Thanks to the many readers who have sent me notes commenting on this series. I had a wonderful adventure during the writing phase and am pleased to be able to share this with you. Be sure to add a donation to Nifty.org to your list- Nifty provides space for hundreds of authors and thousands of original articles for your free reading pleasure. The following is an original story and is copyright by the author and no distribution or replication may be made except with the written authorization of the copyright owner. If you are not of legal age to enter this website you must leave immediately. Please send any comments or questions concerning this story series to: pjwltx9@gmail.com
This is the final chapter in "Book Three: Sam and Mickey" but it is not the end of the series: -please watch in coming weeks for the continuation of the story in Book Four.
FIVE
Winter in the coastal region of southern California is not appreciably different than winter in other climates; it is just a little warmer, perhaps a little less violent. This winter, however, chilled Mickey: he could not get comfortable no matter where he was. He begged Sam to take him to Cancún; they lay on the beach and drank pitchers of Margaritas and ate tacos and street food and chiles rellenos and fried plantains and still Mickey could not find comfort.
They went home to Santa Monica: Stuart and Raj had come by for a short visit, more business than pleasure. The Governor was in the middle of his campaign for Senate, and Stuart and Raj, the ever-indispensable "arrangers", only had a week to themselves, including time for the closing on the sale of the famous old house in Malibu.
After Mario's passing, a deeply sad event in the lives of Mickey, Sam, the law partners as well as Peter of course, Peter had inherited Mario's share of the house Mason had built on the beach. He and Stuart agreed to immediately put the house on the market, and it was snapped up in just a couple of weeks: it seemed after the closing that perhaps they had asked too little for the sale price of $17,500,000.
Peter had wandered after Mario's death. He had never considered life without his partner, without his greatest love affair. He became like Tommy Baylor, flying around the world trying to find comfort. Mickey felt he knew the symptoms: the cold would not leave his bones, and it did not seem to matter if he was in Sam's arms or curled on the sofa under a quilt or on the beach in Mexico.
He was, finally, curled on the sofa under a quilt with Sam holding him when he dreamed of his mother and father; her saw them together walking through a meadow. His father was smiling at him and his mother was waving. It was a wonderful and welcoming feeling, and he wanted to run to them.
"I have never believed in evil" Sam said somberly. "I know that great evil has been inflicted on our world by men and women who could not love, who perhaps did not know how to love. I have read one author who said "men are feral creatures, hunters and gatherers, and their inclination is always in their eyes." (James Lee Burke: "Wayfaring Stranger"; 2014).
"Rather, I believe that all men have some degree of love inside of them, but some are simply more inclined and capable of showing it and sharing it than others. That was Mickey. I have no doubt he was not simply my greatest love, but the best person I have known, and the best person I have known who was capable of love at all times towards all others. The world will be a little colder from now on because he is no longer with us."
Weeks after the short grave-side service in Redlands, Sam drove to Malibu and asked the new owners of Mason's grand old beach house for permission to walk down to their stretch of this wonderful coast where he had learned to surf, and where he had come out. He sat on the highest dune and watched the sunset; there was a rare warming breeze coming down from the mountains behind him as he faced the ocean. He turned to look, expecting to see Mickey walking toward him; he smiled at his self-deception. It was then, Sam realized, once that amount of love has entered your heart and your mind and your life, it never leaves.