist when it came to religion but she was a very spiritual person, a firm believer in a one-on-one with God and she always felt that ‘someone or something’ watched over her and protected her. Her life had had many ups and downs but it seemed that whenever one door closed, another always opened for her. Jamie told her that all beings on earth have Guardian Angels and she was celestially endowed with a very special Guardian Angel. He taught her that her life was a spiritual trip and that everything that happened in a lifetime, happened for a person’s own unfoldment and growth. With his constant help and teachings, Dana managed to survive the intense pain, sorrow and hurt she had endured when Keith was so tragically taken from her. The pain had been so intense that she felt as though she could hardly breathe and she wanted nothing more than to depart this earth and join Keith on the other side of the veil that separates the living from the deceased. Jamie convinced her that she was here on this earth for a very specific reason and that she had a definite mission on the earth. “You may not know what your mission is for a long, long time but when the time is right, you will know in your heart and soul what it is that you are here to accomplish. I know in my heart that you are a very, very special being…I sense it and feel it very strongly,” Jamie told her during his comforting times with her. It was indeed very hard for her to leave her dear friend, whom she had grown to love like a younger brother, behind when she had to move to Atlanta but they both agreed that they would keep in close touch. They were indeed ‘tuned in’ to each other and many times when Dana felt lonely and sad, the phone would ring and Jamie’s voice on the other end of the line would say.. “Hey Sweetness…what’s bothering you?”

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It amazed her that somehow or other, he always seemed to sense that she needed to talk to her old friend.








As Dana became more and more involved with her new life as the wife of a very prominent doctor, she elected to find someone to ride, work and groom Sable in return for the privilege of being allowed to ride the mare. Kelly Baldwin was the daughter of a friend of Dana’s and was always asking permission to ride. Dana made certain Kelly was experienced enough to care for and ride Sable in the proper manner before she relinquished total control of the mare. Sometimes, the two of them would load Sable onto the trailer and transport her to local horse shows where Kelly and the horse would win several ribbons and trophies. Dana sat with Kelly’s parents on those occasions and cheered her on with the rest of the family. “I suppose we will have to agree to buy that horse if you ever decide to sell her, Dana,” Ralph Baldwin said one day after Kelly had come into first place with Sable in three of the classes of a local horse show. “Kelly would be heart broken if she ever had to part with her. You should hear her talk about Sable at home. She speaks of her as if she were her best friend in all the world!” “Oh, I can relate to that all right. I’ve ridden since I was six years old and have had a love affair with a horse of my own most of my life. It seems as though once you get the fever, it’s there forever. I’ll tell you one thing…if Kelly stays so interested in horses, you can rest assured she won’t be interested in running the streets, getting involved with drugs or the like or becoming boy crazy like most of the girls her age do at too early an age. This responsibility of taking care of a horse is serious business and very time consuming. Thank goodness for Blaze Benedict, the owner of the stable. He and his crew take care of the feeding, haying, grazing, and watering of Sable for neither Kelly nor I have the time to make the trip out there twice a

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day to feed her,” Dana explained. “You have my word that if I ever decide to sell her, you’ll have first choice.” It was at one of these shows that Dana had met Rhonda Vickers, a fellow horsewoman, who later became a very close friend and confidante. Rhonda kept her horse at another stable but as the two of them became closer friends and spent a lot of time together, she moved her horse Thunder, to Mr. Benedict’s facility. Rhonda astutely observed after being at the new place a few weeks, that Dana was kind, considerate and friendly to everyone alike, excluding no one. She noted with pleasure that Dana never showed any partiality or discrimination toward anyone. She was infinitely impressed by this fact for she had felt acutely inferior when they had first met. One day as they were riding, Rhonda broached the subject. “You know Dana, when I first met you I was embarrassed to be around you. I felt that you, being a doctor’s wife and all, wouldn’t want to have anything to do with someone who’s husband is a salesperson at Sears and I was intimidated by you and your position.” “Oh come on…you can’t be serious, Rhonda! I have been an outgoing person all of my life and have never met a stranger, as the old saying goes. Just because I happened to be lucky enough to meet and marry a doctor isn’t going to change me! I’m just an everyday, ordinary person just like you and everyone else. I try always to look beneath the exterior of a person and see what’s inside. Most anyone can be made to feel comfortable with a smile and a pleasant, genuine show of friendliness and I have tried tenaciously to live by that rule. I suppose I inherited that characteristic from my father for he has never met a stranger either and everyone who knows him…loves him. He has a lot of Irish in him and he could charm the devil himself if he had to. He is a recovering alcoholic and when he was in his cups, if you will, he could become a Jeckle and Hyde in the flash of an eye. He all too often took out his wrath and frustration on my poor, sweet little mother by being physically abusive. However, as I

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said, when he was sober, he was a terrific fellow with a smile and a handshake or a hug for everyone. He is always bubbly and happy most of the time…like me!” Dana grinned at her friend. “I inherited his temper somewhat also, I might add. It takes an awful lot to rile me but when I get my dander up, the hair on the back of my neck stands up and I can really blow my stack!” “I can’t possibly imagine you ever getting mad at anybody and certainly not making a big fuss,” Rhonda said, surprised at Dana’s confession. “I just couldn’t get over how friendly and nice you are to everybody. You certainly don’t act like a doctor’s wife. Why, you even shovel shit like the rest of us! Most doctor’s wives wouldn’t give us peons the time of day. Everyone at the stable thinks you are great. You know…just like a regular person.” “Well, I do try to keep my blow-ups confined to private spaces but I have been known to ‘let er rip’ once or twice in public…it’s rare, thank goodness, but sometimes I can’t contain myself,” Dana concluded. “Well, I just wanted you to know how much I appreciate you being so nice to me and for accepting me as your friend.” “Hey lady, that’s my pleasure. I’m lucky to have you as my friend.” Dana and Rhonda often loaded the horses onto Dana’s trailer and hauled them to different places to ride so that they would have other scenery to enjoy as they rode and explored. As they were loading up one day for one of their excursions, Rhonda said to Dana that she had noticed a new handy man working at the stable and that he gave her the creeps. He had shown up one day all of a sudden, and Blaze had given him a job helping to hay and water the horses as the man was obviously down on his luck. “Yes, I’ve seen him around but haven’t had an opportunity to speak to him yet. I’ve noticed him watching us and when I attempt to wave or speak to him, he looks away and rushes off in another direction. Why does he give you the creeps?” Dana questioned her friend.

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“I can’t exactly put my finger on it but believe me, there’s something very strange about that man! I’ve noticed him watching you especially close. You be careful around here and don’t stay out here when there’s no one else around. I feel it in my bones…that man is dangerous!” “Oh, come on Rhonda. You’re over-reacting. I’m sure Jed…I believe that’s his name, is really quite harmless.” Dana would live to regret those words later…

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he owner, Blaze Benedict, called Dana out to the stable late one afternoon. Blaze told her that Sable was evidently coming down with the colic and that she should call her vet. Rushing like the wind, Dana drove the ten miles to the stable and got there only minutes before Dr. Adams. Upon examining the mare, he told her that Sable had obviously ingested some of the black sand in her stall and that she was obstructed. There was no relief in sight for the mare unless she was tubed both from the nose and the rectum. Dana insisted on helping Dr. Adams by applying the nose twist and holding it in place while he administered the oil. Twice during the treatment, Sable reared and lifted Dana right off the ground but she did not relinquish her hold on the nose twitch. With her slight frame, she was tossed about like a rag doll. Upon calming the mare down with a tranquilizer, Dr. Adams finished tubing her. It had been no easy job to get the tube down her nose and into her stomach even with the twitch. The vet had to grab the handle twice and apply more pressure. Dana had closed her eyes at that point for the steel chain had drawn blood and it pained her to see her beloved animal suffer in any way. “She will have to be walked several hours in order for her to work the mineral oil well into her intestinal track,” the vet advised Dana. “I would stay and help you walk her but I have some surgery to do - 191 -

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back at the clinic. It’s getting late Dana, and it seems to have cleared out here. Don’t stay here alone. It isn’t safe.” Dana shivered a bit for some strange reason at his statement and then replied, “I know you have to be getting on back Doc, and I really appreciate you taking the time to come all the way out here. I can call my buddy Rhonda to come relieve me after a while if I get too weary, so don’t worry about me. She and I have spent many an hour out here with our horses and I know that I can depend on her if I should need her. I’ve come to her aid a couple of times so she owes me one,” Dana laughed. “I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about other than my getting a little tired and for my ole gal here, I don’t mind that,” she concluded trying to sound reassuring. For two hours Dana walked Sable around the stable grounds and because of the boredom, she decided to lead her down to the lake. The night-lights around the stable lighted the trail fairly well but an early evening light fog made it look a little eerie. “Come on gal, we’ve been in worse situations than this and we will overcome this one as well,” she spoke softly into her mare’s ear as they walked. Every few yards, Sable tried to stop walking and lie down but Dana kept prodding her along with the riding crop and pulling like mad on the lead rope to keep her moving. “You know better than to lie down, ole girl! Once you do, I’ll never get you up and all it would take for you to ‘go to the happy hunting grounds’ would be for you to get your intestines tied into knots and twisted by rolling. I know you instinctively think that would make the pain go away but it really wouldn’t. I’ve almost lost you a couple of times before with this same problem and believe me Sable…I’m not going to lose you now! So, no matter how tired we both are, we are not going to give up. We have to keep moving,” she said as she tugged feverishly on the rope. Sable reluctantly gave in to her mistress’ pleas and moved along slowly although it was hard to put one hoof in front of the other. She

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looked rather odd for she was bent like a bow with her back hunched up because of the intense pain she was feeling in her belly. Every few steps she would try to turn her head toward her side and let out a grunt. Dana kept a firm grip on the rope and forced Sable’s head back toward the road each time this happened. It always amazed her that horses did not moan or ‘cry out’ in any way when they were in pain. The farther they walked, the easier Sable became. When they reached the far side of the lake, she was following along at a regular pace and seemed to be much more relaxed. Three times the mare stopped to excrete the waste that had been blocking her intestinal track. “Good girl Sable. From the looks of things, you must have tried to eat the whole floor out of your stall. I suppose I should get you some stronger vitamins for obviously you feel as though you’re lacking in something. That sand is full of iron and minerals. Is that what you were craving? Whatever, ole gal…it looks as though you’re going to be all right for the present. We should continue to walk for another hour at least just to make sure you passed all of the sand and won’t have any more trouble tonight.”Dana talked to the mare as if she were a human and could understand everything she said. Whether or not the horse understood the meaning of the words, the mere sound of Dana’s voice had a very soothing effect on her and helped her to relax and let the medicine do it’s work inside her belly. On the way back up the trail to the barn, Dana felt the hair on the back of her neck begin to rise. The phenomenon only happened when she became exceedingly angry or when she felt danger of some sort was imminent. For some reason or other, she felt as though she and the mare were being watched but as she let her eyes scan the road up ahead and the surrounding area, she saw nothing. “It’s probably just my imagination because of the eerie shadows and the fog. This is no time to start imagining things…I have to get you settled in and rubbed down before I can leave you and that will take a while,” she said to the horse plodding along beside her.

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As the lady and the mare walked through the big door of the barn, a figure stepped out of the shadows near the tack room in the back of the building and moved closer toward the opposite side of the barn facing Sable’s stall. There were large bales of hay stacked near by with air spaces between each bale. The figure moved behind the hay and placed himself so that he could clearly see the area surrounding Dana and the mare. From this vantage point, he could watch every move the little lady made. He gasped to himself as he watched her remove her windbreaker and the movement pulled Dana’s sweater up from her waist exposing her bare midriff to his steady gaze. “Come on, ole gal. Let’s see if we can make you a little more comfortable before I have to leave you,” Dana said as she began to brush the mare. “I didn’t realize it was so late,” she bemoaned as she looked at her watch. “It’s 10:00 P.M. already. God, am I glad Gian Carlo is out of town. He would be furious with me for staying out here so long if he were at home. There were only a handful of kids out here earlier but now they are all gone and Blaze and Jed have cleared out also after feeding and watering the other horses in the barn. Oh well, there is no way I would have left you until I was positive you were all right and going to stay up on your feet. Doc Adams knows his business and knew that the mineral oil and the walking would eventually do the trick for you if I could hold out and keep you upright,” she said, speaking to the mare. Dana brushed Sable until her coat glistened in the soft light of the barn. She continued to have the strange feeling that she was being watched but in looking around, she did not see anything that looked suspicious. She finished caring for the mare and then began to rake out the stall. As she walked toward the other side of the barn to fetch the wheelbarrow and the shovel, Sable began to snort and paw at the ground. She whinnied and spun around several times in the stall digging a hole with her steel-shod hooves. Her nostrils were flared and her ears were raised as though she smelled and heard something.

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“What is it, Sable? You’re feeling a hell-of-a-lot better and either want to go out for a run or something has frightened you…what is it?” Dana pushed the wheelbarrow toward the mare’s stall and just as she reached the gate, she saw, out of the corner of her eye, a figure step out of the shadows and move toward her. The far end of the barn was not lighted very well at this time of the night and she couldn’t see who the figure was. “Who’s there?” she shouted into the stillness but no answer came. As she turned toward the figure, he stopped but she couldn’t see his face. “Who’s there,” she repeated. Still no answer. Fear gripped her and she let go of the handles of the wheelbarrow. It toppled over onto its side spilling the shovel into the sand. Sable sensed the fear in her mistress and began to paw and stamp the ground once more. She reared and neighed repeatedly. As the man approached, Dana could see that he wore a large brimmed hat that partially concealed his face. Not until he spoke did she realize that it was Jed, the handyman. “It’s just me, mam. I was wondering if you needed any help with that mare of yourn. Looks to me like you been having a time with her being sick and all. I knowed you was left here all alone and might need a hand.” “No thank you, Jed. I’m almost through and will be leaving soon,” Dana lied, hoping he would leave. “That mare of yourn don’t like me too much. She won’t let me get too close whenever I come to feed and water her. She shore is a pretty one…just like her mistress. I been a-watching you for quite some time now and knew that sooner or later I would get a chance to ah, talk to you,” he said as he turned to face her full on. He moved a little closer and said, “You know there’s no one here but you and me and I shore could use a little cosyin up to right about now.”

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Dana backed up but never took her eyes off Jed’s face. He towered over her and as he got closer, she could smell the foul odor of stale beer and tobacco. “I think you should leave, Jed. I can manage just fine by myself and I’m sure you have other things to do,” Dana managed to get out in a forceful way. She was trying to appear calm and unafraid but she was literally quaking in her boots and the hair on the back of her neck was standing straight up! Tossing his hat aside, Jed moved closer, reached out and grabbed hold of Dana’s right arm and twisted her around with her back to him. Dana struggled against him but he overpowered her and forced her toward a mound of hay on the other side of Sable’s stall. “I been a-watchin and a-wantin you ever since I first seen you here at the stable. I knowed that sooner or later, I’d get a chance of gettin you if I was just patient enough and bless my soul…here you are…all by yourself and just a-waitin to be had,” he said, his words slurred. Dana fought against the man as hard as she could and wasn’t about to give in to him without a fight to the finish. She would die before she would let him rape her. Time after time, she clawed at his face drawing blood with her nails and she kicked and stomped at him as hard as she could. He kept trying to flip her over onto her back but she wriggled and squirmed so, that he could not get a firm grip on her to force her into that position. “I like a bitch who puts up a good fight, you god-damned cunt! Lay still, lay back and enjoy it like I know you want to. You know you want it as bad as I do and I’m just the man to give you a fuckin good time,” Jed said as he drooled onto Dana’s neck. He had such a hold on her that Dana could not scream. All she could do was make the noises of someone struggling for her very life. “You bastard! You’ll never get away with this. I’ll die before I’ll let you have your way with me,” she said through clenched teeth when he lessened his grip on her.

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“You may just do that, my sweet. I knowed you’d be a good fuck ever since I laid eyes on you when I first come here. I been a-bidin my time until I could find you alone and, piss-off…here we are! Just the two of us and nobody to hear you and come to yore rescue. Now, ain’t that too bad, bitch?” Sable was pacing madly back and forth in her stall and neighing at the top of her lungs. She sensed instinctively that her mistress was in serious trouble and somehow she had to get to her. She could hear the shouts from across the paddock and she could smell the acrid odor of a dangerous one…one who would do harm to her mistress. She worked feverishly at kicking the stall door and little by little, the latch began to give way. Jed managed to get a death grip on Dana’s throat and as she lessened her struggles from lack of air, he turned her over onto her back and began to rip off her clothes. Her sweater had been loosely buttoned and he ripped it off as he tore her thin bra apart. “Holy Shit! You shore got purty tits!” He pulled her riding pants and her panties down with one swift yank. Keeping a firm grip on Dana’s throat, he pulled his own pants down and exposed a red, swollen, throbbing penis. “This is all just for you, cunt. Have you ever seen such a good-un? It’s just a-pulsin to get into yore pussy.” As he struggled to place himself between Dana’s legs and into her crotch, he heard the sound of splintering wood and galloping hooves. He turned in time to see the mare rise up over him on her hind legs and strike out at him with her two front hooves. The first strike knocked him sideways off of Dana. Sable leaped over her mistress and reared time after time over the stricken figure of the man who had attacked her beloved owner. There was no way the man could defend himself from the flashing steel tipped hooves as they pounded again and again into his flesh. He was unable to get up to run as his trousers bound his legs together at the knees. The wind was beaten out of his lungs beneath his shattered ribs and then the

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mare started to move toward his head. It was just a matter of minutes before the figure stilled itself and moved no more. Sable moved from the beaten, bloody mass that had once been a man, over to the still figure beside him. The mare whinnied softly and nuzzled Dana’s face several times until Dana began to move. She opened her eyes, pulled herself up into a sitting position and managed to cover herself with the shredded pieces of her clothing. “Oh my God, Sable…did you do that?” she said as she looked at the crumpled, bloody mass beside her. From the far end of the barn, she heard a familiar voice calling her name. “I’m over here Blaze,” she managed to say. “Over here.” “What in the hell happened?” Blaze stammered as he surveyed the scene in front of him. “My God, are you all right? Jesus, let me help you up. I heard the commotion as soon as I got out of the truck up at the house and rushed on down here to see what the hell was going on.” “Jed tried to rape me and he would have succeeded if it hadn’t been for Sable. Somehow she managed to gather up enough strength to break out of her stall and come to my rescue just in the nick of time.” “I don’t know how the hell she did that for those gates and latches are made so as not to be broken into. Just goes to show us how dedicated she is to you. Looks to me as though she hated Jed as much as she loves you. She sure did a number on him…worse than the gate got from what I can see,” Blaze lamented. “I think he’s a goner…no pulse.” “Oh my God! No! Are you sure?” “Look Dana, you surely can’t blame yourself for his death…he had it coming from the looks of things. I’m calling the sheriff and while we wait for him, tell me exactly what happened.” “I had to stay here longer than I had planned because of Sable’s condition and I didn’t realize everyone had left. I had to walk Sable and for a little change of scenery, I led her down to the lake and back.

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You know me, I’m not afraid of the devil himself so I didn’t give a thought to any danger that might have been lurking about. I did feel as though someone was watching me however, practically all the time I was walking Sable but I couldn’t see anyone about. When I got her back to the barn, I groomed her to help settle her down and then began to muck out the stall. It was then that I heard something and Sable began to go bananas. She snorted, stamped, pawed, neighed and carried on as though a bee had gotten underneath her blanket. When I turned to see where the noise had come from, Jed appeared. I couldn’t tell who it was at first but as he got closer and I heard his voice, I knew that it was Jed. Rhonda said from the day he got here that he was trouble,” Dana concluded. “Yeah, and knowing you, you couldn’t see any bad in him. You never see any bad in anyone…that’s why everyone likes you so much, mi-dear.” When the sheriff and the ambulance arrived, Dana had regained her composure enough to tell them the whole sordid tale. The sheriff got on the car phone and did a check-out on the man who called himself Jed. Computerized copies of fingerprints informed them that the man had a record a mile long for stalking, raping and killing his victims. “Good riddance to bad rubbish, I say,” Blaze intoned to Dana as he helped her into her car. “Are you sure you are all right to drive home alone? I’ll be glad to follow you to make certain you are o.k.” “No thanks Blaze. I’m fine…a little-shaken up but I’m fine. The drive will help to clear the cobwebs and nightmare from my head.” “Well, you can rest assured that I will double check references next time I hire someone to work here. I’m sorta like you, I felt sorry for the guy. He was down on his luck and needed a helping hand so I offered him the job of general flunkie for we were short handed at the stable. No more! I’ll not do that again. There are too many young girls who keep horses out here and are here all hours of the day and like you, have to stay later, on some occasions. I feel terrible about

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what happened, Dana. If there is anything I can do, please let me know.” “Would you wash Sable’s legs down before you leave?” She can’t stand the smell of blood! And thank your lucky stars that my husband is out of town. I’m sure he’ll hit the ceiling when he learns about tonight but we both know, there was no way of knowing that something freakish like this would happen. We’ll simply have to chalk it up to poor judgment on both our parts…yours and mine. See you, Blaze. Give Sable an extra bale of hay for the next few days…she surely does deserve it after what she did for me tonight!” “And then some…” the stable owner added as he started up the hill toward the house to change clothes before hosing down the heroic mare.

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ana stopped at a convenience store on the way home and called Rhonda. She had a slight premonition that she would be deluged with phone calls by the score from the press once word got out about the incident at the stable, and she didn’t want to be alone. Carlo wouldn’t return from his trip until the following day and she knew Rhonda could get away from her husband without too much effort and come stay the night with her. By the time she got back into her car, she was trembling so violently she could hardly maneuver the car. “I suppose everything is just now beginning to catch up to me. My God, I could have been killed myself after being ravaged by that maniac, Jed! Oh thank God, Sable was able to break out of her stall and save me,” she spoke into the chilly night air through chattering teeth. As she recalled the events of the early evening, she marveled at the capability of the little mare that loved her so much. Those doors on the stable were built so that no one or nothing could get in or out without being manually operated but somehow the mare had sensed her mistress was in serious danger and that somehow she must go to her aid. Invoking the strength and power of her mighty muscles within her strong body, she forced her body against the great door and pawed at the heavy metal latch with her powerful legs and steel-

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tipped hooves until she was able to break open the door from its’ hinges. As Dana turned the corner that led up the road to her house, she could see Rhonda’s car and many others lining the driveway. “Damn! News surely does travel fast around here!” she said as she pulled to a stop in front of the garage. Camera flashes popped from every direction as she stepped from the car and microphones on extended poles were shoved in her face and all she could hear was the sound of many voices resonating together and she was unable to distinguish one question from the other. Rhonda tried to help her wade through the crowd but it was impossible to make much headway with everyone pushing and shoving to get a better shot or angle of Dana. Suddenly from the edge of the crowd, a huge burly figure of a man began to push his way toward Dana and Rhonda separating the group of people directly in front of him. His huge frame towered above all of them and they quieted down as he made his way toward the two women. “Get out of my way and give these ladies some breathing room. I’m sure ya’ll will be able to talk to them if you’ll just give them some air and some room,” he shouted to the crowd. “Oh thank you, Gerald…Jeez…am I glad to see you!” Dana said as she reached out to take the big black man’s hand. “Well, what are neighbor’s for?” Gerald said as he smiled at the two ladies huddled together trying to make their way toward Dana’s front door. He turned toward the group as he ushered Dana and Rhonda up the steps. “Now, if ya’ll will just stand back and ask your questions one at a time, I’m sure Mrs. Evans will be more than happy to answer them all.” Nevertheless, the questions came fast and furiously and as best she could, Dana recounted the events of the evening without going into all of the gory details. She knew they would get all of those details from the police. She did however, paint a rather graphic picture of Sable’s part in the drama.

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“That mare of mine saved my life. Without her help, I would be dead myself now. I’m terribly sorry that the handyman had to die but there was no other way for me to be saved once the horse took over the situation,” she sadly lamented. Obviously, other news media had already been out to the stable and had interviewed Blaze and had surveyed the scene where the incident had occurred. Later, Rhonda and Dana watched the late news on the local TV station and listened to Blaze’s rendition of the circumstances. There were many shots of Sable and you could tell she wasn’t very happy with all of the attention she was getting and the bright lights and noise emanating from the group of people hovering around her. “Damn those nosey reporters…can’t they see that they are making Sable really nervous with all of their equipment and flashing lights?” Dana asked nervously of Rhonda as they viewed the story as it unfolded on the screen. “Yes, I’m sure they do Dana, but you will have to remember that this is quite a story…a human interest one, at that. You know…man attacks woman…horse saves mistress from fate worse than death…all that stuff! It makes an exceptionally good, exciting story. It’s a little out of the ordinary and it will create a lot of excitement. I would imagine you will become quite a celebrity for a while around here,” Rhonda said as she and Dana settled down after watching the news. “Well, I certainly hope Gian Carlo doesn’t see this before he gets home. He’ll be worried sick!” “Hey, I know it’s getting late but I know you aren’t going to be able to get any sleep for a while. Why don’t we go back out to the stable to make sure Sable is all right…that is…if you can stand to go back out there and it won’t make you nervous or upset to actually be at the scene again.” “You know, you’re probably right. I think it would be best if I go tonight and get it over with. Then too, I know Sable must be terribly

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sore and we can give her a warm bath and a good rubdown with some liniment. She has to be awfully sore for she really rammed herself up against that door repeatedly. Bless her heart, I was so upset by the whole mess, I didn’t even think about what she went through other than to mention to Blaze about washing down her legs and hooves to get the blood off them. Grab a jacket and we’ll get going. It’s 12:00 now and we can do everything we need to do and be home by 1:30 or 2:00. I’m sure you and I will sleep better and I know damned well Sable will. C’mon let’s go!” Stopping off by the phone, Dana dialed Blaze’s number and informed him that they were on their way to the stable and for him not to worry when he saw lights on in the barn again. She knew that he would’ve had enough excitement for one night and she did not want to cause him any more worry. When the two young women pulled up to the barn, Dana noticed that there was a car parked off to the side with it’s parking lights on. A lone figure stepped out of the car as they got out of Dana’s car. “Now who in the hell do you suppose that is?” Dana said as she clutched Rhonda’s arm. As she spoke, she bent down and slid her right hand under the seat of her car and as she righted herself, Rhonda could see that Dana had a revolver in her hand. “Holy Shit, Dana! I hope you know how to use that thing!” “Who are you and what do you want?” Dana questioned the figure as it approached her car. “I have a gun and I know how to use it. Stop right there and don’t come any closer!” From the rear of the barn, Dana could hear Sable begin to neigh and paw the ground as she had done earlier in the evening. The mare had heard her mistress’ voice and was once again on guard as to the safety of her owner. “It’s all right, Mrs. Evans. My name is Chet Warren and I’m a newscaster for WLAN. I figured you would be back out here to see about your horse and I wanted to be the first to get some footage of you with her. I have a horse of my own and I know how attached you

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must be to this mare…especially now after what happened tonight. I’d like to cap this story on my own, if you don’t mind for I think it will make a great human interest story. One in which the TV audience can be made to really appreciate the feeling you and the mare share between the two of you. May I stay and shoot as you care for Sable in the aftermath of your terrible experience? You and she both have suffered some trauma, both physically and emotionally and I would like to show how the rapport between the two of you can help each of you to heal,” the young man explained. Dana and Rhoda looked at each other and both breathed a sigh of relief as the young man approached them. Dana bent down and replaced the .38 under the seat of her car. “Of course you may stay, Chet. I would be honored to have you do such a wonderful story on Sable. She really is quite a horse and only another horse person could appreciate what the two of us share. I don’t think I would allow just anyone to do a story such as you have in mind but I’m positive you’ll do justice to her bravery and courage in saving my life.” Chet went about his business in filming the saga that was taking place in the barn where only hours before, terror, fury and pain had taken place. Now the barn was filled with peace and tranquility as the two young women went about their business of bathing, stroking and rubbing down the great horse. As the scenario became more personal, Rhonda backed away from Dana and Sable and positioned herself near Chet. Soft sounds of love and encouraging, calming words emanated from Dana’s mouth as she cared for Sable’s bruises and scrapes. She had not been cognizant or aware of the horse’s injuries as she was so traumatized by the entire bizarre happenings during and after the attack upon her person. She lost herself in the caring of her great friend and both Rhonda and the newsman were mesmerized by the scenario taking place before them in the barn. Sable calmed down immediately as Dana reached out and touched the soft hair around

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her ears. The great animal whinnied softly and gently nuzzled her mistress’ shoulder and neck as Dana hugged her. Dana gently cuddled the horse’s ears in both her hands and massaged in, around and down into the pointed ears as they stood erect on top of the perfectly shaped head. Sable nipped at Dana’s arms as though she were placing gentle, soft appreciative kisses there to let Dana know that she was truly loved by her gentle giant of a friend. It was quite obvious as to the mutual love and admiration felt by the two of them for the other. Rhonda had come along to help Dana in the nursing and caring of the horse that had saved Dana’s life but she could not bring herself to interrupt the scene being played out in front of her eyes. There was something so special, so spiritual about what was taking place here, that she felt only Dana and Sable could be a participant. She stood back along side Chet as he filmed the intimate phenomenon between human and animal. There was no need to ask questions or film the actual scene where the near rape and death of the attacker had taken place earlier. Chet knew that the other newscasters had gotten that portion of the story earlier and he need not repeat it. That part of the story could be worked into this portion at the station with Chet’s vocal description of the entire story. On the drive home, Rhonda tried to explain her feeling to Dana about what she and Chet had witnessed but Dana quieted her and said there was no need to explain. She had felt it, had experienced it and knew intuitively what had transpired. Words were not necessary. “I want to thank you for suggesting that we go back out to the stable tonight, Rhonda. That was a ‘special calling’ for me and something that I had to do with and for Sable. Tell me that a Higher Power doesn’t exist!! That’s about as foolish as saying the sun doesn’t shine! It’s amazing to me how humans can communicate with animals when one is attuned to them. God…how I do love that horse! I’ll tell you one thing…she will never have to worry about anything for the

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rest of her life. I’ll take care of her and watch over her until the day she dies. She is a very special lady in my book!”








When Gian Carlo returned home the next day, he had already heard the story on the news about Dana’s narrow escape and the heroics of her beloved horse, Sable. When he had stepped off the airplane and entered the terminal, he had spied the headlines in one of the local papers describing the terrible ordeal his wife had endured. Dana heard his car drive up into the driveway and went running out to meet him. Gian-Carlo enfolded her in his arms and immediately, she began to cry. The tears had not come earlier for she imagined herself to be in somewhat of a state of shock. Her ‘rock’ had returned and now she felt safe, secure and able to let down her protective barrier. “Thank God you are all right, Little One! I couldn’t wait to get home to you after reading the papers and seeing the news on TV regarding your frightening experience. It’s a good thing Sable eliminated that son-of-a-bitch or I’d find him now and rip his heart out for daring to even look at you, much less lay a hand on you! Oh my darling…my darling! I couldn’t stand it if anything ever happened to you. I’d want to die also,” Carlo entreated. “Oh Gian Carlo. Hold me…hold me and never let go!” Dana managed to get out between body shaking sobs. After telling the story to Gian Carlo, Dana explained how she felt about her friend, Sable. It was miraculous how the mare had reacted to the situation and managed to save her mistress against all odds. Gian-Carlo told Dana that although he had never been too fond of her horse in the past, he would certainly be eternally thankful for her in the future and nothing would be too good for her care and comfort from here on out.

