Year 3 with Jane and Tony Pt. 02

We had just found out that Jane's parents had died in a terrible car accident while on vacation in Kauai. Jane and I were packing our bags when my phone rang. Seeing that it was Bob Malkus, Jane's parent's attorney, I answered it. After I said hello Bob said, "Tony, I am so sorry to hear about Stan and Bettina. Please accept my most heartfelt condolences for you and Jane." I thanked him and then he continued. "I have contacted the president of Stan's company and you should expect a phone call from him in the next 5 minutes. He's a great man and wants to help. I also called the Mother Superior from your orphanage, because she and Stan became very close friends. She said that she and Sister Elena would be with you as soon as they could. If you need anything from me, please call me anytime day or night. Our office is here for you."

I thanked him and then hung-up. Moments later my phone rang again with a number I didn't recognize. Figuring it was the president of Stan's company, I answered. "Tony, my name is Johannes Schultz and I worked with your father in law. Please accept my condolences on behalf of our entire company for your and Jane's loss. I have lost a good friend and co-worker and all of us here were very fond of Stan and Bettina. I trust, you and Jane are going to fly to Hawaii?" I indicated that we were, so he continued. "I would like to extend, to you, the use of our corporate jet. I will send a limo to fetch you and take you to the airport. I think it would be good to have Stan's personal secretary travel with you in order to make communications with us seamless. Her name is Judy Stein and I can assure you she is very efficient and will be of great use to you."

"Mr. Schultz," I replied, "Thank you very much for your sympathy and the use of the jet. We have already made flight reservations."

"Tony, please call me Jo, everybody does. I suggest you cancel your reservations. Our jet will get you to Hawaii quicker and will be quite flexible for whatever you need."

I told him that we would be happy to accept his kindness. Jo then said, "Good! The limo will arrive at your house in 15 minutes with Miss Stein in it. Take your time and leave when you are ready. The limo will wait as long as necessary as will the plane. The driver's name is Ernesto; he has driven you several times before. Will there be just two of you flying?"

"No," I said, "There will be three of us."

"Okay. If you need anything from me just tell Miss Stein. I will communicate with you through her so I don't tie up your phone. You may call Bob Malkus as well, he's a fine man and a great lawyer."

I replied, "We know Bob quite well and I agree with you on all counts. Thank you again for your generosity and help. I look forward to meeting you."

When I hung up the phone, I continued packing. Every now and again, Jane would sit down and begin crying. Since Barb had gone home to pack, Astrid came in to comfort Jane. Astrid pulled Jane in her arms and held her tightly. When I had finished packing and Jane's crying had eased up, I told her about both phone calls. Jane then said, "Bob is such a wonderful man. I've only met Mr. Schultz once, when I was in junior high. He was really nice. He told me to call him Jo and he took me around my Dad's office and introduced me to everyone in there. He knew every person's name!"

I heard Barb cry out from downstairs, "There's a limo parked in front of your house!" I grabbed Jane's and my bags and hauled them downstairs. Jane walked arm in arm with Astrid. I told Barb there had been a change of plans and that she should get Jake to cancel our reservations and get refunds for our tickets because we were taking a corporate jet. Barb had her suitcase and I had Jane's and mine as we headed out to the limo. When Ernesto saw us, he got out and opened the trunk and then met Barb halfway and took her bag.

I could tell that Ernesto had been crying because his eyes were red and when we had all of the bags stowed, he grabbed me and hugged me. He then went to Jane, took her hand and expressed his deepest sorrow for her loss. Jane hugged Ernesto, kissed him on the cheek and said 'thank you'. The front passenger door opened and a beautiful woman in a business suit got out and walked towards us. I could see she had been crying as well as she held her hand out to Jane.

"My name is Judy Stein; I was Mr. Robinson's secretary. I am so sorry for your loss. I loved your Mom and Dad very much. He was a great boss to work for and your Mom was one of the kindest people I have ever met."

Jane took her hand and said, "I'm Jane, my husband Tony and our friend Barb. It's nice to meet you Miss Stein, my Dad talked of you often."

"Please, call me Judy." She said as she shook Barb's and my hands. "If you'll all get in the car we can head to the airport."

