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Writing Update: 42 Day Streak & 5,017 New Words

So, today was one of those days where I just didn’t feel like writing. Kept pushing it off. Wrote a little at lunchtime. Then a bit more in the afternoon, but once I got home from work…I started writing like a madman. Managed to crank out 5,017 words today for Kobe & Katrina.

It’s an amazing story. I was shocked when I discovered who one of Kobe’s clients was and how his family got involved in this whole mess. Katrina still hasn’t figured out a way to get them out of this mess.

And we’re already in over 20,000 words for a short story that was supposed to be a quick 1,000-word short story. But this is too interesting of a story to stop now.

Yes, I know! We left old Art hanging back in the middle of Edge 1.4 which I don’t really like doing. But he is just going to have to hang on until we can get back to him. Especially since he is looking for Kobe, at least now we know where the old geezer is hiding and why.

Wow! All I can say is wow! So, let’s get to it. Eh? I don’t want to give away any spoilers of course. But I can’t wait till you get to read this story. I think you are going to love it.

Meantime, I’ve got to go get some shut-eye here. It’s way past my bedtime, and I’ve been hanging onto my desk here for the past hour or so, just to get these character worksheets up that I created today.

And whatever you do kids, don’t go out trying any of these Radical Road Rolls that kids are doing these days.

https://twitter.com/davebaileyme/status/1016381307465732097

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Character Profile: Marina Gemma van Willigenburg

Marina Gemma van Willigenburg is Kobe’s daughter. She studies Biological Engineering at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. She gets involved in one of Kobe’s business deals and gets kidnapped herself.

1460 Randall Drive
Brimhill

Height: 5′ 2″ (157 centimeters)
Weight: 115.1 pounds (52.3 kilograms)
Blood type: O+
Favorite color: Blue
Vehicle: 2003 Suzuki Grand Vitara

Age:30 (Kobe/Katrina) 40 (Edge)
Birthdate: January 27, 1978 (12:42 AM)
Death date: June 29, 2049 (8:54 AM)
Lifespan: 71
Cause of death: Diabetes

Mother’s maiden name: Engel
Nationality: Dutch
Location: North Brabant, Netherlands
Language: Dutch

SSN: 750-03-XXXX
Phone: 852-1285
Email Address: MarinaLuimes@jourrapide.com
Username: Immirty
Password: yaeyu2Hazie
Website: begetmore.com

Visa: 4929 3219 9339 6274
Expires: 1/2022
CVV2: 141

Company: Top Secret (Clone Collection Crew)
Occupation: Biological Engineer

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Character Profile: Dr. Tonya Marina Samoylova

Dr. Tonya Marina Samoylova is the psychologist that Kobe helped set up to filter people who remembered their experience of being kidnapped. Dr. Tonya is the alien abduction specialist who works with Iva after she thinks that she’s been abducted by aliens.

3469 Russell Street
Brimhill

Height: 5′ 2″ (157 centimeters)
Weight: 170.7 pounds (77.6 kilograms)
Blood type: B+
Favorite color: Blue
Vehicle: 2000 GMC Terradyne

Age: 60
Birthdate: December 13, 1957 (2:43 AM)
Death date: February 10, 2039 (9:39 PM)
Lifespan: 81
Cause of death: Cancer

Mother’s maiden name: Ibrahimova
Nationality: Russian
Location: Perm Krai, Russia
Language: Russian

SSN: 021-30-XXXX
Phone: 897-3811
Email Address: MarinaSamoylova@jourrapide.com
Username: Gring1962
Password: ohg9eeK4ph
Website: BrimhillAlienAbductions.com

Visa: 4539 0649 6243 1738
Expires: 6/2019
CVV2: 962

Company: Brimhill Alien Abductions
Occupation: Psychologist

 

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Character Profile: Iva Caterina Trevisani

Iva Caterina Trevisani is Tony Blanchett’s niece who appears in Kobe & Katrina’s story. She is kidnapped by a mad scientist collecting samples from people of interest so that they can clone their subjects. Iva remembers part of the experience even though she thinks that she was abducted by aliens. She disappears before she can get to the feds with her information.

