"Don't worry," said Stanley Worthington, as he peered out a window of the Silver Sovereign. "My men are up to anything they are going to find. They are handpicked to be just that." He couldn't see much of the dock, but he could see the beach at the end of the dock and the beginning of the path from the dock to the house.

"Do you see anything?" asked Alex Reynolds, who was sitting on a sofa, in the center of the room.

"No people," said Stanley. "I haven't heard any shots. That is probably a good sign. We should have given them the keys to the house. From up there, you have a better view of most of the island."

"That's true," said Benjamin. "I never thought of it.

"Here comes somebody down the path toward the dock," said Stanley. "It's our crew. Good God. They are unarmed, and there are five guys behind them with guns. This does not look good."

Several people moved cautiously to the windows and looked out. Loud voices were heard outside. One of the crew rushed into the salon.

"Mr. Worthington," said the crewman, "the captain says for you to come out and talk to these people. He says that he doesn't think they are criminals, but they were just looking to see if there had been a killing here. However, it's hard to know if that's true, since they have guns on all of our men that went ashore."

"Don't go, Stanley," cried Janet Worthington. "There's no telling what they might do."

"What do you think, Albert? How do they look?" Stanley asked the crewman.

"Hard to say, Sir. They must be pretty good to take the Captain and our guys without firing a shot."

"Tell their leader to come aboard, and I'll come out to meet with him," said Stanley.

"I'll tell him," said the crewman.

A few minutes later, the crewman returned. "He's standing on the dock, right beside the stern. He's unarmed. He said you could stand on the boat and talk to him."

"How close are the rest of his men?" asked Stanley.

"Maybe ten yards back. They are behind our guys, with guns on them."

"Okay," said Stanley. "I'll do it. Cover me." Turning to his wife, he said, "Don't worry, Janet. If they plan on slaughtering us, they are surely going to do it anyway. It may be true that they are not criminals, and even if they are criminals, they seem willing to talk things over. Let's just hope for the best." He followed the crewman out into the bright sunlight on the expansive rear deck of the Silver Sovereign. Standing on the end of the dock was a tall, well-built man, with a lot of golden hair, and a short beard to match. He stood, hands on hips, watching Stanley walk toward him.

"This your boat?" asked the golden-haired man.

"Yes, it is," said Stanley. "I hear that you aren't a crook, ransacking our island. Is that so?"

"Indeed it is true," said the man. "My name is Dan Jansen. I have an island about five miles to the north of you. So, this is your island. What is your name?"

"Stanley Worthington."

"That's what they told me. I've heard the name. Do you have a picture ID?"

"A picture ID," said Stanley, incredulously. "I don't think so."

"Surely you have a driver's license."

"No. I haven't driven for many years."

"How about a credit card with your name on it?"

"I don't have a credit card."

"Unbelievable," said the man. "What do you carry in your wallet besides money?"

"I don't have a wallet," said Stanley. "Sometimes I do, but not on this trip. Most of the people I deal with know me. Other people with me generally pay for things. I never have any money. Well, almost never."

"Who all is with you?"

"My wife, my son, my grandson, and some friends and business associates. We recently bought this island and a few others."

"Any of them that I might have heard of that do carry a wallet with some ID?"

"Just a minute," said Stanley. He turned and entered the boat again. A moment later, he came out with Alex Reynolds. "This is Alex Reynolds of Reynolds Publishing. Have you heard of him?"

"Not that I remember," said the man. "What do you publish, Mr. Reynolds."

Alex rattled off a list of magazines, and finished with, "and The Vantage Point."

"The Vantage Point. The only magazine I ever read," said the man. "Do you have a picture ID?"

"Yes," said Alex. "I have two. One for the company and a driver's license." He pulled out his wallet, took out the two cards, and handed them to the man.

"Looks okay to me," said the man. "Does he own this beauty?" he asked nodding at Stanley.

"Yes, he does," said Alex.

"So you bought the Bock Cay Archipelago," said the man. "I heard some new owners were here a few weeks ago, but by seaplane, not with something like this." He waved his hand to show that he was referring to the Silver Sovereign.

"We flew down to look it over before buying it," said Alex. "This time, we came by boat to have someplace to stay. There aren't enough living quarters on the island."

"Let me see the rest of you, just to make sure," said Jansen. He turned to his men and called out, "I'm going to take a look at the rest of them. If I don't come back, sink this tub and kill them all."

"Yes, Sir," came a chorus.

Inside, Jansen looked around. "Women, eh. Well, you don't look like bandits. Is one of you married to  this gentleman?" he asked, pointing to Stanley.

"I am," said Janet, cautiously.

"I guess you are telling the truth. When I saw your men with all those Uzzis, I thought I'd finally found the bandits I've been looking for the last few years."

He went outside and told his men to let the prisoners go and to give them back their guns, that these weren't bandits but apparently the rightful owners of the island. Then he came back inside the boat. "My name is Dan Jansen," he said. "I live a few islands to the north. My apologies to all of you. I knew some new owners had arrived a few weeks ago, but I didn't know you had left. I heard that a boatload of bandits that I have been looking for the last three years were seen at your dock a few hours ago. I came looking for them, and not finding them, went ashore to see if," he hesitated, "to see if everyone was all right."

"Are bandits a problem around here?" asked Benjamin.

"Occasionally," said Jansen. "Three years ago, I went down to Georgetown, and when I came back, I found my wife, my two children, and my maid murdered and my handyman nearly dead. When my handyman finally recovered, he gave me the best description he could of the beasts that did it. Everyone I know in the area is on the lookout for anything remotely resembling the boat and the men, and they contact me whenever they see anything suspicious. You will find I'm pretty well known around the Exumas. When I came here and saw no boat and no sign of life, I was afraid they had done it again, and we went ashore to see if there were a bunch of dead people. Then, when your men came ashore carrying Uzzis, I thought they were the bandits. Sorry if I frightened you."

"You poor man," said Geraldine. "Of course, you scared us half to death. Now, with your story of killer bandits, you have me almost afraid to stay here."

"You have a small army," said Jansen. "I don't think you have to worry. My wife and kids only had a maid and an unarmed handyman or gardener. I got some of my old army buddies to live on the island with me, and we try to check out every lead we get on the bandits. Truthfully, I don't know if they are still around, although there are occasional cases of boats and small islands being raided. I've talked to most of the victims, and a few of the descriptions they have given me sound somewhat ike the men I'm looking for. Anyway, I keep hoping."

"In the other raids that you have heard of, did they kill everyone they found?" asked Stanley. "That would make you think it was the same group."