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ana visited a friend of Carlo’s, Dr. Jeremy Collins, who was almost as well known in the Southeast as Carlo. They had met several times at parties and social functions and he and his wife had become fairly close friends of Dana and Carlo. Dana approached Jeremy with the idea of her studying a few hours a week in order to become an Operating Room Assistant or Scrub Technician. At first, he scoffed and laughed at the idea until Dana explained to him why she wanted to learn the position. “We managed to work together fairly well on our trip to Australia but I was not trained well enough to assist Carlo or any of the other doctors in the proper manner. I’m sure in the future that we will make several more humanitarian trips to give medical care and I want to be professionally and better prepared to assist them. It become almost an obsession of mine to learn to do this for I feel that someday, Carlo and I may be able to work together as a real team. I don’t want Carlo to know that I am undertaking this project for he thinks that I spend too much time working as it is now.” “Yes, news of your talents and experiences of your trip preceded you and has the entire medical community agog. Just how did you manage to perform that surgery on the little girl as you did? “It’s as much of a mystery to me as it is to all of you. All I can say is that some kind of power was given to me while in the Aborigine - 208 -

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country. I have my own ideas as to where it came from but there is no way I could ever prove it so I just let it go and consider it a personal mystical experience…one that I share with the Aborigine people. They told Carlo and I that I was fulfilling a sort of miracle prophesied a long time ago by their ancestors. I actually feel as though I was destined to share in their prophecy and I have always been drawn to that continent for as long as I can remember. As far as I’m concerned, it was all by Divine Inspiration. I am a great believer in Guardian Angels and I know for a fact, mine was standing right there beside me as I placed that scalpel on the little girl’s belly. The angel helped to guide me, along with the spirits of the Aborigine ancestral spirits and I will be eternally grateful for all of their help. Please don’t mention our conversation to anyone outside this room for I fear, should word get out, the guys with the butterfly nets would seek me out and carry me away,” Dana said with a big smile on her face. “At any rate, I feel that perhaps I just might have what it takes to learn to become a great assistant to the doctors on trips of the same caliber. Whatta ya think?…Is there any way I could manage this?” “I can arrange for you to take some classes Dana, but I really think you should, if you can spare the time, take the RN courses at the teaching hospital here in the city. I’ll speak to a couple of my friends who are on the staff there and see what we can do. If you use your maiden name, I think we can arrange for you to slip by incognito, for a while at least. Give me a few days and I’ll get back to you.” A month later Dana was enrolled in the RN courses and attending classes for four hours a day. It seemed she was constantly in the books, even at work, but she managed to carry it off without too much of a hitch for she possessed an almost uncanny knack for remembering things easily. Sometimes at night, while Carlo was busy with the land development business, she burned the midnight oil until she heard him come up the drive. She knew this endeavor would take a lot of effort and time but she was led to do it so she hung in there with great tenacity. Luckily, the teaching hospital was

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well on the other side of town and most of the students were young and hadn’t a clue as to who she really was. She wore her hair in a different style, wore no makeup and wore horn-rimmed glasses on the days she attended classes. In March 1990, Dana became pregnant. She was delighted with the idea and had absolutely no problems with the usual dilemmas of carrying a child. She was busy as she could be with her job, her duties as a wife and homemaker but she managed to get to her classes and keep up with her work on the ‘dream project’. She had her company hire an outstanding assistant to help her with the business so there was less tension there. So far, the secret was safe. It was during this time that Shawn finally managed to come to visit with them. He had entered the Astronaut program and was preparing for his first flight into outer space. Carlo had persuaded him to spend a week with him and Dana for they had not kept in close touch since the wedding. Carlo had made effort after effort to have Shawn come to Atlanta but the young man always made some kind of an excuse until now. “I think the only reason Shawn consented to visit us at this time is because he feels that perhaps he might not make it back from this flight and he feels a bit of remorse over the fact that we haven’t been very close for these past several years,” Carlo sadly lamented one night to Dana as they were preparing for bed. “What do you think, Little One…who is not so little any more, I might add?” “I’m sure he has simply been too busy with the program since he was accepted, Carlo. Give him the benefit of the doubt and perhaps you can get to the bottom of it while he’s here, if it worries you that much. He has not kept in touch, even with your constant phone calls but I’m positive he has a good reason. He just has an entirely different personality than his younger brother but you can’t fault him for that. I know and feel in my heart that he has a great dislike for me and I’m certainly hoping that while he is here, I can persuade him

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that I am not the ogre he thinks I am. I know also that he loves and respects you very much but is too macho to admit it, even to himself. I’m looking forward to his visit. Let’s plan some fun things for the three of us while he’s here but I insist that the two of you spend as much time alone together as possible also.” Shawn arrived in late June and stayed until the weekend following the fourth of July. At first, he was cold and unreceptive to Dana but as the days flowed, he warmed up to her as he carefully observed her going about the task of running the house, keeping her busy schedule at work intact and still having the time to see that his every want and need was attended to. Carlo took several days off from his work in order to spend time with his son. They talked hour after hour about the days when the boys were young. “I want to know why you seem to have such a bad attitude toward Dana, Shawn.” Carlo questioned the young man one night while they were having a brandy on the balcony after dinner. “I didn’t like her at first because we…I mean…I felt that she was only marrying you for your prestige and your money. I can see, now that I have spent some time with the two of you, that I was wrong. It’s quite obvious that she adores you and has your best interests at heart, Dad. I’ll say one thing…she’s a real knockout. You did yourself right proud Pops, to put it in the vernacular. “She’s a real hoot, too. Some of the stories she tells are hilarious and she’s quite a comedienne. The facial expressions she uses as she tells her stories are something else. She had everyone rolling in the floor the other night at the swimming party. Her rendition of a very pregnant swimmer trying to stay afloat had us all hysterical with laughter.” “Yep…she’s quite a character. She loves to bring out the child in everyone. She says it brings about great inner peace to be able to play and laugh at ourselves as children do. She has taught me a lot, Shawn. I love her very much and I want you boys,…I mean…young men, to love her also. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me

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and I don’t know what I would do without her. She has really made my life complete.” Two days later found them all up at the lake-house for the holiday. Carlo had invited about fifty people and he and Dana prepared a good bit of the food themselves for the outing. Carlo had insisted that they cater it but Dana had poo-pooed the idea by saying…Never, sir, never!! And miss a chance to show off my expertise and culinary talents! Not on your life, my friend, not on your life!” She worked for several nights preparing lists, shopping and preparing ahead as many of the dishes that could be done in advance. The day before the big celebration, she sliced and cut up bunches of fresh veggies for relish trays, whipped up dips and made four recipes of Chocolate Delight, her favorite dessert. It was all she could do to keep from devouring one whole dish of the delectable whipped cream topped dessert that night before retiring. The lean hamburger patties were already defrosting, the wieners were in the fridge and the unopened packages of buns and condiments were on the kitchen counter ready to be taken out to the deck overlooking the lake the next morning. She had picked up several containers of fresh strawberries, washed, stemmed them and had them ready to be placed in huge trays that contained places for bowls of powdered sugar in the center. There were several bags of fresh peaches, grapes, bananas, nectarines, apples and navel oranges for those who preferred fruit instead of a sugary dessert. She had asked Carlo to pick up four large watermelons on his way home and they iced them down before going to bed that night. He surprised her by having their favorite seafood market deliver thirty pounds of boiled, shelled shrimp, the morning of the party. The day of the big blowout was a beautiful one with no clouds in the sky and a nice breeze coming off the lake. Their guests began arriving around 2:00 so that they could swim, ski or sail a while before engorging themselves on the feast prepared for this festive day.

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Shawn watched appreciatively as Dana and Carlo mingled with their guests and he was pleased to see that his father was tenderly attentive to his ‘bride’ as his dad still referred to her. He smiled his approval to Carlo as the older man raised his beer can in salute and made a toast to the expected new member of the family. Carlo gingerly reached out and gave the ‘baby carriage’ a gentle pat or two and kissed the expectant mother on the cheek. Dana busied herself by making sure that everyone was served and had something to drink before she served herself. When she finished filling her own plate, she made her way over to the table where Shawn had seated himself and asked if she could join him. “I’d be most happy to have you sit with me, Dana. You and Dad have done a neat job in hosting this shindig. Everyone seems to be having a wonderful time and the food is outstanding. You whip up a mighty mean burger and dessert, lady. I don’t know when I’ve eaten so much. Honestly, everything was really smack-a-licious. Cool. Really Cool.” “Why thank you, Shawn. How kind of you to say so. Say, you know the secret of the good burgers is to mix ground chicken or turkey with very lean beef. We’re all so weight conscious…especially me! So-o-o, I try to be a little bit considerate of good nutrition. But, other than the burger meat, I’m afraid I really blew it with that decadent chocolate thing. I could sit and eat a whole one all by myself but the little one would probably be awake and kick me all night long if I gave in to my craving. Speaking of…your dad and I are very excited about the baby. I only hope that the time will go by quickly and she will be here soon, all safe and sound.” “Oh, you know what it is already?” Shawn asked incredulously. “Well, not exactly…your dad doesn’t want to know beforehand but I have this intense feeling that we’ll have a daughter and you and Ryan will have a little sister. Won’t that be great?” “Yeah…that would be super! When’s your due date?”

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“Let’s see now. She’s due in December, right after Christmas. We’re getting us a Capricorn girl and we plan to name her Alana Margaret…the Margaret after my mom. I just happen to like the name Alana…has a nice ring to it. Soft first A…long second A and short last A.” “What if it’s a boy?” Shawn asked shyly. “I think your dad would like to name a boy Anthony Vincent after his dad and call him Tony but I really don’t think we’re going to have to worry about that. I know this little one is a girl,” Dana said softly as she patted her expanding waistline. “I have thoroughly enjoyed your visit Shawn and I am so glad that you and your father have had the opportunity to spend some time alone together. He feels so much better now that you and he have resolved your differences. Your father is a great person and a wonderful man. He doesn’t always show his feelings but believe me, he is extremely proud of you and he loves you very much. When you’re walking around in space up there, select a star and name it for him, will you?” “I feel so much better about our relationship also, Dana. Dad was not always the easiest person to get along with when we were children and I realize now that a lot of it was the pressure he was under while he was in medical school. He worked two or three other jobs to keep the family going so he was not around too much. Whenever he was home, he was tired, irritable and grouchy. We didn’t dare cross him or there was hell to pay. We were just children and we didn’t understand, so naturally, we were scared to death of him. He calmed down a lot whenever he got out of school and the pressures were relieved but by then, it was a little late to establish a close relationship with him. I always knew he cared deeply for me but I longed for a show of affection from him. He found it hard to demonstrate how he felt about us boys. I understand why, now that I’m older but I surely used to resent it. I’m very proud to call him my father and I’m

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extremely proud of the fact that he is such a renowned physician and surgeon.” “I’m proud also of the fact that he has selected you as his new wife, Dana. I’m looking forward to spending more time with the two of you when I get back from the shuttle shoot.” “Wow, I can’t wait to hear all about it, Shawn.” As she spoke, Dana removed a chain with a small polished gemstone set in gold suspended on it from around her neck and placed it around Shawn’s neck. “You don’t have to wear this but carry it in your pocket or somewhere on your person on your flight for luck. Wear it in good health, as the Italians would say!” “Thanks Dana. I really appreciate this and you can rest assured I will carry it into space with me.” He leaned over and lovingly placed a kiss on Dana’s cheek. This was a far cry from their encounter at the wedding reception.

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arlo sat by Dana’s bed, holding her hand. She was still in a deep sleep and had not made any movement on her own since the surgery. Her physical injuries were healing nicely and the physical therapy she received daily was helping to keep her muscles from atrophying or becoming useless. Carlo made sure that nothing was left to chance for he knew when she awoke from her coma, she would be devastated if she could not move on her own. He himself gave her a good rubdown at least every other day with a good lotion so that her skin stayed soft and supple. There was an almost angelic countenance about Dana as she slept and Carlo prayed that this was not indicative of things to come. It was strange but every time he entered her room he could almost swear he heard the soft rustle of wings. He knew it was his imagination but he also knew that Dana had a great love for the heavenly beings and whether they were actually real or a prevarication in some humans’ minds, made not the slightest bit of difference to him. At times, he even made an effort to call upon them to help her if it was within their power. After all, Jamie had explained to him that Dana’s own personal guardian angel was always constantly with her so he was not going to argue the issue. - 216 -

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Alana and her grandmother came to visit every weekend and as always, the little girl would crawl up onto her mother’s bed, take Dana’s hand and talk to her as if she could actually hear everything that was said to her. Everyone in the hospital marveled at how the child responded to her mother’s condition, for she never wavered in her faith that one day soon, the mother she loved and adored, would awaken and come home to her. She met everyone with a smile and never appeared to be upset with anyone who walked into her mother’s room with a ‘down-in-the-mouth’ look about them. Her voice always had a lilt to it whenever she spoke to everyone, including the nurses and doctors. Often Jamie would join her in her visit and together they would talk to Dana about the horses, the games they used to play together and how fun it was going to be whenever Dana was well enough to go home from the hospital. On one of their mutual visits, Jamie took Dana’s hand in his and said, “You know my sweet, we all think you have been asleep long enough and we are ready for you to come back to us. However, being a spiritual person, I believe that you have been put here for a very special reason. I have great faith and belief in ‘Spirit’ to know that you are learning special lessons and tasks that we can only accomplish by totally listening to what comes from the ‘still, small voice’ within us. Whenever the two of you decide the time is right, you will rejoin us in this realm.” Jamie had not mentioned his dream to Carlo again but he never gave up on the idea that somehow Dana had tried to contact him through that dream to tell him that there was definitely a problem other than physical ones that caused her deep sleep. “Well, hi there, Jamie. I didn’t know you were planning to visit today, but glad to see you,”Carlo said in a polite voice. “I really hadn’t planned to come this weekend but Alana called and invited me to join her and her grandparents in Atlanta so that we could all spend some time with our dear one here and visit also

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with each other. I’m trying to keep Alana’s spirits up but between you and me, I think she is doing pretty well on her own. She refuses to give up on her mother. Isn’t that right, Little Miss Pookie?” “You bet, Uncle Jamie! I know my mother’s going to be all right. I just know it! I suppose it’s simply a question of…when!” With that statement, Alana leaned closer to Dana and gently kissed her on the cheek. Carlo lifted the child down from the bed and took her into his arms, cuddling her closer to him and stroked her soft, silky curls. “I pray you are right, my precious one. You know of course, that even though your mother is in this deep sleep, she can hear every word you say. You know also that she loves you more than life itself and I’m positive that she is striving in every way possible, from where she is, to fight her way back to you. We must all continue to encourage her to come back as soon as possible.” With that, Carlo hugged his daughter one more time and then placed her back on the bed beside her mother. “Jamie, may I see you outside the door for a few minutes?” “Of course, Carlo,” Jamie said as he nodded toward Alana. “I’ll be right back. Why don’t you sing your special song to Mommy while I’m away? I’m sure she’ll like that.” When the door was closed behind them Carlo took Jamie by the arm and led him down the hall a little distance so that Alana could not hear their conversation. “I’ve been giving the talk we had the last time you were here some thought and I’ve been trying to come up with an idea as to how to pursue the notion that someone is tampering with the IV tubing. I don’t really believe that this is true for the nurses monitor Dana and this room almost constantly day and night. Damned if I can figure out just how to go about it without tipping off the culprit, if there is one, but I wanted to let you know that I don’t think you are a complete nut!” Carlo added with a smile.

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“Well gee thanks…I think!” Jamie laughed. “Seriously Carlo, if you can think of any way I can help, all you have to do is call me in Memphis and I can take off a few days and get over here to do whatever I can. I think of our Dana as my sister and I would battle Satan himself if I had to, to bring her back!” Jamie concluded angrily. “Please reiterate for me, the exact details of the dream again Jamie, so that I will know precisely what Dana tried to tell you by blinking her eyes yes or no. Has she tried to contact you again in another dream?” Carlo queried. “Not exactly in another dream but I have a sort of premonition that she has my inner, still, small voice speak to me and it, in some succinct manner, suggests that I follow through with the lead. Somehow or other, I can’t shake the feeling that she will remain persistent until one of us rattles the cage and investigates the possibility, Jamie lamented. “God forbid! Forgive me, Father!” Jamie pleaded looking upward, “I would never forgive myself if later on we discovered that it was true and we hadn’t done anything about it. I’m rather surprised that Dana hasn’t tried to get through to you in some manner but then again, she knows that you don’t ‘believe’ in such things,” Jamie added sardonically. “Hell Jamie! If we find out that her assumption in the dream is really true, I’ll believe as no other has ever believed! If I can find a way, and the dream proves to be true and my Dana is returned to me, safe and sound…I’ll be the first one to sing the praises of Angels and the mystical things that transpired here. I’ll keep you posted, my man. You just keep your ‘channels’ open and let me know if you receive any more ‘messages’, o. k.?” Jamie complied with Carlo’s request and repeated the events of his dream. After hearing it, Carlo turned to walk down the hall toward the elevator and as he did, he told Jamie to tell Alana that he would see her and her mother later.

chapter 36 s

Remembering Again

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fter Shawn left to return to his training in the Space Program, Carlo often reflected on his visit. It appeared that the young man had finally changed his opinion of his father’s new wife and had accepted the fact that they could be a family of sorts. Shawn made it a point to keep in touch with Carlo and Dana at least once a month after his visit and this pleased his father tremendously. One night as Carlo and Dana were relaxing on the Lanai out by the pool, he brought up the subject of his excitement and trepidation concerning Shawn’s expected flight into space. “You know, Dana…I’m as proud as a peacock of Shawn and the fact that he has been selected as a crewmember on the next launch into the unknown but I am really concerned for his safety. For some reason, I can’t shake the feeling that something will go wrong and we will never see him again.” “Oh, my darling Carlo! I am positive that all parents feel a certain amount of fear when it comes to the possibility of their son or daughter flying off into space where few have dared to tread, but you know that this has been Shawn’s ambition for a long, long time and he is finally fulfilling his dream. I’ll admit that there is a great deal of risk and a slight possibility that something could go awry, but it isn’t - 220 -

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very likely. The Space Program has come a long, long way since the earlier flights and the two tragedies that took place. I know that you are concerned and rightfully so but we’ll just have to keep the faith and know that he will be returned to us safely. Try to put those negative feelings aside,” Dana said encouragingly. “I will try to but the fear haunts me and sometimes I even wake up at night in a cold sweat thinking about it. We were rather estranged for a while and I would certainly hate for anything to happen to my son now that we are on amicable terms once more. I feel a bit sad over the fact that I didn’t spend much time with my two boys while they were growing up but time didn’t permit me to be there for them too often. I found it hard to communicate with them since I was home so infrequently. I relied entirely on their mother to do all of the rearing, disciplining and teaching of the children. Whenever that is the case, there always seems to be something missing in their character. By the time I realized that we had not developed a strong, good relationship and able to talk to one another, it was too late. I felt like a stranger to them and I’m sure by that time, they were too distant and or too afraid to try to establish much closeness with me. For whatever reason, I now regret it,” Carlo bemoaned sadly. Dana rose from her chaise and went over to sit beside her husband. Taking his hand in hers, she stroked it as she said, “Carlo, you can’t look back and feel guilty, my darling. I’m sure you regret those years that you were not able to spend much time with Shawn and Ryan but believe me, they seem to have adjusted rather well I think, since they have matured. After all, they come from good stock and are loaded to the hilt with your genes. You had to learn pretty much on your own to survive and to struggle, to do whatever it took to finish your life-long dream of becoming a physician and surgeon and you did it in spite of almost insurmountable odds. Your sons have not had it nearly as tough as you did so not to worry, my dear one…they will be just fine and both are remarkable young men each in his own right. Come, my darling…let’s go to bed and I’ll try to

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make you forget all about these sad, negative thoughts while I can still play a mean game of mattress polo. That is…if you’re still interested even though this poor ole body is miserably out of shape. I’m beginning to look like a pear and can’t possibly be very seductive or alluring…but…what the hell…let’s give it a go, shall we?” Later, after a sensuous and luxurious bath in the Jacuzzi, Carlo carefully dried off the swollen but smooth, soft body of the woman he adored more than life itself. He lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bed. Laying her gently down into the softness of the bed, he whispered to her, “I don’t care if you get to be the size of a house, I will always love you and you will always be beautiful to me in every way. Your pregnancy has brought a soft, lovely glow to your face and body that only imminent motherhood can bring to a woman and you wear it well, Little One. As far as you thinking that you’re no longer alluring to me is ridiculous. As a matter of fact, your little round belly with its tiny heartbeat inside, is a big turn-on for me. In a manner of speaking, when I make love to you, I feel as though I am reaffirming to the precious one inside, that it was conceived in love, is loved, and will forever more, be loved. Now, more than ever before…can’t seem to get enough of you. Perhaps it’s because I know somewhere in the back of my mind that one day soon, I won’t be able to express my love for the two of you at one time anymore and that I had better take advantage of the opportunity while the time still presents itself. In my own clumsy way, I try to be as gentle as possible with you during our lovemaking but if ever I get too carried away and make it uncomfortable for you, I want you to be sure to tell me, O.K.? I would rather cut my heart out than to ever hurt the two of you in any way.” For some unknown reason, Dana flinched ever so slightly at Carlo’s last statement but the thought was quickly forgotten as he deftly began to display his talents as the practiced tenacious lover that she knew him to be. Soon the two of them were locked in the passionate throws of touching, feeling, stroking, tasting and probing

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each other’s bodies. When finally they had exhausted themselves entirely and the flow of their mutual orgasmic body fluids had subsided, each turned away from the other silently, happily and sleepily, savoring the wonder of another extraordinarily blissful session of lovemaking. The pregnancy went well without any complications. So well as a matter of fact, Dana rode Sable up until the seventh month. The horse was so well trained that she reacted to each leg and rein command evenly and smoothly. No jerky movements to upset her mistress rider and she seemed to enjoy their rides together almost as much as Dana did. As the seventh month approached, Dana had to have some help in mounting the mare for her belly got in the way whenever she tried to do it on her own. She created quite a bit of excitement at the stable and provided whomever happened to be looking on, a hilarious view from behind as she attempted to get astride her mare. Rhonda went to the stable with Dana most every time she went so as to be there in the event something did happen that would pose a problem. On one particular occasion, the two young women groomed their horses, saddled them and prepared to mount for an afternoon of fun in the sun doing their favorite thing. Rhonda easily swung herself up into the saddle atop Thunder and then turned around to face Dana and Sable. As she did so, she began to roar with laughter. Dana was trying desperately to get her left foot into the stirrup but somehow or other, she couldn’t quite manage to get the foot high enough over her swollen belly. She tried spreading her legs so that her belly was in between them and reaching up with her left foot but that didn’t work. Next she tried to hold onto the reins with her right hand and push her belly out of the way with both hands so that her leg wouldn’t touch it as she boosted herself up but that didn’t work either. Next, she put the reins in her mouth and lifted her belly up out of the way with her two hands and reached her foot upward

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toward the stirrup. From the rear, all of this presented quite a show and Rhonda and the few others that had gathered were about to burst their guts laughing at the silly antics Dana and the mare were going through. Poor Sable simply stood her ground but turned from time to time to see just what was holding up the process here. Dana had been so engrossed in what she was trying to accomplish, she hadn’t been paying any attention to her audience. Her face was flushed and perspiration stood out on her forehead and upper lip. When she turned to face the others and realized what all had been taking place and what a spectacle she obviously had made of herself, she blushed beet red and joined the others in belly rolling laughter. “God, what a sight all of this must have been! Wish I had been in the viewing pen to witness it myself,” she said between fits of laughter. “Stop! Stop! I can’t laugh anymore…or I’ll pee my pants. As a matter of fact, I’d better go make another quick pit stop before we take off or I’ll really be in trouble. You all just keep right on laughing…I’ll be right back!” Grabbing herself between her legs, she took off running toward the barn and the bathroom. When she returned, the crowd had scattered and only Rhonda was waiting astride Thunder by the gate. She climbed down and said, “Come on Fatso. We’d better lead Sable over to that deck and have you go up the steps so that you can mount her from there. All you’ll have to do is stretch your right leg out over the saddle and sit down. Think you can handle that?” she sputtered as she burst out laughing again. As they rode along the trail talking to and confiding in each other as best friends do, every now and then, they would have another spell of uncontrollable laughter. Rhonda described in picturesque and graphic detail, the scene earlier. “I would give my eye teeth to have had a movie camera handy back there. I could make a fortune blackmailing you, ole Buddy! I’m sure most any of your high-falluting society friends would pay a very

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high price to see that action and show it around…whatta-ya-think? I’m sure none of them can even imagine you being out here at the stable, much less, doing the things you do…such as make such as ass of yourself, shovel shit and the like. Now wouldn’t they just love to see a movie of your little mounting episode? I think I can remember a few of their names…h-m-m…I’ll give a few of them a call and see who will make the highest bid!” “You wouldn’t dare! I thought you were my friend, little Miss Rhonda. Just because you are still a size eight, can slip easily into your jeans and swing into your saddle like Roy Rogers, that doesn’t give you cause to make fun of ole fat me and threaten me with blackmail to my other friends…you little witch!” Dana said, pretending to pout. They came to a narrow stretch of the trail and Rhonda fell behind Dana and Sable. They rode silently for a few yards and then Rhonda burst out laughing again. “Now what are you laughing at?” Dana said as she tried to turn around in the saddle to look at her buddy. “I’m so sorry Dana, but my view of the back of you is nothing short of hysterical! Your once small, firm fanny is now fanning out over both sides of your saddle. That is definitely not a picture of the Dana I’m used to riding with!” Rhonda quipped. “You keep this up and I won’t ride with you any more, Miss Smarty Pants! Then you’ll have Carlo mad as hell at you, for you know he won’t allow me to come out here to ride alone. If I have to…I’ll sneak out here and if something happened to me, you’d feel awfully bad, now wouldn’t you?” Dana said as she played along with the joke. As Rhonda guided her gelding up along side Dana, the two of them joined hands and rode along for awhile in silence. “Rhonda, do you ever think about what happened at the stable with Jed and Sable?” Dana questioned. Before Rhonda could answer, Dana continued…“Sometimes I wake up in a cold sweat and

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remember that I have been dreaming about the incident. In the dream, I can feel his cold, clammy hands on my body and smell his foul breath. The sound of his voice lingers in my subconscious and from time to time, I can actually hear his voice…telling me what he’s going to do to me. God! How it rocks me to the core. I love this ole mare. I have always loved her but now, that love has special meaning for she saved my life that night. In the dream I have, I can hear the sound of her metal shoes hitting his flesh and then his bone. What a gruesome sound and sight that was. Do you suppose I will ever be able to completely put it aside and out of my mind? “I think so Sunshine, but if you don’t clear out the ghosts and cobwebs soon, then perhaps you should visit one of Carlo’s shrink friends.” Rhonda answered. “I’m hoping when the little one comes, I’ll be so engrossed in caring for and loving her that my mind won’t have time to dredge up that memory again…at least I’m wishing for that to happen. I’m not much on shrinks, much less friends of Carlo’s for I don’t think I want them to know all of my deep, dark secrets.” “Yeah…like you really have some!” Rhonda retorted. “Seriously Dana. You should get some help from somewhere if you continue to have those nightmares. Promise me that you will see someone if they don’t go away…O.K.?” “I’ll think upon it…my friend. Come on, let’s canter up the road a bit while I still can go with the flow here. I don’t dare press Sable into a trot…it rattles my brain at this point in my pregnancy and no telling what it would do to my precious one in the baby carriage. When she’s born, she’ll probably hate horses for all the shaking I’m putting her through on our rides,” Dana laughed as she prodded Sable in the sides and left Rhonda bringing up the rear. The two girls and the horses soon approached a small pond and the riders allowed the horses to drink from the clean, clear water. Dana removed her feet from the stirrups and made a move toward dismounting.

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“Oh no you don’t, young lady! Do you remember what you went through to get up on that horse? There’s no way in hell we could get you back up there if you get down and it’s a long, long way back to the stable. I know you feel a bit cramped but just let your legs dangle while we’re resting and that should relieve some of the discomfort. Here, have a nip of this water. I brought along a flask for I know how thirsty you get and we shore can’t drink this water in this pond.” Dana took the flask and took a long drink from it. “Boy Rhonda, you take such good care of me. I’m so used to hopping down from here whenever we come to a bit of water so that Sable can rest a little too without having to support me. Guess she’ll just have to suffer with this weight a little while longer.” “You could weigh a ton and Sable would do her damned best to carry you where you wanted to go and you know it. Your mare loves you…you can see it in her eyes when she looks at you and she certainly proved it by protecting you that night at the stable.” “Yeah, and I certainly do love her back, huh? I suppose we should start heading back to the stable. Perhaps we can arrange to ride again one day next week if all goes well. Wish I could challenge you to a race but we both know ole brood-mare here doesn’t dare chance that!” Silently to herself, Dana wished she could bring herself to break the rule and ride like the devil himself was after them but she knew she must not dare take the risk. What fun she had had, taking the time to get out in the open with her two wonderful friends, Rhonda and the beautiful mare, Sable. As it was October, the days were becoming shorter and as the horses turned into the paddock, someone in the stable turned on the lights. Luckily, Dana had managed to steal this time for she didn’t get to ride her beloved mare again until after the baby was born.

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ight after Halloween, the holiday parties started for the season, so Dana was able to attend many of them. Her pregnancy was progressing nicely and she hadn’t had any trouble other than the fact that she knew whenever she felt the need to void, she must take action and get to a bathroom, post haste. She had wet her panties all too often at home by ignoring the urge to tinkle. She surely didn’t want to embarrass herself at any of the upcoming galas so she really practiced self-control and excused herself whenever she felt the urge. Other than that little inconvenience, she managed quite well in the latter months of her pregnancy. Dana and Carlo made a big splash at the parties they attended for they did indeed, make a handsome couple. When asked at one of the affairs if the Evans were still as much in love as they had been in the beginning, Adaire Rodgers confirmed the fact that they were even more so. Carlo appeared to be just as attentive to his wife now even though she was large with child and he didn’t mind showing his love for her in public. “I think you are the most beautiful expectant mother-to-be I have ever seen,” Carlo whispered softly to his wife at one of the large banquet-dances they attended early in November. He held her as close as he could get to her and rubbed her back as they glided around the dance floor. “It seems to me that you have become even more radi- 228 -

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antly alive and gorgeous since you are carrying the little one. I think motherhood will become you in more ways than one, my pet. I know you are due late on in December and whenever you have had enough of this partying and socializing, just say so. You know I can take these parties or leave them alone,” he concluded. “Oh Carlo, you know I enjoy going out and seeing everyone at these functions and you also know that after the baby comes, I won’t be able to get out as much as we do now so let’s continue to attend as many of the holiday parties as we have time for.” Dana smiled her most radiant smile as she looked around the dance floor. “You know you are the most beautiful lady here even with your swollen belly and I am not just telling you that, my beloved! If you don’t believe me, take a look around and notice just how many men in this room are ogling you,” Carlo said with a big grin on his face. “Oh you! You’re making me blush…let’s go sit down for a while and let me catch my breath. I can still manage the slow dances but this jitter-bug stuff is far too rough on me and the baby,” Dana managed between breaths. A few days prior to another big whing-ding, Dana complained to her friend Shannon Guidry that she was afraid she wasn’t going to have enough changes of dress to cover all of the functions she and Carlo would be attending and she hated to wear the same three that she had, over and over again. “Well Miss Piggy, I don’t think the people you’ll be seeing at all of these parties really care what you wear due to the fact that you’re expecting but I happen to know of this cute little dress shop in the north part of town that is fairly new and hasn’t been discovered by most of your friends. Why don’t we take a ride up there in the morning, if you aren’t too busy, and have a look at what’s there. Perhaps you’ll find a couple of new things that will help to put you through the season. How’s about it?” Shannon said, nibbling at some grapes on her salad plate Dana had prepared. “I might add, you’ve been very good about watching what you eat during this period of time in

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your life. You are a real whiz at throwing together the greatest salads…no wonder you haven’t gained too many pounds!” “Yes, in answer to your question about taking a ride down to North Atlanta. I don’t have to go in to the store today for as you know, I have some help there now and I’m limiting my hours and jobs. If you know of some place to find additional gowns, then they must be something else. You always have had excellent taste. I’d trust you anytime with outfitting me for a visit to the Queen, herself!” Dana bragged. “And…thanks for the compliment on the food. I have tried to eat healthy and watch my weight all at the same time. I do believe I could easily become a vegetarian for I really have not missed the big, sumptuous meals Carlo and I used to indulge in before I became pregnant. The next morning found the two young women out and about early so that they could get to the shop Shannon had spoken of as it opened for the day’s business. “Hey, I don’t think I have ever been in this part of the city! How on earth did you find this place? Not that I read the paper from one end to the other but I don’t remember seeing any advertisements about a new shop of this sort before,” Dana commented as they crept up one hill after the other. “Well, you know me! I have this habit of exploring on my own and I very often find these little out of the way shops and restaurants that are absolutely marvelous. Just wait until you see this one…you’ll love it!” Shannon chuckled. “It’s right around the next comer.” As they turned the corner and started up the street, Dana exclaimed as her eyes searched the street, “I don’t see any dress shop on this street…All I see is that sign that says, ‘Women At Large, New and Nearly New. Come on now Shannon…you can’t be serious…that isn’t it, is it?” “You’re as right as rain, my dear. Just wait until you see what those walls have in store for you. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

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A rather large young woman approached Dana and Shannon as they entered the door and asked if she could be of service. “Yes mam, you certainly may be. My friend, as you can see, is very definitely, and v-e-r-y profoundly pregnant but she is interested in seeing some of your elegant party gowns. Can you help us?” “Yes, but of course. You have come to the right place. Will you please follow me into the back room? That’s where we keep our formals. I think perhaps you will be able to find something that will fill the bill for we recently received a new shipment of some lovely things. The holidays aren’t going to catch us shorthanded,” the pleasant lady answered. It didn’t take Dana and Shannon long at all to find several dresses to choose from. Most of the dresses were for larger women and the two girls laughed until tears rolled down their cheeks when Dana tried on several. They eliminated the ones that were literally out of the question and made Dana look like a hippo or Two-ton Tessie. The ones the girls finally selected were of the kaftan style and flowed from the shoulders to the floor, coming in at the waist so as not to have the appearance of small tents. After trying on dresses for more than an hour, they both reached for the same one at the same time and looking at each other, burst out laughing. “It’s a good thing we have the same tastes in clothing…my dear. It’s not easy to find a dress that is absolutely perfect in every way when one is about to pop but me thinks we may have made a delicious discovery in this lovely,” Shannon chortled as she handed the lovely creation to Dana. “You must try this one…it looks as though it was made for you, with your coloring and all”. Dana spun and turned before the mirror after slipping into the beautiful formal she and Shannon had selected from the group of dresses they had taken into the dressing room. “By Jove…I think we’ve got it!! I love it and it doesn’t make me look like a cow! Do you think Carlo will like this one?” Dana asked laughingly.

