Azzurro Mexico color: (Sort of a gunmetal blue with a twinge of green. There might be a test later.)
Paige frowned as she was going through the payroll getting it ready for checks to be printed but she was puzzled. She didn't expect to see one for her or Walter, but there was one for her already. She looked up and saw Walter was intent on his computer, working on Richard's problem. She looked up at the Loft before she closed the program and got up. She walked slowly up the stairs and called out as she reached the top. Megan moved out of the kitchen and smiled at her.
"Hey Paige, what's up?" Megan asked as she moved over to greet her.
"Hey Megan. I was puzzled as I was about to run payroll for the company. I wasn't expecting anything for me and Walter but it has a full check for me but it won't pull up anything for Walter. So I didn't know what I had done wrong." Paige told her.
Megan nodded as she pointed to a chair nearby and Paige stepped over and sat down.
"Well first, you didn't do anything wrong. It isn't a secret or at least Walter never said it was to be kept quiet. But Walter is refusing payment for taking over the company." Megan smiled weakly.
"I don't understand." Paige frowned.
"Mark's used most of our disposable personal money trying to conduct tests and figure out how to treat my condition. And while our share of the company profits is good, it isn't really enough. So Walter said he'd only do it if his salary was split. He's giving half to us and half to someone else." Megan explained.
"Oh." Paige said half puzzled. "I didn't see any other names come up in the payroll." Then her eyes widened.
Megan smiled as she nodded.
"The other half is going to you. That's why your pay is so much higher than everyone else's. Please don't say anything to the guys. Sometimes they get a little weird about who makes what. You are getting a full paycheck now because Walter is paying for it." Megan explained.
"By someone you mean Toby?" Paige grinned and then frowned. "Wait, I've still got so much money left over from the reward they paid us, why would Walter do that?" Paige asked.
"Well I could say because he doesn't need it. But that really cheapens the truth, and I am sure that he doesn't need it." Megan sighed. "But he gave it to you to ensure that even if you didn't want anything to do with him…you'd still be well compensated. That's how much he believes in and cares about you. I've never known Walter to be so generous…well he used to be. But after the Baghdad incident, he just quit doing things for people." Megan sighed again.
Paige reached out and squeezed her hand.
"Actually he has been generous even after, but he's probably never told you. I was a little hesitant about his home, now my home too. So I asked if it was acquired with so-called dirty money. He explained to me that any money he's ever acquired in less than a good way, he's always donated it to charities." Paige told her. "And I completely believe him on it. He said whenever he gets money like that, he donates it to a charity as soon as possible. He told me that right now he had just over a million he hadn't given away yet. He promised to give it to a charity that really helped me."
"Really?" Megan stared at her. "We didn't know that. We'd always thought everything he has was bought with ill-gotten money. I think I owe Walter an apology." Megan sighed.
"Well I haven't learned everything about his income, but from what I have learned I am completely blown away by it. Like right now, he's down there working to find out who stole Richard's plans for their tech watch. And I talked with Richard yesterday as Walter worked on it and he told me that Walter turned him on to a company he could invest in. He said Walter was the major stockholder in it and he bought the company for a little less than one hundred million." Paige smiled at Megan.
Paige frowned.
"Wait a minute." Paige said as she thought. "Was the reward I was paid, was that Walter's doing too? You guys didn't get a reward did you?" Paige asked quickly.
Megan smiled as she nodded.
"We are already contractually bound with Homeland. Cabe had fought to get you and Walter paid for what you did. When Walter found out he told Mark to have his share paid to you as well, he's also paid for whatever your insurance hasn't paid for. Cabe tried to get Homeland to cover that, but they wouldn't budge." Megan smiled.
"That sneak." Paige grinned. "Did you know he was one of the principal investors in the movie Ironman?"
"Are you serious?" Megan asked and watched Paige nod.
"He told me last night. He said while he sold all the stock he'd been given when Disney bought the company, he still gets residuals from the movie." Paige told her.
"To think of all the stuff I don't know about my baby brother." Megan shook her head.
Since Toby didn't have an actual job he decided to help Happy on hers. And because Toby actually helped Happy and her Dad they got the job done in four days instead of five.
Walter introduced them to their escort before their flight. The man was an expert in the French language as well as etiquette and was ex-Army Special Forces. Toby hinted to Happy as they were flying over the Atlantic that he was curious about the mile high club. Happy shook her head. With Walter she had been a frequent flier of that club. But when her Father had fallen asleep at one point Happy grinned and grabbed Toby's hand and dragged him down to the cargo bay. They found a cozy corner along with blankets and tarps meant to protect what they hauled. They quickly fashioned themselves a little lover's nest and Happy inducted Toby into the club.
Since their trip had been planned and coordinated they did have a little time to sight see around Paris. They had one day when they got there to rest. Happy spent the next day examining Megan's present. She walked into the hotel suite they were sharing and the grin on her face was like a beacon. She quickly called Walter and told him it was perfect, exactly as stated. Walter gave her a payment code and she could go with the crew the next day to package the present up to pay the seller. Toby and Patrick went with her and both of them were completely shocked at what they saw.