"Actually, as far as I know, there was only one other raid similar to the one on Heart Cay, where I live," said Jansen. "That was about ten days later."

"Interesting," said Stanley. "Where was this other raid?"

"It was on Hart's Cay, about thirty miles north of here," said Jansen.

"The names are too similar," said Stanley. "Did it ever occur to you that they meant to hit Hart's Cay the first time, and made a mistake?"

"No," said Jansen. "That is a possibility. I don't know why it never occurred to me."

"Do you know anything about the people that were killed on Hart's Cay," asked Stanley.

"Not a lot," said Jansen. "They were Americans too. Last name was Tarochi or something like that."

"Emil Taroshi?" asked John.

"Yes. That was it," said Jansen. "Did you know him?"

"I know of him," said John. "He was in the news for a while. Not the 'mainstream' media, of course, but in The Vantage Point and on the Internet. He was a whistleblower that leaked several classified documents to Congress. The documents apparently had no reason to be classified other than they concerned criminal activity by the administration. The White House, the Department of Justice, and the Pentagon all put gag orders on him. He dropped out of the limelight instantly. I didn't know that he was killed. That never got out, as far as I know."

"That essentially wraps it up," said Stanley. "Some group was sent to Hart's Cay to eliminate the whistleblower, but they went to Heart Cay by mistake. A few days later, they went to the right place and got the right people."

"So, I'm wasting my time chasing rumors of a gang of bandits," said Jansen. "The bandits I want are probably from the mainland, and may have requisitioned a boat for the hit, and then turned it back in."

"That is one possibility," said Stanley. "It is also possible that they contracted the hit out to a local group. They may be ordinary bandits most of the time and hit men whenever they get a contract.  I don't see how you could know how it was structured."

"I'll keep on running down the rumors for a while," said Jansen. "If your suspicions are correct, and I imagine that they are, even if I find the people that pulled the trigger, I'll never know who sent them."

"If they are contract people, they have no idea who paid them," said Stanley.

"What will you do if you find them," asked Martha.

Jansen looked at her and smiled. "We'll see," he said. "As you can see, I won't do anything hasty. I want to be certain that I have the right people." Turning to Stanley, he said, "This is some ship you have here, Mr. Worthington. How fast is she?"

"Cruises at forty knots and sprints at fifty," said Stanley.

"Fifty knots!" exclaimed Jansen. "What I wouldn't give to have this baby if I ever have to chase those ba--bandits."

"If you do find them, call us," said Stanley. "If we are in the area, my men will go with you. If we are going to live here, we don't want these bandits around any more than you do."

"Thank you," said Jansen. "That's extremely generous of you, especially considering the shock I must have given to all of you.'

One by one, each member of the party was introduced to Jansen. He apologized again and said he had to go. He exchanged email and internet addresses and telephone numbers with Benjamin, and they chatted a moment about the internet and security. Then he started to leave. "I'm ten minutes away," he said. "If you need me, just call. Probably the best way to get me is on my satellite phone. When you get ready, if you need any advice on communications from the Exumas, I am pretty up to date on what is available. I am particularly interested in keeping prying eyes and ears away from my communications. I don't care what it is, if I can, I encrypt it. Of course, that only works if the people at the other end can read it.

"I agree with you," said Benjamin. "Even if it is the most innocuous email possible, I don't want any unintended readers. I especially don't want the government to see it. Personally, I think everyone should encrypt everything, just to maintain the habit and to keep the government busy."

"I really must go," said Jansen. "I have kept my men waiting too long. Once again, my sincere apologies for any inconvenience." He turned and walked out onto the read deck of the ship. Everyone followed him out into the bright sunlight. He motioned his men onto his boat, and, one by one, they hopped aboard. Everyone stood watching, as the engines of Jansen's fifty-foot cabin cruiser roared to life and the boat made a slow turn before heading for the dark blue, deeper water.

As Jansen's boat, the sight of which had initiated all their excitement, raced away, Ruth said, "He seems to be a nice person."

"Judging from the way he captured our men, I would say he also seems quite capable," said Joshua. "It's a good thing he's on our side, instead of against us. It should bother you a little, Stanley, the way they captured your men without firing a shot."

"I plan to find out about that right now. I'll be back in a minute," said Stanley. He called the captain of the Silver Sovereign to one side and said, "What the hell happened, Clyde? How did they get the jump on you?"

"I was just plain stupid," said the Captain. "We saw a couple of guys right off, and we were closing in on them. Suddenly, all these other guys were behind us, telling us to drop our weapons. I guess we are out of practice. Every one of us should have known better. The vegetation was low, not even waist high. They must be been lying down in it, and the other two led us right between them. Once we passed, they popped up and converged behind us. That's my guess."

"Always assume the other guy is setting a trap for you," said Stanley. "Then, when he is, you will be expecting it and not be caught flat-footed like you were this time. This time, it turned out okay. If he had been an enemy, you know in what condition you would be now."

"Yes, I do," said the Captain.

"Furthermore, all of your men and probably all the people you are supposed to be protecting would be in that same condition. I like you, Clyde. Because I like  you, I'll give you another chance. Anyone can make a mistake. You just made yours. Don't let me down."

"Never again, Mr. Worthington. Believe me, I don't want to buy it any more than you do."

"Obviously, those guys aren't dummies," said Stanley. "They thought you were bandits. Apparently, there's little law enforcement presence around here, and some bad guys have been operating in the area. I've been around a lot, and something tells me that this Dan Jansen has been too. He seemed awfully calm and collected all the time."

"I think you are right on, Mr. Worthington," said the captain. "They had AK-47's with double-hook triggers. I think they were Chinese Norincos, the best money can buy, and way better than our Uzzis."

"You and the men just hang out for a while. We will probably be on this island for a while, and then go to each of the other islands in the archipelago. I forget how many there are. Six, I think. The others don't have docks, and the water is shallow. In the boathouse, there are a couple of patio boats with pontoons. You just run them up on the beach and drop a ramp. Get the boathouse key from Ben. Send a couple of the men to get them out of the boathouse, and check out the engines. Have them here ready to go in an hour or so. Okay?"

"Will do, Mr. Worthington."

"Thank you, Clyde," said Stanley. "See you later." As he joined the others, he said, "Well, that's that. Are we going stand around here all day, or are we going to tour this island?"

"We were talking about it," said Joshua. "Those who haven't seen it will naturally want to see it. Some who have seen it will want to see it again. Anyone who has seen it and doesn't care to see it or even any of the islands again should feel free to stay on board or do whatever they feel like." No one wanted to stay behind, so they all set out on a tour of Bock Cay.