4131 Lakewood Drive
Brimhill

Height: 5′ 1″ (156 centimeters)
Weight: 194.7 pounds (88.5 kilograms)
Blood type: B+
Favorite color: Orange
Vehicle: 2009 Ford Fiesta

Age: 42
Birth date: June 14, 1976 (3:58 PM)
Death date: October 3, 2053 (7:59 AM)
Lifespan: 77
Cause of death: Cancer

Mother’s maiden name: Ricci
Nationality: Italian
Location: Veneto, Italy
Language: Italian

SSN: 150-12-XXXX
Phone: 201-880-0684
Email Address: IvaTrevisani@rhyta.com
Username: Bech1997
Password: ChieCie1ae
Website: ChampNames.com

MasterCard: 5394 0040 1939 1734
Expires: 10/2023
CVC2: 398

Company: Sandy’s
Occupation: Restaurant chef

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Character Profile: Katrina Baier Strohkirch

Katrina is a hitwoman for hire who also runs a small-time mob organization under the guise of an electronics factory. She first appears in Edge 1.4 while Art is looking for Kobe. Katrina loves Kobe and tries to protect him from the mess he is in with Tony.

I kind of envision her like Hellen Mirren in Shadowboxer as Rose while writing her part in Kobe’s short story.

4772 Pointe Lane
Brimhill

Height: 5′ 8″ (173 centimeters)
Weight: 190.7 pounds (86.7 kilograms)
Blood type: B+
Favorite color: Purple
Vehicle: 2015 Chevrolet SS

Age: 58
Birthdate: June 4, 1960 (12:35 AM)
Death date: September 25, 2038 (6:28 AM)
Lifespan: 78
Cause of death: Heart Disease

Mother’s maiden name: Winkel
Nationality: German
Location: Berlin, Germany
Language: German

SSN: 262-17-XXXX
Phone: 954-971-7890
Email Address: KatrinaBaier@jourrapide.com
Username: Hishoupers
Password: oogae1Xah0
Website: chieftronics.com

MasterCard: 5203 7131 5066 2510
Expires: 6/2019
CVC2: 637

Company: Chieftronics
Occupation: Human Resources by day and assassin by night

Let me know how you imagined her while reading this story. Any actresses or celebrities that you think would be a good fit? Let me know in the comments below.

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Character Profile: Kobe Kasper van Willigenburg

This is the lawyer that Art is looking for in Edge 1.4 because he wants a lawyer with a vendetta against Tony. He comes highly recommended by April. However, she doesn’t know where to find him.

Kobe is also getting his own short story where he stars with Katrina.

2321 Boggess Street
Brimhill

Height: 5′ 9″ (176 centimeters)
Weight: 218.0 pounds (99.1 kilograms)
Blood type: B+
Favorite color: Silver
Vehicle: 1993 Oldsmobile Achieva

Age: 63
Birth date: February 28, 1955 (11:47 AM)
Death date: May 7, 2028 (10:57 AM)
Lifespan: 73
Cause of death: Diabetes

Mother’s maiden name: Huntjens
Nationality: Dutch
Location: Overijssel, Netherlands
Language: Dutch

SSN: 272-02-XXXX
Phone: 924-2442
Email Address: KobeKasper@VanWilligenburg.com
Username: Beeptund60
Password: Im3dah9cee
Website: VanWilligenburgLLP.com
Company: Van Willigenburg LLP
Occupation: Lawyer

Visa: 4485 3563 7807 2716
Expires: 2/2021
CVV2: 617

After reading about Kobe in the stories, let me know what actor or celebrity he makes you think of in the comments below.