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“He’s daft if he doesn’t. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in anything that suits you any more than this dress does.” Shannon answered. The dress was royal blue and silver. The underneath part of the dress was royal blue silk and was covered in silver sequins that made a floral pattern here and there on the lower portion of the dress. It had a v-neckline and raglan sleeves that fell softly to the elbows and dipped slightly to mid arm in the back of the sleeve. The back of the dress had a zipper but fell softly from shoulders to the floor. The front had a three-inch band directly under the bust line that extended from one side to the other. The skirt fell in soft gathers from the band to the floor. Underneath the front part of the dress on either side, a piece of elastic was stitched which met in the back and fastened with a hook. This pulled the front of the dress closer to the body and was a little more form fitting than the back. “I’ve heard Carlo remark how lovely he thinks you are in your pregnancy. Just wait until he eyeballs you in this little number. With the right accessories, you’ll look like you just stepped out of a spectacular movie,” Shannon exclaimed. “You even take my breath away!” “Yep. I think we’ve got a winner here. I suppose with the three other formal type dresses I have that I can get into, I’ll be set for the rest of the season. Damn! I’m sure glad you found this place. We’ll have to keep this our secret. You know how those hoity-toity women love to talk and they would have a field day if they knew I had gotten this dress at a consignment shop. God! I certainly hope none of them ever owned this particular one. Wouldn’t that be a hoot?” Dana laughed as she pulled the dress back over her head. Two nights later Dana wore the dress to one of the biggest parties of the season and was the belle of the ball. She carried herself confidently into and out of one of Atlanta’s largest society events feeling as though she were in a size four and on top of the world. Several times during the evening Dana snickered to herself as Carlo twirled her around the dance floor. It was obvious that most

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every eye in the room followed the couple as they dipped and swirled to the music. “And just what is so funny, Little One…and I use the term loosely?” Carlo questioned. “Oh nothing…I was just thinking of a remark Shannon made to me a few days ago about this dress I’m wearing,” Dana answered him. “I must say…you have captivated every man in this room for you look exceptionally beautiful tonight, even though you are almost in full bloom, my darling. I told you that you’ve become more beautiful than ever these last few months and from the looks on everyone’s faces, I’m not the only one who thinks so.” Blushing profusely, Dana whispered into Carlo’s ear, “I do wish you would stop telling me that people show or tell you that they think I am such a special, beautiful person. It always embarrasses me to the hilt. I’m just plain ole me and I certainly don’t consider myself to be exceptionally beautiful or good. I just try to be kind, considerate and thoughtful to everyone alike, regardless of who they are. If I am considered to be a ‘beautiful lady’…then I like to think that the beauty comes from within and is not just skin deep. That other sort of beauty fades as the years go by but true beauty from within and the goodness one shows prevail though out one’s entire life.” “Touche, my love…”Carlo whispered back. Dana thought to herself as they rode home later that evening…‘Wouldn’t all of those people flip out if they knew that I had been wearing a dress that had previously been owned by someone else? Just goes to show that one should never be too nervous about browsing around for bargains for one never knows what jewels lurk in the strangest places. Thank goodness for Shannon’s wanderings. She is always coming up with wonderful places to go and things to see and do. She certainly helped to make my evening a huge success.’

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Adaire Rodgers called the next day to ask Dana where she had managed to find such an exquisite dress for the ball. “I’ll tell you and only you since you are one of my best friends but you must promise me that you’ll never tell. I don’t want to be laughed right out of town. I think I made a wonderful discovery but half of the people whom we know would think I had bats in my belfry.” After hearing the news of the wonderful little shop, Adaire laughed and agreed with Dana but said laughingly, “I don’t give a tinker’s damn where you got it…it was simply elegant and you looked like a jewel in the dress…everyone loved it and they were all green with envy because you were the loveliest lady there. We’ll laugh about this for years to come, Dana. You looked like a beautiful fairy in a dress that was supposed to be six sizes too large for you. Only you could pull off something like this and come out smelling like an absolute rose…good for you!” “I’m gonna tell you like I told Carlo…please stop telling me what others say about me…being so beautiful and such. It really embarrasses the hell out of me and makes me feel like a dufus!” Dana said emphatically. “So I out-shined a few people in a second-hand dress. Big deal! You could have looked just as gorgeous yourself, young lady…too bad you didn’t have the good luck to come up on that little jewel of a shop! Only you would have to gain about sixty pounds to accommodate any of their wares!” The two good friends crumpled to the floor in laughter as Dana placed her hands under her big belly, cupping the maternity shirt around the pumpkin of a belly she was displaying.

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he family part of the holidays kept Dana busier than the parties and even though she felt quite well, she tired easily. She had convinced herself early on that she needed to do her Christmas shopping at intervals in the preceding months for she knew that if she waited until the last minute, everyone might end up empty handed. The first part of December, Shawn and Ryan contacted Carlo to let him know that they would be able to spend the holidays with him and Dana if it was convenient. Carlo expressed his elation over the impending visit by bringing home a bottle of champagne. “Hey my love…let’s stay home by the fireside tonight, have a light supper and celebrate…just the two of us. We’ve been so busy these last few weeks with all the parties, business and stuff, I feel as though I haven’t had any private, quality time with my Little One lately. I know we are supposed to go to a cocktail party but we don’t know the hosts very well so let’s call and regret…whatta-ya-say?” “I think that’s a very good idea, darling. I am tired and a night off from all this merry-making will do us both a lot of good. I know why I’m tired but you are beginning to look a little frazzled yourself. I don’t think I should partake of any of that bubbly…Oh well, maybe just one little sip, but you can have a stem or two and celebrate for the both of us,” Dana said.

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The wind was whipping around outside and making ominous sounds blowing the trees this way and that. Carlo built a roaring fire in the den and after helping Dana clear away the supper things, he guided her into the area where they could benefit the fire and music from the entertainment system the most. “You know, when I bought this chaise, I thought it would accommodate the two of us quite cozily, but somehow or other, I find that it doesn’t fit the bill too well for the three of us,” Dana laughed as she and Carlo tried to squeeze down into the plush couch. “Just snuggle in close to your ole man here love, and we’ll make do for a few minutes anyway. It feels so good to feel you next to me even with that big bulge. After all, it won’t be but a few more weeks and that thing will be gone.” The two of them lay quietly for several minutes, savoring the beauty of the moment and lost in the deep love they felt for one another. “You know how very much I love and adore you, Dana. You have brought such happiness and meaning to my life. I hope this addition to our family will not mean that our feelings for one another will change. After all, you have never experienced parenthood before and I have been through it twice. Babies take up an awful lot of time for a mommie and you are getting started a little late in life. You won’t let the baby come between us, will you? I want all of your love but I know that I must learn to share it with the little bundle that’s insisting on getting out of there…I just felt him/her kick,” Carlo said laughing, changing his somber mood to a much lighter one. “Why Carlo, I never thought that you would feel as you do about this baby coming into our lives! You know that I love you…you are my very reason for living and I would never let anything or anyone take away from that. I feel that this baby will only enhance our lives, both of them, and will draw us closer together. I’m going to give up my job this very next week and that will lighten my load a lot. I feel that I need to devote as much time as possible to the baby so that we

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bond from the very beginning. However, don’t think for one minute that I won’t have any time for you, my precious. It’s you, I’m worried about. I can see it in your eyes whenever you speak of your involvement with the new business that you are elated over the prospect of becoming highly involved there. I must admit that I am concerned over the fact that you meet yourself coming and going now with your practice at the office and in surgery. You do have a little more time now with others taking over the responsibility of your night call but that doesn’t free up much of your daylight hours. How do you propose to work all of the other meetings, on-site investigations and all other aspects of that land business?” “You don’t worry about all of that Dana. I’m not quite sure how I’ll manage it all but you know the old adage…where there’s a will, there’s a way. I intend to find one for I don’t want to betray the old man’s belief in me by not doing the kind of job for him as he thought I was capable of.” Carlo concluded. “Please, let’s not spoil the remainder of the evening by getting into a tizzy over this conversation. I thought it was supposed to be a wonderful, relaxing, romantic evening…”Dana said sadly. “I’m sorry, my pet. I didn’t mean to upset or annoy you. I too wanted this to be a very special evening for us because I think it will be one of the few we will be able to share alone, for quite some time. The boys will be coming in soon for the holidays and there are several more parties we have to attend.” “Oh balderdash the parties! I’m a bit tired of all the small talk and the ‘how are you my dear’ from Atlanta’s finest. I admire and like most of them but some are a real pain in the ass! Especially the two we overheard at your country club soon after we met. Tisha is still green with envy everytime she looks at me and she literally drools when she looks at you. Which reminds me…there are a couple of the nurses who assume the same look I’ve noticed, at some of the medical parties we’ve been to. One in particular…let’s see, her name is

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Belinda something-or-other, I think. Oh well, even being pregnant, I feel I can still hold my own where you’re concerned. Right, Dr. E?” “You’re damned right Dana…my not so little one! My heart belongs to you and only you. I think I should get up from here for my libido is beginning to kick into action and the game of mattress polo has been canceled due to a swelling of the playing field, I’m afraid. Damn…I’ll be glad when our bundle from heaven arrives…I’m damned tired of…’taking my problem in hand’ so to speak,” Carlo said, breathing a little heavier. “Well come here, my passionate Italian Stallion…let me take your problem into my hand. Perhaps that will help to appease your insatiable appetite. Besides, I may not be able to do the ‘wild thing’ at the present but there’s nothing wrong with my hand, my love,” Dana said as she moved closer and began to kiss Carlo feverishly. Her hands moved toward Carlo’s lower extremities…all three of them…and stroked them gently with her fingers and fingernails. As she followed through with the necessary maneuvers it took to accomplish the inevitable, she reached over onto the coffee table and grabbed a handful of tissues. “H-m-m-m, Dana. I always knew you were a good Girl Scout…always prepared,” Carlo cooed. “That’s Boy Scout…you ninny. Shut up and enjoy.” Dana laughingly added.

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couple of days before Christmas, Carlo made two trips to the airport to retrieve his two sons. Shawn flew in from NASA headquarters in Texas and Ryan flew in from Los Angeles where he had been visiting his mother. Each repeated the same story to Carlo on the ride back to the house. It seems their mother had pitched one hell of a fit because they had elected to spend the holidays with their father instead of her. She had even feigned illness but her ploy had not worked with either son. She was furious that Shawn had decided that his new stepmother wasn’t so bad after all. No matter what little tricks she tried to pull to change the boys’ minds…she failed and now they had both arrived in Atlanta to spend the holidays. On the ride home, Carlo asked Shawn about his trip into space. The first one had been in October and was a huge success. Another would soon be planned and he wanted to know if his son would be aboard. “I don’t think I have ever enjoyed five days anymore in my entire life,” Shawn told his dad eagerly. “It was all I had expected and more. You can’t believe what it feels like to walk outside the module and know that the only thing keeping you from literally flying off into eternal space is a small lifeline and some pumped in 0-2. It was the most incredible, frightening, exhilarating thing I’ve ever experienced. As much as I had wanted to go, I was damned thankful to - 239 -

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plant my feet on ole terra firma once again after landing. Most of my work up there is classified or I would share some of it with you but no can do. I hope you understand, Dad. Did you watch any of the trip on TV?” “Oh yes indeed. You couldn’t tear Dana or me away from the set over that particular weekend and subsequent days. We wanted to see as much of it as we were allowed to. After all…it isn’t everyone who can boast about having a son in the space program and especially one who gets to actually go aloft. I’m very proud of you, Shawn…I want you to know that, son!” Carlo said proudly. The next few days were spent with the preparation of the final plans for Christmas day. As there were no small children in the house at this particular time, all four members of the family slept late. On Christmas morning when Dana awoke, she crept out of bed and quietly went down the back stairs to the kitchen. “Hey buddy! I thought I smelled coffee…why didn’t you take advantage of the opportunity to sleep in like the rest of us?” she asked Ryan, who was standing at the stove. When he turned around, Dana burst out laughing for he was decked out in a Santa Claus hat and bright red Christmas apron. He had a Santa hot-pad mitten on his left hand and a cooking fork in his right. “Ah madame, you ave disturbed ze great chef Zanta Claus at work on eez masterpiece…a brrreakfast omelet fit for ze king and queen themselves. Come closer madame and let ze aroma fill your lovely nostrils. Am I not corrrrecct? Does eet not smell vonnnderful?” “Why Ryan, you funny man! I didn’t know you could cook. That omelet does indeed smell magnificent and I’m so hungry I could eat a cow. What’s in it or is that a trade secret?” Dana quipped. “No Madame…eet ezz not a trade secrret. I vill be appy to share it with the beautiful chubby one standing before me. Eet has many eggs as you can see, some chopped peppers, rrred and grrreen naturally, for zee season, chopped onions, grrreat Italian sausage, a lettle

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salt and pepper, zum Italian seasoning, a leetle bit sage, a leetle bit lemon pepper and finally, zum cheese, a mixed blend of cheddar and mozzarella. Voila Madame…indeed a work of art stands before you. Are you pleased?” Ryan concluded with a sweeping bow. “Why my goodness, yes! It’s the most beautiful omelet I’ve ever seen and to be able to watch a master at work is indeed an added pleasure. Where is the one for everyone else…obviously that one is just for me, right?” Dana added as she pulled a stool up to the counter and grabbed a fork. “Seriously Dana, there are two more in the oven to keep them warm and the rolls and coffee are almost ready. I’ll sprint up the stairs and gather the other late ones down so that we can all eat together. Be right back.” When Ryan returned with Carlo and Shawn bringing up the rear, they found Dana gouging herself on some cut-up fruit she had prepared the night before. “Don’t blame me fellows…this little bundle wouldn’t wait for the rest of you so I had to appease her appetite by feeding her just a little smidge of fruit while I waited for you,” she said out of a chubby-cheeked mouth fined with fruit. “Come on gang! Belly up to the bar here and I’ll start passing the food over from the stove. You’d better grab while the grabbing is good for when it gets to Dana at the end of the line, you may not get another opportunity to chow down until dinner late this afternoon,” Ryan informed his dad and brother. After the meal was finished, they retired to the den where the Christmas tree was and each found a comfortable spot to sit while Carlo assumed the part of Santa and began to pass out the gifts. There were so many, it took him an hour just to get them all sorted and passed out. New tennis racquets, golf clubs, shirts, pants, ties, slippers and gowns covered every chair in the room. There was even a new electric razor for each of the three fellows and a portable hair dryer for Dana.

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“From the looks of all these presents, you guys are getting me ready for my expected trip in a few days, huh? I’ll be the best-dressed new mom on the floor. Just look at all of these beautiful gowns, robes and slippers. I hope I’ll feel like parading around the halls in them after little Miss Priss makes her appearance,” Dana said happily. “You’ll be the most beautiful mother there, my love…without a doubt…still a little pudgy…but beautiful,” Carlo teasingly said. Dana shot him a ‘I told you not to do that’ look and then said, “Oh you! Just give me a week or two and I’ll have my girlish figure back. I bought myself a Christmas present and it’s two sizes too small…I promised myself that within a month, I’ll be able to fit into it. Anyone want to wager with me on the subject?” “Not on your life! When you make up your mind to do something, you’ll do it, come hell or high water.” Shawn said. “I’ve seen your work before, my lady. You’ll have to send me some pictures after the big accomplishment so that I can see for myself…the old you!” “Oh I’m sure you’ll be receiving lots and lots of pictures from Dana so that you can keep up on the progress of your new little sister or brother. Hopefully the little bundle will arrive before your two have to leave us on the first of January. I don’t want her to procrastinate and arrive after New Years. I need her for a tax deduction!” Carlo said, pretending to twist an imaginary curled mustache. The rest of the day was busy with the preparation of the big dinner. While Dana made the dressing, fruit salad, two veggies and sweet potato casserole, the three men heated the rolls, poured the tea and water and lighted the Christmas candles on the beautifully set table. Dana had placed a gorgeous white lace tablecloth over a plain red one and set out the best china, crystal and silverware. When Carlo brought the turkey to the table, Dana noticed a bit of dampness around his eyes. While everyone else sat at their designated places, he stood in back of his chair at the head of the table, looked around at each of them and said, “I don’t know when I’ve been hap-

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pier. Here I am with the three and a half most important people in my life, sharing a perfectly wonderful Christmas day and dinner and it couldn’t be any better than this in my book.” Picking up his wineglass, he held it high and made a toast to his wife and two sons. “Here’s to all of us. May we continue to have good health, good fortune and much love each for the other. Manja, manja…let us eat and Salute, my dear ones.” As the evening wore on, one by one the family dropped off into a nap by the cozy fire. Carlo curled his body around the back of Dana’s on the huge sofa and cooed into her ear. “This has been the best Christmas I have ever spent and I owe it all to you, my sweet. You have made the boys feel right at home and you saw to it that they had a wonderful day too. I know you didn’t feel really up to par, lugging that belly around, but you didn’t complain one time. You’re a real sport, Dana. I love you for many reasons but I especially love the way you have made my sons take to you as they have.” “Well, it’s no big-ee, Doc! I have grown to love those young men. Now that Shawn has gotten to know me, I feel that he doesn’t feel threatened any longer and knows that I would never try to take his mother’s place in his heart. At least he has been wise enough to admit to you that his mother was at the root of all the trouble. He’s a very smart cookie and has made up his own mind about me. ‘Truth will win out in the long run…’ as the old saying goes. I’ve just tried to be myself around him and since he’s been here, we have had some wonderful conversations. He’s a bit more serious than Ryan. Ryan is the clown but he can have his serious moments also. You’re a very lucky man Carlo, to have two such great young men for sons. H-mm-m, I surely am comfortable but I suppose I should get up from here and go start to clean up the kitchen.” Dana purred. “Nope! That job has already been assigned. The boys and I are going to clean up the kitchen as another special Christmas gift to you. Now…how’s about that? It was their idea. Since you are in the

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‘family way’, I agreed to help them. Can you believe that?”Carlo laughed. “You probably threatened them with their lives if they breathe a word about your kitchen duties to any of your friends or anyone at the hospital, you rogue! All kidding aside, I think it’s extremely thoughtful of all three of you. Thank you, my darling.” As soon as the three men rose to go into the kitchen for the Cleanup detail, they heard Dana snoring on the sofa. “Bless her…she’s had a busy day, bless her heart,” Ryan said. “And the busiest time is yet to come! I hope she’s prepared for it!”

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he three days after Christmas found Carlo, Shawn and Ryan out on the golf course for Carlo had taken the remainder of the holidays off in order to spend some quality time with his sons. With the prospect of Shawn flying off into space again, he wanted to make damned sure that they bonded well on this visit. Carlo didn’t dare mention to Dana or either of the two young men but he couldn’t shake the ominous feeling he had about his oldest son’s profession. After the two terrible tragedies the space program had endured in the past, he wasn’t too happy with Shawn’s next trip. He tried to put these feelings aside but every time he looked at Shawn, a slight shudder ran up and down his spine. Evenings were spent around the fire telling Dana about days of old when the boys were small, Carlo had not been able to spend too much time with them during that period due to his hectic schedule at the office and the hospital. He spent most of his time taking call for others and volunteering to take emergency room call so that he could build his practice. It had worked for he had built one of the largest and best known practices in the Southeast. His name was known far and wide and he was said to have ‘hands of gold’. Whenever he did have some time, he tried to spend it with his two young sons playing catch, touch football, tennis and sailing. Every other weekend he would sneak a few hours here and there to get in at least - 245 -

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one game and he would borrow a sailboat from a friend of his and take the boys for a turn around Lake Lanier. Carlo later bought a small two-manner Sunfish sailboat and trailer for the boys, and their mother would haul them up to the lake so that they could improve on their skills with the boat. They entertained themselves many an hour in that manner and both became excellent boatsmen. As they recounted their experiences of falling in and out of the sailboat to Dana, they laughed and laughed, telling one hilarious tale after another. “I don’t know whether to believe the three of you or not. All three of you can lie whenever the truth would serve you better. I’ve never heard such ‘fish tales’, if you will, in all my life. My sides are about to split now and I think it’s a bit early for me to spill the contents of this big belly. Come on now…give me a break! Lighten up. Besides…I’m getting terribly tired of watching the lot of you enjoying the beer, drinks and pretzels and all the while, you know I can’t have any of the stuff. Not that I’m a sot or the like but I have really missed a bit of the brew, especially during the merrymaking of the holidays. Don’t you all feel the least bit guilty, imbibing in front of poor little ole me?” Dana pouted. “Obviously not, my dear,” Carlo mocked. “What would you have us do.. just sit here and commiserate with each other just to appease the one with child? Have pity, me pet…for your time is drawing nigh unless I miss my guess.” “Oh balderdash darling! You’ve been telling me that for a week now and I’m still as big as a barrel. What’s this about the baby dropping? I can’t tell that it’s moved anywhere but higher up underneath my rib cage and it’s about to choke me to death. If I get any bigger, you all will have to get a U-Haul to cart me to the delivery room,” Dana said with heaving breath as she struggled to her feet.

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Dana no sooner got the words out of her mouth than a big gush of water ran down her legs and into her shoes. “Oh my god! What’s happening to me…I just peed all over myself!” “Dana my love…you are about to become the mother you have always wanted to be. Your water just broke. Boys…go gather up Dana’s suitcase upstairs, get her a coat and meet us at the car in fifteen minutes. Dana, don’t just stand there. Let’s you and I go into the bathroom and get you cleaned up a bit so we can move on with the night’s show. Please Dana, don’t look so frightened…many, many women before you have gone through this experience and have lived to tell about it. ‘It will soon all be over but the shouting,’ as the old saying goes. Move, move…you act as though you are glued to that spot,” Carlo implored as he tried to guide his pale, perspiring wife toward the bathroom. “Oh my god! Oh my god!” Dana began to exclaim. “I think I’m beginning to have those contractions you and everyone else talks about. You didn’t tell me they would hurt so badly. I don’t think I’m going to like this…it hurts!” “Remember to breathe with small puffs just like you learned in the Lamaze classes and you will be O.K. Breathe, Dana, Breathe. Breathe but walk too! We must get to the hospital if you want to get some help. We can’t stay here in this spot darling. It’s been a long time since I’ve delivered a baby and I don’t actually look forward to the prospect of delivering another one…especially my own child…now move honey, MOVE!” Carlo pleaded loudly. The ride to the hospital took about forty-five minutes. Ryan drove and Shawn rode in the front seat with him. Carlo sat with his arm around Dana and tried to keep her as calm as possible. Her contractions began to get harder and harder and closer together. Obviously this wasn’t going to take long for the little one made it known that this was the night it intended to make it’s debut into the world. “Can’t you drive this damned car any faster, Ryan? I don’t want to have your little sister in the back seat of this car. I can just see the

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headlines now…local surgeon delivers own child en route to hospital with aid of his two older sons’. What a story you could tell if that were to happen, right guys? Oh-h-h-h hell…here comes another contraction. Faster Ryan, faster!” Every time a pain hit her, Dana grabbed Carlo’s hand, spread her legs and moved closer to the edge of the car seat. She panted her breaths as she had been taught but she was having an awful time counting them. “For god’s sake Dana! Don’t push! It’s not time to push yet. Slide back up onto the seat and try to keep from pushing. Breathe darling…breathe…that’s right. You’re doing fine. We’re almost there…only five more miles,” Carlo said trying to sound convincing. “FIVE MORE MILES!” Dana shouted. “I’ll never make it five more miles. Shawn, will you get this blasted thing to move faster,” she shouted to the driver of the car. “I’m not Shawn but I’m doing the best that I can and still hold this car on the road, Dana. I know you think we’re crawling but we’re traveling eighty miles an hour now and I keep expecting to see a blue light flashing in the rear view mirror any minute now,” Ryan explained as he glanced at her in the same mirror he had just spoken of. “I don’t give a damn about John Q. Law right at this moment, if you don’t mind…just hurry the hell up and get me t-h-e-r-e!” she yelled. Carlo had called the hospital before leaving the house and advised them to meet them at the emergency room entrance. Luckily all of the admitting chores had been handled earlier so they didn’t have to waste any time attending to that. The nurses managed to get Dana into the wheel chair and headed toward the elevator before another pain hit her. She was on her way to the labor room before she knew it and Carlo and the two young men standing with him by the desk, breathed a sigh of relief.

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“You guys did a bang-up job of getting us here. I’m shocked at the way Dana acted but I guess it’s because this is the first child for her and she really didn’t know exactly what to expect. I apologize for her behavior, fellows,” Carlo said quietly. “Oh come on, Dad! Who knows how one of us would react were we in her shoes…God forbid!” Ryan told his father. “It would be down-right comical if it weren’t so serious. Just think about it. Her actions were totally 180 degrees from her normal behavior. Now come on…let’s go up to the waiting room on the delivery floor. I hope you’re up to the evening’s work…it may be a long, long night. Shawn and I will wait for you and the good news in the waiting room for we know you want to be in there with Dana.” Dana was in labor another six hours and by the time it was almost time for the baby to arrive, it was a toss-up as to who was more tired and worn out, Dana or Carlo. Several times she looked over at him as if she could murder him but all the while, she never let go of his hand. “If you ever look at me again with that baby gleam in your eye…I’ll…I’ll throttle you, you bastard!” she shouted. “GET THIS BABY OUT OF ME! NOW! I want this baby here…don’t you understand? I can’t take much more of this huffing and puffing, damn it!” She shouted at the top of her lungs. “Carlo Evans…I despise you! Do you hear me? I despise you!” This time her tirade made even the doctor and the nurses look up at him and at each other. “Oh damn it! You jerks! Don’t you all know I don’t mean a word of this! I’m just in pain and this is the only way I know how to pretend it doesn’t hurt so much.” The scenario had been bordering on the hilarious but no one in the room had dared to smile, much less laugh. At her last remark, they all broke up in stitches, laughing and at the same time, Dana gave one more huge push and little Alana Margaret Evans made her wet, slimy entrance into the world.

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“Well…it’s about time, precious one…it’s about time,” the new mother sighed as she lay back onto the pillow and held her arms out to her new daughter AND her husband.

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lana had weighed in at eight pounds, four ounces, and was twenty-one inches long. She had very little hair and what was there, was like peach fuzz. She had peaches and cream skin with a trace of olive in it. She was indeed, a perfect example of a beautiful Georgia peach! All new babies had blue eyes and it would be interesting to see if hers remained blue like her mother’s or if they would turn brown, like her father’s. At any rate, she was a gorgeous baby and had a beautiful pair of matching dimples on her cheeks. Carlo teased Dana relentlessly for days after the birth, calling the baby ‘Dimples’. “For goodness sake, Carlo. Stop calling her that! That nickname might catch on and Alana would kill you if she had to go through life known as…Dimples!” Dana laughingly told him. “Her real name is much too pretty to be set aside for a sideshow name like the name you’ve selected for her lately.” Dana’s birthday group lovingly known as the ‘Chatty Cathy’s, gave her a baby shower two weeks after she and the new baby arrived home from the hospital. They had decided to wait until after the baby’s arrival so that everyone would know the gender and wouldn’t have any trouble selecting colors, etc. When Dana saw the guest list, she nearly flipped out. “I hope you girls are planning on having this shindig some place huge for it looks - 251 -

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as though you have invited everyone in town. Don’t you think we should shorten the list a bit? I’m embarrassed to think we’re including so many people…some of whom I barely know and rarely see.” “Oh Dana. You’re too modest, my dear,” Sarah teased. “You know all of these ladies on this list and each of them expects to receive an invitation. If I know them, your precious little Alana will have enough clothes, toys and useful items to last her the first two years of her life and you won’t have to go out and buy her a thing,” “Well…I haven’t bought too many things, granted…for I was waiting to find out whether this bundle of joy was coming equipped with or without a water spout,” Dana quipped. “O K…so now you know. So-o-o…shut up-a you face and let us girls get on with the planning and execution of this party.” The shower was held at the home of Delaney Joyce Tripp, better known as D.J. Her house could best accommodate a large group and since it was mid January, they wouldn’t have to worry about the overflow filtering into other rooms or out onto the screened porch. The girls really outdid themselves as far as the decorations were concerned. The front door entrance was draped in pink, blue, green and yellow ribbons with baby rattles attached on either side. The dining room table had a beautiful green potted poodle plant as the centerpiece and it too, was draped in like manner. The tablecloth was a soft pink with pink, blue, green and yellow netting draped from one side to the other and attached to the table with clusters of baby rattles. There was a delicious fruit punch and a white zinfandel wine for those whose thirst leaned more toward something a little stronger. There were finger sandwiches of several kinds on different breads, nuts, green and pink mints and beautifully decorated petite-fours. The cakes themselves were iced in white icing and had small pink flowers surrounded by pale green leaves. Each cake was further decorated with a pink plastic diaper pin, a baby shoe, a rattle, a baby carriage or a baby name bracelet. Dana and the baby each received a

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corsage made of baby rattles, diaper pins and brightly colored ribbons. It took Dana two hours to open all of the gifts and by the time she finished, one entire side of D.J’s den was full of baby clothes, toys, diaper bags, two strollers, a highchair, a baby bath tub, a dining table chair attachment which was a baby seat and loads of sweet smelling goodies to carry along any where in the diaper bags. The clothes ranged in sizes from infant to twenty-four months so none of them would have to be returned or exchanged. Strangely enough, there were no duplicates either. “I think you girls out-did yourselves for this was without a doubt, the nicest baby shower I have ever experienced. Everything was simply perfect in every way. I don’t know how to thank you all for such a lovely day and so-o-o many wonderful, lovely, useful things for Alana. Thanks gals, from the bottom of my heart,” Dana said to her friends after the guests had departed. Betty, Susie 1, Susie 2, Annette, Angela, Lydia, Sarah, D.J., Denise and Monica all helped Dana carry the gifts out to Shannon’s van and get them placed for the ride home to the lake. Shannon had driven Dana to the shower and she had offered to go home with her to get everything put away. “Gosh ole buddy, I don’t know what I would do without you. You are such a tremendous help to me…not only with things like this but you have been a bodacious help with Alana. Never having been around a newborn baby much in my life, I was rather at a loss whenever we got home from the hospital. You have saved my life and more than likely…hers too! You really came to my rescue when I didn’t know what kind of schedule to put her on. Thank god, you helped me get her straightened out on having her days and nights mixed up. I couldn’t have gone on much longer without any sleep and I know she was keeping Carlo awake. He has to have his sleep, otherwise he wouldn’t be rested and steady for his surgical cases

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every morning. At any rate, we’re all resting better now she’s sleeping more at night,” Dana concluded. “No bother, sweetie. Say, by the way…remember to launder all of these little clothes, sheets and blankets before you use them on Alana. They all need to be softened up a bit so that they won’t irritate her skin. I think I’d stay away from fabric softeners for a while until you see if she’s going to have sensitive skin. Sometimes those things will make the babies have a rash. One of the better known detergents has some softeners in it so you won’t have to add any,” Shannon said as she carried another armload into the den. “Do you want me to help you spread these gifts around so that you can display them for Carlo to see?” “Hey…good idea. Let’s open all of the boxes and lay the clothes on top so that he won’t, or rather I should say…I won’t have to open them one at the time for him to see. Holy bejimminy! Have you ever seen so much stuff? My precious will be the best-dressed little lady in town. We’ll have to think of lots of places to take her in order for her to wear all of these pretty little outfits. I’m happy to say, there’s a good variety of clothing here. Some of the things were for around the house and others for fancy outings. Aren’t we going to have fun dressing her up?” Dana cooed as she took one then the other of the dresses and play clothes out of the boxes. “Dana, I know you have a maid several times a week but I want you to promise me that you will sometimes leave Alana with her Missa Guidry so that we can bond with each other. It’s been a long time since I was able to play with a little one and I would thoroughly enjoy baby-sitting for you from time to time,” Shannon said dreamily. “You bet. I’ll probably be calling on you more than you bargained for, lady. I know Pearl would be wonderful for Alana but the three days she’s here, she’s pretty busy with the housework, etc. It took me a while to get accustomed to having her here but believe you me…she has been a God-send! There’s no way I could have taken

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care of this big house these last few months as I got bigger and bigger with Alana. I’ve always been pretty active and in good shape but being pregnant surely did slow me down a bit and I couldn’t do everything like I wanted to around here. Carlo was wonderful in suggesting that I hire someone to help out. I continued to do all of the shopping and meal preparing but she took the load off me and did the cleaning, washing and ironing. That also freed me up to continue to spend some time out at the stable with Sable even though I haven’t been able to ride her since my seventh month. I suppose now I will have to forego going out there for a few weeks until I’m back to normal. Wouldn’t want to undo my progress in healing now, would I?” Dana said sheepishly.