Two Hours Later

"I'll put it on the list. I'd better give it a high priority, as you say," said Joshua, writing a note in his notebook "I would think that we will want to have some sort of mobile phone service. Since we are talking about having some five thousand full time inhabitants plus a bunch of part time residents, that is not a lot of people to share the costs of a cell phone system. I'm not at all knowledgeable about cell phone systems. I don't know the coverage you can get with a single tower, but I would think that one antenna in the center would cover the entire archipelago. It is only three miles long and much narrower. We'll have to get some expert help in that area. Naturally, before we can have a phone system with internet service up and running, we will have to have electricity. Running water would be nice too. Running water will probably require electric power to run pumps, and do whatever desalinization we end up with. There are a great many things that we need immediately, and the number of things that we need to keep in mind and make provisions for is mind-boggling. For instance, what kind of service will we have to transport people between the various islands? Will everyone have to keep his own little boat? Will we have water taxis? What about a ferry like the old days in the U.S., when people paid a few cents to go across a river? Are we going to own everything, or will we permit private enterprise? There are so many decisions that  we will need to make almost immediately. Would we want to have a private power company, phone company, and water company?"

"I am certainly an advocate of private enterprise," said John. "However, this is already a private enterprise. It is our business--our resort. I would think we would want to keep control over everything."

"You got that right," said Stanley. "We will surely contract out some operations, but I think we want to maintain ownership and control of everything. We don't want any troublemakers that we can't get rid of because they own the property or have an unbreakable lease. We don't want to paint ourselves into any kind of a corner. I don't know how many years I have left, and I want those that I do have to be as pleasant as they can be. That's one of the things about this project that has me so excited. Even if we don't make a penny." He hesitated, smiled, and  continued. "Well, even if we don't make an astronomical fortune, I am looking forward to the best time of my life. Is that too much to ask?"

"I hope not," said John. "I feel the same way."

"I think we all feel that way," said Alex. "When I look out at these islands, I can clearly imagine the homes and apartments, the chic shops and boutiques, the restaurants, the boats, the people, the crème de la crème, the ultimate tropical paradise. We don't want unwelcome distractions from our enjoyment of it. We will have to plan it carefully. I was wondering if there is anywhere on earth that is like what we have in mind. If there is, maybe we could study it, and get some ideas, perhaps. However, I can't think of a place  that is as perfect as I would like for this to be."

"Perhaps we should retain ownership of all the land and merely lease it," said Joshua. "We could lease it by the year or for long periods of time like some places do, up to ninety-nine years. We could come up with a lease that would allow us to terminate it, if they didn't follow the rules."

"If someone builds an expensive home on the property, they aren't going to be happy if we take the land back," said Benjamin.

"We wouldn't take it back unless they did something to warrant it," said Joshua. "You could usually give them an opportunity to rectify the problem, depending on their transgressions of course. You could make the leases short term and make automatic extensions conditional on abiding by the rules."

"What a sunset," said Martha, standing at the rail, facing west into the sunset. "Living in the Keys, you can get a little jaded about sunsets, but this is as beautiful as any that I've ever seen."

Soon, everyone was facing west, sipping their drinks and enjoying the kaleidoscopic sunset.

"When you think about it, the sun discriminates," said Geraldine. "It sets for everyone, everyday, but it tends to put on more spectacular performances for some than for others. This has to be one of its best. Figuratively speaking, the sun also sets on nations and even ideas.  I don't think any of those sunsets are beautiful. They used to say that the sun never set on the British Empire, but they haven't said that for some time now. I think it sets only once on an  empire, never to rise again, so far anyway.  It may be getting ready to set on the American Empire."

Mark Richardson walked over to the other rail, and looked at the Bock Cay, bathed in the orange light of the setting sun. "I would think that way down here, you would be fairly isolated from bureaucratic interference. It would be a little like having your own country, except that you wouldn't have any international relations. These days, I don't know if there is any country you would want to have relations with anyway."

"Of course, Fatherland Security would still be taking your picture periodically. They are probably photographing us now," said Ruth. "Personally, that bothers me as much as them reading my email. We aren't doing anything illegal, which is precisely why they have no business watching us. It is such an obvious violation of the Constitution. Naturally, all those lawmakers who voted for such blatantly unconstitutional actions violated their oaths of office. I seriously doubt that there is even one person in Congress, the administration, and the Subprime Court, with the exception of Mark, that has not violated his oath of office."

"Not even the libertarian's hero, Ron Paul?" asked Stanley.

"He does run Mark a close second, but I can think of at least one instance where even he ignored his oath," said Ruth. "When the House recently accepted and counted the votes of the Electoral College, he was morally obligated to raise an objection and question Obama's eligibility, but he did not. I would think he was well aware of the evidence suggesting that Obama was not a citizen, and so was morally and legally obligated to ask for proof of citizenship, but he did not."

"In the first place," said Stanley, "it requires one senator and one member of Congress objecting before there must be a full-scale investigation. He probably knew he couldn't get a single senator to sign on with him, and he figured why paint a bull's-eye on himself for nothing. Besides, if you can only think of one instance, you shouldn't hold it against him. All the others surely have more than you could ever count."

"There might have been one honest Senator just wishing a member of Congress would stand up.  I don't think being the only one doing the right thing  means that you should  forget it and do the wrong thing. And how many murders does one have to commit to be considered a murderer?" asked Ruth ."Here was one time when a display of his supposed integrity could have really mattered, but it didn't happen. Why didn't he? The term 'Judas goat' comes to mind. If you think about it, perhaps the most significant thing Ron Paul's campaign really did was give the enemies of freedom a list of  their most adamant opponents, in the obligatory list of contributors to his campaign. I tend to be suspicious of activists that are nowhere to be found, when it's something really important."

"Well put," said Stanley. "I like the way you think, young lady. Not many people do, you know."

"Not many people think?" asked Ruth.

"'What luck for rulers that men do not think' Adolph Hitler said that," said Stanley. "He knew whereof he spoke. I think that is why I like using allegories to clarify things. With a good, easy to understand allegory, even the average voter can understand a concept, if it's not too complex."

"Maybe Ron Paul didn't think Obama's citizenship mattered that much," said Joshua. "Isn't what he does as President more important than where he was born?"