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Writing Update: Kobe & Katrina

Happy Sunday to you all! This was a good week of writing. Wrote 33,372 words. Basically spent it finishing up Edge of the Universe: Season 1 – Episode 3 and then started Episode 4.

I got some really good writing days in with the help of Focusmate, which is great for helping me stay on track with my writing.

I’m participating in Camp NaNoWriMo and I’m in a cabin full of other great sci-fi writers. And I’m already over halfway to my goal in the first week. Wooo hooo! Hope to keep up the pace.

I’ve actually got to write more because I’ll be traveling the last half of this month. So, I’ve got to cram it in now.

I also started writing a short story for the lawyer that Art is looking for in Edge 1.4 because I wanted to understand why Tony tried to kill him.

It was supposed to be something short and quick, but I started writing from Katrina’s point of view. I was instantly captivated and extremely intrigued by the relationship between the two.

And I was absolutely blown away with the whole incident that started this mess.

I don’t want to give away any spoilers of course, so I won’t say much more about it here.

But I can’t wait to share Kobe & Katrina’s story with you.

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Writing Update: Edge 4 – Crazy, Narcissistic, Selfish Lovers

Doing a little research here on relationships ending badly for a couple. I’ve been writing a short story about a couple called Kobe & Katrina.

Katrina is a small-time mob boss/hit woman who likes what she does. Learned the trade from her daddy. Took over to avenge his death when her brother was too weak to do anything.

So, she often gets into trouble and needs the help and advice of her lawyer. That would be Kobe. She falls in love with him, but he’s married.

Long story short, he gets himself in a real pickle and needs her help to clean up the mess after someone kills his family for a mistake he made.

Update: This was supposed to be a short story of about 1000 words to get some background on Kobe who pops up in Edge of the Universe – On the Run – Episode 4. But I’m already up over 12,000 now on this backstory. This could become its own book. I’m finding the whole relationship between them really interesting. Hope you enjoy reading it when it’s complete.

Anyway, I was looking for articles about things going bad relationships and how narcissists and selfish lovers feel about getting dumped or put in the friend zone.

Got me to wondering about any interesting experiences that you may have had with crazy, narcissistic, selfish lovers that broke up with you or mistreated you for no reason. Feel free to share in the comments below.

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[Edge1.1.24] Tomorrow Is A New Day

“Whoa!” Art said and looked at Tony in shock.

“Hey! Keep your eyes on the road, man.” Tony commanded.

Art looked back at the road, but he could see Tony smiling out of the corner of his eyes.

“Serious?” Art asked in surprise. “Like I can choose the one I want?”

“No, goofball. You can’t choose one. I’m giving you all three cars. I’m tired of the Ferarri and the Aston. BMW sent me the new one as a gift for being a valuable client, but I didn’t really like the way they made the steering wheel. Besides, I’ll never drive it anyway.”

“Wow! Thanks.” Art said. He tried to think of something else to say, but nothing came to mind. He started to look back at Tony, but the old man scowled at him and told him to keep his eyes on the road.

They drove down the road a way before Tony had him turn into a gated community. Art pulled up, and Tony introduced him to the guard on security duty. Art was amazed at the beauty of the place. Lush green grass growing over low rolling hills.

“There’s a golf course right over along that side. Pools are down there by the clubhouse. And that’s your gym.”

Art paused to let a golf cart and several people cross.

“Busy tonight. Huh?” Art said.

“Nah, just wait till Friday. Then you’ll see this place hopping.” Bill answered.

“You play golf?” Art asked.

“Yeah, since when did you start playing golf?” Tony asked. “You told me you didn’t play last time I invited you along.”

“I have a friend who lives down here. I come over once in a while for a barbecue. We just sit on the front porch and watch the babes.” Bill half-giggled and half-snorted to himself.

Art and Tony just looked at each other and rolled their eyes.

“Seriously, Bill? You’re such a loser. I keep telling you that you gotta get a life. Tell me you at least go hit on some of them. Right?” Tony said.

