Beep.
“-get a call from her momentarily.”
“Yeah, she’s trying to get through now. Thanks, Jerry! I’ll talk to you later!” Ben said and switched to the next call before it went to voicemail.
“Hello?”
“Ben! Oh Ben! You are- you’re so… oh my god! Ben-” Gabriella’s voice was coming through the line somewhat garbled.
“Gabriella! Are you alright? I’m having trouble hearing you?” Ben said pressing his finger to his opposite ear.
“I’m sorry Ben. I’m in the middle of the biggest group hug! The workers at Brezza have something they would like to say to you…”
“GRAZIE!” thundered through the earpiece of Ben’s phone.
Ben grinned listening to the crowd of happy people cheering over the phone. After a period he heard the background noise dim suddenly and Gabriella was back on the line.
“Are you still there?”
“Yes, I’m here. So all is good?”
“Oh my god Ben I can’t tell you what a relief this is to these people. Three days ago they were all looking at the possibility of being out on the street! Now they have their future’s back!”
“Jerry told me the merger went through. Does that mean you’re the new CEO?” he asked as casually as he could. His heart ached in his chest as he held his breath quietly.
She still sounded breathless. “What? Oh! No, I haven’t signed anything yet. I’ve just been working around the clock to complete the merger as that was the only way these companies were going to survive. That and the amazing generosity of our new investors! Two of my American investors were talked out of it by their advisors but Jerry told me you increased the limit so we were able to cover the lost investments. Ben… I have to tell you… I can’t thank you enough for believing in me. I- it’s…” She began to sniff.
“Of course I believe in you! I love you, Gabriella. Your love is the foundation upon which my life is built. If it hadn’t been for you I’d still be sitting on a lawn chair in my driveway waiting for a love that will never be returned.”
“Ben, I love you so much! I wish you were here!”
“Are you going to be visiting home any time soon?” he asked.
She moaned. “I have at least two weeks of reorganizing to do to optimize their intercommunications and get the suppliers all in line. We have such an amazing new product line-up! It’s going to be the talk of the industry! Can you visit here?”
“After I get back I have to get some prototypes manufactured then I’ll be heading down to Australia to show them to the client.” He thought for a moment. “Maybe I could arrange my flights to take me through Milan?”
“Yes Ben! Please try to do that!” she pleaded.
He grinned. “Ok, let me look into it and I’ll let you know. I have to tell you Gabriella, I’m so proud of you. You really stepped up and saved these people! They are lucky to have you on their side!”
Gabriella was really sniffling now. “Beeeennnn!”
“Awww love, take a deep breath. I’ll see you as soon as I can,” he said, feeling bad he’d brought her to tears again.
“I love you Ben.” Gabriella said quietly.
“I love you too. Have a good night’s sleep. Don’t stay out partying too late. You have work tomorrow,” he said with a grin.
“Good night,” she said wistfully and hung up.
Ben put his phone back in his pocket and stood looking out at the horizon. He realized he was on the wrong coast to be looking towards Europe. He could look in the direction of Asia and Australia from here though.
He took a few deep breaths to release the tension in his chest. He didn’t realize how much he missed Gabriella. He’d look into flights when he got back to the room. He couldn’t book anything as he still had to make those prototypes but he could at least look into different routes he could take. Maybe it was time for him to book a flight on that jet service himself. At least to do the first leg of the journey to Milan.
He started walking again and reached the grounds as the sun became hidden behind the clouds completely. He made his way up to the room and saw Trish and Rain hadn’t returned yet. He took the icebucket down the hall, filled it and brought it back to the room carrying it out to the balcony. He went back for his laptop and did some route calculations for flying from home to Milan and on to Melbourne as he chilled his right hand.
Sometime later the door open and two laughing women pushed their way into the room. They saw Ben and went out onto the balcony.
When Trish saw Ben resting his knuckle on the ice her smile slipped. “What happened?”
Ben glanced at his hand and lifted it out of the ice. “This? I just aggravated it a little.”