"His citizenship matters for one crucial reason," said Mark. "It matters because the Constitution says a president must be a natural born citizen. For close to two centuries, with the exception of tyrants, would-be tyrants, and the parasites that live off tyrants, the world looked upon the United States of America as a place to envy, a place where dreams could and often did come true. They were right to do so, for it was a place to envy and a place where many people's dreams came true. Sure, America had imperfections, but it was a paradise, compared to most other places. Living in America was the dream of countless millions. Why was America so envied? It was the freedom that Americans enjoyed, the freedom to strive and succeed, the freedom to have and be whatever they wanted bad enough to do what it took to achieve it. You have heard the lie that 'they hate us because we're free.' People envied us when we were free. They didn't hate us. The governments of unfree countries hated us because we were free. Tyrannical governments always hate freedom. Why do you think the countries that rob their people blind hate places like the Cayman Islands, Vanuatu, and the Isle of Man? Imagine that all the thieving governments, meaning nearly all governments, were run by vampires that sucked a pint of blood a week from every citizen. If there were a handful of free countries whose governments were run by normal people who sucked no blood from the citizens, why would the bloodsuckers hate these free countries? Because some of the blood they wanted to drink might end up out of reach in a free country. It is as simple as that.

"The freedom that made people envy Americans is essentially gone," continued Mark, "and the little that remains is in dire danger. Yes, people still want to come to America to live, but the people that want to come to America now, want to come, not to work and achieve, but because they know that without working, they can live better than a lot of working people in many countries, even including the United States. There are millions of American workers that live worse than many of the unemployed illegals. For all we know, we may even have an illegal alien in the White House, living better than almost any American. Bush tried to convince us that people hate us because we are free. That is ridiculous. If people hate us, it is for what we do, not for what we have. For the freedom we had, we were admired, envied, and even loved, but not hated. The only reason America ever had its enviable freedom was because it has a Constitution whose purpose was not to define and limit what the people can do, but to define and limit the role of the federal government in their lives. That Constitution is all that stands between the American people and unlimited tyranny. The people, in a suicidal spree of gross ignorance, let the government get away with increasingly unconstitutional activities. George Bush called that magic document a god-damned piece of paper because it prevented him being a full-fledged dictator, although he came close. Barak Hussein Obama has gone even farther and treated the Constitution as totally irrelevant. There are countless legitimate candidates that could have run for the office of President and been almost certainly better than Obama. The blatant and complete subversion of the Constitution almost has to be the reason for intentionally foisting off an apparently illegal alien for the presidency, to show, once and for all, that the Constitution is no longer pertinent. All three branches of the government have essentially said, screw the Constitution: the Executive, by an illegal assuming the office of President; all of 535 alleged representatives of the people ignored it, except me, in spite of the pleading of hundreds of thousands or millions of their constituents; and the Judicial for refusing to even consider it, in spite of numerous lawsuits. If we let this pass, we are saying that we submit to a government with no constitutional limits, no restrictions, a government that makes its own rules and ours as it pleases. For my part, I will die fighting before I put up with that."

"I can see why it is so important, now," said Joshua. "I can also see that it is only common sense. Yet, until you laid it out for me, I didn't see it. That really bothers me. I really haven't spent much time thinking about such things. I guess I've been too busy doing my job."

"These 'things' that you haven't been thinking about," said Ruth, "profoundly affect the way you do your job, even whether you are able to do it. They directly or indirectly affect every second of you life, possibly even whether you live or die. That makes them pretty important. Wouldn't you agree, Stanley?"

"No doubt about it," said Stanley. "However, you will find that the percentage of the people that pay any attention to what the government does is so small that people like you and your husband are in the position of someone trying to save the Titanic by bailing out the water with a thimble. You can't do anything about it. Pardon me for being so blunt, but that is just the way it is."

"I know that you're right, and that's very frustrating," said Mark. "You apparently don't think there is any way at all to reverse the trend?"

"Of course there are ways to reverse the trend," said Stanley. "There are probably a lot of ways. But you won't or can't implement any of them. You can also be sure that the people that don't want the trend reversed are far more aware of these ways to reverse the trend than the people that want it reversed, and you can be absolutely certain that they are working as hard as they can to make sure that not a single one of those ways remains remotely feasible. While the reformers are busy wringing their hands and fighting among themselves over trivial matters, their opponents are busily boarding up every exit."

"Unfortunately, I have to agree with you," said Mark, "but I am still determined to  make an all out effort to turn things around."

"It is difficult to imagine a more motley collection than ours," said Stanley. "Yet, we get along surprisingly well, as well or better than most of the homogeneous groups that I'm accustomed to doing business with."

"I was thinking along those lines, myself, several times today," said Ruth. "I considered that we have a common goal or dream, but then, so do the homogeneous groups that you mentioned, Stanley. Perhaps, there is something to the old saying that variety is the spice of life."

"I can't say that I have ever been around libertarians that much," said Stanley. "But then, compared to conservatives and liberals, there aren't that many of you to be around. Now that I think about it, William is certainly Mr. Liberal, while I am pretty much a conservative. Yet, we have been friends for quite a few years. He and I agree on the things that interest us the most, I guess. I wonder if that could mean that the gulf between conservatives and liberals is over relatively unimportant things. Wouldn't that make a shocking revelation?"

"You obviously aren't a Vantage Point reader, Stanley," said John, "or you would have seen me say , time and again, that most Americans are obsessed with their relatively trivial differences, and ignore the critically important things that almost all of them agree on. Everyone wants the right to create a happy comfortable life for themselves and those that they care for. They want to be able earn enough money not to have to worry about where their next meal is coming from. They want to know that their children can have a life as good as or better than their own. They want the right to pursue their own interests without unreasonable interference. The major arguments between the political extremities is not so much in what people want, because all sensible people want more or less the same things in general. The differences that separate them are in the restrictions they want on others. Those on the so-called 'left' don't want others to have control over all of their money. They want the government to take some portion of people's money and make sure it's put to 'good' use, meaning redistribute it to those who didn't earn it. Those on the so-called 'right' don't want others to have control over their lives. They want to force others to live by their definition of morality. They want drugs, pornography, abortion, alternative life styles, alcohol, etc to be forbidden, because they want it that way. Both advocate the massive use of government force to make those that disagree with them do what they want them to do. Naturally, they don't want the government interfering with what they want to do, because what they want to do is the right thing to do. They can't see that they are advocating a monster that can make everyone do what the people that run the government want them to do. They can't see that a government that has the ability to make your opponent do what you want him to do also has the power to make you do what your opponent wants you to do, or to make you  and everyone else do whatever they feel like. Because of Americans' constant squabbling over the trivial, they fail to unite on the more important items that everyone agrees on. This lack of unity leaves the coast clear for those that would deprive them of the rights that are essential to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It doesn't take much thought to see that such division is highly beneficial to those bent on expanding the government and maximizing its power over the people, so beneficial that they would be stupid not to encourage it in every way possible. They obviously aren't stupid, because they do encourage it in every way possible. Everyone is so intent on running the lives of others that they are abandoning the right to live their own life as they see fit. In their quest for  dominance, they are becoming the dominated. They are losing all that they hold dear. Our group is fortunate, in that we can afford to live pretty much as we want. When it is necessary, we can buy dispensations; we can bribe the authorities, or somehow manipulate them. However, the time will come, when all the doors shut, and even you and I, Stanley, or our offspring, may be on the outside looking in. I firmly believe that the line between the oppressed and the oppressors will inevitably move up the pyramid, toward the top. When the power elite finally get their one-world government, with total power and total control, how many people do you think will have a say in that control? Damned few, you can be sure. Far less than all the people working for that moment expect. They all think that they will be among the chosen few, and everything will be the way they want it to be. All but a tiny group will be sadly disappointed, and the rest will gradually come to realize that if you let the rights of one person be taken away, there will always be a next person, and a next, and a next, and so on. It may take a long time to get to your level, Stanley, but it will happen. It is inevitable. That is true for any injustice that you permit for anyone. Sooner or later, it will spread to you or yours. How much influence can anyone buy when all that everyone has is at the disposal of the man at the top? Personally, I think that those at the top will be as surprised as those beneath them, for their lives will become shallow, empty, and utterly boring. What will they have to look forward to? How can they know the sense of accomplishment that comes from overcoming obstacles, if they have no obstacles? When you have all that there is, what is left to want? In their success, those people will have eliminated the very things they enjoy above all others. Perhaps, in desperation, they will eventually decide to try and do what their propaganda always said they were trying to do, and make life better for all mankind, just because there is no other challenge available to them. Then they would eventually discover that to succeed at that, they have to reverse all that they have spent centuries doing. What a joke that would be on them."