“C’mon, Tony. I’m just a working man. I just drive a Toyota. All these girls come down here with their millionaire boyfriends in Lambos. What chance do I got with them? They see me with my car and won’t give me the time of day.” Bill whined.

“What are you talking about. You’re a big shot military guy who does security for a high-tech firm. You’re not some hobo on the street. Suck it up, man. Some of these girls are bored out of their minds with these fat, old geezers. Give them five minutes, and they’ll fall head over heels in love with you.” Tony shot back.

“Nah, man! That’s not how it works around here. You have never been rejected by one of these gold diggers.” Bill complained.

“I’ll loan you one of my new cars,” Art said. “You can borrow one on a Friday night and drive down here to visit me.”

“Really? You’d do that for me?” Bill asked.

“Sure.” Art replied. “Freely you have received, freely you shall give. It’ll be fun. You can be my wingman.”

Bill brightened up and thanked Art profusely several times while patting him on the back each time. After about the third time, Tony lost it and slapped his hand off of Art’s shoulder.

“For crying out loud, man. Leave the dude alone and let him drive. You sound like the guy just saved your life, not loaned you a car so you could pick a chick. Sheesh. You sound like such a douchebag. You should listen to yourself. You’re never gonna get a decent girl that way. It’s not about the money or the car. It’s about the self-confidence. You just got act like you’re the man.” Tony ranted.

Art glanced back at Bill, and they both rolled their eyes.

“Yes, Tony. That may be so. But in this case, I have to agree with Bill. Having a nice car will definitely help him get his foot in the door. He’s not as good looking as me.” Art said laughingly.

Bill took a swipe at him and landed a light punch on his arm. “Watch it. Yo! I’m the man with the gun in a uniform, and chicks dig that too.”

Art just shook his head and rolled his eyes once again. Tony pointed to a huge house off to the side and directed him to pull up the drive. Art paused the car at the entrance and leaned closer over the wheel. He looked at Tony wide-eyed.

“What are you waiting for? Step on it. I’m more anxious than you to see this place too.” Tony said with a grin.

Art looked back at Bill for a brief second. Then he eased his way up the hill towards the house. The house looked like a massive, three-story mansion with a bit of a Mexican flair to it. There was a wide veranda that looked like it went around most of the house.

He parked the car and stepped out into the shadows under the light of the moon. It was a beautiful night. Art listened to the sounds of nature coming from the trees. He heard the sound of frogs chirping in the background and a cicada humming. They were loud, but they were all natural sounds. He realized that there as no sound of cars or humans.

This was a huge difference from the house he lived in Brazil. His house was right next to a large road where he heard cars and buses going by all night while motorcycles raced each other till the crack of dawn. He breathed deeply of the cool night air.

Tony had the door open and was waiting for him. Bill waited till they were safely inside till coming in after them.

The house was even nicer than Art had imagined. They entered right into a small foyer that then led into a large living room. He could see the patio and pool out beyond that. There was a large kitchen to the left and a hall that looked like it led to several bedrooms to the right. The stairs led on up into the other parts of the house.

“There was some furniture that the old owner left behind. You can keep anything you like. The rest you can chuck. I’ll have Rhonda come over tomorrow to redecorate the place for you. Once that’s ready, you can stay here.”

Art whistled as they continued to walk around the house.

“Delta Two will be your personal bodyguard and lead on your security team. We’ll keep guards on site twenty-four-seven until we’ve eliminated all threats and make sure your safe. And Joanna will be your personal chef cooking breakfast and supper. You can eat lunch at the office cafeteria with us, or eat out at one of Ridtote’s fine restaurants. There will also be a maid and a maintenance man to keep the place up.” Tony continued.

“This is way too much, Tony.” Art said. “I can’t take all of this.”