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he next few months kept Dana pretty busy just taking care of Alana. It was rather like playing dolls as she had done when she was a child for she had had this baby later than most mothers and she doted on every minute watching the child progress and grow. Every new thing the baby learned was quite an experience for mother and baby. The first time Alana turned over by herself, the way she cooed and ‘talked’ to whomever was playing with her made Dana run for the video camera. Dana photographed her several times during the day for she was forever doing new things. “I’ll wager that baby girl is the only baby alive who has had more footage taken of her since her birth than Marilyn Monroe had during her entire lifetime,” Carlo teased whenever he was around to watch the filming. “Well now,” Dana cooed as she moved to the other side of the baby crib for a better shot, “Alana will appreciate all of her first year movies when she gets grown. After all, this is the time that so-o-o many changes take place with a baby. I’m not going to have this monstrous camera growing out of my eye forever, my darling. I just don’t want to miss any of the…firsts! You know…first time she plays with her hands and feet…first time she sits alone…first tooth…first time she crawls, the first words and of course, the first time she steps out on her own!” - 256 -

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“Are you ever going to have a life of your own any more? You are absolutely consumed with this new little person who has come to live in our house,” Carlo bemoaned.” I have precious little time here with you now and I think it would be a damned good idea if you got Alana on a permanent schedule for her bedtime. The way it is now, you don’t put her down for the night until nine or ten o’clock and by that time, it’s time for me to get to bed also so that I can get to the hospital for early morning surgery. Remember me??? I deserve some of your time also, my little one. And if you don’t mind my mentioning it, I heard you say you were going to go back to work in another month or two. Just how do you intend to work both Alana and me into your busy schedule when you do that?” “To be perfectly truthful about it, I am looking for the perfect someone to come in to take care of Alana here at home. I haven’t found her yet but I’m looking. It will tear my heart out to leave her but I know I’ll have to bite the bullet there! Dana said sadly. “And as for you, my darling Italian Stallion, I am so sorry if I seem to have been neglecting you lately. It’s just that I never dreamt that babies could take up so much of a person’s time. It’s almost a twentyfour hour deal at first and then by the time she’s sleeping all night, it’s still an all day thing trying to keep up with bottles, diapers, and such. God help us if we didn’t have disposals now-a-days.” “You spoil her, Dana. You play with her all day when she’s not sleeping. You’re either feeding, bathing, changing or playing in the floor with her and most of the time you have that damned camera sticking out of your face!” Carlo concluded. “Why Carlo…if I didn’t know better, I’d swear you were extremely jealous of this baby and the time I spend with her…even when you’re not here!” Dana said incredulously. “I’ll admit to being jealous of the time you spend with her instead of me whenever I’m home but no…I am not jealous of her, herself. I’m as proud as a peacock of our new little bundle of joy but she does require a lot of your time. Can’t you let the maid assume some of the

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taking care of Alana so that you can spend a little more time with me?” “By the time you get home Carlo, Pearl is long gone for the day so I have to take care of Alana’s needs before putting her to bed. I’ll try to get her down earlier now that I’m aware of how you feel about the situation. I promise to spend more time with you in the evenings, darling…I promise,” Dana quietly said as she stroked Carlo’s head and ran her fingers through his hair. “As a matter of fact, she’s ready to put down now so why don’t you go on into our room and get your shower. I’ll follow shortly as soon as I’m sure Alana is asleep. I’ll play you a game of mattress polo if you’re in the mood…how about it?” “I thought you’d never ask…Carlo laughingly said as he began to strip his clothes off going down the hallway. Two hours later, just as Carlo was about to enter Dana for the final play of the game, a loud cry emanated from the nursery. Carlo looked down into Dana’s eyes as she lay underneath him and knew that the game was over. As he rolled off of her, Dana heard him mumble under his breath…“God damn it!!” She knew that there was no use trying to restart the game when she returned to bed for Carlo was turned toward the wall and snoring loudly. Little did she know that this was the beginning of trouble for the two of them.








Dana started back to work a month later and it was all she could do to tear herself away from the house every morning. At first she only worked three days a week and didn’t take a lunch break so that she could get home early enough to spend some private time alone with Alana before Carlo arrived home. She had the nanny give the baby her evening meal so that there would be more time to get a shower, prepare Carlo’s dinner and be ready to spend some time with him before retiring. She had to give up her classes at the hospital for there just wasn’t enough time to work that into her busy schedule and she knew that she could pick up where she had left off

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any time she chose. She tried to sneak some time to study and keep up with her bookwork every now and then, so that she wouldn’t be so extremely behind whenever she did resume her classes. Dana devoted as much time to Carlo in the evenings as she possibly could but she somehow sensed that he was not entirely sold on this idea of a threesome in the family. As much as he loved her and appeared to love and enjoy Alana, she felt that he still resented the baby. “Jesus H. Christ! I can’t believe Carlo is so jealous of that baby,” Shannon said to Dana one afternoon as they strolled in the park with the baby. “I never knew he would be so possessive. I know he worships the ground you walk on Dana, but this is ridiculous, the way he’s behaving. I can read it in his eyes every time he looks at the two of you. If I’m not mistaken…wasn’t he the one to suggest that you have a baby in the first fucking place?” “Yes, he was. I know he loves and adores this baby as much as I do but there’s an air about him whenever he’s around the two of us that I can’t quite decipher,” Dana lamented. “Tis said in the circle, that Carlo considers you a possession and whenever he wants to take you down off your pedestal and play with you, he doesn’t want anyone or anything to interfere with his play time. I know you’ve arranged for the nanny to relieve you of some of the duties in taking care of Alana yet there are times that only you as the mother can take care of the baby’s needs. Everyone says there’s a special bond between you and that baby…almost a mystical one, and it is very apparent to all who observe you with her. I think this is why Carlo is so jealous of her. “I’ve tried so hard not to let my time with Alana take away from Carlo’s time but sometimes it’s impossible not to take care of her needs when he’s home. I’ve tried to have playtime for the three of us early on in the evening before her bedtime so that he can spend some quality time with her too but that’s not always possible. He gets tied up either at the hospital or at the office with his land business part-

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ners. It seems he’s spending more and more time working on projects instead of his practice anyway. It has become an obsession with him. I’m trying to figure out whether we are driving him to it or the other way around,” Dana said sadly. “I thought this baby would bring us even closer together but I’m afraid it’s building a bridge between us instead.” “Oh sweetie, try not to give it too much credence for I know it will all work itself out in the long run,” Shannon said. ‘I hope you’re right but I’m beginning to wonder myself if this isn’t becoming a gigantic problem and will create a horrific gap between these two wonderful people,’ she thought to herself as she watched Dana out of the corner of her eye.

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everal months after Dana started back to work, Carlo came home early one evening and suggested that they stay in and spend some time together. He wanted to talk about Shawn’s latest assignment for another manned flight in space for he had carried around silently, the intense fear he felt for his son in regard to the space program. He knew that this latest scheduled trip was to be exceptionally long and he could not shake the old ominous feeling that had haunted him ever since Shawn had told them he had been selected as an astronaut. “I haven’t confided in you as to my feelings about Shawn and the space program lately for I hated to actually mouth the words but I absolutely cannot carry this burden around with me any longer, alone,” Carlo admitted to Dana. “I get sick to my stomach every time I think of him up there wandering around outside the module with nothing to hold him to life and this planet except that umbilical mechanism. What in God’s name would happen to him if suddenly the thing broke loose and he couldn’t get back? I have nightmares about such a thing happening or some other horrible incident taking place up there that would take his life. I have tried repeatedly to put these thoughts behind me but the closer the time comes for him to go aloft again, the thoughts return and continue to fill my mind. I can’t get rid of this miserable, ominous feeling. Have you had any - 261 -

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misconceptions or trepidations regarding his involvement in the program?” “No Gian Carlo…I haven’t allowed myself to become overly concerned or upset because I know that Shawn is extremely qualified for the program and the ensuing trips he takes. We both also know that there’s always the possibility that something could go awry but we mustn’t worry about ‘what ifs’. You know yourself that everything is made ship-shape and prudently, meticulously checked and rechecked before the crewmembers are allowed to step aboard the ship and that every possible care is given to their safety. You mustn’t drive yourself to the point of illness with worry over this situation, darling. Shawn returned safely from his first flight and I’m certain he will return once again from this next one. You have always seemed so proud that he’s involved with the program and I would never have suspected that you harbored any fears or trepidations regarding his flights. What has possessed you to even think such horrid thoughts?” Dana queried. “I don’t know…it’s just a feeling that I have and I can’t seem to shake it,” Carlo added forlornly. You know he and I were rather estranged for several years and now that we are together again, I don’t think I could bare it if anything happened to him. Believe me, I have tried to put these feelings and thoughts aside but they seem to keep cropping up unsolicitously. The nightmares have awakened me on numerous occasions and I sit up in bed in a cold sweat. Do you think it’s some kind of premonition?” “Oh come now Gian Carlo, this is not like you at all! I’ve never seen you like this. If there’s anyone in this world whom I think could handle anything that comes along…it’s you, my love. This is a moot, ridiculous, and absurd situation you have allowed yourself to sink into. Please my darling, try to put these frightful, sinister negative thoughts out of your mind once and for all for you know they have no meaning. I suppose it’s only natural that you as a parent, would have some fear, for wandering out in space is not a natural and every

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day happenstance but we must trust the engineers ability to prepare the ship and everything concerned, to be as safe as it is at all possible. They would never allow the shuttle to take off without dozens of preflight tests and rechecks. Come on my sweet, let’s go to bed. You need some rest for you look extremely tired.” Long after Dana had fallen asleep, Carlo lay wide eyed, looking out the window into space…

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or the next few weeks Carlo spent a good bit of his time at the offices of Evans Corporation International where he had become President and Chairman of the Board. He seemed to be a natural in the business of finding, securing and developing huge properties. Many of the deals he had put together involved wealthy business leaders from other countries so he traveled back and forth from Europe to the Far East meeting with these people. Whenever they visited Atlanta during the final closing of the business deals, Carlo and Dana entertained them royally at the most posh restaurants and nightspots in the city. Carlo had arranged to cut down on his medical practice during this time and only did very selective cases, some of which were too difficult for the staff surgeons to handle. When this occurred his fellow physicians would summon him to consult on the cases. More often than not, he would end up operating on the patients himself but he limited himself to only a dozen or so a month. This left him free to wheel and deal with the properties that were coming his way more and more frequently with Evans Corp. He prided himself on the fact that he had been instrumental in arranging the securing of the property and the financing for the building of the Landmark Mall that was to be the largest complex of it’s kind in the Southeast. As president of the company, he sat in on all of the final viewings of - 264 -

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the proposed plans and layouts for the job. He worked hand in hand with Franklin and Sons Architectural Firm and had the final say-so on the number of units submitted for the Mall. Landmark was to be the ultimate in enclosed shopping malls with three stories of the most elite stores and boutiques in the nation and from abroad coming aboard. There was a gigantic ice skating rink on the first floor surrounded by shops and boutiques catering to the younger crowd. The upper floors would house Lord and Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue, Burdines, Lady Godiva Candy Stores, Neiman Marcus and the like. It would be every woman’s shopping dream and would draw people from all over the country. During the times Carlo was away from home on the many trips he made for the business, Dana kept herself busy with the pride and joy of her life, Alana. The little girl was a precocious child, learning to do all of the first baby things earlier than most children. She walked at nine months and was talking in sentences by the time she was two. Granted, they were baby talk sentences but never the less, they were sentences. Dana read nursery rhymes and sang children’s songs to her all of the time and as she did so, Alana would watch her mother’s mouth as though she were memorizing each word that came out of her mouth. She was potty trained also by the time she was two which made it a lot easier on Dana when the two of them went out and about as they often did during the day. Alana was on a tight schedule as far as a nap was concerned and Dana was adamant about having the child home by one o’clock every day so that the baby could rest and sleep in her own bed for the nap. They toodled around in the mornings and late afternoons on the days they went out. Alana was not much on eating solid foods so Dana made a game out of every meal. This way she got a reasonable amount of nutritious foods down her little one’s mouth. Many times Carlo would be detained on his trips and would stay away for several days at the time. He always called his girls in the early evening before going to a dinner or business meeting for he

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never knew how late he would be and he didn’t want to wake them upon his return to the hotel. “I’m beginning to wonder if Carlo’s business deals are not more important to him than Alana and me,” Dana confided to Adaire one day as they were having lunch at the Vini, Vidi,Vici. “He’s spending so much time away from home and is working feverishly on these land deals of his that I’m afraid they are becoming a way of life for him. He literally seems to be obsessed with becoming the building magnate of the state of Georgia and beyond. Whenever I mention the fact that he is rarely ever home any more, he almost becomes obstreperous and a little violent. You know what a temper he has. He tells me that I have the baby to keep me company and when she gets a little older, he will have more time for us and for me not to worry. He insists that he loves us and that we mean everything to him but I feel that we are drifting apart.” “I don’t quite know what to say Dana, for the subject is discussed at length in the medical community. We all know how much Carlo loves and adores you and Alana but we agree that he is certainly spending an awful lot of time away from you and Atlanta for that matter. Even my husband, who never criticizes anyone, says that he doesn’t understand Carlo’s behavior lately. Have you thought of trying to get Carlo to go with you to a counselor? The two of you have too much going for you to let something happen to your marriage. In looking back over the last few years, one would never dream that a situation like this would ever arise between the two of you. You two were so much in love at first and we all thought that your marriage was one made in Heaven,” Adaire said sadly. “I know. And yes, I have considered going to a counselor and as a matter of fact, I even mentioned it to Carlo. He went ballistic and said that there was nothing wrong with our marriage and he would not go no matter how hard I pleaded, so I never mentioned it again. I thought that eventually Carlo and I could join forces in traveling to other parts of this country and to other foreign countries to cater to

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the sick as we did on the trip to Australia. I’ll confess to you Adaire, but you must promise me that you will never betray this confidence. Promise?” Both girls nodded their heads in agreement and then Dana continued… “I took some nursing courses behind Carlo’s back so that I would be better prepared to assist him in whatever he had to do on future trips to care for the poor and needy. I had to postpone my studies when Alana was born but I am preparing to take them up again three afternoons a week. Shannon Guidry is going to take care of Alana for me on the days I have to go to class, otherwise I would not go back. I couldn’t bear to leave her in a nursery school or with someone I didn’t know. Shannon is Alana’s second mom and they love each other dearly. At any rate, I feel compelled to complete these studies and I’m certain I will know the reason why someday. This feeling has been with me ever since I returned from our honeymoon in Australia. I feel that I have a gift as far as some sort of medical field is concerned and I had hoped to be able to use it along with Carlo. I’m not so sure now that I’ll ever be able to do that but at least, I will have become licensed and prepared if and whenever I should need to be.” “Dana, you don’t suppose Carlo has another woman stashed away somewhere, do you?” Adair asked sheepishly as they were walking to the parking lot. Dana whirled around and stopped dead in her tracks. For a moment or two she just stood there staring into Adaire’s face incredulously. “No, I certainly do NOT think Carlo has another woman somewhere! If I know one thing about that man, I definitely know that he is a one-woman man. When he’s married…he’s married. I don’t give a damn if some little cutie rubbed her tush all over him, he would not succumb to her charms and commit the unforgivable sin with her. He is not that kind of man and I would be willing to bet my life on it!” Dana shouted, her voice quivering.

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“O.K, O.K! Don’t get your panties in a wad! I’m sorry I mentioned it…it was just a thought and even I can’t imagine Carlo ever doing such a thing but it is highly irregular for him to behave in the manner in which he’s behaving since he professes to still be so in love with you!” “The only reason I can possibly think of is he’s acting this way is because of his poor upbringing. You know his parents were immigrants and they were very poor. Carlo and his sisters had to stand in line for food along with their parents and this has left an indelible scar on his subconscious mind. I think he feels he must do all that he can for his family so that this doesn’t ever happen to any of us.” “That’s absurd, Dana. Carlo is one of the best known surgeons in the country and he is certainly a long way from being in debtor’s prison or without a nickel to his name, for God’s sake. Give me a break! Let’s face it…he just likes the notoriety and the prestige that goes along with the position he has managed to put himself in. It’s just a crying damned shame that he can’t see what he’s doing to you in the mean time. If he waits until Alana is older to try to establish a close relationship with her, it’s going to be too late. She won’t know who the hell he is if he waits that long. You are Alana’s rock and her security…having to play both mother and father to her, can’t he see that?” Adaire admonished. “It’s a bit reminiscent of the situation with him and his sons, if you ask me! You would think that after all the trouble he had with the two boys…never being around when they were small and such, he would realize that he is creating the same kind of problem with Alana that he created with them. I only hope that he will come to his senses before it’s too late.” Adaire got out of the car when they arrived back at Dana’s house and came around to Dana’s side of the car. “Look my friend…you know that I am here for you whenever you need a shoulder to lean on or to cry on. And you know that I will never betray the trust you have placed in me by telling me your secret. It’s safe with me.” With

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that, she leaned over, put her arms around her friend and hugged her. “Call me whenever you need me.”

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he following February, Carlo called a meeting of the Board of Directors of Evans Corporation International to try to persuade them to agree on plans for a cultural annex to be added to the Landmark Mall complex. He had been talking with several contractors who agreed that this was definitely an innovative idea and one which had not been used anywhere in the country before. If they succeeded, then this could set a precedence for mall construction in the larger cities throughout the country. He had visions of a huge amphitheater with rows of first class seating and circle-around balconies reaching up to three stories high. On each of the sidewalls, huge screens would be placed so that the people in the balconies the farthest away could see each detail of the performances as well as the first row seators. There was to be a raised circular stage built into an adjoining arena-like theater with staggered seating so that the performers could work the entire audience and everyone in the theater would have an excellent view. This would help to create an up-close, personal feeling of actually being in the first class seating area for everyone. “Are you mad, Carlo? This could cost in the millions of dollars and we could actually lose our butts within the first year if the deal fell flat on its’ face. What ever gave you this ridiculous idea?” Wade

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Phillips, one of Atlanta’s leading bankers and one of the Senior Vice Presidents of the company, queried at the called meeting. “I’ve been talking to some of our associates in Europe and they are considering doing the same thing only on a smaller scale in Paris and London. If we could build one here on a much larger scale and complete it before they finish theirs, we could create a new trend in this country which would be a drawing card for not only people all over this country but for foreign guests as well. I feel that this could revolutionize the mall land business and we could be in on the ground floor,” Carlo said eagerly. “Isn’t it enough that we are going to have the largest and most elegant mall anywhere in this country? We’ve been working on the plans for months now and the architects and the contractors have reached a final decision on costs for everything from soup to nuts. I just met with our CPA this morning and he advises that we put the fucking skids on the project as it is. We’re going way over budget now and I think he will explode if we approach him with this astronomical addition to the proposed plan. Just where in the hell do you think we’re going to come up with the funds to support a project of this magnitude? Our investors will think we’ve really gone fucking crazy and are deranged as hell, if we approach them with this god damned proposal.” Sam Bronson stated rather emphatically. “H-m-m-m, I’m not so damned sure of that Sam,” Lexis Bloomberg said as he got up from his seat and began to pace the room. “I have been sitting here conjuring up the big picture here in my mind and I think Carlo just may have something here. He is, as we all know, somewhat of a visionary and he may have conjured up something not only extraordinarily unique but damned profitable, as well. Hear him out, my friends. Hear him out. We have come up with an excellent idea for the new Landmark Mall complex…one which has never been used anywhere in this country before…so what if we give the public something to really go crazy over? We have many, many people here in the Metroplex area of Atlanta who travel

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half-way around the world to be entertained by the likes of whom would beat a path to the doors of such an institution as Carlo has proposed. He may have stumbled up on a gold mine here. Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt and listen to what he has to say without giving him such a hassle. Settle down fellows, and lend an ear to our good doctor here. Go on Carlo…let’s hear more of your remarkable idea.” The next few weeks were more than agonizingly busy for Carlo as the Board had assigned him the job of doing further research on the proposed project. He informed the hospital that he would be taking a three-month leave of absence and turned over most of his practice to Michael Burroughs. He kept his office open and retained his office staff on full pay. He worked out a program with them so that they could have time off from the office, rotating days and coming in later hours than normal so that they would not have to sit there day after day twiddling their thumbs. He suggested that they rework all of the filing and billing systems and that in itself, would keep them busy for weeks on end. He felt that all was well on the home front and that Dana wouldn’t be too upset about his traveling around on business, especially if he kept in fairly constant touch with her by phone. Dana was indeed wrapped up in the care of Alana and trying to complete her studies for her BA degree in nursing. She was not too pleased with the news that Carlo would be on the road so much for the next few months but she felt that this would give her ample time to get in as much studying as possible. After all, she was nearing the completion of her studies. So far, she had managed to keep the secret from Carlo. That had been a rather easy accomplishment as he was so busy and occupied himself, he hardly recognized the fact that she was not always at home playing the dutiful wife and mother. On a couple of occasions Dana had run into Doug Prentiss, a fellow colleague of Carlo’s in the hospital dining room. She had tried to avoid an actual confrontation with him for she knew his reputation as a womanizer. As she was leaving the hospital late one evening

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while Carlo was out of town, Doug caught up with her in the parking area. “Well now my pretty miss, what are you doing over here in this neck of the woods by yourself and so late at night?” he said as he reached for her elbow. “I can’t imagine you visiting anyone over here in this hospital. It’s for indigent and lower class patients…you know, a teaching hospital,” he said sarcastically. “Not that it’s any of your business Doug, but Carlo asked me to bring some documents over here for him and I got tied up doing some volunteer work for a friend of mine who couldn’t make her shift,” Dana lied. “You can let go of my arm now, if you don’t mind. I am quite capable of making it down the stairs on my own.” “Oh, I wouldn’t want you to stumble and fall, my dear. Carlo would cream my skull if I let anything happen to his precious, beautiful, beloved Dana.” the man said smugly. “I’ll escort you to your car. May I help you with those books?” Dana had both arms loaded with her purse and several books she had gotten from the hospital library so she could not do anything to protect herself other than turning her body away from him thus pulling her elbow out of his grasp. “No thanks. My car is just over there by that post and I really don’t need any help. I’ll be fine. You have a good night Doug, and oh yes…be sure to tell your wife I said hello.” As Dana walked away from the man, she could feel his eyes penetrating her back. She shivered and tried to act as nonchalant as possible. Thoughts of another night and another man lurking in the shadows came swirling back into her consciousness. Her hands were visibly shaking as she drew her keys from her coat pocket and tried nervously to unlock the car door. All of a sudden the books slid from her arms and fell to the pavement…the sound echoing throughout the parking area. Before she could gather them up again, Doug was beside her. As he picked up two of the books and put them up on the top of the car, he circled Dana’s body, pinning her arms down and

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drew her to him. She was too frightened to scream but muttered through clenched teeth, “If you don’t let me go, I swear I’ll tell Carlo about this and he will kill you. He is an extremely jealous man and has the temper of a rabid lion. He will tear you to shreds, Doug. Let me go, god damn it! Let me go!” Suddenly, the man loosened his grip on Dana and stepped back. “I’ll let you go Dana, not because I’m afraid of your threat to tell Carlo but because I respect a gal with as much spunk as you have. There will be another time, my dear. Another time.” With that remark still lingering in her ears, Dana opened the door, crawled in, started the motor and drove off as fast as she could, books flying everywhere. When she got home, she was shaking so violently, she could hardly unlock the front door. Shannon heard her enter and came ambling out of the den. She took one look at Dana and realized something awful had happened. “You look like hell! What in the be-thunder happened to you?” “That son-of-a-bitch Doug Prentiss followed me to the parking lot and accosted me. He pinned my arms down to my side and tried to kiss me. I threatened to tell Carlo if he didn’t let me go. Guess he believed me so he released his hold on me. That dirty bastard!! He has the reputation of trying to put the make on everything that wears a skirt at all of the hospitals in the county. Shades of de ja vu’! I could smell the rancid liquor breath and feel the terror of the night Jed attacked me. I could just imagine what that stupid idiot had in mind, but I’m not so sure he would have carried out his intentions. Tis said he’s all talk but one never knows. God forbid Carlo ever learns of this night!” Dana said as she sank down into the chaise near the fire. She was still shaking so hard, her teeth were chattering. “Hey, come on sweetie…you are going to tell Carlo about this incident, aren’t you? You have to tell him so that a stop can be put to this man’s craziness. One of these days, he’s liable to carry through

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with his cravings and really molest and rape some poor gal. I’d tell him if I were you,” Shannon said adamantly. “No, I’m not going to tell him…this time. But if it ever happens again, God forbid, I’ll certainly tell him and let Doug suffer the consequences!” “Be damned later! I think you should tell him this time,” Shannon pleaded. “No! But I do intend to spread the word in the medical community that he is reported to have attacked someone…never mind who. When his wife gets the word, he’ll get his just desserts, never fear!” Dana said half smiling.

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arlo walked into the room where Dana lay still in a deep sleep. He sat down beside her and took her hand in his. He sat there in silence for several minutes before saying anything. Whenever he came to see her, he tried to talk to her as if she could hear his every word and as if he expected her to answer him and carry on a conversation. He often imagined in his mind how he would react whenever she did awaken. Would she be receptive to his advances and suggestions that they forget all past grievances and try to rebuild a life together or would she reject him? He knew that the most important factor in this situation was to restore her to her full health and potential for living a normal life and he knew that it would take several months for her to rehabilitate herself physically. Perhaps they could use this time to start to rebuild their relationship if she were willing. He had kept in touch with Dana through the past after their divorce because of their child Alana but he had not tried to win her back as his wife for she had been so adamant about ever trying anything of the sort because she had been so crushed and hurt by the memories of their separation and ultimate split up. He knew in his heart that he had always loved and adored this precious soul now - 276 -

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lying here in front of him. She was so still and so helpless. His pride had won out back then and it made him refrain from making any overtures toward a reconciliation for fear that she would reject him…again. He pondered over the prospect of now exposing his and her feelings with the fear of her not responding in the manner in which he hoped for. What would he do if she refused to listen to his pleas? Every time the two of them had come together for a meeting, Carlo had tried desperately to read the look in Dana’s eyes for he knew that her feelings had always spilled forth from those beautiful, blue orbs. Most of the time, she tried to avoid direct eye-to-eye contact and each time, she had managed to keep the conversations between the two of them light and airy. He had agreed that she would have full and responsible custody of Alana so that Dana would not feel that she had to contact him for any decision making as far as the child was concerned. Carlo had finally admitted to himself that he had not been as receptive to the child as he had originally hoped that he would be for he felt almost from the birth of Alana that she represented the threat of a wedge between him and the woman he had loved more than life itself. As he sat stroking Dana’s arm and hand, he fought a raging battle within himself not to rise from the chair and flee from the room. He had within the last few days begun to finally accept the knowledge that he had acted like an absolute ass the last few years they had been married. He had realized that the more time he had devoted to his endeavors with Evans Corporation International, the larger the chasm grew between him and Dana and as a result, the more time she spent with the child. However, he felt devastated after the NASA incident and he had poured himself into the business because that was the only way he could live and deal with the profound guilt, pain and anguish it had created within him. The two of them had continued to socialize frequently during that time and no one was ever the wiser as to the problems that lurked

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behind their closed doors. For all practical purposes and to everyone’s observance, their marriage was still one indeed, made in Heaven. However, the time spent at home with Dana and Alana became less and less frequent for Carlo, due to the fact that he had taken it upon himself to do a lot of the traveling himself for the company. He did not trust anyone else to secure and close the deals for the company that involved millions and millions of dollars. He felt that he had to do it all himself and then let the members of the Board fill in as needed. He became known as the ‘One Man Company’in the real estate and land business in the Atlanta and surrounding areas. Subsequently, he became so popular for his knowledge, finesse and expertise in handling extremely difficult business dealings and arrangements, he was constantly called upon to give advice that would ultimately save exorbitant amounts of time and money for his company as well as many others. Needless to say, his medical practice suffered as a result of time spent away with his other interests. Dana was extremely hurt and disappointed over the prospect of her husband giving up the medical field altogether. Many a heated argument ensued whenever the subject was broached between them. Mostly Dana learned of Carlo’s deals and involvement with things other than medical, from her friends and Carlo’s fellow constituents. He became more and more evasive for he knew that it offended her for him to bring up the subject of business matters if it involved things other than his surgical practice. The opening of the door and the entrance of the nurse, Belinda Jacobs, rocked Carlo from his reverie. He sat quietly as he observed her checking the instruments that automatically recorded Dana’s vital signs. She nodded to him but did not speak. He continued to watch as she gingerly rearranged the coverlet over Dana’s still body and then took a glycerin swab and tenderly and meticulously cleaned her patient’s inner lips. She then took another swab dipped in Vaseline and covered Dana’s lips with the greasy ointment.

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“I try to keep her lips well greased so that they don’t become parched, dry and blistered,” she said as she turned to face the doctor sitting beside the bed. “I also come in to turn her every hour instead of every two for I if I do this, she won’t develop any decubutous ulcers or hot spots. I’ve seen some pretty ugly ones in my day and they are extremely difficult to heal, as you know,” Miss Jacobs added. “Yes, I know and we really appreciate the extra care you give to Ms. Evans. Thank you so much for your concern.” The nurse quietly left the room and as she closed the door, she smiled to herself as if reflecting on some inner contentment. Carlo rose from the chair, walked to the other side of the bed, leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on Dana’s forehead. “Wake, my precious. Wake…there is much left for you to do here on this earth. I know you would make a fabulous Angel but we need you here for a while yet and I promise that I will do everything in my power to make it all up to you. I have indeed been a fool and an asshole and never again will I put myself or other things before you, Alana and your needs. If it is within my power, I will make the remainder of your days happy and wonderfully eventful. I love you Dana! I never before knew the true meaning of the word but, believe me…I do now. Please come back to me…don’t go away and leave me again. I need you so desperately. Please! Please…wait to be my Angel! Be my beloved here on this earth-plane for a while yet!” With tears streaming from his face, he reached to touch his cheek for he felt as though something had fluttered across it as he spoke to Dana.

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Remembering Again

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hawn called Carlo a couple of months later to announce that the space flight was to lift off right on schedule with him aboard. He refrained from going into lengthy details for most of them were classified and he wasn’t at liberty to discuss them. He asked if he had his and Dana’s permission to come for a weekend visit. He wanted to see his little sister again and this would be a golden opportunity to do so. “Hey son! You bet you have our permission to come for a visit but you know you’re welcome any time you can get away and you certainly don’t have to ask. Our house is your house and there’s always a spare room waiting for you.” “I’m so thrilled that Shawn is coming for a visit,” Dana said as she laid Alana down for a nap. “I think his coming will alleviate those fears you’ve been harboring for so long. You know this is his chosen field and he loves every minute he spends working on the project whether it be on the ground or up in space. It’s his passion and reason for living right now.” “I only wish he would find a nice young lady to settle down with sometime soon for I think that’s the only way he would give up this nonsense about traipsing around up in the beyond. Some young

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thing could persuade him to keep his two feet planted securely on the old terra firma,” Carlo said wearily. “Oh Gian Carlo, I’m sure he dates lots of lovely young ladies and is having the time of his life right now. As handsome as he is, he could have the choice of most any young lady out there. All young women are attracted to an officer and a gentleman and he certainly fills out his flight suit nicely,” Dana joked. ‘Even I like the looks of a fella from the rear view in a snappy flight suit,’ she thought to herself She knew better than to voice her thoughts on that subject. “He feels there’s still too much he wants to do on his own before he settles down and has a family.” “I know he’ll be glad to see Alana now that she’s taking steps and trying to talk a little bit,” Carlo said after peeking in on the sleeping child. “I know she only says Mama and Da-da but the other gibberish is mighty cute too. She’ll charm him right away as she does everybody that sees her. I think she’ll be talking early for you read to her all the time and are constantly talking to her, telling her nursery rhymes and stories. You’re a wonderful mother Dana, you know that.” “Oh p-shaw! You just say that because you know it’s true!’ Dana quipped. The weekend came around and Carlo called at the last minute to ask Dana if she would meet Shawn at the airport. He advised her that something very important had come up and he was unable to leave the office. In a way Dana was looking forward to and glad to have the time alone with Shawn so that she could relate Carlo’s fears to him before he had to face his father. After explaining the situation to her stepson, Dana asked him to try to allay any unnecessary fears in his father’s mind if he possibly could. “Dana, you know as well as Dad and I do that there is always the possibility that something could go wrong up there but it certainly isn’t very likely. Every possible precaution is taken before blast-off to

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assure the safety of the shuttle and it’s crew. I’ll admit I’m always a bit nervous myself but the odds of anything happening as before are ridiculously low so there’s really no need for Dad to worry so. I’ll agree that this is entirely out of character for him. It’s only natural for parents and spouses to worry somewhat but to be unduly concerned as he seems to be, is not. I’ll try my damnest to mitigate his fears,” Shawn said as he reached over and patted Dana’s hand. Later as Carlo walked in the front door, he could hear sounds of laughter emanating from the den. He found Dana, Shawn and Alana playing with the tot’s toys on the carpet before the fireplace. The three of them seemed to be having a ball and he beamed with pride as he watched silently from the doorway. After a few short minutes he yelled, “Hey what’s going on here? It sounds as though the three of you are having a heck of a good time. Mind if I join the party?” Shawn jumped up from the floor and walked toward his father. Instead of holding out his hand, he enveloped the older man in a big bear hug. “Gosh Dad, am I glad to see you!” “Not nearly as glad as I am to see you, son.” Carlo said grinning. “It’s been much too long since you last visited us. Just look how big your little sister is getting…she reaches your crotch already! I think she’s going to be a tall one, that girl” “Well I’ll tell you one thing…you’re going to have to get out the trusty old shotgun whenever she gets old enough to date for unless I miss my guess…she’s going to be a real knock-out and you and Dana will have to fight the boys away from her!” Shawn said as he picked Alana up and swung her around the room. The child squealed with delight as she was tossed up into the air. Dana tried to take Alana from Shawn but the small child would not let go of her older brother…much to his delight. “Bed time for you, my little punkin. Come on Shawn, you can carry her into the nursery since she won’t let me take her,” Dana giggled.