"That's a pretty profound speech, John," said Stanley. "If that is the kind of stuff you put in your magazine, I'll have to get a copy."

"Sorry if I made a long speech," said John. "I sometimes get carried away. I'll give you a subscription, Stanley. The Vantage Point has a large audience, and only a small percentage of it would consider themselves libertarians, in the popular sense of the word. Most would call themselves liberal or conservative, but they buy my magazine because it appeals to their common interests. Besides, I won't lie or intentionally mislead them, and they know it."

"I have heard that about you, from my son, Ben," said Stanley. "Roger and I were reluctant to enter into this venture with you, to be honest about it."

"There were some comments along those lines at our house," said John. "But Alex apparently had confidence in Benjamin, and I tend to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, until they prove unworthy of it. I would have missed out on knowing some very interesting people, otherwise, and I have to include you among them, Stanley."

"Humph," snorted Stanley. "Wait 'til you get to know me. Everyone says I'm as stubborn as a mule, and they are right."

"So you have very firm convictions," said John. "A lot of us are like that. I believe I am often that way myself."

"I believe it was George Bernard Shaw that said , 'I am firm, you are stubborn and he is a pig-headed fool,'" said Alex. "Actually, I think it is fairly common to think that anyone who disagrees with you, when you are sure you are right, is a pig-headed fool."

"If you are certain that you are right, it is probably true," said Benjamin. "I read in the New York Times a few years ago that twenty-percent of Americans think the sun revolves around the earth. I don't know if they are pig-headed fools, but they are certainly ignorant. It may not always be a disgrace to be ignorant of facts, but I think that refusing to admit you are wrong when confronted with sound evidence to the contrary makes one a pig-headed fool."

"I remember reading about that," said Ruth. "It also said that only ten percent of Americans know what radiation is. That would certainly explain the deplorable lack of concern about our military's use of Depleted Uranium in the Middle East.

A waiter came to announce that dinner was ready.

"I told them to have dinner ready at seven," said Stanley. "I hope that is okay with everyone. If we want it changed after this, I'll tell the Captain. As for  any special diet requirements, I guess you can talk directly to the chef about that. Breakfast and lunch you already know about. If you have a problem with your room--cleaning, need some laundry done, something like that--you can tell the maid that takes care of the rooms. If you have a problem or a question and can't find the person you need, just see the captain."

Everyone moved to the lower deck. The sun had set, and it was almost dark, but the top of the moon was rising out of the trees of Bock Cay.

Early the Next Morning

In his stateroom, Joshua Adams was talking with William Cochran. He had called the evening before, but William had not been at home, and he had not answered his cell phone. Joshua had left a message saying that there was nothing really important, and he would call the next morning.

Not far down the corridor, Stanley Worthington knocked on Benjamin's door.

"Good morning," said Benjamin, as he opened the door. "Come in. I'm almost ready. I had to make a few calls this morning."

"What did you think of the news that Joshua's mother used to work for the Reynolds? She was old Joshua Reynolds' Girl Friday, they said."

"I didn't think much about it," said Benjamin. "Do you think it means anything?"

"Don't know if it does or not," said Stanley. "A couple of days ago, I find out that William is the second largest shareholder in Reynolds Publishing, and he's owned the stock for forty years. Now we learn that his representative in this venture worked directly for the head man at Reynolds Publishing for many years. I'm just naturally wary of coincidences like that. We could end up really outnumbered in this venture."

"So far, I don't see a single indication of anything remotely suspicious," said Benjamin. "It's true that the Reynolds stock is worth quite a bit, but I hardly think it is a major portion of William's assets.  Even if it is worth a hundred million or even 200 million, that is still a minor portion of his wealth. As for Joshua's mother, she was a glorified secretary. John just found out about that connection the day before yesterday, when Joshua told him. They haven't cooked up a plot to con us. I don't think the Reynolds would consider something like that, and I don't think William would dare."

"You are probably right," said Stanley. "I just hope no more of these coincidences pop up, or I'm going to start getting nervous."

"By the way," said Benjamin, "yesterday, Frances mentioned that we might want to include this Dan Jansen's island in the documents, and we could give him the option of staying in the Bahamas or being in our nation. That might not a bad idea. My guess is that he would choose our nation, and he would be in our debt. He seems like someone we would like on our side, although it's really too soon to tell. If we include his island and change our mind, we can just cede it to the Bahamas and let it go at that. However, my gut feeling is that he is a keeper."

"I have the same feeling," said Stanley. "That Reynolds girl just keeps on coming up with good ideas. She alone is making this venture a far greater success than we had ever dreamed it would be."

"You mean Frances, of course," said Benjamin. "It's not a success yet. There are a lot of obstacles to overcome."

"And we'll overcome them," said Stanley. "We've done harder things than this. At least, I hope this is not as hard as a couple of the things we've been involved in. By the way, have you noticed the tension between John and his son-in-law? Clark, I think his name is."