“No, Art. Listen to me. You have a much bigger priority right now. You’re gonna save the world. The world can’t wait for you to clean the toilets and mow the lawn. I expect you to spend every working hour focused one hundred and fifty percent on implementing your technology to our needs. No one else can do what you can. Besides, these guys are all pros and can do these jobs much more efficiently than you could. You play to their strengths and let them play to theirs. This is a win-win situation for everybody.”

“Okay, Tony. Since you put it that way, it makes sense.” Art replied. “I would normally feel guilty paying someone to do something that I could do myself. My momma always taught me to be self-reliant and independent.”

“I’m sure you’re momma’s a smart Brazilian lady. So, I’m not gonna knock the lessons she taught you. But I’ll bet she didn’t realize that she was raising a billionaire genius that was developing a global cure for all disease who needs to focus on achieving one, single thing.” Tony said.

He slapped Art on the back at the very end as they finished walking back down the stairs towards the living room.

“I could just have the rest of my team help out here. You know. There’s lots of room and we can all pitch in together.” Art said as he pointed to the rooms upstairs.

Tony grimaced and shook his head. He turned Art to face him squarely.

“This is your house, Art. Your team will have their own houses somewhere else. They will have their own cleaning and maintenance crew. They’ll get all their meals too, just like you. Don’t worry about them. Let me take care of you, and them, and everything you need. Just keep them focused on implementing your technology to our needs. That’s the only thing I need you to do. Can you understand that.” Tony said as he lowered his head and raised his eyebrows to look into Art’s eyes.

Art nodded dumbly. This was all happening too fast. It was almost more than he could take in. He nodded and again and slapped Tony on the shoulder.

“I’ll do my best to make you proud of us, Tony. Thank you. I really appreciate your generosity.” Art said.

“Good. Good, man.” Tony replied.

Art walked over to the large, glass door and slid it open. He stepped back outside onto the patio and breathed in the cool night air. Tony flipped on the lights to the pool area. It was absolutely gorgeous. Art sat down at the picnic table to soak it all in.

Off in the distance, he could see the golf course. There was a sand pit to the side. To the other, there was a small lake. And in the center of the green, he could see the flag waving brightly as it reflected the light of the moon.

Art smiled to himself in the dark. This was beyond anything he had ever dreamed of. It was an amazing house better than he ever imagined living in, and he couldn’t wait until his mother arrived to see it.

He kept the image of his mother sitting at this table while drinking a fresh pot of coffee as he drove them all back to the office building. Art couldn’t wait for tomorrow to get here so he could see what other amazing things, life had in store for him.

Tony’s driver picked him up soon after they got back, and Bill drove home in his Toyota. He didn’t ask to borrow the Ferrari yet, although Art could tell that he was dying to. After they left, Art went into the kitchen and cut himself a large slice of the pecan pie that Joanna had left him.

Art didn’t bother taking a bath. He was too tired. He fell back into the same bed where he had napped that day. The bed had been made, and the sheets changed which reminded Art of Carla. Who was she? And why had she come to see him?

He continued mulling all these crazy events and questions over in his head until he fell asleep. The last thing he remembered thinking about was driving into his new house with the Ferrari on Friday for a barbecue with Bill. He had just drifted off to sleep when his new cell phone beeped to announce an incoming message.

“What did you do? I told you not to sign the contract. You’re a dead man now, Arthur Costa.”

Art ignored the message and rolled back over. There was nothing he could do about this tonight. He would let Tony handle it in the morning. Either Tony would be able to explain all these things to his satisfaction over the next two weeks, or else Art would leave. Either way, he got to keep the money Tony paid him in this first deposit. He smiled and drifted off easily into a dream world filled with fast cars, beautiful women, and huge feasts in exotic mansions.

Tomorrow was a new day!

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[Edge1.1.23] You Won A New House

Art thought about asking her about Tony’s daughter but decided it would be better not to mention it.

“So, why do those rumors spook you?” Art asked.