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“I think she likes you, Shawn! You’ve made quite a hit with her. She’s rather particular whom she lets hold her but looks as though you’ve really captivated her.” Carlo said with a big smile on his face. He liked the looks of his two offspring cavorting around together. ‘Wish he could stay on here forever!’ he thought to himself sadly as he watched the three leave the room. “Hurry back, Shawn. I’m anxious to visit with you a little before we have to go to bed ourselves.” Carlo had taken the entire weekend off and intended to spend every minute of it talking to and visiting with his son. That old miserable, ominous feeling haunted him every time he looked at Shawn and he fought with himself to hide it. The night before Shawn was to leave for the NASA space station in California, Carlo asked that the two of them spend some time alone after dinner. Dana wrapped Alana in a heavy sweater, corduroy pants and some earmuffs and took her out for a stroll around the grounds. The brisk air turned the two girls’ cheeks crimson red and their breaths made misty trails from their lips when they spoke. Dana loved this time of day, dusk actually, for it was reminiscent of days gone by when she and Carlo first began to see each other. They had enjoyed early evening walks, holding hands and planning for their future together. Those had been happy times and she always smiled whenever she thought of them. They had both thought that they had so many more happy times to share but lately she had begun to worry and wonder whether or not happy times would continue to flow for the two of them. Carlo offered Shawn a brandy and the two of them settled down in comfortable chairs so that they could talk a bit now that the girls were out for their stroll. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you for quite some time now Shawn, but I rather dreaded to broach the subject for fear of upsetting you,” the older man began.

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“I can’t imagine what has you so upset Dad, but whatever it is, I’m here to listen to you and help you resolve the problem…if there is one,” Shawn answered softly. “I know I probably shouldn’t even mention this absurdity to you but I feel very strongly that I should get it off my chest for it has been weighing me down ever since you were received into the space program.” “Oh…I think I see where this is going Dad and believe me, you have no reason to be afraid of these missions. Every possible caution is taken to assure our safety. Besides, this is totally out of character for you. You are usually not afraid of the devil himself. What’s the problem here, if I may ask?” “Actually I can’t put my finger directly on the problem myself but I haven’t been able to shake this miserable feeling . I have always been able to confront any problem that arises head-on, but most of them don’t involve situations of this magnitude…or involve someone who is so closely related to me. You know yourself that I am as proud as a peacock of you and your accomplishments in the space program and I and I know that eventually you will make quite a name for yourself. You will probably go down in the history books but…” “Look Dad, I know you are concerned and anxious about me flying off into space and the unknown, but life itself is a challenge and we never know what may happen to any of us today, tomorrow or the next year for that matter. This is something I know in my heart that I am destined to do and nothing will change my mind or my attitude about the flight or the program. Someone has to be the explorer into the unknown for the future of our planet and the universe and I’m damned proud to have been selected to take part in this particular mission for I feel that it will help to pass on facts that will benefit all of humanity. Please don’t worry about me. I’ll be perfectly all right up there…not to worry!” Shawn raised his glass toward his father and flashed a huge smile as he drew the brandy glass to his mouth.

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Carlo raised his glass toward his son but deep inside the pit of his stomach, a huge knot began to form and he found it extremely difficult to assume the attitude that all was well.

chapter 48 s

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hawn spent the week before the scheduled flight taking care of last minute arrangements regarding his personal affairs. He packed the necessary clothing he would need for the three days prior to take-off, called and cancelled the newspaper for a week and a half and made sure that the answering machine tape was empty. He had talked the lady next door into keeping Leo the cat, and had stocked her pantry with all kinds of goodies for his feline friend. His last night in the apartment was spent making sure that all of the appliances were turned off and that the AC gauge was set at the proper setting to maintain a comfortable temp for the duration of his time away from home. He had grown very fond of his apartment and had decorated it in the fashion becoming a single young man. It was a fitting setting for a bachelor. The apartment was located on the north side of Houston in a rather posh neighborhood. He had very carefully selected a unit on the 4th floor so that he could take advantage of the view of the man-made lake in front of the complex and he had a clear, unobstructed view of the sky above. He had spent many an hour sitting in a sling swing out on the balcony looking dreamily at the moon every time it was approaching full, then through the full phase and when it was on the wane. He had hoped that one day he would be able to make the flight that would take another crew there but so far, none had been planned. There were too many avenues - 286 -

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that needed to be explored first before another manned landing expedition on the moon. Shawn’s upcoming space flight, known as the Galaxy II, was to be one in which special techniques would be studied in regards to extended periods of time in outer space without having to be hampered by or encumbered with heavy, bulky space suits or lines. One day in the not too distant future, man would be traveling out into space to other inhabitable planets and would have to find ways to move around and function without bulky clothing and outer gear. It was extremely necessary at this point in time to wear oxygenated space attire that would allow one to move about attached to an umbilical mechanism which not only provided oxygen to breathe but allowed one the freedom to perform the work and studies designated on the flight. All of the materials had been tested and retested in the laboratories already and were checked out to the nth degree before being allowed the final actual flight testing. The use of the space helmets was mandatory while in the lift-off position but once aloft and the rockets were jettisoned, the crew members were allowed to remove them and breathe on their own in the cockpit of the shuttle. Shawn was always relieved when he could remove the heavy helmet for he suffered slightly from claustrophobia. Much to his surprise, he had been able to successfully conceal this from everyone and so far, so good. At this point, he considered himself quite a good actor in order to pull this off. Had it been discovered, he would have had to leave the program. He had always been so engrossed in his job and the pursuing of the tasks at hand, that he had not acknowledged even to himself that this was a problem or a possibility. The other five members of the crew had been as carefully selected as Shawn for their expertise in their given fields. The Commander, Nathan Siers 42, Col., USAF would serve as Commander of the Galaxy II. He had been selected as an astronaut in June of 1986. He calls Detroit, Michigan his hometown. Siers flew

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his first mission as a mission specialist on a trip launched in May of 1990 to deploy communications satellites. Siers next served as Pilot on a trip launched in October of 1991. Charles Kason 40, Lt. Col., USMC, would serve as the Pilot. He had entered the program in August of 1988 and this was to be his second flight. His hometown is Pensacola, FL. He graduated from the Navy Test Pilot School in 1987 and was assigned as project officer and test pilot in the F-104, A-4 and OV-10 airplanes with the Systems Engineering Test Directorate at the Naval Air Test Center. He had logged many hours in 39 different aircraft. Robert Jernigan, 41, Lt. Col., USAF, would serve as Mission Specialist I (MS I). He had been selected as an astronaut in April 1989 and he considers Baltimore, MD his hometown. His first space flight had been in October 1991 from which he had performed two 4-hour space walks to demonstrate space construction techniques. Justin Andrews 40, would serve as Mission Specialist II(MS2). He became an astronaut in May 1990 and this would be his first flight into space. His hometown is Columbus OH. He received a Bachelor of Arts in physics from Yale University in 1980 and received a Doctorate in physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1985. He joined NASA in 1988 and worked in the Earth and Space Sciences Division of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Grace Lanier 38, the only woman on the flight, would serve as Mission Specialist III (MS3). She had entered the NASA Astronaut program in 1989. Lanier was born in Santa Fe, NM. She received a Bachelor of Science in mathematics and physics from Duke University and then went on to receive a Master of Science and Doctorate in physics from the University of Colorado. She first worked for NASA in the Payload Operations Division at the Johnson Space Center as a payloads officer and flight controller. She was an accomplished pilot. Carlo and Dana had been invited down to Cape Kennedy to observe and watch the lift-off of the Shuttle that would carry Shawn and his fellow crewmembers into outer space. They had arrived the

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morning prior to the launch and had only been able to communicate with Shawn by phone as he was in quarantine with the others so that they could not be exposed to any germs before the flight. After lunch, Carlo suggested to Dana that they take a short tour of the Center so that they could further familiarize themselves with the program. This had taken four hours and an early dinner had taken another two. “I think it’s time for us to go over to the flight line to say our goodnights and bon voyages to Shawn, Carlo,” Dana said to her husband who was standing at the window of their hotel room looking up toward the heavens. When they arrived, the other family members who had come to say goodnight to their husbands and fathers were already standing behind the ropes that separated them from the crewmembers. The roadway presented an additional barrier and then there was another rope on the other side behind which, the crew stood so that they could get a good view of their loved ones. Words of encouragement and love were exchanged from both sides. There was a lot of joking and laughter going on as the children talked and bantered back and forth with their fathers. Dana kept up a light banter between herself and Shawn but Carlo was unusually quiet. The old feeling had managed to creep into his heart and thoughts and he couldn’t shake it no matter how hard he tried. Finally, when he realized that the time was running out for their visit, he managed to face his son from across the barrier and speak to him in a rather low, somber voice. “Well son, I guess we should call it a night for we know you have to be up before sunrise in order for the launch to catch its’ window of opportunity. We’d better get some shut-eye also for we want to be able to get out to the reviewing area early to get a good seat.” Carlo hesitated for a brief time before he continued his conversation with his eldest son. After clearing his throat for the third time, he continued by saying, “Shawn, you know that expressing my emotions is not

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one of my long suits, but I want you to know that I am extremely proud of you. You have turned out to be an exceptional young man in every way, one any father would be proud to say…’that’s my son!’ Know that I love you very, very much and as we watch the dailies, I will be saying many, many times, ‘that’s my son up there and I’m very proud of him!’ Take care, my boy! We’ll be in California to welcome you back in ten days.” With that remark, Carlo put his arm around his wife and watched silently as Shawn and the other members of the crew boarded the bus to go back to the barracks. From his window in the rear of the bus, Shawn looked at his father one more time and gave the ‘thumbs up’ gesture, smiled, put his clenched fist over his heart and nodded his love for the older man to see.








The sequence of complex, interrelated steps involved in producing the detailed schedule and supporting logistics necessary for a successful mission always requires intense effort and close coordination by all involved. Sometimes at the last minute, changes are found to be necessary because of weather or changes in payloads. When the series of payload changes were complete for this particular flight, the Galaxy II cargo included three satellites in the cargo bay and equipment in the crew compartment for the experiments that would be carried out during the mission. The primary payloads were the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (a NASA communications satellite and a Spartan satellite that would be deployed into orbit carrying special instruments for the observation of comets and the nearest planets). The NASA communications satellite would be placed in an orbit with the aid of a booster called the Inertial Upper Stage. The satellite would support communications with the Space Shuttle and other spacecraft. The Spartan satellite would be deployed into low Earth orbit using the remote manipulation system. The Spartan instruments would watch and monitor comets to

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see if they got too close to the Sun for other observatories to do so. Subsequently, the satellite would be retrieved and returned to Earth in the Shuttle payload bay. The primary space suits, uniforms, headgear and instruments needed for the experiments for future space orbits were stowed in the overhead compartments of the shuttle and would not be put into use until the fourth day of the orbit. Shawn’s position up until that point of the trip was to be of service and help to the other crewmembers in any way possible. He was lovingly dubbed ‘the go-fer’ for he would be sent from one end of the space craft to the other by all crew members to fetch needed instruments and gear and deliver them to their subsequent user, floating all the way weightlessly. The launch had gone smoothly and without a single hitch. Once aloft, the five men and one woman unstrapped themselves from their seats, removed their helmets and floated toward their perspective stations without saying a word. They were all listening to the instructions being given by NASA control at the Houston Space Center. Once the speaker silenced himself for a few brief moments, they all gave a shout of joy for the trip was on schedule after having to endure two stalled delays to accommodate the necessary changes in the payloads. From here on out, it would be work and no play. They each in turn, settled down to the business at hand. After being assured that the launch had been successful in every way, Carlo and Dana returned to their hotel room to relax into the realization that all had gone well and everything looked good. Long after Dana had fallen asleep that night, Carlo laid awake tossing and turning for he was still haunted by the feeling that Shawn was in imminent danger.

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ork had gone well the first three days of the flight and everything had gone according to the planned schedule. Shawn had spent his time helping his fellow crewmembers perform their tasks and was anxiously awaiting his time to work on his experiments outside the module. The night before he was scheduled to travel outside, he didn’t sleep as well as he had thought he would. He laid awake for several hours wondering if he was going to be able to handle his job as well as he had imagined himself doing. He felt fully prepared and kept going over the procedures in his mind time after time until sleep finally overcame him. Shawn awoke as Grace gently shook him and for a moment or two, he couldn’t remember where he was. When he had finally dropped off to sleep, he had slept exceptionally hard and felt rather groggy when he awakened. He unstrapped himself from his bed and went about the morning’s toiletries, ate a bite of breakfast, catching the morsels in his mouth as they floated out of the plastic bags. As he was going to be outside in space for three hours, he didn’t want to fill his belly with too much food. He was in such a state of excitement over the prospect of walking out into the unknown, he wasn’t very hungry anyway. “Well ole fellow, are you ready to take your place in history?” Commander Siers asked. - 292 -

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“Yes sir, thank you. I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” Shawn replied. Rob Jernigan rolled out the pack with the new space walk equipment and clothing in it and placed it near the younger man. “I’ll help you get into this rig, Shawn. Sure do wish they had come up with this new stuff when I had my last walk out there. Seems to me it would have made getting around a hell-of-a-lot simpler. The old suits are so bungle-some and make you feel so awkward. Your trip outside should be a snap with this rig. Only thing that appears to be a bit of a bother is the umbilical line but that’s a necessary evil, huh?” “Yep. Guess the big boys couldn’t figure out a way to do away with that thing at the present time but I would imagine later on, even that item will be a thing of the past.” “From the looks of things Shawn, the new suit fits you to a tee. Obviously they didn’t let you get off the prescribed food schedule they had you on for it looks to me like you haven’t put on a single pound since they first fitted it to you,” Grace laughingly said. “Yeah. I was beginning to think I was never going to be able to eat another regular meal. I’m more or less a meat and potatoes man myself, and all those fruits and veggies I was having to eat just didn’t quite hack it as far as my poor ole stomach was concerned. I’ll sure be glad when this mission is over and I can pig out to my hearts content,” Shawn laughed. Commander Siers announced that all was ready and the three mission specialists followed behind Shawn as he made his way up the tube leading to the doorway he would exit to the outside of the shuttle. “Houston, we are ready to open the hatch to place our man out into space. Ready here.” Commander Siers said into the headphone. “Roger Galaxy. We copy. Good luck Major Evans. We’re pulling for you. Have a good walk.” Shawn glided into the tube and gave a thumbs-up sign to Grace and the other two as they closed the door behind him. He reached out to his left and pushed the lever that would open the outside

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hatch for him. As it slid open, he took a deep breath and exited the module. For as far as he could see, there was nothing out there but blackness. It took a few minutes for his eyes to adjust and then he could see the reflection of the sun on the earth in the far distance. He could see the earth and the high-flying clouds above it. Soon it was gone from his view and he turned to the work at hand. He moved about easily in the new gear and had no problem breathing the oxygen being pumped through the new lines. He was asked to perform several maneuvers that consisted of reaching, bending and stretching to see if the fabrics were as flexible as they were intended to be. He found that the gloves were far more flexible than the older ones had been and he had no trouble holding the instruments attached to his belt. ‘So far, so good,’ Shawn thought to himself as he went through the routine he had practiced back in the lab. ‘This is a piece of cake!’ For two and a half hours, the experiment went according to plan and Shawn had been intent on doing every scheduled test as he had learned to do before launch. He carried on a conversation with the other crew members that were trying to help him pass the allotted time a little more quickly. He laughingly told them that he was going to take a further walk around the front of the module so that they could get a better view of him. “Roger, Major. Don’t stray too far for your air won’t last much longer and you will have to make your way back to the entrance door,” Col. Siers told him. Shawn had already floated several feet from the module when all of a sudden, the thought occurred to him that his air was timed and would only last so long. This thought triggered his claustrophobia and he began to feel slightly smothered. His breathing became more rapid and his pulse rate quickened. “Major Evans…are you all right? We’re showing your vital signs are changing here on the monitor. What’s going on out there?” Houston asked.

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“I…I don’t know. I feel a little weak and I’m having a bit of trouble breathing.” Shawn began to flounder around and drift further away from the craft. His arms were flailing and he tried to reach up to his facemask as if he wanted to yank it off. “What in the hell is going on out there?” Siers shouted to the others as they congregated around the window on the side of the ship that Shawn had departed from. “Evans, get back here ASAP! You’re drifting away from the ship and we can hardly see you. Get back here!” Col. Kason demanded. Shawn was breathing so hard, he broke out in a sweat which fogged up his facemask. “I can’t breathe…I can’t breathe, damn it! And now I can’t see…my mask is all fogged up. Do something damnit! Oh, God help me…I can’t find my way back to the ship.” “Shawn, calm down and try to breathe normally,” Grace pleaded with him. “You’re going to be all right. We can see you from the window. Turn yourself around and grab hold of the line. You can pull yourself back to the ship with it. It’s right behind you…just turn around and grab it!” “My God…he’s turning the wrong way and he’s flailing around so, he’s going to disconnect the lifeline from himself if he isn’t careful!” Siers told the others. “What in the hell is wrong with him? I’ve never seen him act like this before. It’s as though he’s not getting enough air. Houston…is there a problem with his air?” “That’s a negative, Galaxy. Everything appears to be normal on this end. We show no changes other than his vital signs are increased but that’s not caused by lack of air. Check your gauges on that end.” “My God! He’s pulling himself further away from the craft! Evans, can you hear me? For God’s sake man, turn around and head back to the ship this instant. Turn around, man! Turn around,” Jernigan shouted into the mike. The panic had set in and Shawn had all but forgotten how to do anything but struggle to pull some air into his bursting lungs. He felt as though the mask was closing in on him and cutting off all of his

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air. He felt as though he would suffocate unless he could remove the mask and headgear. He reached for and grabbed the entire helmet, twisting it with all of his might. It gave a little and as it did, the tubing on the umbilical line slightly tore loose from his flight suit. As he struggled, twisted and turned, the line tore completely free of the suit. There was nothing holding the frightened young man to the spacecraft and he slowly began to float away further out into space. “Oh my God! No! No! No!” Grace screamed. “We’ve lost him! Do something! We can’t just let him float away. Do something, god damnit!! “There’s nothing we can do, Grace. Nothing.” Commander Siers said in a strained voice as he and the others watched helplessly as Shawn drifted out of sight. “Houston…We’re down one man. Request permission to cut short the mission and return to Center.” “Permission granted, Galaxy. Abort remainder of mission and head for home.”








Reentry took place with no one on board saying anything other than the required conversation to get them back to Center at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The Shuttle landed with no problems and as soon as the craft rolled to a stop, the crew emerged silently with heads bowed. They filed into the waiting vehicles that would take them to the debriefing center so that they could file their individual reports of the accident. News of the accident was on all of the networks and Dana had heard it on the radio as she was driving home from the grocery store. She flew into the house and immediately called Carlo at the office. His receptionist told her that Carlo had already heard the news on the TV in his office. “Mrs. Evans, I think you had better get down here as soon as possible for he seems to be in shock. He’s sitting in front of the TV

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set…just sitting there. I’ve tried to talk to him but he acts as though he doesn’t hear me or see me. Please hurry! He needs you here,” she sobbed. Dana was crying so hard, she could hardly see the road ahead of her as she swung the car around and headed toward the Towers and Carlo’s office. By the time she arrived there, Michael and George were already in the office with Carlo. The news had spread like wildfire in the hospital and they had rushed from there over to Carlo’s office. Both of them were trying to get him to speak but he just looked blankly at them. “Oh my darling,” Dana said as she rushed into the room and ran over to the still form of her husband sitting in front of the TV set. She knelt in front of him and reached to take him into her arms. He crumpled toward her and started to whimper. “I knew something like this was going to happen. I just knew it. I’ve had this terrible ominous feeling ever since Shawn told me he was going into the program. Oh God! Why did this have to happen to my boy? Why? Why?” Carlo shouted, shaking his fist into the air. “Let’s get him up and I’ll drive the two of you home Dana,” George softly whispered to the young woman beside him. “I’ve already called Adaire and she will meet us there. I’m sure you will want someone to be there with you to help out with the baby. Carlo will need you by his side every minute for the next couple of days. Don’t worry about a thing. We’ll take care of everything so that you can be with him.” For two days, Carlo did nothing but sit in front of the TV set devouring every word that was said about his son’s flight into space and the horrible accident that followed. Somehow or other he was hoping against hope that there would be a way to recover Shawn’s body. He made call after call to the Houston Space Center trying to talk to anyone and everyone involved with the flight. There was no rest for anyone in the house for Carlo constantly demanded help from this one and that one. He would not give in to

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the fact that he was physically and emotionally exhausted and he was like a wild man in the way he paced the house. Dana tried to get him to go to bed to sleep for a couple of hours at least but he would have none of her suggestion. He would not admit to himself or any other that his son was gone from this earth forever. He just knew in his mind that there had to be a way to retrieve Shawn’s body. The government couldn’t just leave him to float out there forever. There had to be a way and he felt that he would find it somehow. The reality of the tragedy finally settled in and Carlo fell exhausted into bed. He slept fitfully, tossing and turning so hard that Dana had to bring in another bed to sleep in for he kept her awake. She knew that she would have to be rested and fit enough to take care of him. She would do her utmost to help her precious husband get over the loss of their beloved Shawn, even if it killed her. “Rest my darling. Rest. I’m right here beside you,” she whispered as she stroked her husband’s head. “Some how…we’ll get through this horrible ordeal.”

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ana lay awake into the wee hours of the morning trying to reconcile herself to the events that had transpired during the past two days. She knew that she and Carlo must come to grips with the tragedy that had exploded into their lives but the manner in which they were going to do this, evaded her. Thank God, Shannon had come to help out with Alana the night of the tragedy and had been with her ever since. She had gotten in touch with Ryan and her folks before she had finally lay down to rest that first night. She lay there trying to minimize the horror of the realization that Carlo’s most dreaded fear had actually taken place. Shawn was gone! Shawn was literally gone from this world! How in God’s name were they ever going to deal with the fact that he was not only dead…gone from their lives forever…but that in actuality, he was gone, literally…vanished into outer space…never to be found again? There would be no body to bury or to memorialize, which would mean, in all probability, no actual closure to his death for any of them. She feared the worst for her dearly beloved Carlo. He had been in a state of shock for the past two days, and as it looked right now, it appeared that he was not going to be able to handle this situation. Would he actually feel that his premonition had caused the accident? Would he feel responsible? How had he known that Shawn would die on this mission? She agonized over these thoughts and questions for hours - 299 -

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before finally falling asleep curled up in the extra bed beside Carlo’s bed. When she awakened a few hours later, Carlo’s bed was empty. She grabbed a robe from the closet, glanced into the bathroom and then flew down the stairs, running into Shannon on the way down. “Carlo, Carlo,” she yelled as she ran. “My God Dana! Where the hell are you running off to? You’re going to wake the baby with your shouting and I just got her down. She was awake most of the night, the poor dear. I think she senses that something dreadful has happened here.” “I’m so sorry Shannon but I’m looking for Carlo. He isn’t in our room, not in the bathroom and I’ve looked everywhere upstairs. Have you seen him?” Dana asked, short of breath “No, but I’ve only been down here for a few minutes. Come on, I’ll help you look for him. You go out towards the lake and I’ll look out by the pool and garage,” Shannon said as she turned and headed away from Dana. Dana ran as fast as her feet would carry her toward the lake and the boathouse. As she rounded the corner of the dock, she saw Carlo sitting, shoulders slumped, in the stern of the sailboat. As she approached him, she could hear him mumbling. “You always loved the water and the sailboat, Shawn. What good times we had sailing up and down this lake when you were a boy and what joy I derived out of teaching you to sail. On your next visit, we’ll have to take her out for a lengthy spin around the lake. How ‘bout that?…his voice trailed off as Dana approached him. “Oh my darling Gian Carlo,” Dana said as she slid down into the boat beside her grieving husband. She realized that Carlo was not really in the ‘here and the now’ but was lost in some other time element for he continued to talk to his dead son. She put her arms around him and gently pulled his head down onto her shoulder and she began to cry softly. “You must come up into the house, darling…it’s so cool out here in the morning mist. I know you are really hurting right now, my

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precious love. Somehow or other, we will get through this horrible time, I promise you.” At the sound of Dana’s voice, Carlo lifted his head from her shoulder and the first sign of recognition flickered into his eyes. He silently looked into her eyes and then his body began to shake violently and the tears began to stream down his unshaven face. “Oh Dana…please tell me it isn’t true…Shawn isn’t really gone, is he? Tell me that I have dreamed this horrible nightmare. There’s no way this terrible thing could have happened to my son. He’s still up there in the spacecraft and he’s O.K., isn’t he? Oh dear God! Please tell me this isn’t happening!” He pulled his wife closer into his arms and held onto her as though he would never let go, his own body wracked with the intense pain and realization of losing his son. The two of them cried, holding onto each other. The grief was almost too much to bear for both of them. Carlo suddenly drew back from Dana and began to shout at the top of his lungs. “I did this! I caused this to happen by thinking about it all of the time and by mentioning it to you and to Shawn. I drew this to him and to us by my negative thinking. What in the fucking hell was I thinking of? I should have kept these negative thoughts to myself. I should have pushed them out of my god damned mind like you told me to do. I should have kept my fucking mouth shut! I did this, Dana! I did this! Don’t you see that? How in the hell am I going to live with this for the rest of my life knowing that I caused this fucking, freak of an accident and that my son died because of me! The thought of him dying on this mission stuck in my mind from the first time I heard that he was going up and it never left me…not even for one god damned moment! It was etched in my brain and it wouldn’t go away. Don’t you see that I created this nightmare by thinking of it all the time?” Carlo repeated himself. “Oh no, Carlo, no! You didn’t create this in any way! That’s impossible and you know it! You mustn’t blame yourself nor let yourself think for one minute that you caused this. It’s a terrible trag-

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edy but you didn’t create it. It’s fate Carlo. It was simply Shawn’s time to go. We must believe that and hold onto the faith and the belief that all is in our Maker’s hands and in Divine Order. It’s all a part of His plan,” Dana said trying to console her husband. “To hell with all of that nonsense. I don’t believe in God anymore. There’s no way a good and loving God would do such a horrible thing to my son…He wouldn’t take him in that manner and not return him to us. Even if it was his time to go, and I don’t believe that for one god damned minute…he was too young! And besides, God shouldn’t have taken him away like that so that we couldn’t ever see his body again! That’s crazy! Absolute lunacy! You tell me how a good and just God could do that? How can we have a funeral without his body? How are we going to be able to tell him goodbye?” Carlo shouted into the still morning air. “How, how, how? Oh Shit Dana! I can’t take this! It’s maddening! I’ll go crazy if I have to live with this the rest of my life! His face became bright red all of a sudden as if he were going to explode. Dana knew that Carlo must vent his anger and his frustration over the situation so she let him rant and rave there on the boat dock. They remained out there in the damp, cool air until Ryan interrupted them an hour later. She saw her youngest stepson as he approached the dock. “Oh thank God you are here, Ryan!” Dana said as she ran up the hill and into his waiting arms. “I know this is extremely difficult for you too. I am so sorry about Shawn,” she moaned. They stood, holding on to each other and cried for a few minutes before Dana moved away from her stepson. She took him by the hand and led him down to the sailboat where his father sat with his head in his hands, sobbing. “Dad. Dad…it’s me…Ryan,” the young man said softly as he stepped into the boat. As he approached the older man, Carlo raised his head, jumped up and grabbed his son in a crushing bear hug.

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Neither of them was able to speak for several minutes. They just stood there holding on to each other. Finally the younger man removed himself from his father’s arms, gently helped the older man out of the boat, and then led him up the walk toward the house. The group that had gathered in the house watched the somber threesome make their way up the walk and into the screened-in porch. George and Adaire Rodgers, Michael and Connie Burroughs, Shannon’s husband Vincent and Rhonda Vickers had already arrived to help out in any way that they could as they had done for the previous two days before. Shannon had taken charge earlier and had taken it upon herself to designate chores and errands that needed to be taken care of. Dana’s parents, George and Peggy, had called to say that they, her sister and brother were on their way from Memphis and would arrive around mid-morning. They felt that they would have been intruding if they had come any earlier. “What in the world are they going to do? How are they going to be able to go through this? I don’t think I could stand it,” Connie asked the quiet group standing in the doorway. “They’ll get through it as best they can honey,” Michael said as he put his arm around his weeping wife. Ryan nodded to the others as he led Carlo up the stairs. Intuitively he knew that his father would not want to see anyone at this particular time. A few hours rest was in order now and then perhaps later, the older man would be able to see and greet the friends that would come to call. Right now was definitely not a good time for anyone to see him. He was visibly shaken and needed to be alone for a while. Plans needed to be made for some kind of service and Dana asked Shannon to call Jamie in Memphis to see if he was available to come to Atlanta for a few days. She knew intuitively that if anyone could reason with Carlo and have him make a little sense out of this catastrophe, Jamie could. She knew that Carlo would also want a chaplain from one of the branches of the service to take part in a service for

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Shawn. She felt certain that Carlo would want a military service with full honors for his son but he was in no shape at the moment to decide upon anything. The close friends who had gathered took it upon themselves to get into the kitchen, prepare some breakfast and then lunch snacks for later. The girls sat around the kitchen table and made a list of those people who needed to be called. Rhonda knew where Dana kept her little flowered fabric book with all of her important phone numbers in it and she fetched it from the desk in the breakfast room. “I think I should call the members of her birthday group for they will want to bring food for the next couple of days, I’m sure.” Later in the day, a call came through from the President himself and he spoke with Carlo for several minutes. President Clinton expressed his and Hillary’s sympathies and then advised Carlo that he would have his staff help to arrange plans for any kind of service the family desired. A special tribute was in order and they would be on call whenever needed, he was told. The President also stated that a full investigation would be made into the accident. Around four in the afternoon, members of Dana’s birthday group showed up with food enough to feed an army. Rhonda had done a good job in gathering them together for a little meeting to decide who would bring what and when. Sarah took it upon herself to take charge and she coordinated plans for meals to be brought in for the next few days. “Where do you want us to set up the food,” Monica asked when she entered the house through the back door. She was followed by Annette and her sister Susie II, Angela, D.J, Betty, Lydia, Denise and Susie I. Sarah had arrived earlier and was in the den talking to Dana when the other girls got there. When the two of them heard the familiar voices emanating from the kitchen, they got up from the couch and made their way into the cooking area. As they approached, all of the girls turned toward Dana and they began to cry in unison. They surrounded her and all hugged her at the same

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time. The friends had gone through many sad times in the past and all felt as though they were as close as sisters. “Oh thank you so much for coming,” Dana managed to get out between sobs. “I knew you all would come to be with us during our time of sadness.” “How is Carlo doing, Dana?” Annette finally stopped crying long enough to ask. “He’s still upstairs with Ryan, resting. He hasn’t come back down since this morning and he refuses to see anyone at all, not even George or Michael, his two closest friends.” Dana advised them. “They’ve been in and out here for the past two days and he doesn’t even remember that they were here. I never dreamt that he would fall into such a state but I suppose it’s sort of a defense mechanism to help ward off some of the pain. I actually don’t quite know how to handle this situation with him. All I can do is simply love him and let him know that I am here for him,” she said sadly. “I can’t possibly imagine the pain and heartache he must be feeling right now,” Susie I said. The others could only shake their heads in unison and agree with her. “Is there anything else that we can do for you and Carlo other than continue to bring food in for the next few days?’ Denise asked. “Just tell us what you want us to do, sweetie, and we’ll help in any way that we can.” “Gosh girls, I really don’t know what to tell you at the moment but I’m sure there will be several things that will need to be done during this next week but right now…I’m at a loss as to what. I’m having a hard time thinking right now, so please forgive me, if you will.” After they had all sat down at the kitchen table, Angela handed Dana a list of meals they had put together and when they would bring them to the house. “If we need to make any changes, just call us. I know you don’t have any idea at the time as to how many people will be staying here

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but we’ll make sure that there is always enough food to go around. That’s one thing you won’t have to worry about.” “Yes, and some of us will be here at each mealtime to help everyone get served,” Susie II said. “Bless you…I knew I could count on you guys. Thanks a million!” Dana said, looking around the room at each of her dear friends. “God bless you all!”