Jane, Barb and I climbed into the back seat after kissing Astrid goodbye, while Judy got into the front. When we were all in, Ernesto closed the doors and off we went. We were going a different way to the airport so I asked Ernesto where we were going.

Judy replied, "We are going to a private airfield not far from here. That's where the plane is waiting."

Within minutes we pulled up to a gate which was opened for us. We drove across the tarmac to a waiting jet. It was much bigger than I expected with the Logo of Global Agriculture, Stan's company emblazoned on the side. When we pulled up alongside, one of the pilots walked down the steps to greet us. He expressed his condolences telling us he knew Stan very well. He then assisted Jane up the stairs followed by Barb and myself. Judy was the last one on board and asked us if there was anything from our bags that we might want for the flight before they were stowed below. None us required anything as we had our necessities with us. I waved to Ernesto as he pulled his car away. The second flight officer boarded and got into the cockpit and they began doing their pre-flight checks. There was a flight attendant on board who introduced herself as Alice. She told us about the plane and the amenities that were on board. She told us that once we were in flight that we could request food or drink at any time. At this time the engines began spooling up and then we taxied. I was sitting next to the window in a seat next to Jane, so we held hands as we took off and flew west.

Once we were at altitude, the captain came back to us and said, "This plane is much faster than airliners. The flight will take us about 6 hours depending on the wind. We should arrive at Lihue airport at around 2pm Hawaii time. I'm sure Alice has told you, but there is a bed in the back if you would like to sleep. Your seats also recline to fully flat and are quite comfortable for sleeping as well. The plane is equipped with very high speed Wi-Fi as well as full cell phone service. If you need anything feel free to call on any of us."

After a while, Jane reclined and fell asleep. I got up and told Barb to sit next to her while I talked to Judy. Judy was sitting at a table so I took a seat across from her and said, "Thank you for helping us. I'm sorry to pull you away on a holiday."

Judy replied, "It is no problem. I wasn't doing anything. I live alone and my parents live in Texas. Can I help you with anything?"

I smiled and said, "I'm pretty sure Jane won't want to stay at her parent's place on Kauai. I seemed to remember a pretty nice hotel in downtown Lihue. Do you think you could book rooms for us there? Jane, Barb and I just require 1 room, preferably with a king-size bed, and you will require a room. We should probably get a rental car or something as well."

Judy said, "Give me a minute on the hotel rooms. We have already arranged limo service for all of your car needs. We should also contact a mortuary to arrange for the transport of the Robinson's remains." Judy then began crying. I moved to a seat next to her and hugged her to me. After a few minutes, she stopped crying. "I'm very sorry, I should be better than that."

I took Judy's hand and said, "You have nothing to be sorry for! You have experienced as great a loss as we have. You probably knew Stan better than I did. Working relationships can be very close. So, if you cry we understand and don't worry about it. Okay?"

Judy smiled and thanked me. We sat and talked together for quite a while. While we talked, my stomach began rumbling and it dawned on me that I hadn't eaten since dinner the night before. I waved down Alice and asked her what there was to eat. "We have steak that will take 20 minutes to get ready. There's also chicken and a cheese ravioli." I told her steak sounded good. She went back into the galley and got to work. While I waited for my food I asked Judy about herself. She graduated from Stanford in business management and began working for various companies. She said she had met Stan while he was working with a former boss of hers at another company. "He liked how I worked so he made me a job offer I couldn't refuse. He and Bettina got me a great apartment on the gold coast that overlooked Lake Michigan that was rent free. I think they owned it, frankly. Anyway, I have worked with Stan for 5 years. He and Bettina brought me to Kauai with them a couple of times so I know my around pretty well. They spoke of Jane quite a lot. She was the love of their lives and they were very proud of her. They were very proud of you as well. They called you the miracle boy because you were the first male that Jane fell head over heels for. They loved that you were so humble yet so bright and personable. I have to agree with their assessment."