While they were gone Walter had tracked down exactly what had happened and how with the theft at Richard's. As Walter explained it, one of the newer janitors that were hired was actually an employee of his rival as a computer systems analyst. He managed to steal all their designs and set Richard's timetable back a number of times as they had to rebuild missing datafiles. That had given his competitor the time to retool everything and begin producing the watch.
Walter grinned as he hung up his phone. He picked up the desk phone and punched the intercom button.
"Megan, your presence is required on the Garage floor." Walter said and then hung up the phone.
"Walter?" Paige asked.
"Happy's back." Walter smiled. Just then the front overhead door opened and Happy and Patrick came through it first and then they heard a beeping sound. Happy quickly hit the brake releases on her workbench and with her Father pushed it back towards the back of the Garage.
Toby directed the driver back and then had him stop. Toby stepped in to help Happy and Patrick. Between the three of them they cleared the area quickly.
As the driver was getting the forklift off the back of the truck Megan was coming down the ramp with Anthony while Mark came down the stairs.
"Is this it?" Megan grinned looking at Walter.
"From the three of us to you." Walter nodded and Paige smiled at the tears she saw in his eyes. She wormed her way under his arm as Megan moved down on her scooter to sit next to them standing there.
Happy quickly took over the forklift and got the crate out of the truck. She brought the huge box into the Garage and carefully swung it around and then placed it gently on the ground. A quick turn around and the forklift was back out the door. Happy came back in and grabbed up her crowbar.
"I know this is your present Megan, but I hope you don't mind if I open the box?" Happy told her.
Megan laughed and shook her head as she wondered what it could be.
The box was nearly twenty feet long, eight feet wide and six feet tall. The shippers had built a secure but easy to disassemble crate around it and within ten minutes the top and sides were off. There was a simple stand built around the object made of pvc pipe with a cover of some kind over it, concealing whatever it was.
"Deirfiúr, I know it is early, but if you would care to pull back the cover." Walter said to her softly.
"Happy birthday to you." Paige began singing as Megan moved up to the present and everyone joined in.
Megan smiled back at them as tears ran down her face before she looked at Anthony.
"Baby, would you like to come pull this cloth off for Mommy?" Megan asked.
Anthony grinned as he ran up and grabbed it and began pulling. Everyone chuckled at how excited he was. And then Megan gasped as the cover came off of the 1971 Azzurro Mexico painted Lamborghini Miura P400.
"Walter…" Megan said in a drawn out gasp. "It's gorgeous." Her hands shook as she started crying.
"Sorry it has taken me so long to find someone willing to sell one. I know I could have gotten you a new one easier and quicker, but I wanted something special. This is something special and it will turn heads. Something that can be passed down through the family for generations to come." Walter said as he moved up with Paige.
"It's too much." Megan cried as she pulled him into a hug.
"Nothing is too much for my deirfiúr." Walter told her softly.
"How much did this set you back?" Toby asked and immediately grunted as Happy backhanded his gut.
"My sister is worth far more than every penny I paid for it." Walter answered him.
Happy moved over and closed and locked the overhead door as the driver left.
"Promise me you won't get me something so elaborate for my birthday." Paige whispered to him.
"I don't make promises I can't keep." Walter whispered back before kissing the side of her head. "Oh and remind me to show you the changes to another room I had done."
Paige looked at him quickly, her eyes almost lost looking into his.
Happy quickly removed the pipe stand from around the car and then opened the doors and hood so Megan could look all around it.
"We can help you get in if you want." Happy told her.
Megan smiled but shook her head.
"Not tonight Happy. But thank you." Megan told her softly.
Walter, Paige and Ralph had dinner at the mansion that evening. William had fixed a very elaborate meal for them. Rich, savory and perfectly seasoned. Paige shook her head as they finished.
"With such a talented chef cooking for you, why do you eat out so much?" Paige asked.
"Actually I don't normally. But William and Betty both are almost a bonus of sorts to the other employees as they cook their meals for them as well. As part of their compensation packages." Walter told her as he poured her another glass of the Cristal champagne, from the case he had bought the other week.
"Have you ever considered asking Megan and her family to move in here?" Paige asked after taking another sip.
"A few times, but that was back before we had met at the diner." Walter told her with a twinkle in his eyes. "They weren't too keen on living here with me. Not that I could really blame them."
Paige's eyes flashed at Ralph as he finished his dessert and slightly shook her head.
Walter smiled and gave a slight nod.
"So, what is this other room you wanted to show me?" Paige asked while sitting her glass down.
"Ah…le studio d'art de mademoiselle Dineen?" Walter spoke in French.
Paige giggled.
"No really." Paige asked as she laid her hand on top of his.
Walter smiled as he pushed back and stood up.
Paige stared at him a bit in shock.
Walter pulled her chair back before reaching down for her hand.
Paige took his hand and stood up. Suddenly she felt very warm.
Ralph jumped up and followed behind them as they walked towards his photography studio. Walter stepped just past it and opened the door on the other side of the hallway and gestured for Paige to enter.