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ine days after the accident Dana, with the help of their close friends, arranged a memorial service for Major Shawn Edward Evans. It was a horrendous job but she knew that she had to take control for she knew in her heart that Carlo would not be able to help out in any way in the planning of Shawn’s memorial. The service was held in the new All Saints Episcopal Cathedral located at the corner of North Avenue and West Peachtree. Dana decided on this particular church because of its’ size and the fact that the Bishop would allow two ministers of other denominations to participate in the Celebration of Life ceremony. It was quite obvious that the church would be packed due to Dr. Evans popularity in the area. The chaplain from the U.S. Senate was sent down from Washington and Jamie Sanders, pastor of the large Unity Church in Memphis, came at Dana’s insistence. Many dignitaries from Washington, including the Secretary of Defense, the Armed Forces Chief of Staff, and of course, President and Mrs. Clinton, attended the somber service. The crew of the Galaxy II and their spouses arrived early so that they could spend some time alone with Shawn’s family prior to the service. Shawn’s mother Lacy, arrived the night before and called once she had settled in at her hotel. A close friend had traveled with her and would drive her to the church the following day. She was in no shape - 307 -

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to come out to the house upon her arrival. Dana insisted that Ryan ask his mother to sit with them at the church for she did not want her to feel left out in any way. It would be hard enough for all of them whenever they would get together later in the day of the memorial. As part of the service, President Clinton rose and offered a short eulogy to commend the brave, heroic efforts and achievements Shawn had garnered during his short career in the Air Force and the Space Program. His voice faltered and there were tears in his eyes as he spoke of the loss of one of America’s finest young astronauts. Carlo sat quietly in his seat with his head bowed during most of the program and only when the President spoke, did he raise his head and appear to be listening. As President Clinton ended his eulogy, eight members of the different branches of the military lowered the flag that had been on a pole beside the podium, folded it in unison, turned and handed it to the President. He walked solemnity over to Carlo and presented it to him in the name and memory of the young son who had given his life for his country. Ryan was on one side of Carlo and Dana on the other. Each of them held an arm of the father whose world had crumbled. ‘Oh please God…let him get through this day, please!’ Dana prayed to herself. One of the local high school bands played a beautiful rendition of Amazing Grace, as they marched up the center aisle. Every other one turned either to the left or the right so that the piece would be evenly heard in all areas of the sanctuary. The end of the rendition built to a gorgeous crescendo and then beautifully quieted slowly to the finish. When the church became quiet after the band exited, a drum began to tap out 21 single loud beats. There was a slight pause and then a bugler sounded Taps. At that time, there was not a dry eye anywhere in the sanctuary or anywhere over America for the service was presented live on television. Never before had an astronaut been lost in the manner in which Shawn had died. All America and over

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the world, the shock of such a tragedy would forever leave its’ mark on humankind. Family by family, the relatives departed and left Dana, Carlo, and Alana alone once more. It was eerie not to have any laughter or much conversation in their once happy dwelling but no one felt like doing either. It would take them quite some time to reach some semblance of normalcy after the trying ordeal they had just been through. Ryan had flown home with his mother for he felt that he was needed there during her time of grieving. He promised to come for another visit soon for he realized that his father would definitely need him to lean on for a while. Shannon asked if she could take Alana home with her for a few days but Dana refused her kind offer. “No, I think it best that we act as normal as possible around here and it will be good to hear the laughter and playfulness of a little one. It seems they can always brighten up a day and lighten anyone’s load. I think she will be better off here with her father and me. Thanks darling…I really appreciate all that you have done, Shannon. I couldn’t have gotten through this hell myself, if it hadn’t been for you. Now that it’s all over, I have to concentrate on helping Carlo accept that this has happened and that it isn’t his fault. In his own mind, he feels responsible in a crazy, ridiculous way. I only hope that I can make him see that he had nothing to do with it. Jamie’s going to come back this weekend to help me talk to Carlo. If I need you to help out then, I’ll call you…O.K.?” The first night in the house alone after the memorial, neither Dana nor Carlo managed to get any sleep. They lay in each other’s arms, not daring to be the first to speak. Dana could tell by the beating of Carlo’s heart as she lay on his shoulder that the tension had not subsided. She had tried several times during the last week or so to comfort him, to tell him how much she loved him, but it was as though he were in another world. She knew that he heard her speaking to him but either he didn’t care enough to respond or his pain

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was so intense, he couldn’t force any words from his mouth to offer any comfort to her. The rage that was building inside the poor man’s heart and soul would haunt them for years to come and neither could prevent it, no matter how hard they both tried. Jamie came to stay with them for a weekend and he spent hours on end trying to persuade Carlo to give up the preposterous idea that he was at fault, that he had caused the tragedy to happen to Shawn but Jamie might as well have been talking to the wall. Carlo would have no part in believing that it was Fate and an act of God. He felt entirely responsible for he had harbored the thought of Shawn’s freak accident and subsequent demise alive in his mind from the time Shawn entered the program until the day it all happened. He blamed himself for creating the horror in his own mind and therefore, he felt that he had drawn it to his son. No amount of trying to convince him otherwise worked or would ever work as far as he was concerned. He was to blame and that was all there was to it, he surmised. Carlo took a month off from his medical practice…which really didn’t make much difference for he was not practicing on a full time basis there anyway. He stayed away from his office at Landmark also. The board members called one by one to encourage him to get back to work but he paid no attention to their pleas. He felt as though he was detached from his body…he heard people talk, reacted to occurrences and conversations appropriately but he felt that he was not really there…that he was watching all of these things happening from somewhere above the situations. When Dana broached the subject of Carlo’s behavior to George and Michael, they told her that Carlo was suffering from severe, deep depression and that he needed to be on some medication. They offered him some Prozac or some Zoloft, both excellent drugs to fight depression for they knew better than to suggest that he see a shrink but he stubbornly refused to take anything. His bouts of silence and solitude came more and more frequently and he eventu-

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ally moved into another bedroom, using the excuse that he would keep her awake if he slept in the same bed with Dana. This course of action broke her heart for she felt that he was literally shutting her out in every way and would not allow her to help him heal. She felt the pain also but she knew that everything happens for a reason, there are no mistakes in this life and whatever transpires, one must accept it and get on with the act of living. Something good would eventually come out of Shawn’s accident…they may never know what or the answer to it but she knew that this was part of the ultimate plan. Often during the coming months and years, she would feel as though she were encircled in her Guardian Angel’s wings…that she was being protected and made strong for what was yet to come.

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arlo returned to work four weeks after the memorial service and at first, it was hard for him to concentrate on the issues at hand. It took six months for Carlo to return to a slight semblance of normalcy, both at the offices and at home. During that time, he would sit for hours looking out the window of his office and out into space. He, who had always been so out-going and quite the extrovert, became quiet and a bit sullen, rather introverted. He didn’t want to go anywhere but to the offices of both his businesses. He gave most of his patients to Michael for he feared that he would not be able to concentrate enough to perform any surgeries properly. He went about the daily routine procedures and unless one observed him for minutes at the time, one would never know that he was not the Carlo of old. But…to those who knew him best…he was very different. The gleam had gone out of his eyes and there was no lilt to his laughter…it was almost forced and false. His gait even changed a bit. He used to have an exorbitant amount of energy and seemed to bounce off the walls but now he appeared to have to drag himself about. For all practical purposes, he took on the look of an old man. Dana did her utmost to go about caring for Alana and her household duties in a normal manner but her heart was very heavy. It pained her deeply to see her beloved husband suffer the way he was suffering. She couldn’t seem to reach him no matter what she did. - 312 -

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He made the suggestion that he move back into their bedroom but that they change out the bed in their room for two twin beds. He explained to her that he wanted her in the same room but because of his fitful sleeping habits, he thought it best that they have separate beds. Of course, the game of mattress polo was never mentioned and she felt hurt and rejected in that respect. If only he would let her hold him, let her give him some comfort and some of her strength, perhaps his pain would lessen. Whenever she walked up to him to put her arms around him, he would step aside and start up some kind of shallow conversation, trying to act as though he didn’t know what her intentions were. She, George and Michael continued to encourage him to see a counselor but he adamantly refused. Ryan tried to persuade him several times but even he could not change Carlo’s feelings about obtaining some outside help. He denied that he had a serious problem; that he was seriously depressed and no amount of pleading from any of them would change his mind. Dana always managed to have a nice dinner prepared for Carlo when he returned home from the office every evening but he rarely ate the entire meal. He would only pick at whatever was on his plate, eat a smathering of it and leave the rest to be thrown away. Try as she would, Dana could not get him to eat properly and she worried that he would become ill. There was very little table talk and Alana’s chattering most always made him agitated. “Why don’t you try to have her in bed when I come home in the evenings?” Carlo asked Dana one evening at the dinner table. He used the excuse that she needed eight full hours of sleep a night in order to grow and stay healthy. “She gets an adequate amount of sleep Carlo, for she takes a long nap during the afternoon. She needs to spend some quality time with her father…that’s what she needs!” Dana told him. “Look darling, I know and understand that you are hurting and in a lot of pain still from Shawn’s accident but you have got to get hold of yourself. Don’t you understand that this child and I need you? You act as

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though we aren’t even here at times and you never pick Alana up and play with her any more. As badly as I hate to say this…Shawn is gone and nothing will ever bring him back. We are your family and we are here! You can’t just turn your back on us, forget about us and walk away. I hurt also for I loved that young man as if he were my very own. We had become good buddies and were getting along famously together. However, you and I must learn to put this horrendous accident in its’ proper perspective and get on with our lives. We have another young life to take care of in Alana. That’s what Shawn would want us to do. That’s what I had to do once before and you and I can do it now. You can’t wallow in your sorrow and self-pity forever, Carlo. Don’t you understand? Life must go on!” The doctor had sat very still during Dana’s little speech but when she finished, he jumped up from the table, took the edge of it in his hands and pushed it with all of his might. The table turned over, spilling dishes, silverware and everything on it, with a loud crash. Alana screamed and began to cry. She reached for her mother but Carlo pushed himself between her high chair and Dana’s chair. He grabbed Dana by the shoulders, pulled her up out of her chair and screamed in her face, his black eyes flashing fire. “How dare you talk to me of getting on with my life! I have no life…it’s all gone out of me! It left me when my son died! Can’t you see that? His death literally tore my heart out by the roots and I will never get over it! Never! I created this monster and it will probably be the death of me! Let me tell you something, young lady…I would welcome death right now for this pain and guilt are eating my god damned guts out! Bite by bite, the anguish grows and builds and I welcome it, for I know that sooner or later…it will kill me. I don’t want to go on living like this, god damnit! Do you hear me, Dana? I don’t want to live like this! If you can’t handle what’s going on around here, then I suggest that you pack your and Alana’s things and get the fucking hell out of here!”

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Dana could not believe her ears. She began to sob as she removed herself from his grasp. “Carlo, you don’t really mean that! You know that Alana and I love and adore you. We would never leave you. We would be lost without you. Especially now! I feel in my heart that you will heal and get over this…it will just take time. Time heals all things” “Look god damnit! I don’t need any of your Little Miss Goodie Two Shoes lectures and sermons right now. As a matter of fact, I don’t want to look at your face right now. Get the hell out of here and take Alana with you.” Dana had never seen her husband in such a rage before and to keep from scaring the baby any further, she removed Alana from the high chair and ran from the room with her, both of them crying loudly. When she reached Alana’s room, she crumbled down onto the little couch there. Still holding onto the baby for dear life, she cried as though her heart would break into a million pieces. Instead of going to her own room to sleep that night, she slept on the little couch. She tossed and turned all night long and fought with herself over whether to go to Carlo or not. She was afraid of his mood and frightened that he might really harm her while in that crazed state. She decided to stay away from him for the remainder of the night. Finally exhausted, she dropped off to sleep as the sun was rising the next morning. Luckily Alana did not wake early and it was almost midmorning when Dana first opened her eyes. After changing the baby into something other than her pajamas, the two of them crept down the back stairs into the kitchen. Looking out the window toward the garage, she could see that Carlo’s car was gone. ‘Oh thank God!! I didn’t want to have to face him this morning until I have had time to gather my wits about me!’ she said to herself. That was the first of many like episodes to follow during the next two years. Even though they were frequent, they became less and less volatile. Dana had convinced herself that if she stayed on with Carlo,

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she could and would get him through the ordeal. Basically, he seemed to improve and at times, he appeared to be himself but there was always that far off look in his eyes. Shawn’s name was seldomly mentioned and she knew that Carlo had not been able to have any closure regarding the strange death of his eldest son. Carlo threw himself into his work and the first part of the next year, he began to operate again. He slowly worked himself back into it for at first, he only assisted Michael with cases until he felt confident enough to go it alone. Little by little he took more and more control of the Landmark business and he was consumed with staying as busy as he possibly could, for when he was busy, he had no time to think. The relationship never returned to what it had been early on in their marriage. It was as though Carlo was afraid to open his heart to real feelings again for fear they might actually destroy him. He loved Dana tremendously but he couldn’t bring himself to let go with her once more. They socialized very little…only when it was necessary for business purposes and whenever they did go out, they returned home early and went to bed immediately after the evening news. At times, Dana would catch Carlo staring at her from across the room but when she tried to approach him, he would look the other way or remove himself from wherever she was. They continued to sleep in separate beds but on a couple of occasions, she had tried to creep into his bed and get him interested in the old familiar game they used to enjoy so immensely. He would let her lay in the curve of his arm and pull her close to him but when the game became a little more heated, he would gently push her away and tell her to return to her bed. Only once during the next two years did they actually try to make love, but it was a disastrous failure. Carlo refused to try again. As Carlo put more and more of his time and effort into the business, Dana spent more of her time with her precious daughter. She took the child everywhere with her, even out to the stable. Dana had Alana in the saddle before she could walk and by the time she was

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four years old, she could ride fairly well alone on one of Blaze’s Shetland ponies. The two of them spent hour after hour making the rounds of the arena at the stable and sometimes, Dana would attach a long tether to the bridle of the little pony and they would go for a ride out on one of the trails. As always, this was great therapy for her and she was delighted that her little one seemed to take to the saddle so well. This sport was to be the salvation for the two of them in the time to come. Whenever Carlo and Dana were alone, the conversation was always light and superficial. Nothing like the closeness they had once shared in the early years of their courtship and marriage. At that time, they could talk and laugh with each other about anything and everything. As much as she hated to admit it, Dana felt that her marriage was failing rapidly. Carlo was always polite to both his wife and young daughter but the closeness was gone. He was there…but not there. It was as if someone else had come to live in their house. The strong, vibrant, happy man whom she had married had vanished. ‘Will he ever come back?’ Dana often wondered to herself. Their relationship was strained to say the least and it became more and more stressful for her to try to put up a good front with friends and Carlo’s fellow constituents. The arguments became more frequent and it always ended up in a one-way shouting match. The Latin temper always won out in the end and finally Dana came to the sad conclusion that she and Alana must leave in order for any of them to ever have any peace. In March of 1995, Dana filed suit for divorce in DeKalb County, Georgia.

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r. George Rodgers made rounds as usual after his office hours and as he passed Dana’s room, he decided on the spur of the moment to check in on her, even though he had already seen her earlier in the day. Before turning his complete concentration to the monitoring machine and its’information, he walked over to the side of the bed and took the patient’s hand into his. Her countenance appeared to be perfectly normal, as though she were merely sleeping. Her coloring was good and her skin appeared to be in good condition. Her fingernails were of natural color and they didn’t appear to look as though her circulation was not normal. They were neatly filed and had a coating of clear polish on them. He smiled to himself for he had watched the little daughter whom Dana loved so much, apply the polish a couple of days earlier. As the doctor watched the monitor, he thought to himself that this coma-like sleep Dana appeared to be in was a complete mystery, not only to him but to all who were involved with her case. From all indications and after all the tests that had been done on Dana, nothing had turned up to show that her sleep was caused by any of the trauma she had suffered in her accident. Her pulse rate and her

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blood pressure appeared to be normal for one who is inactive. Whoever was attending to her toiletry needs was doing a very good job. ‘She is indeed an exceptionally beautiful woman…no wonder Carlo fell madly in love with her’ he thought to himself. ‘What a tragic shame they had to end up tearing themselves apart and got a divorce. If I have ever seen two people that were ideally made for each other, it’s Dana and Carlo.’ The door opened quietly and Carlo came into the room. “How goes it, doc? Any changes that you can see?” Carlo asked George Rogers hopefully. “None, Carlo…none at all, I’m sorry to say,” George answered him, looking over the top of his small glasses. “She has almost healed thoroughly from her injuries but is still locked in this coma for which there seems to be no logical explanation. “I’m so sorry, my friend. I wish I could give you the good news you’re looking for but…” his voice trailed off forlornly. “I know, ole buddy. I know you feel badly about this…we all do but you and the others have done everything in your power to find a way to bring her out of this coma. You have my undying gratitude for I know you have put extra love and care into her case and I love you for it. It makes it a hell-of-a-lot easier to know that she is in the care of many who treat her with special love and consideration.” Carlo said as he reached out and patted his friend on the back. “George, I have something I want to discuss with you. It is a little out of the ordinary but I feel that it is a necessary measure that we need to take. We will need some help from the security and engineering departments to pull it off and it may take a few days to get the procedure working properly. I’ll need some assistance from you and Michael to pull my idea off.” As Carlo leaned against the foot of Dana’s bed, the sheet moved a bit as if a slight breeze had touched it but none of the windows were open in the room. ‘Strange,’…he thought to himself.

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“All you have to do is ask Carlo…you know that,” George said, perking up a bit. “What kind of procedure are you talking about and how may I help?” As Carlo began to explain his idea to George, they were interrupted by the physical therapist coming into the room. “Come on down to the doctor’s lounge and I’ll finish explaining it to you. We’ll page Michael also and see if he’s in the building so that he can join us,” Carlo said. Three days later, everything was in place and Carlo’s plan was ready to be put to the test. The engineers had done all of their work during the early morning hours shortly after midnight every night so as not to call any unnecessary attention to the installation. They explained it all away by saying that there was some electrical work that needed to be done in the ceiling above Ms. Evans room that could not wait until later. They approached their work from above and never went physically into Dana’s room. Michael and George had been very receptive and open to the experiment after Carlo explained to them why he wanted to do this. On the morning of the third day, all was in order by the time the seven to three shift came on duty. The three doctors monitored the procedure themselves during the entire morning and waited with baited breath to view what would ultimately take place. Alana’s grandmother called early in the day to say that she and the child were in Atlanta for a couple of days. She wanted to know if they could stay at the house for Alana felt more comfortable there as opposed to staying in a hotel. ‘Fate? Who knew? Wouldn’t it be ironic if they were all there when his little experiment worked?’ Carlo mused to himself. He suggested that they come on out to the hospital as soon as they could.

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ana spent an agonizing period of time pondering over exactly how she should go about the settling of the divorce. As far as she was concerned, she could manage on her own, either by going back into Interior Design or the practice of Operating Room Nurse. She felt inclined to go with the medical aspect for she loved being of service to others and as she had learned while on their trip to Australia, she was damned good at it. However, there was Alana to consider so she agreed to have Carlo provide for the two of them. She would work only part time so that she could be with Alana and not pawn her off on some day care center. She could not bring herself to even consider doing that. In the long run, he did more than just provide for the two of them, for he bought them a house in Memphis and took care of all their doctor, dental and optical bills. He also paid all of their insurances and arranged with his attorney, to pay Dana’s income tax yearly. He paid her child support and a healthy sum of alimony for he didnwant either of them to go without anything nor change their life style. Carlo told her that he would handle everything if she would not fight him in court. She agreed and they resolved all of the settlement problems with just one attorney. When she read the final papers, she was shocked to find that he had gener- 321 -

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ously arranged for her to receive a cost of living increase every time it went up. It was surprising but Carlo didn’t put up too much of an argument over the impending divorce for he knew deep down in his own mind that he had really let Dana down. He had intended, as had she, to make this “marriage made in Heaven” last forever. It mattered not that there were terrible extenuating circumstances that had preceded their separation and subsequent divorce. Their love should have been strong enough to hold them together through literal Hell. Dana’s was but his love had faltered due to the emotional trauma he suffered after his son’s death and because of that fact, he went into emotional shock and deep depression. His stubbornness did not help and had led to the eventual break-up of their relationship. Carlo felt he couldn’t seem to keep his feelings under control and the marriage slowly fell apart. He felt that the only way he could carry on at all was to pour himself into his business. The business was so demanding, he didn’t have time to think of anything else. Several times, he had entertained the idea of suicide but he was rational enough to know that that was the coward’s way out. During that time, he neglected his family, his medical practice and all else that should have been important to him. When he finally realized and became cognizant of what was happening, it was too late. Dana had tried unsuccessfully so many times over the last two years of their marriage, to talk him into going to a marriage counselor or a minister with her but he had adamantly refused each time she broached the subject. Therefore, there was no other alternative than for the two of them to go their separate ways. They both realized and came to the sad conclusion that they could not remain married and live in the same house under the circumstances…Dana willing to go the ultimate last mile and Carlo refusing to budge an inch. She had made the decision to move back to Memphis for several reasons. Primarily, because she felt that she needed to put some geographic distance between herself and Carlo. Secondly, she felt that she and Alana both needed the emotional support that her parents and

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brother and sister would provide. Her heart was frozen and numb once again because of the pain she suffered for the second time in her life. If it hadn’t been for her precious Alana, she didn’t think she could have endured it. As she was cleaning her things out of the bedroom desk to pack for the move to Memphis, Dana ran across an old letter she had written to Carlo early on in their marriage. She had been on a trip to Spain and had poured her heart to him in the letter professing her undying love for him. As she read the letter over to herself, she thought how cruel life was…why had it all gone so sour? The letter was one in which she spilled her guts to the man she worshipped and adored. How could they have let it all end up like this when obviously they had found such a true, profound love in each other? As the tears ran down her face, she read the letter again… “My Darling Gian-Carlo, All I can think about is how extremely happy I am whenever I am with you and how absolutely miserable I am whenever we are apart. Before you came into my life, I used to pray for someone like you to be brought to me. At that time, I expected happiness, contentment, wonder, ecstasy and all of the other expletives we can imagine to define the wonderment of it…but I never dreampt that I would have to endure such pain and heartache also!! It pains me deeply to be away from you for so long a period of time and I can’t wait to get back home and into your arms. All I can say about the way I feel is that I am avaricious and extremely selfish where my time with you is concerned. I want to spend every minute of the nights and days we have left with you and I feel as you do…that I don’t give a tinker’s damn what goes on anywhere else. You have captivated my heart, my soul and my body and I truly feel that this is the way Spirit intended for Man and Woman to feel whenever they are to form a perfect union as we are about to do. We have both made wrong choices in the past but I know in my heart and soul that that we have each saved the best…for last!! I feel that we ‘finally made it’ and that we will walk into the final sunset

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together into infinity. I love you; I adore you, my perfect love! Believe it, my darling Gian-Carlo…you are loved!! I am counting the days and nights until I return home and we are together once again. Never in my life have I wanted to be as close to another living soul as I want to be close to you. I miss your smell, your taste, the feel of your skin beneath my fingertips. I was absolutely astonished at how sweet you taste and smell…it’s as though your body contains the nectar of the gods and you saved it all for me. Somehow, you satisfy all the longings my heart, mind, soul and body hunger and thirst for. I am not speaking of the ‘physical thing’ so much for that is simply the icing on the cake as far as I’m concerned…it’s everything. I can’t actually put it into words for there is no ‘earthly’ way all of this can be described. It’s so spiritual and right that there just aren’t enough words or explanations to rightly describe or define it all. I know that you know and understand exactly what I am saying and that you feel the same way. There isn’t an hour that goes by that I don’t look upward and thank the ‘one who is greater than you and me’ for sending me such a splendid and magnificent gift. I think I told you that whenever I try to express my gratitude and thanks, I always get this vivid mental ‘picture’ of a billowy, cloud-like face that has a gigantic smile spread across its’ face and I hear that small, inner voice speak to me, saying…’it’s my pleasure to bring the two of you such bliss and happiness…you have earned it and you deserve it. Use it wisely.’ You know that I am not necessarily a very religious person but I am indeed, a very spiritual one. After all…we are all human beings on a spiritual journey and we are also spiritual beings on a human journey. Yes my precious, delicious Gian-Carlo…I too, love our morning times together and I can feel your life force against my body when we lay together…giving me life, breath and the very reason for living. You have the most gentle, marvelous touch, perfect in every way. You make me feel so loved, so safe and secure. So needed and wanted. Somehow, I always knew that you were out there somewhere and that someday, we would find each other in this lifetime.

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Thank you my love, for bringing to me such a fulfilled, satisfied conclusion to my dreams. You are my very life and I am so thrilled and happy that you have become…that life. I promise to strive to the utmost of my ability to love, honor and care for you until one or both of us leaves this realm. I feel that we will be together from here on into Eternity. What we have is too magnificent and miraculous to separate us…ever. With my undying love, Dana.” Dana felt the shudder travel all the way down her spine as she read and re-read the last sentence of the letter. What had happened? Why didn’t they try harder to keep things together? If only Carlo had agreed to go to a counselor with her? Why had he been so stubborn? Why had he let his stupid Italian pride stand in the way of their happiness? Why hadn’t she been able to pull him out of his depression and sadness over the loss of Shawn with the strength of her love? God knows, she had tried over the last two years, but her pleas had fallen onto deaf ears. She knew that Carlo loved her as deeply as she loved him but he had let his grief over-power him and no amount of pleading on her part or any of his close friends had been able to make him realize that his life was not over…that he had so much more to look forward to…and to live for. When Dana had written this letter, she had been in Spain and it was shortly after they had married. When she returned home from this trip, she advised her employers that she was not going to make anymore trips abroad for the company. It was not worth it to her to be apart from her beloved Gian-Carlo. She had felt as though a part of her was missing and she felt that traveling half way around the world without him was not beneficial to their marriage…she missed him too badly. The letter had given her the opportunity to write the words that she had carried around in her heart ever since they had married. She had wanted to actually speak them to Carlo but she had been afraid that he would think her a ‘silly school girl’,…full of mush. She hadn’t wanted to embarrass herself and besides…she knew that she could always express herself better on paper than ver-

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bally. She felt that this was the proper means to pour her heart out to her beloved husband. Hopefully, when he had received the letter and read the words, he hadn’t thought her foolish and had appreciated her sentiments at the time. However, at this point…there was so much in her heavy heart but she didn’t have the mental or physical energy to write words of love to him and besides, she didn’t think it would serve any purpose other than to embarrass them both. Instead of placing the letter back into the desk drawer to leave for Carlo…she folded it and put it into her luggage…after all…it had not served the purpose it was intended for before and she felt certain that it would only cause more pain if he were to find it and read it again as they were parting. Perhaps she would toss it away at a later date…perhaps not…

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ana and Alana fell into a regular routine once they were settled into the new house in Memphis. They spent their weekends out at Dana’s old favorite stable where they had hauled Sable in the trailer a short time earlier. She knew that this was the best therapy she could possibly have and she thought that by teaching the child to ride and to love the four-legged animals, it might lessen the child’s pain of missing her father. Granted, Carlo had never spent a great deal of time with her but she loved him never the less. Alana did not grasp the seriousness of the situation between her parents as she was only four years old at the time. She kept asking Dana when they were going home to Daddy. At first, she thought that she and her mother were just on holiday, visiting Memphis to be with her grandparents and other relatives as they had done so many times in the past. Gram and Gramps had taken her on to Memphis early and she had not been at home to witness the packing up and moving out of all their furnishings and belongings. All she knew was that miraculously, all of their things had suddenly appeared at a different house near her grandparents home in Memphis. She didn’t hide her pain and sorrow over the fact that Carlo would not be joining them when Dana sat her down to explain things to her. Late at night, she would creep into Dana’s room and slip into bed with her. Dana would cradle the child in her arms and comfort - 327 -

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her while Alana softly cried herself to sleep. Shannon and Dana exchanged phone calls at least three times a week for they had been so close and depended on one another not only for paling around and doing things together but for moral support as well. It was going to be tough getting through this emotional turmoil without her buddy to lean on. Dana would also miss Rhonda for they had been ‘horsing around buddies’ and in Memphis, she no longer knew anyone well enough to ride out with, especially at that time. It was the ‘mother-daughter’ duo or no one. As Alana became a more polished rider, Dana allowed her to participate in some of the local horse shows. They found themselves hauling the horses off somewhere almost every weekend. “Golly, Mommie…I’m so glad you found Mink for me. He’s just my size and I can ride him almost as well as you can ride Sable. Why can’t I keep him in the backyard at home? I know he misses me when I have to leave him out at the stable. He can live in the utility shed out back…please Mommie, please!” “Why Alana Evans! You know we can’t keep him at home,” her mother laughed. “We don’t have the facilities in the first place and he would miss Sable and she would miss him too. She’s become so attached to him, you’d think he was her baby. Besides, can you imagine what our backyard would smell like with him leaving little ‘horse apples’ all over? Why, our neighbors would run us all out of town!” “Yes mam. I guess you’re right. I forgot about him pooping and all that stuff. It’s just that I love him so and I hate to be away from him,” the curly headed cutie said sadly. Dana took her time in finding a job for she wanted just the right one. She had decided not to go back into interior design for although she enjoyed the field immensely, she knew intuitively that her heart wouldn’t be in any more, if she went in that direction. She felt more inclined to look into the position of surgical nurse. After all, she had earned her degree and she was ready to get some ‘hands on’ practice.

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After getting settled into their home and making certain that Alana was going to be able to handle the change, she contacted Michael back in Atlanta and asked him if he would help her ‘shop around’ for a good doctor to work for. He had several friends who were excellent in their fields and he set up three interviews for her. They all wanted to hire her but she opted to go with Dr. Matthew Murphy. His practice was well established and he was agreeable to her working only three days a week, going to surgery with him each of those days. Dana had known in her mind that she would make a damned good O R nurse ever since she had returned from the trip to Australia and she set about proving it to her new employer and his surgical crew. She would fill the space vacated by a nurse who was leaving the area because her husband was being transferred with his company. She tried to keep the fact that she was the ex-wife of one of the better known surgeons in the Southeast quiet but word soon got around. She relaxed for she discovered that it didn’t make a hill of beans difference to anyone on the crew or in the hospital. They all liked her and accepted her on her own merits. It didn’t take her too long to move up into the head nurse position on the team for she worked so well with the surgeon. It was as though she knew intuitively what instruments he was going to need and had them in his hands almost before he asked for them. “I know for a fact, Dana that you haven’t been practicing your field for too long but you perform as if you have been doing this all of your life,” Dr. Murphy said to her after a particularly difficult case. “You are a very talented young lady. I really appreciate your help. Have you always wanted to be a nurse?” “No. I was rather led into it by some very special people in Australia. They told me that I possessed a very rare and special gift and that I should use it to help people. I took them at their word and decided to go into nursing when I returned home from there.”

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“I’m a bit prone to agree with them, my dear. You’re good. Very good. Yes, your friend Michael, told me fragmented bits of that mystery and I would someday love to hear…the rest of the story’, if you are ever so inclined.” “It will be my pleasure to fill you in, Dr. Murphy,” Dana said blushing. She often dreamed of her involvement with the Aborigine people and she sometimes imagined that she could hear Digger speak to her in her sleep telling her that they were keeping her memory alive among their people and that one day, she would return to them. On the three days Dana worked each week, her parents kept Alana. This was a logical answer to an otherwise wearisome problem. Dana could not bring herself to even consider leaving the child in a day care center and she didn’t feel comfortable enough trying to hire someone else to come in to keep her. This suited everyone involved for Alana was a precocious child and Peg enjoyed reading to her immensely, along with teaching her the ABC’s. By the time she started to kindergarten, she could read, print and count as well as any second grader. Carlo kept in touch with Alana by phone and would come to Memphis every six weeks to visit her on a weekend. He always stayed in one of the nicer hotels in the city and Dana allowed the child to stay with him over night upon occasion. He had finally made up his mind that there were more important things than his spending all of his time bogged down with his businesses and he realized with heavy heart that he really missed the child. He didn’t want to make the same mistake he had made with his two sons as they were growing up and now it would be more difficult because the three of them no longer lived together as a family. Their problems and subsequent divorce were indeed his fault, he had finally decided and he was extremely sorrowful over the matter. As time went on, Carlo weaned himself away from the constant hassle and worry of the real estate and land business he had thrown

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himself into after Shawn’s accident. George had finally persuaded him to consult with a counselor to try to help him work himself out of the dark pit of depression he had fallen into. With the counselor’s help, he was made to realize that life must go on and that he had so much more to live for. On his trips to see Alana, he made a special effort to re-kindle and build a loving relationship with the little girl. He began to see what he had been missing the past few years and he was determined that he would not miss anymore of her growing up than was necessary. It would be somewhat difficult due to the miles that separated them geographically but he would make every effort to make up for lost time. It didn’t take too long for the little girl who was so much like her mother to wind herself around his heart strings and win him over. She became what every father of a little girl hopes for…a daddy’s little darling. A pity he was not able to win again the love of his ex-wife but he feared that precious gift was lost to him forever. The relationship between Dana and Carlo was pleasant but always guarded for Dana was not about to expose her feelings and have her heart broken again. Carlo was always the perfect gentleman and did not actually pursue the subject but it was obvious to all who were privy to their meetings, that there was still an awful lot of feeling there, whether the two of them would admit it or not. Whenever Carlo came to pick Alana up, Dana made sure that someone else was always in the house with her for she didn’t trust herself to be alone with him. She could not look him in the face for she knew that her eyes would belie her and he would be aware that in her heart, there was still a smoldering ember hidden somewhere there. She vowed and swore that she would never let him hurt her ever again and she wanted nothing to do with any more closeness other than having to see him when he came to get Alana. She was aloof and cool, thus giving the appearance that she couldn’t have cared less whether he ever came around again or not. She always had Alana’s things packed and ready so that

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he wouldn’t have to tarry very long and she wouldn’t have to force conversation with him. She was nice to him in a cold sort of way. Carlo often would invite Alana and her mother to join him for a weekend at the lake but Dana always declined and would not allow Alana to go without her for fear something might happen to the child. Carlo wasn’t the most attentive man in the world with a child around the water for he was not cognizant of the fact that they have to be constantly monitored so that no harm befalls them. Then too, there was always the possibility that he may be called away to the hospital and what would he do with her in that case? ‘Better to be safe than sorry,’ she thought. ‘If he really cares enough about his daughter, he’ll make the trip to Memphis to visit with her here.