"No. I can't say that I have."

"I think they really dislike each other," said Stanley. "My guess is that John's daughter married a deadbeat against her parent's wishes."

"You could be jumping to conclusions. I never heard a word of dissent between them."

"I read their faces, not their words," said Stanley. "I'm usually right, and you know it."

"We'd better get going," said Benjamin. "We have to get to several islands before lunch, if we want to head back home after lunch."

When they arrived at the lower deck, the others were all there, having breakfast.

"I talked to Mr. Cochran this morning," said Joshua, once the flurry of salutations subsided. "He sends his regards to everyone. I told him about our little adventure. He said he was glad the he wasn't here for that. While I was talking to him and thinking how much the call was costing, I naturally thought of our conversation yesterday about utilities. Since we are surrounded by ocean, we should consider using the energy of the ocean's waves."

"I have seen several articles about places that are harnessing the energy in ocean waves," said John. "We should definitely look into that."

"I've seen some of those articles, too," said Joshua. "The waves I saw on the beach were so small that I don't know if they would generate much power. The water is pretty shallow around the island, in most places. I did notice some large waves off in the distance. It must be deeper out there. I was thinking today, that all these islands in the Exuma chain are probably the high spots in a long ridge the runs north and south. On either side of the ridge, it might be deeper. "

"The system that I saw that looked most reasonable had a string of long cylindrical floats offshore. I don't know if we would want those big floats right off our beach, if we can avoid it," said John. "I wonder how far out we can go and still be in our own water, even when we get the Par 3 Golf Course."

"That's one more thing to look into," said Joshua, writing a note in his notebook. "The other thing is that there are surely some days when the sea is calm. That would mean that we would have to have a backup system for those days. That would mean two systems."

As everyone was anxious to continue the tour of the islands, they didn't linger over breakfast. As they were leaving to board the patio boats for the tour, Frances pulled Joshua aside. Can you wait here a second, until the others are gone? I want to say something before it slips my mind."

"No problem," said Joshua. When the others were reasonably distant, he said, "What is it?"

"I couldn't say anything about it when we were talking about wave energy," said Frances, "but I want to suggest that if we do decide to include other islands in the documents and later cede them to the Bahamas, we might trade them for some additional ocean territory. We can come up with several reasons, one being the ability to put our wave energy system far enough out that it doesn't mar our view and to place it in deeper water, with bigger waves. East and west of us, there should be no problem, and to the north and south, we can go half-way to the next island."

"I'll put that in my notes," said Joshua, pulling out his notebook. "I can't afford to forget anything, and I can associate it with the Par 3 Golf Course, so that it will appear when we work on that. Let's catch up with the others. Thank you, Frances. I understand you are probably the sharpest one in the group, when it comes to having ideas."

"I hope not," said Frances.

They caught up with the others, most of whom were already in the patio boats.

"Too bad we didn't start this project sooner," Alex was saying, as the boats left the dock, heading  toward  Lignum Vitae Cay, where their tour was to start. "Maybe we could have structured it somehow so that we could qualify for a bailout."

Everyone laughed.

"I think William is doing quite well with the bailouts," said Stanley. "Try as I can, I don't seem to be able to come up with a way to get on that gravy train. I haven't given up though."

"I would like to know where the government is going to get the trillions of dollars that they are promising to pay," said Ruth. "The way I see it, their account is overdrawn by at least fourteen trillion dollars and they are writing checks for twelve trillion more. Those are rubber checks, aren't they?"

"I guess you could say that," said Benjamin. "It might be close to kiting checks too, or some combination thereof. As to where it comes from, they might raise some of the money by selling bonds, which is very iffy right now. They will probably get most or all of it from the Federal Reserve, which will create the money out of thin air."

"But," stammered Ruth, "don't the banks own the Federal Reserve?"

"Yes," said Benjamin. "Generally, the bigger the bank, the bigger its stake in the Federal Reserve. Essentially, it belongs to the handful of big banks. The rest are insignificant."

"Then, you are saying that through the Federal Reserve, the banks will loan the government the money that the government will in turn give to the banks," said Ruth.

"That's right," said Benjamin. "But by structuring it that way, the banks don't really have to loan their own money to the government to give to them, which would be silly. This way, the government borrows money that didn't exist until they borrowed it. Then, when the government gives it to the banks in bailouts, it adds to the banks funds. In actuality, if the government increases the money supply by, say, twenty percent, the government is essentially giving the banks  something like twenty percent of taxpayer's money, because that is where the value of the new money comes from, and  then paying interest on it to the federal reserve. So the banks get the money and the interest on it."

"Aren't the banks deep in debt, and that is why they are getting the bailouts in the first place?" asked Joshua.

"William would be more knowledgeable about this than I," said Benjamin. "The way I understand it from him is that the billions are flashing around the world in so many transactions per minute or second, that no one can keep track of them. The bailout money goes into a major bank, then off to another bank, and another, and on and on, through a few offshore banks, eventually it may end up where it started, but unrecognizable and untraceable. Supposedly, the banks are deep in debt. And who are the banks indebted to? Hedge funds? Who owns the hedge funds? The same people that own the banks, or controlling interest in the banks. With the stock market going straight down and trillions going into hedge funds and banks, what is going to happen? When the dust settles, the people that own the banks and hedge funds will probably have added an incredible amount of businesses and real estate to their coffers, at bargain basement prices, and  they will have paid for it with money 'donated' to them by the taxpayers."

"I can see how William could be doing quite well in these circumstances," said John.

"At least, in the banking business he is doing well," said Stanley. "I don't know about any investments he might have." He watched John as innocently as he could. He wanted to say something about William being the second largest shareholder in Reynolds Publishing, but he didn't. Instead, he turned to Mark Richards and asked him, "What is the libertarian take on the current financial mess and the bailouts?"

"I don't see anything wrong with Benjamin's analysis," said Mark. "I can't speak for other libertarians, but those in my circle agree that it is a contrived crisis, meaning that it happened on purpose and the people that are supposedly trying to bring us out of us are merely dragging us deeper yet into disaster, and they are doing it intentionally. The measures they claim are going to improve things are the same measures that failed in the great depression, the same measures that failed in Japan's depression that has lasted nineteen years and counting. They are measures well proven to prevent recovery, not bring it about. Of course, you wouldn't expect those that worked so hard t give us a depression to want to snap us out of it before we have had the full force of it. I don't buy it that every administration in the last century or more has been filled with economic idiots. I think most of them know exactly what they are doing. It is only that what they intend bears no resemblance to what they say that they intend. Would you agree, Stanley?"