“Well, it’s not that. But what happened before. So, what started was that part of their experimentation got loose. Sounds like they were doing some rather creepy things. Some of those things got loose one night. No one knows if it was intentional or not. But they said this building was full of creepy people like you’d see in a zombie or vampire movie.”

“What? Like they had fangs and bit people?” Art asked.

“I don’t know,” Joanna said. “Everybody that was working that night disappeared.”

Art scoffed. “Seriously? That sounds like something from some Hollywood conspiracy movie.”

Joanna shrugged as finished drying the last of the pans and put the towel away.

“Maybe you’re right,” she said with a laugh. “But one of the girls that works with us in the kitchen was on duty that night. I haven’t seen her since.”

“You think Tony killed her?” he asked incredulously.

“Maybe the creepy things dragged her off in some dark corner,” she said.

Art shook his head and then looked at her waiting for her to laugh. But she was serious.

“I’d quit if I could. It scares me sometimes to work here. But the money is too good, and I need something to take care of my daughter.”

“I’m sure you can get another job somewhere else or start your own burger joint,” he said.

Joanna laughed and splashed some water at him.

“It’s not that bad of a job, and they pay me triple what I could make anywhere else. Even if I went into competition with McDonald’s I’d have to work longer hours and be away from my kid.”

“Zombie burgers!” Art shouted. He made a monster face and claws like he was attacking her.

“Oh, stop it, Art!” she laughed.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! What do we have going on in here?” Tony said from the doorway.

Joanna screamed, and Art spun around toward the door.

“Oh, hey Tony! I’m just teasing Joanna about her giant monster burgers.” Art said nervously.

“Good. Aren’t they?” Tony asked as he reached for a fry.

“Sure are.” Art replied. “Finger-lickin’ good.”

“Good. Glad to hear it. Did you sleep well?”

“I did. Slept great,” he answered.

“Good. You looked exhausted.” Tony said.

“Yeah, but I feel much better now.” Art replied.

“Well, don’t stay up too late. We have a long day tomorrow. So, make sure to get some sleep.”

Joanna finished putting all her dishes back on the cart. She pulled a few things out of the fridge to take with her.

“I’m going to run along. I think I’ve pretty much wrapped everything up here. Would either of you like anything else?” she asked politely.

Both of the men shook their heads.

“No, thank you, Joanna. Run along and have a nice night.” Tony said gruffly

“Good night, Joanna.” Art said as she pushed her cart out the door.

Tony walked into the living room and tossed himself onto the couch with a loud sigh. He loosened his tie and kicked off his shoes.

“Do you live here?” Art asked. “Is this your house. I can stay in a hotel or something. I don’t want to impose.”

Tony chuckled and waved him off. “No, no. Of course not. I couldn’t stand being cramped up in this underground hole.”

Art looked around. Cramped up isn’t the word he would have used to describe how he felt here. It was at least three times bigger than his home. It felt very spacious and comfortable. He wondered what Tony’s home must look like if he thought this made him feel cramped.

After a few moments, Tony opened his eyes and looked at Art.

“Be careful, Art. I have a lot of enemies. Once people find out that you are working with me, they’re going to do everything they can to trip us up. It’s going to be dangerous for you out there in the real world. I know you are going to want to go out and I can’t keep you locked up in here forever.”

“Why’s that?” Art asked. “There seems to be so much mystery around here and this Sector Seven thing.”

Art realized he shouldn’t have said that and froze up. Tony chuckled and waved him off.

“So, they’ve already told you about it. Huh? Well, at least I know the company water cooler works. I told you about my daughter and Alpha Four’s brother. That’s where the research was going on.”

“And the zombie vampire things that escaped?” Art had to ask.

“That is rumor, Art. I actually started it.” Tony said. “I told you that we have a war going on in here. You saw how Alpha Four reacted. I couldn’t actually tell people that we had rogue employees running around shooting each other up. So, we told them it was some experiment in sector seven that got loose. It was a very good way to keep people from sniffing around down there. But there is really nothing to hide. You’re welcome to go down there anytime.”