I could feel myself blush and was saved by Alice who brought me a green salad. "What kind of dressing would you like, sir," Alice asked? I told her that Ranch would be great if she had it. When she returned with the dressing I told her to call me Tony, that being called sir felt weird to me. Alice smiled and said, "Okay, Tony. What would you like to drink? We have an exquisite French red that Jo really likes!" I said that that sounded good and asked Judy if she would join me. Judy said a glass of wine sounded good.

We continued talking while I ate and while Judy made hotel reservations. "I got us rooms at the Lihue Arms downtown. We have adjacent rooms, both with king beds. The limo will be waiting for us. Anything else?"

I said, "If you wouldn't mind, could you research mortuaries while I call my friend Alika, the police chief in Lihue?" Judy got to work on her laptop while I called Alika. When he answered, I said, "Alika, Tony Smith. I thought I 'd let you know what's happening on our end. We will be arriving in Lihue around 2pm. The company Jane's father worked for arranged for us to ride on their company jet. They have also arranged for a limo to drive us around. We will be staying at the Lihue Arms, which, if I remember correctly is a block away from the police office."

Alika replied, "Your memory is good! I will meet you in the hotel lobby when you arrive. I should tell you, the man who caused the accident has turned himself in. He told us that he didn't remember much about last night because he was both drunk and stoned. When he heard about the crash on the radio it woke something up inside his head. When he checked his car, and saw the damage he called our office right away. He is inconsolable about causing the death of two people. We have him locked up under a suicide watch. I thought you should know."

"Thanks Alika," I said, "Is there anything else we should know before we arrive?"

Alika replied, "Julie and I got married last week. We wanted to thank you for getting us together."

Finally, something to smile about. "That's wonderful," I said. "Jane will be so pleased. She told me when we were there that she suspected you would be married within the year. Congratulations!"

Alika replied, "Thank you! So, I will see you in a few hours." We said goodbye and hung up.

Judy said, "It sounded like you got some good news."

"Yeah," I replied, "Our police friend and another friend got married. Jane will be really pleased."

Jane touched my shoulder and asked "What will I be pleased about?"

"I just got off the phone with Alika and he told me that he and Julie got married a week ago." Jane smiled at the news. It was nice to see her smile. "He also told me some news regarding your parents. Do you think you feel up to hearing it?" Jane nodded. "The guy who caused the accident turned himself in to the police. Apparently, he was drunk and stoned last night and didn't really remember driving home. When he heard the news about the accident on the radio, he flashed a memory, went and checked his car and saw a lot of damage and then immediately called the police to come pick him up. Alika say the man is extremely remorseful and they have him under suicide watch."

Both Jane and Judy were looking at me with wide eyes while covering their mouths with their hands. After a while Jane asked, "What do you think will happen to him?"

"I don't know," I replied. "Alika is going to meet us in the lobby of the hotel. Wait, I have some other things to catch you up on. I didn't think you would want to stay at the beach house right away, so Judy booked rooms for us in downtown Lihue. Anyway, Alika is meeting us when we arrive, so I think he would be able to answer your question. I have a tough question for you, do you want to bury your parents or cremate them?"

Jane answered right away, "They wanted to be cremated. Several years ago, my parents and I had a talk about the possibility of something like this happening. They said we should be ready for any contingency. You know how organized my mother is...er, was."

Judy and I said yes at the same time. Jane looked at Judy and asked, "You knew my mother too?"

I stood up and told Jane, "You need to talk to Judy. She's a wonderful person and knew your parent's very well. I'm going to lay down for a while. Ask Alice for some food, what I had was very good." I then kissed Jane, went to my original chair and fell asleep.

It felt like I had been asleep for just a couple of minutes, but when Jane shook me awake we were on our final approach into Lihue. I looked at Jane and asked her if she was alright and she told me she was fine. "I'm sorry I slept so long. I wanted to be available to you if you needed me."

"Tony, you are always there for me. You needed sleep. By the way, I didn't get an answer about how your night was with Sofia?"

I chuckled and said, "It was wonderful. I really love that girl, almost as much as I love you. How did your talk with Judy go?"

"You were right, she's a marvel. We held hands and talked this whole time. She's as heartbroken as I am. She was very close to my parents. I think we really helped each other a lot. Barb sat with us for most of the time and the three of us really bonded."