Trish held his eyes with hers and crossed her arms. “How?”
Ben squirmed under her stare. “Punching someone.”
Rain gasped and Trish frowned in confusion. “Who?”
“You don’t know him. A drug dealer I encountered up the beach.” Ben looked away.
“You beat up a drug dealer. Ben! We were only gone for six hours! Can’t you keep out of trouble for that short time?”
“I didn’t get into trouble! The police took him and his bodyguard away. Well the ambulances took them away but the police were with them.” He fidgeted under Trish’s stare.
“Bodyguard?” Rain asked.
“Uh, yes. But I managed not to get cut when he pulled a knife,” he mumbled.
Rain gasped.
“You recall the fight?” Trish asked surprised.
Ben looked at Trish then shook his head.
“What do you mean does he recall the fight?” Rain asked Trish sharply. She looked at Ben. “Were you hit in the head?”
“No, Ben’s been having memory lapses under certain circumstances. One of those is when he has to respond to someone in danger.” She looked at Ben. “Who was getting hurt this time?”
Ben looked out over the balcony’s rail as the rain began. He sighed. “Dana. A young woman who owed the drug dealer money. He was being rough with her. Said he was going to rape her. Apparently he hurt one of her breasts. Then I hit him.”
“You don’t remember any of this?” Rain asked.
Ben glanced at her. “I recall he grabbed her arm roughly.” Ben looked inward but there was nothing. “Then he was unconscious and bloody on the ground and the bodyguard was also on his back with his knife stuck in his chest.”
They gasped and Ben hastened to finish. “I’m told he fell on his blade accidentally. I made him leave it in until the paramedics arrived.”
“You remember when he came back from dancing the night we had dinner in the room. I think this is another event like that,” Trish commented to Rain.
“Can we talk about something else please?” Ben asked, feeling distinctly uncomfortable.
“Sorry Ben. Just… this is what you’re talking with the other doctor about, yes?” Rain asked. He nodded. “Ok, I just wanted to be sure.” She had a concerned look on her face.
Ben looked to Trish. “Do you recall the two young men you… dealt with on the flight down here?”
“Yes.”
“I met them about an hour’s walk down the beach. They’re with some friends and they’ve come down here to surf before they ‘start their adult lives’. They apologized for their behavior and explained they were high on some bad ‘Mex’ at the time. I assume that’s some kind of marijuana.”
“Let me guess, the drug dealer was after them and you intervened.” Trish scowled.
Ben looked at her sadly and her frown dissolved. She leaned forward and took his face in her hands. “What am I going to do with you?”
Ben shrugged and she kissed his forehead.
“Did you guys have fun?” Ben asked to change the subject.
Trish’s face lit up as did Rain’s. “Style is spooked by monkeys! Fucking hilarious! There was a troop of howlers in the canopy and Style almost stepped off a thirty foot platform to escape. They weren’t even close to us but he freaked! We had to keep a close eye on him to keep him from doing something stupid.”
“Zip-lining is fun!” Rain gushed.
“Did Killah enjoy his mud bath?” Ben asked.
“Yeah, he looked so relaxed when he got back on the bus.” Trish smiled.
“We’re all meeting for dinner at 8PM,” Rain added.
“Do you two like surfing?” Ben asked.
Rain nodded with a grin.
“I’ve always wanted to try it,” Trish replied.
“Why don’t we walk back down the beach tomorrow to that spot where the kids surf, you guys can rent some boards and give it a try? The waves in that bay seem to be pretty good for surfing.”
“We should ask the others at dinner tonight if they are interested.” Trish said.
“The more the merrier,” Ben agreed.
“Ugh, Ben, if you are going to say things like that you won’t fit into the surfing culture at all. You gotta say stuff like ‘That would be gnarly dude!'” Trish joked in her best surfer voice.
“Wait! You should say ‘Hang ten, dude!'” Rain slurred.
Ben looked at the two giggling girls. “No.”