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here were many times that Dana would lie awake at night and reminisce about her marriage to Carlo. Had she allowed herself to fall in love with him too quickly in the beginning? No, she didn’t think so. It had all happened just as it should have, she decided. She felt in her heart that their marriage had been one that was really meant to be. However, due to the magnitude of the trauma they both had endured at the time of Shawn’s death, the stress was just too much for them to handle. Everything that happened after that was like a dream…a bad nightmare. One thing led to another and then the divorce took place. Shortly after her move back to Memphis, Dana couldn’t sleep one night so she got up and wandered around the house for a while. Eventually, she sat herself down at her desk and took her pen into her hand. Almost trance-like, she began to write. “Carlo, I am writing this letter because there are several things that I need and want to tell you. I am doubtful that I could ever tell you face to face and this mode of communication has always served me well in the past so…here goes: First of all, I am not going to go into the what-ifs, should haves and ought-to’s for I do not think that would resolve any thing. However, I do so want you to know that I will always treasure the time that we shared together and I will forever hold you very close in my heart. I shared with you more of - 333 -

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myself than I have shared or given to anyone for a long, long time…since Keith died. I was able to do that for I felt so comfortable with you and it felt ‘so right’. I was able to completely let go and love you with every ounce of my entire being and I had feared that I would never be able to do that again. Almost from the very onset of our relationship, it all felt so natural to me and that it was right in every respect. We have both talked many times about how it seemed as though we had been together for eons and eons. I have never in my life, not even with my beloved Keith, felt the way I felt about the closeness of our physical comings together…and I don’t necessarily mean the sexual encounters. Just being close to you, lying there in your bed in the nude and just holding on to each other was an experience I doubt that I will ever be able to recapture. Remember??…I never could find the right words to describe those feelings and I still can’t. Everything seemed so right…so wonderful. The smell, the taste, the touch, the feel…Oh my God…how wonderful! Our time together was something very, very special in so many ways and I will forever miss the intimate, snuggling times especially. It still amazes me that I was able to let go so completely with you and feel the feelings I felt with you. They were absolutely marvelous…the way I have always longed to feel. The times we lay in each other’s arms…then went through the ecstatic and sensual foreplay procedures that led to the ultimate satisfaction for both of us in the climax of our union were heart-stopping and breathtaking, each time for me. You are a magnificent lover Carlo, and I truly miss those times with you. I was able to put aside any and all of my inhibitions and truly ‘let it all hang out’ whenever I made love with you. But…as we both know…we could not lie in bed naked, 24 hours a day and we would discover, as we did, that there were many differences that would…and did…eventually destroy us. I knew in my heart, after Shawn’s accident, that we were too different not to wreak havoc to our relationship and marriage later on. As you said…I knew it intuitively and you knew it logically. I went through terrible pain and

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heartache for several days and nights when we decided to call it quits but I now know that it was all for a reason and I must chalk it up to another lesson in this life and get on with…whatever destiny has in store for me. I will never put into another relationship all that I put into the one I shared with you. I bared my heart, mind, body and soul to you and I don’t think I can ever expose myself and my feelings like that again. I will say Carlo…that you got the best of me…all that I had to offer. I only hope and pray that there’s enough of me left to share happy times with our daughter. Thank God for her. She is and will always be the light of my life. Thank you for giving her to me. In closing Carlo, let me say that I did truly love you and I probably always will but we would eventually tear each other apart emotionally if we had continued on and neither of us could stand that. We have suffered enough pain to last many a lifetime. Please be kind to yourself Carlo…take care of yourself and know in your heart that you are and always will be very close. Dana” Carlo never mentioned the letter to Dana but in her heart of hearts, she knew that he had received it and had read it.








Adaire had called to talk to Dana shortly after and had told her that all of her friends thought that the breakup was Carlo’s fault that they had ended up in the divorce court because of his stubbornness. She also told her that regardless of the trouble between the two of them, their friends still loved him nonetheless.” “Look Adaire…I don’t like the idea of anyone putting the blame for our divorce on either off us, damnit! We were both to blame. It was the only reasonable and logical way out for both of us at that time. For some strange reason…after a while, neither of us could bring ourselves to budge a frigging notch. I know Carlo was suffering from deep depression and I honestly tried my very best to help him during that time but the stubborn ass just wouldn’t give an inch. No matter how I tried to console him, he pushed me away again and

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again. I tried everything I knew to help him and when that failed, I tried to shock him out of it but that didn’t help either. There didn’t appear to be an answer other than the two of us going our separate ways. I felt that it was best for Alana for she was having to live right smack ka-dab in the center of all that mess. Believe me…it’s been bloody hell for me to have to admit that I failed him somehow!” “Failed him? Failed him you say? Why, Dana Evans…that’s the most ludicrous remark I’ve ever heard you utter! You, of all people should know better than to say you failed him! You did everything above and beyond what any of the rest of us would have done. My God Dana! Get real! There wasn’t anything else you could have possibly done and you know it. You’re mighty brave to try to cover up for him but your friends know who the real culprit was. Granted, he was ill at the time in a manner of speaking, but he wasn’t thinking of anyone other than himself. You know he isn’t the only one who has ever lost a son and he damned sure won’t be the last! You would think since he’s a doctor, he would have handled his loss better than he did,” Adaire concluded. “Oh Adaire…Carlo felt that he had caused the heinous accident by keeping it in his mind all of the time. He felt that in some way, he had drawn it to Shawn and had made it happen. Until he clears up the cobwebs and realizes that that wasn’t the reason, he’ll flounder around with all of that guilt. I’ve been observing him these past few months and I believe he has finally reached a turning point. Perhaps there’s hope for him yet,” Dana said expectantly.








Holidays were especially difficult to get through for both Dana and Alana. They both missed the good times the three of them, as a family, used to share. Christmas was the most difficult for they had always made much to-do over that special day and without Carlo, Shawn and Ryan around, it was indeed, very sad for the two of them. It never seemed quite the same even though Dana’s parents went out

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of their way to try to get Dana’s other family together so that the two girls would not be too lonely. Carlo asked repeatedly to have Alana come to Atlanta for extended periods of times but Dana was adamant in refusing him. She reiterated over and over again that there was no one to take care of Alana while Carlo worked and as she had insisted many times before, she would not hear of him taking the child to a day care center. He offered to hire a nanny but Alana declared that she wouldn’t like to stay with someone she didn’t know. What good would it do to have her there, with him away at work during the day? Dana asked him. She hated to keep refusing him but he had never spent much quality time with the child in the past and she wasn’t going to start something she felt in her heart, was not a good idea now. If he wanted to see Alana badly enough, he would stick to the arrangement they had made originally. He would continue to come to Memphis occasionally on weekends. Alana learned to use the phone well enough to call long distance and she spoke to her father often. It wasn’t too long before Carlo started to make every other weekend trips to Memphis to visit Alana instead of the bimonthly trips he had previously arranged. He found that he really enjoyed her phone visits during the times they were not together. Her light hearted banter was like a ray of sunshine to him and the more time they shared together, the more he realized how much he loved and missed her. It was quite obvious that she was a very intelligent child and older than her chronological years. Like her mother, she was out-going and full of fun and laughter. “Daddy, why can’t we be a family again? Alana queried him every time they were together. “Would you like that?” Carlo would ask. “Oh yes Daddy…yes! I would love it and I secretly think Mommie would too. She won’t allow me to talk about it too much but I can see by the look in her eyes that she wishes that we could too,” the child

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added on one of their get-togethers. “Mommie always sorta looks away whenever I mention it.”

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arlo called Dana one day and asked if he could meet with her for a few minutes the next weekend when he came to get Alana. “I have something of great importance to discuss with you. It has to do with Shawn’s accident.” “Of course Carlo. We’ll expect you this weekend and I’ll plan on getting home a little early so that I can have Alana ready and that will give us a little time to chat,” Dana said nervously. ‘What in the world could he possibly want to talk to me about,’ Dana wondered to herself as she prepared dinner for herself and Alana. From the time that he called until Friday afternoon, she was a nervous wreck. She dreaded having to be alone with him for she honestly didn’t trust her feelings. The two of them had not been alone since she had moved to Memphis and she definitely was not looking forward to it at this time. She had always arranged for someone to be at her house whenever Carlo came to pick Alana up and it rather scared her to think that finally, the time had come when she would have to be face to face and one on one with him. Alana heard the car drive into the driveway and ran to open the door for her father. She ran down the steps and jumped up into his waiting arms. “Oh Daddy…I’m so glad to see you. I’m all packed and ready to go. Come on in and I’ll get my bag. Hurry Daddy, hurry!”

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“Hey Lanie…slow down a bit. I need to spend a little time with your mother before we go so you run along up to your room, turn on the cartoons and I’ll call you when I’m ready to go, o k?” Alana stopped dead in her tracks and turned to look at her father. She stood there for a minute or two and then broke out in a big grin. “O K Daddy…just call me when you’re finished talking to Mommie and I’ll be right down,” the child said with a knowing smile on her face. “I’ll bet he’s going to ask her if we can be a family again,” she said to no one in particular as she climbed the stairs to her room. Dana met Carlo at the entrance of the den and invited him in. She led the way and sat down in a chair facing the sofa. She didn’t want to sit directly beside him so she motioned for him to sit opposite her. She folded her trembling hands in her lap and then looked up in his direction. “What is it you wish to discuss with me, Carlo?” Dana asked trying to hide her nervousness. Carlo cleared his throat and then drew an envelope from his breast coat pocket. “I think you’ll find this extremely interesting, enlightening and somewhat shocking. I received this letter yesterday from Colonel Siers, the commander on Shawn’s flight. He says that he was not at liberty to divulge this information until just recently and he asked that we not mention it to anyone. Not even the closest members of our families. Ryan knows, of course, for I felt that he needed to be aware of the letter’s content because of my feelings about the accident. You know…the fact that I blamed myself,” Carlo added quietly. He handed the letter to Dana and she began to read it out loud. “Dear Dr. and Mrs. Evans, The final secret report has just been released into my hands on the terrible accident which befell your son, the late Major Shawn Evans. It seems that the accident was caused by the fact that your son suffered from Claustrophobia and had kept it a secret and well hidden to all except one person up until the time of the flight. That person came forward during the last days

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of the investigation, due to the fact that his conscience was bothering him and he felt compelled to admit to Major Evans secret. It was learned that he, Major Evans, had been able to hide his phobia during the entire span of his training in the NASA Space Program. This in itself was a great feat and one highly unusual for secrets of this nature are usually uncovered during the strenuous training of the Astronauts. He did well to conceal it as he did. It’s a sad fact that it proved to be a fatal mistake on his part. In the final minutes of his walk out in space, the claustrophobia was triggered by the mentioning of the fact that he only had a certain amount of air left in his umbilical link and that he was advised not to wander off any further from the shuttle as he mentioned he intended to do. The panel listened to the tapes over and over again and discovered that there was nothing wrong with any of the equipment. It was purely a case of the fear of not being able to breathe closing in on him. Major Evans panicked and his struggles tore the link from his suit. Therefore, there was nothing left to hold him to the ship. It is with heavy heart that I bring you this news regarding your son’s plight but it is ascertained by all major parties connected to the affair, that you should be made aware. I am the only one of the crew that knows the truth in the matter. You see…I am the one who gave the advisory that the air supply was short. You may rest assured that the findings of the investigation panel will be kept in closed files and no one need ever be the wiser. As far as the general public is concerned, it was just a freak accident that happened to one of the crew members of the Galaxy II flight. Please accept my deepest regrets over the incident. Know that I will carry this knowledge with me and it will hang heavy in my heart forever. Sincerely yours, Colonel Nathan C. Siers”

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hortly after Christmas, Dana’s parents helped her plan a birthday party for Alana. The child would be turning eight years old and wanted to have some of her friends from the neighborhood and school for a cook-out supper and then go to the ice-skating rink for a couple of hours. By the time the guest list was completed, there were 17 children invited. “Doesn’t your daughter know that it’s in the dead of winter and no one cooks out at this time of the year?” Cathy, the aunt asked. “It’s got to be creeping down into the 30’s today and she wants us to cookout?! “Well…I’ll admit it’s a bit cold outside but you know her. She likes to really rough it every now and then. However though, she’s no dumb bunny! We, the grown-ups will be outside doing the cooking and the young-uns will be inside playing games and such, unless I miss my guess,” Gram said laughingly. Alana and her friends surprised them all by congregating out in the backyard. Alana had insisted that they go outside to play while the food was being prepared. They played hide and seek, Red RoverRed Rover, and tag. “These kids have it made in the shade,” Dana admitted. “Just look at them run and go…they have more energy than the four of us all put together. They knew what they were doing. They’re expending so - 342 -

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much of that energy, they’re as warm as toast and we poor things…are standing here freezing. Let’s finish up this last batch of burgers and dogs and go into the house. They can eat inside and then Alana can open up her presents before we drive them to the rink down at the Galaria. B-r-r-r, I think I’m frozen solid!” Alana raced out onto the ice and immediately began to help a couple of her friends creep around the rink because they were not too sure of themselves on their blades. ”I wish you would look at our little one out there. She’s pretty good on those skates,” Gram said as she sat bundled up in the bleachers to watch the skaters. “I didn’t know she knew how to skate.” “Her daddy has been taking her to the rink when he comes to visit her and he’s taught her to play like ‘Michelle Kwan’. I think when he was a young boy, he used to skate a lot out on the frozen lakes and ponds around his home in up-state New York. Her daddy also plans to teach her how to dive, Lanie tells me. He was on the swim and dive team in college and is still quite good. It has rather surprised me to see him take up so much time with her when he comes for the weekend but they are inseparable during those times. They stay at one of the better hotels down town that has a large indoor pool. She usually looks like a shriveled-up prune when she returns home, they spend so much time in the water.” “They have become very close these last few weeks and I am so glad to see that. It was quite obvious in the beginning that be didn’t take to her as we all thought he was going to,” Cathy lamented. “I think she posed a threat to him somehow when she was born but I promise you, I never let her take away any of my time with him after I discovered that he was a little jealous of her being here. That didn’t seem to make a great deal of difference however, and he still resented her for a while. Then when Shawn was killed, he almost went off the deep end and we rather fell out of his good graces. He couldn’t help it because he was so devastated and now, he is trying to

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make amends with her,” Dana added, smiling. “Just look at her…I think it’s working, wouldn’t you say? She looks very happy and contented, if you ask me.” “It’s a crying damned shame he doesn’t try to make amends as far as you are concerned, dear sister! I know he rues the day that he ever let you slip out of his life but in my opinion, he surely isn’t making any moves toward winning you back!” Cathy said emphatically. “And just what makes you think I would consider ever going back to him, Miss Know-It-All? It’s been four years and feelings wane and dry up after a while. You know…out of sight…out of mind!” “Come off it, Big Sister! You forget that I can read you like a book and your pages are pretty transparent to my eyes. You can fool some of the people some of the time but…you can’t fool all of the people all of the time, my pet! I know you…and you’d go back in a flash if the right opportunity ever presented itself. Now…wouldn’t you? Hm-m-m? “To be perfectly honest with you…in a word…NO! I may be a fool once but I have made a vow to myself that I will never make another mistake like that again. I have decided to remain single and devote my time, efforts and life to Alana and my job. I don’t have the time to entertain ideas along those lines and my heart has frozen over to the point that there isn’t a man alive who could ever melt it. Enough of that…end of subject!” Dana concluded. Cathy opened her mouth to say something else to her sister but Dana rose from her seat and walked down to the railing just as Alana skated up to it. “Another hour sweet stuff, and we must head for the house. I told the other children’s parents we would be back by 8:00 o’clock.” “OK, Mom…” Alana yelled and waved to her mother as she skated off backwards.

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ate February Dana decided to make a weekend trip over to Atlanta for a surprise visit to see Shannon and Rhonda. She had business in town on Friday afternoon for she wanted to talk to Dr. Collins about helping her get things off to a start regarding the Medical Team of Mercy he and she were trying to put together. If things worked out, the Team would be comparable to the Flying Doctors she and Carlo had assisted while in Australia. They hoped to branch out later on but first, they planned to take medical teams to needy areas in the U.S., such as the backwoods areas of the Appalachian Mountains. Later on they hoped to go to other needy countries. Jeremy had been a great help to her when she approached him years before about her entering the medical field and now he was helping her again. Dana’s parents were planning on taking Alana to see Disney on Ice on Saturday evening so Dana asked if they would like to have the child all weekend. After school on Thursday, she dropped Alana off at her parents and went home to pack a few of her things for the early morning trip the next day. She watched the late news and the weather channel before retiring.

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“Damn!” Dana said out loud. “It looks like rain all day from here to Atlanta and I hate driving in the rain. Guess I should set the alarm for an hour earlier than I had intended just to be on the safe side and give myself some extra traveling time.” She reached for the clock on the table beside her bed, set it and then turned out the light. Six o’clock the next morning found Dana on the road headed south on 78 toward Tupelo, Mississippi. She would stay on 78 until she reached Birmingham and there she would take 20 on into Atlanta. She decided to stop over in ‘Steel City’ to have some lunch, check the weather on into Atlanta and then set out again. As she sat in Denny’s eating her meal, she kept one eye on the TV hanging from the ceiling for the newscaster was giving a disturbing travel advisory. Heavy downpours were expected almost all the way from Birmingham to Atlanta. ‘I would pick today to make this trip but it’s too late now…’ she thought to herself. ‘I’m committed so I might as well get on with it. Good thing I called Shannon last night to let her know I was coming. She’ll come looking for me if I don’t show up at my ETA. I had her promise that she would go with me to see Dr. Collins after I drop my things off at her house. Oh well, I’d better get on my horse Clyde ride. The rain will continue to slow me down a bit but better to be safe than sorry,’ she mused to herself as she paid her bill at the counter. The radio was good company to her as she made her way cautiously in the downpour that was pelting her car. Traffic was moving along at a fairly good pace but the big trucks were a real nuisance. Their big tires were kicking up buckets of water and it made it awfully hard to see whenever Dana got behind one of them. The lightning didn’t help matters much either for every time it flashed she flinched, remembering her old fear. “These damned eighteen wheelers should be outlawed on these highways…roads should be built especially for them…the big bullies!” Dana yelled into the air. “They think they own the whole road and be damned with the speed limit. They think it doesn’t apply to them for I’ve never seen one go the actual posted limit. Just look at

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that crazy idiot. He’s passing that car in front of him on that curve up ahead. Oh my God! There’s a car coming from the other way. He isn’t going to make it…Look out!!!” she screamed, slamming on the brakes to try to avoid hitting the car that was now in front of her. Her car skidded on the wet pavement and then went careening over the side of the embankment. The last thing she saw was her things flying all over in the car as it rolled over and over down the rain soaked hill. It took the medics and firemen twenty minutes to extract the unconscious woman from her smashed up car. The medics couldn’t do much for her until the firemen and wrecker people stabilized the car for it was teetering in a precarious position over a ledge on the hill. They cautioned the others to handle her with extreme care once they realized she was still alive. Luckily the firemen were trained in first aid care and knew not to move her head, neck and back as they maneuvered her onto the stretcher for the ascent back up to the road. It was touch and go for a few desperate minutes until the medics got her an IV of fluids running. By the time they got her into the ambulance, she was in a state of shock and turning blue. “God damnit! I’m afraid we’re going to lose her. Her pulse rate is dropping. Hand me the epinephrine and I’ll give her the injection.” the young nurse shouted. Luckily George Rodgers was one of three doctors working the Emergency Room when Dana was brought in. When he recognized the young woman on the stretcher, his face drained of all color. “Oh my God, it’s Dana! Handle this for me fellas, while I run to the boardroom to get Dr. Evans. This is his ex-wife and he’ll want to be here. We’ll be right back”…his voice trailed off as he ran down the hallway.

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eorge and Michael sat glued to the TV monitor in the doctor’s lounge on Dana’s floor. They had been sitting there for over two hours and as yet, nothing out of the ordinary had taken place in Dana’s room. The nurse Belinda Jacobs came in, checked the monitor and Dana’s vital signs, emptied the catheter bag and then helped an aide bathe and change Dana. The two of them gently moved her about so that they could put fresh linens on her bed. The floor nurses came and went, the physical therapist came in and went through the range of motion exercises on Dana. The next half-hour only showed Dana sleeping. About mid-morning, Peg, Alana and Jamie were ushered into the lounge by Graham Staff, the Anesthesiologist who had attended Dana during her surgery. He looked rather perplexed finding so many people congregated in the small room, but he only shook his head, shrugged his shoulders and returned downstairs. Carlo explained the plan of action to them and Jamie beamed a broad smile as he realized why the doctor had prepared this experiment. ‘Well, it’s about time!’ he silently said to himself. Jamie and Alana were seated at a table over in the corner playing a game of Hearts while the others were discussing what they would - 348 -

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like to be brought in for lunch when the door to Dana’s room opened and a nurse entered. Every eye in the lounge turned to look at the monitor as she walked over to the bed, picked up the hand of the sleeping patient and gently patted and stroked it. She then placed her hand on Dana’s forehead, pushed a wayward 1ock of hair out of the way and then took out a small pin-light. She opened one of Dana’s eyes and looked deeply into it. A broad smile erupted on her face as she walked around to the other side of the bed. A1l those in the lounge heard the strange noise emanating from the side of the bed…sorta like the rustle of feathers or some such thing. They even observed the nurse’s hair move on each side of her head as though a gentle breeze had suddenly come up. She paid no attention to the phenomenon but went about the business she was so intent upon before her. She nervously looked about the room and then removed a syringe from the pocket of her uniform. It took only seconds for her to inject the fluid from the syringe into the rubber stopper leading into the IV tubing from which total nutrition was being administered to Dana. She was so intent on what she was doing, she didn’t hear the door silently open. “I’ll take that needle, Miss Jacobs,” Carlo said as he reached out to block the nurse’s sudden flight to the door. George and Michael raced to the side of Dana’s bed and immediately began to extract the IV needle from Dana’s arm. After it was safely removed, they turned to Carlo. “We got it out before any of the drug reached the infiltration point. Not to worry, she didn’t get any of it.” Michael assured Carlo. “We have been observing you from that hidden camera overhead, Miss Jacobs. We know for a fact that Ms. Evans was not due any medication at this time of day so when we saw you about to give her an additional injection, we knew that you must be the one we suspected who was administering some kind of poison to her to keep her asleep. What is it, Miss Jacobs? Why don’t you save yourself a lot of trouble and tell us right now exactly what it is and why you have

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been giving her it to her,” Carlo said ominously as he moved toward her, his dark eyes turning even darker. “The police are on their way up here right now so you might as well confess. They’ll drag it out of you sooner or later down at the station.” For a few seconds Miss Jacobs stiffened, raised her head high and stood her ground. She raised one eyebrow, smiled seductively and then looked Carlo straight in the eye. “Why my darling Dr. Evans…don’t you know that I have been in love with you ever since I first came to work at this hospital? I knew that if I could only get this bitch here out of the way permanently, you would notice me and we could develop a relationship. Everyone in this hospital knows that you are still deeply in love with her but I thought you would forget all about her if she were dead. When she was brought in here after her accident, I knew that…then, was a golden opportunity for me to get rid of her once and for all. A pity she didn’t die as a result of her injuries. That would have saved me a precious lot of time and trouble. However, I have always been one to find a way to make things happen where my needs and desires are concerned. Can’t you see that I have so much more to offer you than she does? I worship you and would do anything for you if only you would return my love,” she said passionately as she took a step closer to him. “You come one step closer to me and I’ll nail you right here and now for what you have put this poor woman and her family through. You’d better hope and pray that we can bring her back and that she’ll be all right. If not…you’d better find a damned good hiding place, you god damned bitch, for I personally will come after you,” Carlo snarled as his anger grew uncontrollably. “You’ll go to prison for what you’ve done but I’ll find you there and choke the very life out of you with my own two hands, so help me God! Now…what is the substance you just gave to Dana?” Carlo said as he grabbed the nurse by the arm and spun her around to face the two policemen who had

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just entered the room. The belligerent young woman just stood there with a smirk on her face. “A pity! Carlo…a real pity! We would have made a great pair.” The others in the lounge were huddled together hanging onto every word that was being spoken in Dana’s room. Peg had watched in horror as the nurse had given the drug to her daughter. “Oh dear God! The woman is insane! Please let them get to Dana in time,” she said as she paced the floor, wringing her hands. “Does this mean that my Mommie is going to be all right, Uncle Jamie?” Alana cried as she clung to the young minister who was holding her in his arms. “Yes darling child…when they find out what the drug is, they can start her on the road to recovery. We must still continue to pray for her and that the doctors will find a way to counteract the bad medicine the nurse has been giving her. Taking the little one by the hand, he led the way down the hall toward Dana’s room, with Peg following close behind. The policemen were leading the handcuffed Miss Jacobs out of the room when the little entourage got there. She stopped dead still in front of Alana…she then stooped down to Alana’s eye level, looked at the weeping child and whispered…”Tell your daddy it was Ricin…R-I-C-I-N…from the Castor Bean!” Alana delivered Miss Jacobs message regarding the name of the poison immediately to her father and he passed the information on to the Poison Control and Biological Weapons people by phone. They informed him that the poison called Ricin is a powerful toxic substance extracted from Castor Beans as the nurse had said, and it ranks third in toxicity only to plutonium and the botulism toxin. It is one of the most toxic natural poisons. One or two chewed castor beans can be deadly to humans. Two teams of doctors and nurses immediately began to search every available avenue to try to find a way to bring Dana back around. With the withdrawing of the poisonous substance away

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from her IV, they began to pump her full of important life-supporting nutrients. First the doctors agreed that they needed to use a routine treatment of a coma induced by poisons to force Dana’s kidneys to excrete normally. They needed to alkalize the urine to aid in the excretion of acids. They infused sodium bicarbonate intravenously and then they added a diuretic to induce diuresis. This was a measure needed to increase fluid excretion from the kidneys. To alleviate any problems with dehydration, they then increase fluids with the use of isotonic fluids. Mannitol was used to produce osmotic diuresis, thereby increasing urine production and the amount of the poison excreted from the body. The final procedure was renal dialysis, a technique used to remove waste products from the blood and excess fluid from the body as a treatment for renal or kidney failure. Carlo, George and their friends researched the plant toxin in the hospital archives and were horrified to find that there is no known antidote and that the substance is virtually impossible to detect in the body after death occurs. If they hadn’t discovered it when they did, Dana would eventually have gotten enough in her system to kill her and they would never have known the cause. It was learned that Miss Jacobs had known that Dana was beginning to awaken from her real coma three months after the accident and that was the time she began to administer the Ricin to her. All of the staff had been at a loss as to why Dana had begun to suffer from serious digestive problems for she was not receiving any solid foods or sustenance of any kind that would cause her to have the serious bouts of diarrhea she suddenly developed. Because of the fact that she was receiving only fluids by TPN solution via a peripheral site, she only excreted watery defecation. Her physicians knew that if they didn’t get it under control, she could die of the shock. In time, the bouts of diarrhea subsided. Miss Jacobs knew enough about the toxic substance to know that as long as she administered it in very small, minute doses, it would only keep Dana in a coma-like sleep but when it accumulated in her

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body to a certain level over a period of time, it would cause her death. The nurse had a friend who extracted the juices from the beans and then passed them on to her. She measured and administered the doses very carefully for she did not want to take the chance of being discovered. Little did she know that Dana had a little Divine help in apprehending her tormentor. The story of Jamie’s dream soon became common knowledge throughout the hospital and was told over and over again. If the nurse and her cohort were convicted of the crime of trying to poison and kill Ms. Evans, they would be sentenced to life in prison.

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t took four days for the medical team to finish all of the procedures they deemed necessary for Dana’s body to rid itself of all of the toxic substance she had been receiving for the last three months. After extensive testing, they found that all of the body tissues and cells had not been damaged too badly by the Ricin. As it was literally undetectable, there was no way to actually know how much of the toxin had accumulated in her body. When all was finished, it was just a waiting game to see if she would awaken on her own. All who knew her felt assured that her will to live would be strong enough to pull her through. Jamie had to return to Memphis but he reassured Alana over and over that he would certainly be with all of them in spirit. He would return the first chance he could and he would keep in touch by phone. Carlo made arrangements for Alana and her grandparents to stay out at the lake house so that they would be near by when Dana awakened. A week went by, then another and all who were concerned began to worry that it was too late for Dana and that she would not revive. As the time went by and nothing happened, Peg and George sadly began to make plans to return to Memphis. Alana pleaded with them and they agreed to stay one more week. Late one evening of the third week, Carlo sat wearily in the chair by the side of Dana’s bed. He was holding her hand but was begin- 354 -

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ning to nod off into a light sleep. For a moment of two, he thought he was dreaming for he imagined he felt a slight twitch in Dana’s fingers. He raised his eyes toward the bed and noticed that the sheet covering Dana’s sleeping figure had been rearranged. It had been doubled back a little farther down on the bed and it now rested at her waist. He hadn’t noticed or heard anyone enter the room and he knew he hadn’t been that soundly asleep. From all indications, Dana appeared to be still sleeping quite deeply so how had that happened? As he slowly glanced up, he looked into the eyes of a beautiful figure that he could barely see. The figure was misty but he could determine the lovely features and shape of a woman…with wings. She was standing at the right-hand side of Dana’s bed with her right wing outstretched and wrapped around the head of Dana’s bed, as if she were protecting the sleeping person lying there. Carlo let go of Dana’s hand and automatically reached over and pinched himself on the arm, felt the pinch and realized that he was fully awake…he was actually seeing the apparition! He stood up slowly from the chair and moved closer toward the bed, never taking his eyes off the lady. When he was directly beside the bed, the angel removed her wing from the head of the bed, folded it back toward her form and silently floated away from the bed. She opened her beautiful wings and began to rise up into the air. She smiled and spread her arms wide. She then lowered them…with her hands outstretched and pointed toward Dana. She smiled even more broadly and then vanished as if she had never been there. When his eyes turned back toward the bed where Dana lay and he looked into her face, she opened her eyes and smiled at him. Carlo stood by the side of Dana’s bed in utter disbelief of what he had just witnessed. He would’ve thought he had dreamt it all if he hadn’t looked up again into Dana’s face. Her eyes were really open and staring directly at him. “Oh Dana…my precious darling…you are really awake! I thought I was still dreaming!” With tears streaming down his face, he reached for her and gently gathered her up into his arms. He held onto her

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for a minute or two until he could stop sobbing and then gingerly laid her back down onto the bed. “Did you see her?…the angel?…the lady standing beside your bed? Was she really there or was I hallucinating? I may be wrong, but I think she’s been there the entire time you’ve been in this room. Am I right?” The questions came fast and furiously, as if from a mad man. “I’m acting like a damned fool but I can’t help myself…Oh dear God…I’m so happy that you’re alive and awake. I thought I had lost you again and I couldn’t have stood it if you had died and left me forever. Tell me you are all right…can you speak?” Carlo implored as he took Dana’s hands into his and kissed them on her knuckles. Dana tried to open her mouth but it was so dry that no words would come forth. Carlo grabbed the cup he had been drinking out of himself a short while earlier and offered it to Dana’s parched lips as he held her head up off the pillow. She took a small sip or two and then tried to speak again. “A..yay..na,” she whispered and looked toward the door, tears beginning to form in her eyes. She tried to raise her hand off the bed by herself but it would not move. “A..yay..na,” She managed to say once again. Carlo picked up the phone and immediately dialed the number to his house up at the lake. George answered the phone as he always did late at night for fear it would be bad news regarding Dana and he wanted to be the one to receive it before the girls did. “George…this is Carlo. Wake the girls up and bring them to the hospital as soon as you can get down here. Dana’s awake! Awake, man! Can you believe it?? She’s finally awake and she’s asking for Alana. I know it’s late but who the hell cares? She’s come back to us at last! Halleluyah,” he shouted as he danced around the room. The nurses down the hall heard the commotion and came running into the room just as Carlo replaced the phone into its’ cradle. “She’s awake! Dana’s awake! Call Dr. Rodgers and Dr. Burroughs and spread the word! Spread the word, girls!!”

