beautiful."
Captain Bargas approached them. "Would you like to
have a lunch aboard, Signor Stanley?"
"No, we'll have lunch at the Palazzu U Domu."
"Fantastic. And shall I be prepared to weigh anchor right
after lunch?"
"I think not. Let's enjoy the beauty of the place."
Captain Bargas studied him, puzzled. Robert Stanley's
mood drive makes him to be in a terrible hurry, or it seems
that he has all the time in the world. And the radio to be
shut down? Unheard of it! Bull shit. Shit happens. There's
nothing that can be done about it.
When Blue Skies dropped anchor in the Quai de la
Citadelle, Stanley, Sophia, and Donald took the yacht's
launch ashore. The small seaport was charming, with a
variety of interesting shops and outdoor trattorie lining the
single road that led up to the hills. A dozen or so small
fishing boats were pulled up onto the pebbled beach.
Stanley turned to Sophia. "We'll have a lunch at the
hotel on top of the hill. There's a lovely view from there."
He nodded toward a taxi stopped beyond the docks. "Take a
taxi up there, and I'll meet you in a few minutes." He
handed her some money.
"Very well, dear."
His eyes followed her as she walked away; then he
turned to Donald. "I have to make a call."
But not from the ship, Donald thought. The men went
to the two phone booths at the side of the dock. Donald
watched as Stanley stepped inside one of them, picked up
the receiver, and inserted a token.
"Operator, I would like to place a call to the Union Bank
of Switzerland in Geneva."
A woman was approaching the second phone booth.
Donald stepped in front of it, blocking her way. "Excuse me,"
she said. "I ..."
"I'm waiting for a call."
She looked at him in surprise. "Oh." She glanced
hopefully at the phone booth Stanley was in.
"I wouldn't wait." Donald said with a grunting sound.
"He's going to be on the telephone for a long time."
The woman shrugged and walked away.
"Hello?"
Donald was watching Stanley speaking into the
mouthpiece.
"Peter? We have a little problem." Stanley closed the
door to the booth. He was speaking very fast, and Donald
could not hear what he was saying. At the end of the
conversation, Stanley replaced the receiver and opened the
door.
"Is everything all right, Mr. Stanley?" Donald asked.
"Let's get some lunch."
The Palazzu U Domu is the crown jewel of Ajaccio,
a hotel with a magnificent panoramic view of the emerald bay
below. The hotel caters to the very rich, and jealously
guards its reputation. Robert Stanley and Sophia had lunch
out on the terrace.
"Shall I order for you?" Stanley asked. "They have some
specialties here that I think you might enjoy."
"Please," Sophia said.
Stanley ordered the trenette al pesto, the local pasta,
veal, and focaccia, the salted bread of the region.
"And bring us a bottle of Schram eighty-eight." He
turned to Sophia. "It received a gold medal in the
International WINE Challenge in London. I own the
vineyard."
She smiled. "You're lucky."
Luck had nothing to do with it. "I believe that man was
meant to enjoy the gustatory delights that have been put on
the earth." He took her hand in his. "And other delights, too."
"You're an amazing man."
"Thank you."
It excited Stanley to have beautiful women admiring
him. This one was young enough to be his daughter and that
excited him even more.
When they had finished lunch, Stanley looked at Sophia
and smiled. "Let's get back to the yacht."
"Oh, yes!"
Robert Stanley was a changeable lover, passionate and
skilled. His enormous ego made him more concerned about
satisfying a woman than about satisfying himself. He knew
how to excite a woman's erotic zones, and he orchestrated his
lovemaking providing pleasure through gratification of the
senses and symphony that brought his lovers to heights they
had never achieved before. They spent the afternoon in
Stanley's suite, and when they were finished making love,
Sophia was exhausted. Robert Stanley dressed and went to
the bridge to see Captain Bargas.
"Would you like to go on to Sardinia, Signor Stanley?"
the captain asked.
"Let's stop off at Elba first."
"Yes, sir. Is everything satisfactory?"
"I hope so," Stanley said. "Everything is satisfactory."
He was feeling aroused again. He went back to Sophia's
stateroom. They reached Elba the following afternoon, and
anchored at Portoferraio. Elba is a Mediterranean island in
Tuscany, Italy. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago,
Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan and the
third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia. It is
located between the Tyrrhenian Sea and Ligurian Sea, about
50 kilometers (30 mi) east of the French island of Corsica.
As the Boeing 727 entered North American airspace, the
pilot checked in with ground control.
"New York Center, Boeing eight nine-five is with you,
passing flight level two six zero for flight level two four
zero."
The voice of New York Center came on. "Roger, you are
cleared to one two thousand, direct JFK. Call