"Of course," said Stanley. "There is no doubt that the people that are controlling the administrations know more or less what they are doing, but not nearly exactly. Manipulating the global economy is more like a game. It is surely a long way from being an art, and light-years from being a science."

"I'm not sure that managing a smaller, local economy is any more of a science," said Joshua. "I had a professor who said that natural disasters like hurricane Katrina were actually good for the economy. According to his theory, so many people would be put to work rebuilding New Orleans for years, and the economy would receive a real shot in the arm, from the storm. I have a hard time accepting that."

"I should think you would. It's pure BS," said Mark. "Just think about it. If the destruction of a large percentage of the homes in New Orleans were actually good for the economy, then why couldn't we keep the economy booming across the United States, in every city and town, simply by periodically destroying a large percentage of the houses in every community. Does that sound sensible to you?"

"Not at all," said Joshua.

"You bet it doesn't," said Ruth. "It doesn't give the local economy a shot in the arm, but a shot in the head. That is the broken window ploy peddled by idiot economists. They contend that if a boy throws a brick through a baker's window, it is good for the economy, for the baker will spend $100 to a glazer to fix the window, and the glazer would spend that hundred dollars at the grocery store and the grocer would spend it .... and so on. That is a stupid idea on its face. First of all the hundred dollars the baker spends on repairing his window will be a hundred dollars he would have spent for something else, like a suit. Now the hundred dollars will no longer to the tailor, who would have spent the money just as the glazer would have. The glazer merely takes the tailor's place in the chain of events. Moreover, there is a loss: the loss of the window."

The patio boats ran up on the beach of Lignum Vitae Cay, and the crewman lowered the ramps at the bows of the boats, so the passengers could step out onto the beach.

Manhattan

William Cochran's limousine was stuck in the mid-morning traffic, but he was scarcely aware of it. Normally, he would have been busy planning his day,  making calls, or  otherwise setting things up. This morning, his banking business was not even in his thoughts. He was more than a little concerned about John Reynolds discovering the truth about Joshua. That morning, when Joshua had casually mentioned John Reynolds' suggestion that Joshua bring his mother to the Reynolds' home on Little Torch Key and perhaps to Bock Cay when it got a little farther along, William had felt like he might faint. The Bock Cay project was just starting, and things were already going too far, too fast.

He knew that John Reynolds' generosity with him had been due to a strong sense of fair play. He felt certain that that same sense of fair play would cause John to come down hard on him, if he discovered that William had known all along that Joshua was their half brother and  entitled to a share of the Reynolds' fortune. If John found out that much, he would surely find out that William had paid off Alice Adams to hide Joshua's relationship.  He suspected that John Reynolds was as tough as he was fair. He felt certain that John would apply the most onerous conditions possible under their agreement, meaning that Joshua would get one third of everything that William had accumulated since receiving the Reynolds money. He felt a sense of impending doom. Was there anything that he could do to avoid that? Anything at all?

Slowly, an idea  began to form in William's mind. He knew John was tough, fair, and generous. If he were convinced that William had repented prior to the discovery and tried to make amends and do the right thing, he would probably go much easier on William, if he found out the truth. There had been times when William had truly felt bad about what he had done. Lately, these moments had been more frequent, but they didn't usually last long.  He thought the increased frequency was because  he realized that Joshua was more of a son to him than his own flesh and blood. Wait, a minute he thought. Joshua is my half-brother. That means that he is my flesh and blood.

By the time he arrived at his office, William had a plan. He was going to give Joshua ten percent of his interest in the Bock Cay project. Right now, that was only worth four hundred thousand dollars, but when the development was complete, it would surely be worth perhaps a hundred times that or forty million dollars. Once the  Bock Cay Archipelago was an independent nation, it would be worth at least ten times that, or four hundred million. That should make John Reynolds know that he had tried to right things, as best he could without letting the truth be known.

The sense of impending doom was gone. What he felt now was a sense of relief. The value of his gift to Joshua was of little importance to him, being such a small portion of his net worth. For Joshua, it would be of astronomical importance. Joshua was well paid for his work, although not as well as the executive vice-presidents, his sons.  Come to think of it, he would make Joshua an executive vice-president, too.

His sons would scream to high heaven. Let them scream, he thought. It was about time they realized that they were where they were by grace of birth, not merit. Maybe, they would improve with some competition. It certainly wouldn't hurt them. He felt incredibly good about this. He wanted to call Joshua and tell him, but put it off until the papers were drawn up. Instead, he called his lawyers and got them started.

Bock Cay
Three Hours Later

"I really love it here," said Geraldine Gardner. "I wouldn't mind living here all the time, once it is built up."

"Except when we had to evacuate for hurricanes," said her husband, David.

"Just what is your thinking about living here, Dad?" asked Geraldine.

"I'm not sure," said Stanley. "Sometimes, I think I might like to make this my primary residence, spending most of the time here. Other times, I think maybe half the time here. As things shape up, I'll probably zero in on some more definite idea." He kept his answer brief because he was trying to overhear a conversation to his left.

Genevieve Newcomb was talking to her father about her impressions of the archipelago, and she had brought g up the subject of ownership

"Is there any chance of getting a plot of land here in my own name?" Genevieve asked her father.

"It might be possible at some later date," said John. "Right now, everything belongs to the three families, equally. Why would you want a plot in your name?"

Stanley intermittently observed the exchange, out of the corner of his eye.

"I just wondered," said Genevieve.

John looked across the table at Clark who had been watching the exchange too. The bitter scowl on John's face told Stanley that John felt certain that Clark Newcomb had told his wife to ask that question. And he was very likely correct, thought Stanley.

"We have been here such a short time," said Ruth. "I know there isn't much to see now. Nevertheless, Mark and I hate to leave it, but we will be back. How long do you think it will be before you have some buildings up and places to stay, Joshua?"

"It's too early to say with even a modicum of certainty," said Joshua. "My seat-of-the-pants guess would be ten months or between nine and say twelve months. There will be the Silver Sovereign to stay on though, and we will have some kind of workers quarters up long before that. There are the problems of water, electricity, and communication to take care of. You can see that we have a lot of work before it is a comfortable place to stay. Maybe when Frances has a layout, we might see a way to accelerate matters. Maybe we could fix up a smaller island, like Neighbor Cay, so you could be away from the construction. Once we had a pool, a bathhouse, and a few other amenities, you could eat and sleep on the boat and still have the resort atmosphere. We'll keep it in mind," He made a note in his notebook.

After lunch, people were getting ready to leave. Stanley was the first to be ready and waiting on the lower deck. A moment later, Clark and Genevieve came down. Genevieve sat on a chaise lounge and put her feet up. Clark walked over to the side and stood at the rail, looking out at Bock Cay. Stanley joined him. He had been waiting for this opportunity.