“And Carla’s brother?” he asked.

“Carla?” Tony mused. “Who is Carla?”

“The girl that was cleaning in here tonight.” Art replied.

“What are you talking about? There’s no one scheduled to clean in here tonight.” Tony said and stood up. “Hey, Delta Two! Who cleaned in here tonight?”

Bill walked into the room and shrugged. “One of the cleaning girls came down and said she was supposed to touch things up. I assumed it was something you had requested.”

“No, I didn’t. That’s mighty strange,” he said. “Have security go back and look at the tape to see who it was. I want to know what’s going on. You probably won’t find her, but if you do, bring her to me.”

“Sure thing, boss,” Bill said.

“Bill is Delta Two. Huh?” Art asked.

Tony chuckled. “Don’t ask. It started a long time ago. It’s a security thing. I’d much rather call them by name. But they think it feels more professional. It’s not like this job is that dangerous or anything. So, I suppose most of the time they’re just standing around making up cool names for themselves.”

Art nodded pensively as he reviewed his conversation with Carla and wondered what was going on. Was she there to spy on him. Would she have killed him if he hadn’t woken up?

Tony noticed the worried look on his face. “Don’t worry, she won’t get in here again,” he said. “I’ll have Bill notify security not to let anyone near you that hasn’t been personally authorized by you or me.”

Art felt relieved and thanked Tony.

“Look, don’t mention it kid. I’m doing this for myself. You are doing me a huge favor. I’m counting on you. Not just me, but the whole world. You have come up with something amazing, and this is the least I can do to show you how much you deserve it.”

Art grinned and blushed. It felt good to have someone compliment him like that. Pedro had never said anything nice about him. In fact, it seemed like his superior had purposefully sought to tear him down at every opportunity. So, this was a nice change. He was going to enjoy it as long as he could.

“So, why don’t we go take a look at your new house?” Tony said.

“Huh?” Art replied. “What are you talking about?”

Tony grinned. “After you fell asleep, I had my real estate agent show me what was available on the market. I went ahead and picked something out for you.”

They walked out the door and down the hall. When they got to the parking lot, Tony tossed him a set of keys. Press the unlock button and see which one is yours. Art looked at him in shock. There were only three cars in the lot.

The first was a matte black BMW right in the center of the other two. He could tell right away by the symbol on the front. It must have been a newer model because he didn’t recognize it just by looking at it. And that was because he was an avid car fan that read all the top auto magazines each month.

The second was a tungsten silver Aston Martin to the right. He recognized it as a Vantage with custom wheels. He whistled when he realized it was a convertible. The third one was a red Ferrari with tinted windows and a black top to the left. Art gently ran his hand along the side of it.

“Hey, what are you waiting for? We don’t got all night.” Tony snapped.

Art grinned and pressed the button. The lights to the BMW flickered as it beeped. Tony and Bill hopped in as Art admired the car.

“Stop, drooling and let’s hit the road, son.” Tony shouted in mock disgust.

Art climbed in carefully and started the car. He looked over at the Ferrari once more. Tony looked back at Bill and handed him a twenty dollar bill.

“Told you so,” Bill said as he shoved the money into his pocket.

“What’s that all about?” Art asked.

“We gave you the keys to this car because the Ferrari and Aston only seat two people. I wanted Bill along for protection. So, we bet twenty dollars on which car you’d really want to drive.”

“Bill put his money on the Ferrari,” Art finished. “He has good taste.”

Tony and Bill both chuckled.

“The Ferrari is a nice car, but once you drive the Aston, you’ll never look back at it again.” Bill said. “I just figured you hadn’t had the privilege to drive one yet to know how sweet it really is.”

“Don’t worry, son. You can drive them all, all you want, tomorrow.” Tony said. “I’m giving those three cars to you.”