I looked out the window and saw that we were going to land in seconds. I took Jane's hand just before we touched down. "Did Judy fill you in on all of our arrangements," I asked? Jane nodded as we taxied to the fixed base operator side of the airport where private planes went. When we stopped and the engines were shut down, the first officer came out of the cockpit and opened the door and lowered the steps. Alice stood near the door and as I left I thanked her for the wonderful service. She smiled and said, "You four didn't make me work very hard. Anyway, we are your ride home, we've been told to stay here as long as you need to stay here. Judy knows how to get ahold of us when needed. So, do what you need to do and we will see you soon." Jane gave her a hug followed by Barb and myself. As I let her go she had tears rolling down her cheeks.

The limo was waiting next to the plane. The driver was assisting the first officer with our luggage. When he closed the trunk, he walked over towards us and introduced himself. "My name is Kaholo, I think you know my older brother Alika. He told me to take special care of you. I'll give you my cell number so you can feel free to call me any time day or night. Also, I'm very sorry about your loss. If there's anything I can do to ease your burden, please ask."

Jane hugged him and said, "Thank you very much, Kaholo. I think we need to get to our hotel so we can meet up with your brother." He then opened the car door and offered a hand to the women as they got in. Judy made to get in the front seat but Jane asked her if she would join us in the back. Judy smiled, climbed in and said thank you.

As we rode to the hotel, I checked my phone and had 20 texts and a multitude of emails. I checked the emails from Bob the attorney. He told me that due to the size of Stan and Bettina's estate that the case automatically goes to probate. He told me to call him when I knew when we would be back so we could get together and discuss these matters. I also got an email from Jo Schultz telling me that his company would take care of organizing a memorial gathering. He thought that it would be rather large. He also said that he would take care of the obituary and asked if we would like donations made in their names to any causes. I spoke with Jane and she said she would like to read the obit before it went out and that she would like donations made to my old orphanage, Planned Parenthood and something else of Barb's choosing. Barb said, MADD, Mothers Against Drunk Driving!

Judy took notes and then said, "I'll email Jo and tell him what you would like. I'll have him send the obituary draft to me and then we can make any alterations and send it back to him. Ooh, we're nearly at the hotel."

When he parked the car, Kaholo said, "I'll take care of your luggage. You just go inside, check-in and meet with Alika." We did as he said and as soon as we got inside we saw Alika. Julie was with him so we walked up to the couple and took turns hugging them both. Jane held Julie and said, "Congratulations on your marriage! We are so happy for you!"

Julie replied, "Thank you. I wish we were meeting under better circumstances. I'm so sorry for your loss." Jane thanked her and then introduced Julie and Alika to Barb and Judy.

Julie put out her hand but Barb took Julie in her arms and hugged her causing Julie to smile. "I'm the happy owner of one of your swimsuits," Barb said. "Sofia, Cindy and Sue talked about you incessantly when they returned home last spring. They will be pleased to hear you got married to their favorite Hawaiian policeman. They also sent their greetings to you." Barb released Julie and then hugged Alika. Judy followed Barb's example and hugged Julie and Alika as well.

Alika said, "I've got you checked in already. Here are the keys. Kaholo is waiting up by the rooms with your luggage already." Alika led the way while the rest of us followed. Jane took Julie's hand as we walked.

When we arrived at our rooms Judy took one key and her bag and I took the other key. Kaholo wheeled our bags into our room. He asked me where I wanted them and I told him anywhere on the floor. When he finished with the bags he came up to me and said, "Let me give you my cell number. Remember, call me at any time. I'm at your disposal!" We exchanged numbers and then he had a few words with his brother and then he left.

I opened our door that adjoined to Judy's room and knocked. She opened her side and propped the door open and came into our room with a steno pad in hand. When she saw me looking, she smiled and said, "Just in case!"

Alika said, "We'll let you get settled in. We would like you to come to our place for dinner, if you are up for it."

Jane said, "That would be nice, what time?"

Julie replied, "Around 7pm. That should give you time to shower and change and take a nap if you'd like. We will tell Kaholo when to pick you up he'll be waiting in the lobby. Our house is very close so I'll tell him to get you at 6:50."