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It didn’t take long for the hospital to be abuzz with the news. Everyone took on a festive mood and went about their work with a light-hearted attitude, smiling everywhere they went. They kept telling one another that…miracles really do happen! Little did they know…really know! Later, as Carlo sat on the side of Dana’s bed, he began to speak to her almost in a whisper. “Oh Dana, I never gave up hope that you wouldn’t die. It was a case of touch and go there for a while and we’ll tell you all about it later but now we can relax and take the measures necessary to make you as good as new again.” He paused, and then said, ”It’s so wonderful just to be able to look into those beautiful eyes of yours, my darling.” As Carlo held her hands, Dana began to squeeze his a little as she smiled up at him. She wanted so badly to speak but her throat was so scratchy and her vocal cords just would not respond. She realized that she must not have been able to speak for quite a long time and that it would take time for her to recuperate to the point that she could move about and talk normally. “Don’t try to speak for now, Dana. I know you must have hundreds of questions about what’s happened to you and in time, we will get it all explained to you. For now, just rest in the blessed thought that you’re going to be all right. We have your Angel to thank for watching over you so carefully all of this time. Did you know she was here with you?” Dana nodded yes and smiled broadly, squeezing his hand at the same time. Suddenly the door opened and Alana came bursting through the doorway, followed by Peg and George. “Mommie! Mommie!” the child shouted as Carlo swung her up onto the bed so that she could get to her mother. Alana put her arms around Dana as best she could and hugged her, calling out her name with every squeeze. “I knew you would wake up! I just knew it! I never gave up hope. Oh Mommie! I’m so happy! You’ve come back to Daddy and me! I just knew you would!”

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Big tears were running down the side of Dana’s face and suddenly she lifted a shaky hand that only a little while ago, would not raise no matter how hard she tried to lift it, and stroked and caressed the little girl’s head that was nestled on her shoulder. As she did, her eyes met Carlo’s and she winked at him. Everyone in the room was crying tears of joy. Everyone tried to talk at once asking exactly what had happened when Dana opened her eyes. Carlo asked them all to sit down and he began to explain what he had witnessed earlier. “Of course I know what I saw and I also know that all of you will believe that it actually happened but we must be very, very careful to whom we tell the story of this phenomenon. We don’t want them to come cart us all off in the looney bin wagon.” “Gran…why would anyone think we’re nutty if we told them the truth of what happened to help Mommie wake up? Everyone should know that there are really angels all around us everywhere. Uncle Jamie says so, and I have always believed him. My Mommie told me that too! H-m-m-p-h! If they don’t believe in angels…then they’re the nutty ones!” Alana said huffily. It wasn’t long before George and Michael entered the room and everyone hugged and cried again. As the two doctors began to check Dana’s vital signs and listen to her heart and lungs, everyone else grew intensely quiet. It didn’t take them long to finish and then both said at the same time…”Looks and sounds good to me!” George then added, “We’ll have to check everything out a little more thoroughly tomorrow but for now…I would say she’s in fairly good shape, considering what has happened to her. Welcome back, Dana. We’ve missed you!” Peg, George and Alana took their leave also as the two doctors made their way out the door. Carlo had to promise Alana that she could return to the hospital first thing in the morning but for now, she and her mother needed to rest. Now that she was awake, Carlo refused to leave Dana’s side for he could not bring himself to be apart from her. He tried desperately to

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go to sleep in the chaise lounge beside her bed for he knew that they would all need some rest in order to start her on her road to recovery. For the longest time, he watched silently as her chest rose and fell, breathing the natural breath of one who is sleeping peacefully and naturally. “Rest my beloved,” he whispered. “We’ll talk later when you are stronger. I must plan my strategy for I must be very careful how I broach the subject of our getting back together. I don’t want to blow it! I feel in my heart and soul that you still love me and that you will return to me. I don’t see any malice or hatred whenever I look into your eyes but I want to make sure that you know that I am really a changed man…that I am back on track and that I am the old Carlo you fell in love with and married. We can be happy again, my darling…I just know it!” Dana remained in the hospital another two weeks in order for her to gain her strength back after the grueling ordeal her poor body had been through. All of her friends and family wanted desperately to visit her but Carlo refused that privilege to anyone other than immediate family and Jamie because he knew that it would take a little time for Dana to regain the use of her extremities and the normal use of her voice. After all, it had been six months since she had put any of them to use and she was very weak. There was no urgency for any visitation for from here on out, she would be around for a long, long time…he would see to that. Upon leaving the hospital, Carlo insisted Dana retire to the lake house to recuperate. He was afraid to let her out of his sight until she was fully recovered. She refused at first but between Alana and Carlo urging her to relent, she didn’t have the energy, nor the strength to defy both of them at this point in time. Dana’s parents wanted to take her home with them but they understood not only Carlo’s concern for their daughter’s health but also his plight in regards to his feelings for Dana. They too, felt that

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timing was everything now and Fate would have to once again step in to satisfy the situation once and for all. Carlo hired a housekeeper and a cook so Dana would have absolutely no worries while there. Of course, Shannon and Rhonda both kept constant vigil over the two ‘ladies of the house’ and were there when needed to run errands and such. All of the girls in Dana’s birthday group took turns in coming to help out also. Not only were they a big help doing things with Alana and around the house but they helped tremendously with raising Dana’s spirits and her morale. Sarah especially, for she was a real hoot and a laugh a minute. Sometimes they all laughed so hard, Dana would tease them and tell them she would have to send them all home for her to get any real rest. At any rate, she loved all of them and felt as though she wouldn’t have healed as rapidly if it hadn’t been for her friends. The incident of the angel had not been mentioned to anyone other than Dana’s parents, Alana, Jamie, Shannon and Rhonda thus far but it never left the minds of either one of the two who were privy to seeing the apparition. It wasn’t until later that they shared the story with the birthday girls, George, Michael and their wives. Carlo told them all in elaborate detail, the story of what had transpired in Dana’s hospital room the night she awakened. Somehow both of them knew that this was something very, very special and they didn’t want to share it with just anyone…only those who would believe and appreciate the wonderment of it all. After all, many others would think ‘the lights were on…but no one was home…if they divulged the scenario to the wrong ones. As they were discussing it several nights after Dana left the hospital, Alana said, “See, I told you that Mommie’s guardian angel was watching over her all the time since her accident. She visited me one night in my dreams and she told me not to worry about my mother…that she was right there beside her and would watch over

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her until time for her to wake up. Uncle Jamie told me too that there are angels all around us…we just can’t see them, that’s all!” “I used to say the idea of real angels was utter nonsense but I’m a staunch believer in them now after what I saw,” her daddy admitted, “I told Jamie several months ago that if the angels helped to bring Dana back, I would never again be a ‘doubting Thomas’.” “I knew she was there the entire time for even though I was in that coma, I could actually feel her presence there with me. And in case you’re interested…her name is Gabriella. It was like when I was in Australia and something or someone helped me do that operation on that little girl”…Dana said in her scratchy voice. “I knew she was there and I also felt that she would never really let anything happen to me unless, in my spiritual mind, I decided that it would be best for me to leave this world and go with her. She assured me that it would ultimately be my decision. I could also hear everything that was said,” she added, looking directly at Carlo as the color rushed to her face. “Oh, how many times I wanted to scream out to all of you and tell you that I was all right, that I was still alive and well but I was frozen in that deep sleep and couldn’t move or utter a single sound. I knew each time that crazy nurse came into the room and I was frightened out of my wits but unable to protect myself in any way. She’s a real wacko…but I can’t blame her for having such intense feelings for Carlo,” Dana said before she realized what she was saying. She blushed a crimson red. “Well, I mean, uh, well..whatever!” She added, trying to cover up her last remark.








A month later, Dana had regained her strength to the point that she felt well enough to return to her own home in Memphis. As she was packing her things in preparation to leave, Carlo knocked on the door of her room. “May I come in?” he asked as she slowly opened the door.

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“Of course…please do,” Dana said in an almost inaudible voice. She knew instinctively what he wished to talk to her about and she was a bit nervous as to what her reaction would be. She had had a long time to think about her answer.

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ana, I have waited until now to come to talk to you for I knew that you were extremely weak and needed some time in which to heal and to get your strength back. I must say, you’re looking great and seem to be feeling much better,” Carlo said. “May I sit down?” “Yes, of course, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude,” Dana said as she motioned him toward a chair by the window. “I am aware of the fact that you were able to hear everything that was said to you while you were in your coma so I won’t bore you with the redundancies,” Carlo began. However, I want you to know that everything I said to you during that time was true and from the heart. I realized while you were sleeping, that if anything happened to you, I would lose everything that I’ve always wanted, loved and cherished in this lifetime…again. I lost you once and I couldn’t bear it if I were to lose you to…death. You were my life’s gift…my reason for living and I treated that gift very shabbily. I want to express my sorrow and regrets to you Dana, over my horrible behavior the last three years of our marriage. I know I put you through Hell and I caused you a tremendous amount of pain. I just couldn’t seem to pull it all together after Shawn’s accident,” Carlo pleaded, his voice quivering…”and I am ashamed to admit that I sorely neglected you, Alana, and everything else that mattered to me. I was such a damned

“D

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fool and an absolute ass to have treated you the way I did. You tried your best to help me and I ignored your efforts. I was in Hell myself and I didn’t want any help from you or anyone else. I should have accepted your help and love but I chose to turn away from you and wallow in my pain and suffering all alone. You know that I love you more than anything in this world, more than life itself. I could kick myself from here to eternity and back for the way I behaved and acted. I wouldn’t blame you if you never forgave me but I hope that you can find it in your heart to do so and that we can start over again. I shattered our hopes and dreams for our future but given the chance…we can rebuild them together and…as I said…start over again.” That is…if you will just give us a second chance.” Carlo said sadly. When he finished speaking, he reached into his pocket and brought out a folded piece of paper. It was the letter Dana had written to him shortly after their divorce. “I have kept this letter and I have read it over and over many times and I remember every single word in it also. In it, you tell me of your intense, true, undying…undying Dana, love for me and that what we had was too precious to throw away and separate us forever. Please Little One, I am begging you to forgive me and say that you will come home, come back to me, so that we can put our lives together again as they should be. Your angel didn’t give you back to me to have us stay apart the rest of our lives. Please say that you still love me and that we can start over again.” Carlo pleaded, his voice quivering. Dana had sat very still the entire time Carlo was speaking and for a few minutes, she remained silent and just looked at him. Her thoughts were running rampant inside her head and she was desperately trying to assimilate her feelings before she trusted herself to speak. She raised one of her hands and rubbed her temple. “Oh Carlo, I don’t quite know what to say right now. I don’t feel well enough to make a decision of this magnitude just yet and I’m

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still not thinking too clearly. At times, my head is still a bit fuzzy and it’s hard for me to concentrate for very long at the time. Just let me say this…I’m so afraid of what would happen to us in the future if you have not really changed as you say you have. I can’t go through any more pain and heartache…it would kill me to have to go through that all over again. However, I will admit to this…I have a very special place in my heart that belongs only to you and I always will…but for the present, I must be assuaged of giving you an answer just yet. Please, Carlo don’t press me for a direct answer at this moment. I simply can’t give you one now.” Carlo’s shoulders drooped as he stood to leave the room. “I understand, Dana. I don’t mean to rush you. You’ve been through an awful lot these last few months and I don’t mean to add to your troubles or put more pressure on you. It’s just that I love you so much and I have missed you terribly. We have wasted so much precious valuable time with our divorce and then your accident took you away from me another six months. It was during that time that I realized that you are the most important thing in my life and somehow, I have to make amends for the pain and heartache I’ve caused you. Neither of us is getting any younger you know,” he said, winking at her. “I trust that you will at least think it all over and come to a decision soon.” With that, he took both of Dana’s hands in his, looked deeply into her eyes, leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. When Carlo closed the door behind himself, he leaned against it and said under his breath, “You are a damned fool, Carlo Evans! What’s the matter with you? You should have taken her in your arms, smothered her with kisses, professed your love for her and promised her the moon. You acted like a stuffed-shirt jerk in there just now! What the hell does she think? You march yourself right back in there and act like the love crazed man that you are and tell her you won’t take no for an answer!” For an instant, Carlo considered doing exactly what he was thinking but the fear of rejection kept him from carrying out the idea so

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he turned and walked back down the hall toward his room. “That kind of ridiculous action would definitely turn her off, you stupid jackass When Carlo closed the door behind himself, he leaned against it and said under his breath, “You are a jackass! Cool it!” he muttered under his breath. The next morning Carlo helped load all of Alana’s and Dana’s luggage into Peg’s car for the trip back to Memphis. Alana came running out of the house in front of Dana and her grandmother, skipping and dancing around the car. “Don’t look so down in the mouth, Daddy! I know we’ll be back for a visit real soon. I know you’ll miss me and I’m gonna miss you…a bunch! This running back and forth from Memphis to Atlanta is for the birds. I’ll be glad when we don’t have to do this any more!” “Out of the mouths of babes!” Peg said as she looked sheepishly from Dana to Carlo. Neither of them said a word but she noticed a slight change in both their faces.








The next two months found Dana busy with continued exercise workouts trying to put her physical self back together again. She had lost some weight during her ordeal for she had survived strictly on the fluids that had been pumped into her. It took a while for her appetite to return to normal and trying to eat solid foods sometimes nauseated her. Alana teased her unmercifully for the tables were turned. It was now the child’s turn to encourage the eating of vegetables and fruits and more than a spoonful of this, that or the other. “Come on now, Mom. You’ve got to eat to get strong…that’s what you used to tell me when I wouldn’t eat, remember? I’ll eat the squash if you will…” She said frowning. Within a couple of months, the color had returned to Dana’s face and her figure began to fill out once again. The workouts were paying off for she was toning up the loose skin that hung from her body

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when she left the hospital. She didn’t like the idea of looking like a…’little old lady’ and she intended to get her figure and shape back if she had to work night and day to do it. After all…Carlo had reminded her…she wasn’t getting any younger! Fall was here and it was her favorite time of the year. She spent a lot of time walking in the park near her home for she enjoyed the slight briskness in the air. It helped to clear the cobwebs out of her brain. Alana would come along with her many times either walking or roller-bladeing along beside her. Her little munchkin was a shrewd lass…she would periodically mention the fact that it surely would be nice to live in Atlanta again…there was just so-o-o much more to do there, she would say. “Come on, Mom…you know you miss all the fun places we used to visit. You know…like the Dogwood Festival, the fun we used to have at Lake Lanier and Alatoona. I miss our fun trips to the zoo and museums. Fernbank Museum of Natural History was my very favorite. You know how I loved to go to Lenox Square but now that Daddy’s Landmark Mall is completed, just think how much fun we could have going there. Our house is so much bigger there too and we have the stable closer than here so that we could visit Sable and Mink more often than we do now. Not that I’m trying to persuade you to move back or anything like that, you see…but it sure would be nice if we could move back to Daddy’s place. I know…you could make that my Christmas present this year…whadda ya think?” “You certainly aren’t the most tactful young lady in the world, Miss Priss. If you don’t have any objections…I’ll make up my own mind in my own good time, if you please!” her mother laughingly said as she tweaked Alana on the cheek. It was on one of these walks that a plan started to formulate in Dana’s mind. She needed to speak to an old friend of hers in Atlanta but she didn’t relish the idea of driving there alone again. The memory of her accident was beginning to come back to her in bits and

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pieces and she was a little nervous about driving herself. Oh well…she could always fly……








Carlo came to visit Alana every other weekend as he had done after the divorce and he would take her once again to one of the hotels in Memphis where they enjoyed the pool. Alana was becoming more and more of a polished diver with the help of her father and she soon outgrew the hotel pools. Carlo would often take her to the YMCA pool where they had higher boards for divers. She was tiny and very flexible so that she had no trouble at all with the twists and bends she demonstrated from the board. She had no fear either for she thought nothing of climbing to the highest board and performing with the best of them. Many times on Saturday nights when Carlo was in town, he would invite Dana to join him and Alana for dinner. So that she wouldn’t hurt their feelings, she sometimes agreed to tag along. It was a bit difficult and strained at first but she soon relaxed and enjoyed the evenings with them. Carlo made it a point not to harass Dana in any way when they were together for he didn’t want to intimidate her and force her to drift farther away from him. He was always polite and the perfect gentleman. He sent her flowers from time to time with always the same note…“Whenever you are ready…I love you, Carlo.” He stuck to his promise to her that he wouldn’t pressure her in any way. He was going to allow her to make her own decision. If she were to decide not to come back to him…he would try to convince himself that he would simply have to live with it. After all, he had created the problem and in a way, he felt that she would not forgive him, no matter what he said or did.

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ana made her trip to Atlanta late in October and met with her old friend, Dr. Jeremy Collins. He had been very receptive to her idea and they began to implement it shortly thereafter. After she moved back to Memphis and decided to go to work as an O.R. nurse, she had had to confide in Carlo and tell him of her secret schooling. He was surprised but not really shocked for he knew that they had talked speculatively of her someday doing just that while they were on their way home from their trip to Australia. He never gave it a second thought for she seemed to have given up on the idea and had never mentioned it again. Subsequently, he felt that he could have kicked himself for not picking up on what she had been doing for that was quite a feat in itself but even more of one, to keep it secret from him. He had been so engrossed in his own dealings with Landmark and then his grief that what she had been undertaking had gone completely unnoticed by him. He was proud of her and recommended her highly to her boss. It seemed that Dana and Dr. Collins were on the phone with one another constantly during the next few weeks for the program they were putting together was an extraordinary one and required the most strenuous interviewing of the persons to be involved. Dana worked on a lot of it from her end in Memphis, but she had to fly to Atlanta every other week to meet with Jeremy. She deemed it her - 369 -

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personal responsibility to make certain that those who would eventually be involved were the very best in their respective fields. She would not trust anyone else to interview the applicants or make a final decision without her being in on the decision-making. Somehow she had managed to keep the knowledge of her trips to Atlanta from Carlo for she felt that even though it was none of his business at the time, he would want to know why she hadn’t contacted him while she was in the city. She would travel to Atlanta during the week and have Shannon pick her up at the airport and then return her when her work was over. “Well…my little miracle lady…how’s it goin’?” Shannon asked every time she met Dana at the airport. She didn’t want to pry for she knew the situation between her friend and her ex-husband was a touchy subject, yet she felt that Dana needed to talk to someone and she considered herself Dana’s closest and dearest friend. “I think everything is going as it should be, ole buddy…I’m on the mend still but am feeling a bit weak every now and then. However, I’m a hell-of-a-lot better than I was when I left the hospital. You know if I were not doing fairly well, Mom and Alana wouldn’t hear of me taking off on my own for these meetings here in Atlanta. Of course, they know that you are here and they hold you responsible for my well being while I’m in your neck of the woods. They feel that you wouldn’t dare let anything happen to me or they’d have your hide and hang it out to dry!” “Yes mam! Heard you loud and clear on that! Now…am I going to have to drag it out of your or are you going to tell me how things are going with you and Carlo? What’s going on and how are you handling his constant pleading with you to return and get back together with him?” Shannon queried while helping to load the luggage into the trunk of her car. “We have a pact for the present, not to discuss it for a while. I can’t be pressured into making a decision that will affect all of us for the rest of our lives. You know that I love that man dearly but the ques-

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tion remains…am I still in love with him as I used to be. Honestly, Shannon, it’s as though my heart is frozen and I can’t seem to get it to thoroughly thaw out. I think I have placed an invisible protective shield all around me and I won’t or can’t let anyone or anything enter that barrier for fear of it destroying me again. Whenever I look at Carlo, I don’t seem to be able to feel the things I used to feel for him. It’s as though my emotions have shifted into some sort of numb mode. Is that strange or is it a natural response after all that I’ve been through?” “Only time will answer those questions for you my dear, but I’m banking on the fact that the old feeling is still there but you’re just afraid to let it go. The next time you see him…work on that…just try to put all else aside and tell your heart to give you an answer. Better still…ask Gabriella to help you find it…she helped you before and I’d be willing to wager she’s still handing around until you get it all back together again. After all, this is your future we’re talking about…you’ve got to make a decision soon for all of your family and friends can tell, it’s tearing both of you apart like this.” “Yeah…I suppose you’re right. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could all settle down to a normal frame of life again? Whatever that is,” Dana answered as she stepped out of the car at the front of Shannon’s house. “It’s awfully nice of you and Vincent to let me hang my hat here each time I have to fly over here to Atlanta. Where is the old fart anyway?” “Hey…I heard that!” Vincent laughed as he rounded the corner of the house. “Talk about me in that manner and you’ll carry your own luggage into the house, young lady,” the good-looking man said as he opened the trunk of the car. “Got ribs cooking on the grill for you girls ‘cause I figured you didn’t want to be seen out and about all over town. Someone is bound to recognize you and word would get back to the Italian Stallion. He might be a tad upset, and that’s putting it mildly, with all of

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us if he finds out that you were here and we didn’t tell him. How is that old fart, if you don’t mind my asking?” Vincent said in his jovial way. Dana always enjoyed herself immensely whenever she was with these two old friends. The three of them were extremely close…real soul mates. They had such good times together…laughing, playing and just plain ole ‘being silly.’ It always lifted her spirits and she felt very happy after a visit with them. Dana and Shannon liked to play together like two little kids. Oftentimes they would laugh so hard they would roll in the floor and sometimes, pee their panties. She hoped this would be one of those real fun times for she literally needed to laugh, make merry and forget all about her previous troubles. “How’re things going with your project, Dana?” Vincent asked politely as he handed her a cool glass of wine. “My project is almost ready for it’s preview run…everything seems to be falling into place. And…thank goodness, Dr. Collins…Jeremy…has handled the bulk of the footwork for it’s made it very difficult for me to have to ‘free lance’ from Memphis. Ye gods! I’m afraid to see what my phone bill is going to be this month for I have called everywhere from Seattle to London, Toronto to Miami and almost everywhere in between in the last weeks. But…I’ve had great success so guess it will all be worth it in the long run.” “When do you think you’ll be making the first excursion? Are you to be on the first team or will you wait ‘til later on when they are more established? Shannon asked. “Oh, I wouldn’t miss the first one for anything in the world and I can’t wait to see the look on Carlo’s face when he finally learns of this adventure. I’m so excited and can hardly wait until the time gets here. If all goes well, we should be ready to spread our wings and fly by the first week in December,” Dana informed her two friends.

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On one of Carlo’s visits with Alana, he and the little girl persuaded Dana to join them down at the hotel for a swim in the pool. There were several people in the water when they first entered but they soon left and the three of them had the pool all to themselves. Alana put on quite a show for her mother for Dana had not witnessed her daughter’s prodigious talent and prowess in the water and on the diving board. ‘Why the little bugger is an absolute natural!’ she thought as she watched in awe. “My heavens, Alana…I had no idea you were so good! I’ve been hearing about your talents in this department, but I never dreamt you were this good. How did you learn to dive like that?” Dana asked astonishingly. “That big handsome fellow sitting over there on the side of the pool taught me,” Alana said as she pointed toward her father. “He’s been instructing me for quite some time now and we both think I’m pretty good. What do you think, Mom?” “Why, I think you’re wonderful. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone so young perform so beautifully and so perfectly. I must say…I’m quite proud of you. Keep this up and someday you may be on the Olympic Swim and Dive team. You’d make us awfully proud, little missy!” “Come on into the water, Mom. It feels so good and we don’t care if you get your hair wet, do we Dad?” “Not at all…I can remember she used to look pretty good with a wet head,” Carlo cajoled as Dana slithered into the water. “Let’s see who can race to the other end of the pool the fastest, girls. Come on…ready…set…go!” Alana beat the other two by half a body length for she was so light, she cut the water like a knife blade. “Beat cha!” she shouted as she came up from a flip at the end of the pool. “Come on Dad, let’s show Mom our synchronized swim we put together.”

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“Hey…wait a minute and let me catch my breath,” Carlo said as he swam over to the side of the pool where Dana was languidly holding on to the ladder. Just as he reached her side, she lost her hold and began to sink. Carlo grabbed her and pulled her back up to the surface. The water made her body buoyant and she naturally floated over toward him as she came up out of the water. She was facing him and he pulled her closer to the point that their bodies were touching. He looked down into her face, peered longingly into those gorgeous blue eyes and bent to kiss her. As his lips brushed hers, Dana pulled away from him and swam to the other side of the pool. Her breath was coming fast and furiously…was it from the swim or was it caused by the return of an old familiar feeling in her mid-section? She couldn’t take the chance of finding out so she climbed the ladder at the opposite side of the pool from Carlo and announced that she’d had enough of the water for one day. She grabbed her towel and headed for the elevator. “What’s bugging her?” Alana asked as she swam up to her father who was still holding onto the ladder from whence Dana had slipped. “She looks like she’s seen a ghost or something. Did you scare her, Dad?” “No, but I think I know what did, my little pet. Come on…race you to the other side one more time and then we have to get out and go get dressed. Your mom will need a ride home.” As Dana rode up in the elevator, she was glad that she was the only occupant. Her heart was still pounding so hard that if anyone else had been there, she was afraid they could have heard it thumping. “Oh, be still my beating heart! Seems to me this is a bit reminiscent of a pounding I was once familiar with. What’s happening to me? Do I feel a bit of a thaw?”

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couple of weeks later, the weather was cool but pleasant as Carlo made his way down town to the Medical Arts Building. He had received a call from Jeremy Collins, an old friend whom he hadn’t seen or heard from in a long time. Jeremy invited him down to his office and told him that he had something of great importance to discuss with him. The two doctors had gone to medical school together and had assisted each other with cases off and on through the years. They didn’t travel in the same social circles much any more so it was rare that they ran into each other. And…Carlo hadn’t been out to any of the festive holiday parties that were already in full swing. Since Dana and he weren’t together, he had shied away from the party life for it wasn’t much fun to go alone and he surely wasn’t in the market for a date, just to have a partner at the functions. As usual, the ladies of the social circle were anxious to fix him up with their daughters or friends, but he felt the same about that as he had years ago. Thanks, but no thanks. He wasn’t interested in looking else where for a mate and he doubted that he would, even if Dana should decide not to come back to him. He would stick strictly to business and be damned with other women. His sexual appetite had begun to wane long ago but if the situation ever ‘arose’, there was always the pleasant

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thought that he could take his problem ‘in hand’ so to speak, and resolve it himself. Carlo parked in the underground parking lot and made his way up to the twelfth floor. As he emerged from the elevator, he heard voices coming from the conference room at the end of the hallway. Upon entering the room, he noticed that there were eight men and four women seated at the long table, with Jeremy at the head. “Come in, Carlo. I believe you know most of these people. Have a seat and we’ll proceed to get right down to business. We have formed a group of doctors and nurses who practice in various specialties and are interested in traveling to different parts of the country to provide much needed medical care to people in the backwoods of our country. Those people who otherwise would not be able to find the kind of care they want and need due to lack of funds and transportation. Rather like the operation with the Flying Doctors group you reported to some of us on your return from Australia, Carlo. We thought perhaps you would care to join us…as a matter of fact, we’re hoping that you will pilot one of the air-planes that we have requisitioned for our trips. We only have one other Board Certified General Surgeon on the docket at present so we would be thrilled to have you take the other slot. With your experience and expertise, you would be quite an asset to the team. For the present, we would only be making trips here in our own United States, but hopefully later on, we would like to go out of the country to cater to some of the poor, miserable peoples in countries who lack the facilities for any kind of preferred treatment. All of this is strictly on a volunteer basis and there is no payment involved. Are you interested, Dr. Evans?” Dr. Collins asked. “My practice has built up so in the last year and I have got more work than I can possibly handle at the present time. Therefore, I would have to give it some serious thought but it sounds like something I could really sink my teeth into. My ex-wife and I used to dream about doing just this sort of thing after our trip down under.

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The outback was so primitive and those poor souls were in dire need of some medical help. The Flying Doctors in Australia provide quite an exceptional service for otherwise, most of those people who needed to be treated, would have died. I derived a lot of personal satisfaction in helping out for those few short days we were there,” Carlo concluded. Dr. Collins went on to describe all of the plans and informed the group that everything was in order and they were ready to make the first medical Mercy trip next week. He explained that the other surgeon was scheduled to go on the first team trip but would gladly relinquish his slot to Carlo. The young man had several small children and would prefer to stay here to spend the holidays with them, if possible. Carlo shook his head negatively and was about to speak when Dr. Collins interrupted him. “I think you’ll change your mind when you meet the person who organized and planned the entire Mercy team operation. Ladies and gentlemen…may I present to you the President and Chairman of the Board of our organization…Ms. Dana Evans.” Carlo’s mouth fell open as he turned to face the door from which his ex-wife emerged. As she walked around the table, she passed directly behind Carlo’s chair. As she did so, she put her hand on his shoulder and ran it across to the other shoulder, giving it a pat as she removed her hand. “Thanks to all of you for coming tonight to this final planning meeting. We are all so excited and thrilled over the prospect of being able to undertake this worthwhile and rewarding operation. I have researched the entire program with a little help from the Flying Doctor teams in Australia. Dr. Evans and I enjoyed immensely our time working with them. I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to be able to witness the joy and happiness on the people’s faces when they are treated and made well from the sometimes horrible maladies that have befallen them. If it were not for dedicated doctors and nurses like yourselves who so willingly give of your time, talents and efforts,

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most of the people who fall into that category, would die. I want to personally thank you for your unselfishness in joining with us to bring hope, happiness and health to these poor unfortunate human beings.” Dana stood with her hands braced on the table in front of her and didn’t look directly at Carlo until she was about to finish her little speech. She then looked him straight in the eye and said, “I know this is something you have a great feeling for and I’m sure you will be eager to join forces with the rest of us to give of yourself and your time, especially at this blessed time of the year. We must always remember that which was said long, long ago…’It is more blessed to give, than to receive.’ ” “Thank you all for coming. On your way out you will find your schedules and a list of the required necessities to take along with you on our first trip. Good luck!” Everyone but Carlo rose from the table to take their leave. He sat there in silence as he watched Dana gather up the papers laid out in front of her on the table. She glanced up at him, and as she smiled, a slight blush started to creep upward from her neck. Picking up her briefcase, she walked toward him. As he got up from the chair, she took him by the arm and said…… “Take me home, my darling. My bags are in the car. We must plan for your daughter’s homecoming. She wants to be in her own home for Santa Claus to visit her this year and we have loads to do in order to get ready for this trip. First of all however, I would like to invite you to join me in a rousting game of ‘mattress polo’ at our house. Are you game?” Carlo didn’t take the time to answer…he just took Dana into his arms and kissed her the passionate kiss of one who is so very much in love…and so ecstatically happy he couldn’t speak even if he wanted to.

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As they stepped into the elevator arm in arm, a tiny white feather drifted from out of nowhere and landed softly on Dana’s shoulder. She and Carlo looked at each other and smiled knowingly……

THE END

Australian ‘Strine’ Words s

Billabong

Water Hole

Billy

Container of boiling tea

Bloke

Man

Bonzer

Great, terrific

Bush

Country away from the city

Chook

Chicken

Dingo

Australian wild dog

Dinkum, fair dinkum

Honest, genuine

Dinki-di

The real thing

Fossick

To prospect for gold or gems

Granzier

Rancher

Jumbuck

Sheep

Make a good fist

Do a good job

Ocker

Basic down-to-earth Aussie

Outback

Remote bush

Pom

English person

Shout

Buy a round of drinks

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Australian ‘Strine’ Words

Station

Sheep or cattle ranch

Strine

What Aussies speak

Swag

Bedroll or belongings

Tucker

Food

Ute

Utility or pickup truck

Waltz Matilda

Carry a swag

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About the Author s

Deloras Davis (Fountain) resides in Shalimar, FL where she lives and writes overlooking the beautiful waters of Garniers Bayou. She is the published author of a children’s story, No Time for Fears or Tears. She is the devoted mother of four children, Tommy, Randy, Clay Carmical and Lisa Franklin. She is also the proud grandmother of fourteen grandchildren. She is a horsewoman, business woman, trained Nurse Technician and a Hospice Volunteer.

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Notes s

Quotes: Madeline Mills, past Vice President of the Florida Medical Association Alliance “Wait To Be My Angel” is one of the most intriguing books I have ever read. The story is one filled with several sub-plots that are absolutely mesmerizing and makes one not want to put the book down until it’s final conclusion. It keeps the reader spellbound. Deloras’ descriptive talents are superb in every way. The book is definitely a ‘must read’. Joan Farris, Realtor of Florida Association of Realtors (retired) “Wait To Be My Angel” is a truly unique and beautiful love story that is out of the ordinary due to the fact that it involves a previously divorced couple. It is highly mystifying, suspenseful and grabs and holds your attention and interest from start to finish. It is exceptionally well written, is fast moving, intriguing and captivates the imagination to the point that the reader can actually picture the events of the story in her mind. An exceptionally good read. Don’t miss it! Dorothy Henne, Missile Engineer “Wait To Be My Angel” is one of the most riveting, suspenseful books I have ever read. The author has presented the material in a tasteful, yet intriguing manner. Definitely a must read! - 383 -

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