Paige smiled but slowly stepped in and gasped.
"Obviously as your studio you can redecorate however you want. But you should find everything you will ever need." Walter told her.
Ralph walked in behind them and saw it was mostly bare. Except for a place where Paige's subject could be positioned along with a full spectrum of special lights to illuminate the subject however Paige wanted. An art easel before it. But what had gotten Paige's attention was the large wardrobe-like piece of furniture. It stood open and inside were literally enough supplies to last years. Paige knew the prices of most of the items. There was easily two hundred thousand dollars worth of supplies. There was a huge rack next to the cabinet. And it was full of a wide assortment of art boards and quite a number of them for each type of paint.
The room had its own bathroom, and a changing room for any model that was being painted. There was a huge twenty by twenty window where she could sit and paint the landscape outside.
Paige stepped out and away from Walter as she began walking towards the large wardrobe-like cabinet. Her fingers reached out and touched various components within. Everything was of the highest quality.
"Walter." Paige said softly.
Walter's hands came up and rested on her hips.
"I saw by your transcripts you excelled in your art class that year at college. I've also got you set up for classes with some of the best artists of our time. Some here in LA and some over the internet." Walter told her.
"What? W-when?" Paige asked as she looked at him still kind of lost and overwhelmed.
"Every Monday starting November 3rd." Walter told her softly.
"But, what about work?" Paige asked.
Walter shrugged.
"I think the guys have come to a better understanding of me now and I think I can deal with them one day a week without you. I want you to pursue that which is most important to you. And your art is one of those things." Walter told her as he pointed to a book on the shelf.
Paige pulled it out and saw it was a schedule of who and when she'd be working with them. Paige gasped at the names she saw.
"Walter, there is no way I can paint for these people. They are some of the biggest names in the art world right now." Paige said as she looked back at him.
"Now, yes. But they weren't always. Each week one of them will review some of your work and then give you some pointers and a project to complete for them. When you complete the project they will evaluate it for you, giving constructive criticism on anything they think can be improved." Walter told her.
"I can't believe this." Paige said before she turned and hugged Walter tightly.
"Just a small token of what you mean to me." Walter told her.
Greetings! I hope this finds you well! Sadly we enter the last few chapters of the story, but follow it with the excitement of introducing you to the next one! lol For those of you who guessed, it was a Lambo! lol For those asking, while we won't get to see Paige see the art room in this story, we do get to find out her feelings in the last chapter.
Railman - Yep I did. lol When I was a much younger man I had sketched out an idea for what they had experienced. Had thought about trying to develop it, but I took my younger brother to an event and someone had already developed something similar and I put it aside. It wasn't as fancy, couldn't do some of the things mine could but...Oh well. It is a big bill for sure. While he did include their cost, he didn't include the 4 pilots and 4 stewardesses he employs. Ralph is definitely making leaps in development. Toby was definitely happy to travel with her. lol
JerBr23 - Ralph might begin working on his own program for it. Surely his Dad will spend the money to hire actors and produce the video for it...right? lol Walter's thought is, if you compensate people properly, it is less likely they will either slack off, or help themselves to something that isn't theirs. lol I'm not sure Paige would be prominently displayed as such, but it wouldn't surprise me at some point she does model for him as well. lol
Marie Mac - lol I have never, ever liked coffee. The smell of properly brewed, i.e. not burnt coffee, is quite appealing. Or was, I've even kind of lost my desire to smell it from all the burnt coffee I've smelled. Between going to my bank with a Starbucks on the other side of their wall and all the coffee spots inside the hospital Cathy was always in it just turns my stomach. Kind of like the taste of beer. I've tried so many different beers because people are always like "You just haven't tried the right one yet." Well, I've tried enough to know, I'm not going to like it. One friend said I had to drink an entire beer and then it would be good. I was like, nope, I'm not enduring an entire beer just so it might taste better. lol I'll stick to my rum.
LouBe - With as many people who can't function without coffee here, you'd think that! lol But then I don't like tea either. The wife loved both. I'd tease her sometimes and ask if she wanted me to go boil her some grass and tree bark. lol Tea also has a very big following here. And most coffee drinkers seem to drink it too. Thank you, glad you enjoyed it! Paige really did like it a lot. She just wasn't prepared for that barrel row. lol If it had been an actual roller coaster and she saw what was going to happen she'd have still gotten on it. lol Ralph will definitely be very popular! lol Mr cub scout on the train won't be anywhere near as rude to him...if that event still happens. Yep...Hey Merrick...Nananana...nananana...hey hey hey...good bye! lol My wife loved the book by Stephen King and we both really loved the show. But the best way to watch the show is in sections. One time we actually sat down and watched the whole show in one sitting...ugh...not good. lol The scene was one of those "caught fire" moments. I knew the story wanted this confrontation and no sooner had I started writing it, that scene came to me and I was like...damn...this is perfect! lol Hope you guys enjoy it at least half as much as I did. lol
To the Adventure! -Tim