"Your wife seems concerned about having some property in her own name," said Stanley.

"I guess so," said Clark. "She has mentioned it a few times."

"My children felt the same way," said Stanley. "I gathered that they were afraid that the family might go broke, or they might become an outcast for some reason. In either case, they feared that they would be penniless. I could understand their fear, so I gave them a chance to get something in their own name. I didn't just give it to them though. I made them earn it. It took them quite a while and a lot of effort, but I thought that they would be more likely to appreciate it and take care of it. I think it was good for them in a lot of ways. Loving your children is fine, but I don't believe in blank checks for anyone. Those that know me know I pay very well for everything I want. Naturally, I was extra generous with my own children. John was right when he said that all the property here belongs equally to the three families. It may later turn out that each family owns the land under their own house or compound. We haven't settled that yet. I hardly think any major parcels will be privately owned. If your wife wants property in both your names or either one of your names merely for security, like my children, I would suggest that she opt for property somewhere else."

"I'll mention that to her," said Clark.

"I have a considerable amount of property," said Stanley. "I also have a considerable amount of money. I wouldn't donate either to you and your wife any more than I would give them to my own children. I would have to get something in return for the property or the money."

"What could we possibly have that you would want?" asked Clark.

"Maybe nothing at all," said Stanley. He knew, now, that he had read Clark correctly. "I have no way of knowing what you have. However, in my position, the thing I generally value most from people is information. Naturally, for me to pay a lot for information, the information has to be important and of considerable value to me. The right information can be worth a lot of money. My advice to those looking to raise a lot of money would be to keep their eyes and ears open. You have nothing to lose and a lot to gain. All it costs you is a little attention. If you ever come across any information that you think I would be interested in, get in touch with me, and I'll let you know what I think it's worth. I never try to pay less than the information is really worth. If  I did, I would reduce my chances of getting more information in the future. You give me valuable information, and I give you money, which you can put toward the land your wife wants or whatever other use you decide."

"Could you define a little more the kind of information you might be interested in?" asked Clark.

"In your case, the kind of information that you would be likely to have would be information concerning the Bock Cay project, including information not public knowledge about the people involved in the project. One never knows what it will be in his best interest to have something on the people one does business with. It has saved my life several times. Also, if someone is preparing to stick it to you, you are much better off knowing about it. You do get my drift, don't you?"

"I think I do," said Clark. "You can be sure that I'll keep my eyes and ears open. How would I get in touch with you, if I should have something that might interest you?"

"Besides the fact that you may see me from time to time," said Stanley. "Your father-in-law, your brother-in-law, Alex, your sister-in-law, Frances, and Joshua all have my number, but it might look suspicious asking them for it. Here is my card with several numbers on it and my private email address. If you have a problem reaching me, send me an email and a number where you can be reached, and I will contact you." As inconspicuously as he could, he handed a business card to Clark.

Benjamin and several others came out on the deck, ready to go to the plane. As Stanley turned to join them, he said, "It's been nice talking with you, Clark. I'm sure we'll talk again."

The patio boats took two trips to comfortably take the passengers and their luggage to the Beriev amphibian airplane. The only ones that were staying behind were Frances, Phillip, Joshua., and of course, the Silver Sovereign's crew who would patrol and guard the Archipelago. Frances' and Phillip's parents stayed until the last patio boat trip. They had a lot of last minute advice to give their offspring.

"Don't worry about us," said Frances. "We have a small army and a boat that can outrun anything on the water. We have telephones and radio communication. We also have that Mr. Jansen nearby with another small army that we can call for help. I imagine we are much safer here than we would be at home."

"That's probably true," said Alex, "but you are in the middle of the Caribbean. We couldn't get to you in a hurry, and that worries parents, as you will probably find out someday."

"The plane will be back in a few days with the survey crew to map the archipelago," said Joshua. "It will probably be going back and forth frequently. We'll keep everyone posted as to its schedule, in case anyone wants to pop down here and see how things are going. It was nice of Stanley to turn it over to the project. We certainly need it right now. As I told everyone, I'll be bringing down numerous groups to get proposals for things like power, water, communications, and the like. When it comes down from Miami, it can easily stop at Summerland Key on the way. Mr. Cochran and his family will obviously have the most trouble getting down here."

Realizing how much the project needed it, Stanley had agreed to put the Beriev Amphibian into the project. He would come up with a value for it, and count it as part of his contribution to the project, along with the Silver Sovereign.

Frances, Phillip, and Joshua stood on the dock, as the patio boat covered the short distance to the plane. Frances and Phillip were waving almost constantly until all the passengers were aboard the plane and out of sight. The three of them still stood watching as the plane's engines started and it began moving faster and faster across the water, until it lifted into the air and was on its way.

"Well, the sooner we get to work, the better," said Joshua. "I was thinking that we should use the house on Bock Cay as our place for work, and the Silver Sovereign as home. That way, the crew takes care of cleaning our rooms, our meals, and so on, but when we are working, we are in a place completely divorced from home. Let's try that and see how it works. Okay?"

Frances and Phillip agreed, and the three of them headed for the house on Bock Cay.

That evening when Joshua checked in with William Cochran and had given him a brief overview of the day, William couldn't resist breaking the news to him. "Joshua," he said, "I have decided to give you ten percent of the Cochran interest in the Bock Cay project."

When there was no response from Joshua, he asked, "Is that okay with you?"

"Of course it is," said Joshua. "If I didn't answer right away, it was because I was temporarily speechless. Yes, it is definitely okay with me. Thank you. Thank you,  Mr. Cochran. Thank you so much."

"Don't think that I'm doing this because I think you will work any harder or better on the project, if you have a financial interest in it. I know that you always do your best, and I want to show my appreciation of that. There is one little thing. Any transfer of ownership has to be approved by the other partners, and I think it is a little early to seek that approval. We should let them get to know you a little more first. Until then, we'll keep it to ourselves. You just won't have any vote. However, since you are running the project, you already have a tremendous amount of say in everything. Once things are humming, I'll take it up with the others, and I'm sure that they will be overwhelmingly in favor of it. Is that a problem for you?"

"None whatsoever," said Joshua.

"Also, I'm promoting you to Executive Vice-president," said William. "I think it's about time. I'm meeting with the other VP's on Friday, and I'll tell them about it then, assuming you accept."

"I accept," said Joshua. He was very happy with the news. He was fairly certain that the other vice-presidents, all of whom were William's sons, would be very unhappy to hear it.

To be continued.