Carlos Hazday

Even though I was the one writing the words, the first time he called a girl darling I figured he was a keeper.

I used the Urus because I saw one parked somewhere around here. But the problem with Italian cars was always reliability. Didn't FIAT at one point stand for 'fix it again, Tony'?

Same one Brett rented in Malibu? Sparky's American made too! LOL

Warmer... warmer on the car front. Let's remember Cesar had some as of yet unspecified restrictions. As for the kid's father giving Ritch his card, it could be simple gratitude, and the desire to maybe treat Ritch and Edrice to a meal. Notice I didn't name the kid or the father? I do have an idea to use him again, but I'm not sure he'll ever be. I've done something similar with other characters I never developed. The one that comes to mind was a DC police officer back in an early book when Tom Kennedy was shot. I named him intending to write a subplot surrounding him but ditched that idea. We'll see what happens with this one. My original intent was for Edrice to be inside Defiant when it was totaled and die. After writing about his time with Ritch at the amusement park, I decided I liked him too much. Instead, he'll be a better wingman than Will when chasing women, since Will's a bit more reserved.

Tesla would be the obvious one in that case, although several other manufactures are offering electric vehicles. Not sure how much of an environmentalist Ritch is. CJ's been slowly becoming more of one thanks to Owen's influence, but who knows if any of that extends to Ritch. Let's not forget our flyboy likes speed!

Good guess, but no cigar. And for the record, Lightning, a Harley-Davidson LiveWire electric motorcycle, was built at the HD plant in York. Ritch's now in his second year. By the time he's allowed to keep a car at the Academy, other cadets would have had two years to figure out he's wealthy. And just as with his sexual adventures, he's a bit wilder than his brother. I wouldn't worry about Defiant's replacement being a tad ostentatious. When CJ runs for office, he'll be able to claim he's always supported the American car industry, Ritch's not running for anything, so he might not even think of that. But, Abuelo's always owned foreign luxury vehicles. He had a Mercedes he gave to Rod as a present, and I showed CJ borrowing Abuela's BMW a couple of times. Cesar favors Cadillacs, I've shown him owning two different ones. Brett's a Jeep and Ford man. CJ was given Defiant and Sparky as presents, so he's had no say. Now that I think about it, CJ's never had a say, all four vehicles he's owned have been gifts. Don't the Kardashins give each other extremely expensve cars as presents? I think I've seen a couple of Lambos and Ferraris in their fleet. LOL

I like the idea of throwing the horse shoe at someone, and it carving right through their forehead. Blood and gray matter all over!

Including 2 stories I'm writing at this time, I have some 400 named characters in the series. Yes, I keep a list to minimize name repetition. I think there are plenty of characters available to kill. So far I think I've killed 5.

Galaxy Quest is a favorite. I think I've had a couple of characters say 'Never give up, never surrender.' Allen, Weaver, and Rickman were awesome in it.

LOL Conveniently, CJ finds out about it in the next chapter! He'll either hold a memorial service or with a more mature approach, accept very few things last forever.

Note to self - Consider death by trampling to keep Mann happy.

Yep, and that has been by design. After 5 years with Owen, CJ was ready to settle down. Ritch I wanted to portray differently, and started planning for it his senior year in high school. Although related and holding similar values, the two are individuals with their own personalities. Ritch's not done chasing skirts. LOL

You're gonna have to keep reading. LOL

@BlueWindBoy Third Edition was on Wisconsin between M & Prospect. I used it as the place the fathers met at, but it was closed by the time CJ moved to DC. Straight bar with dancing upstairs. EJ O'Reilley's (I forget the exact location, but it wasn't Georgetown) was the place to go Thursday nights. Free peppermint shot with every draft beer purchased.

Brain fart! I had forgotten I called it Stapleton in this chapter. I just checked and every other reference to the airport's about Denver International. It's been fixed, thank you!

Figures you'd mourn the death of a Jeep! You've read most of the story already, any preferences as to who you'd do? Please tell me it's not Miranda.

Six. Welcome to old age.

I know, right. That Jeep engendered a few memories for CJ and Ritch both. Our boy's on a mission to screw as many women as he can before he settles down. I had both him and CJ tied down during high school and wanted the younger brother to go wild once he got to college.

Used that one with Brad, so IEDs are out. I despise those things and the assholes who build them and deploy them.

He appeared in Ranger's final chapter. That means late May 2022. He'll be available for slaughter after that.

Death by horse shoe! Bloody mess.

This series was meant for you. I used a lot of real locations in the early books I'm sure you've recognized. Unfortunately, F Scott's closed before CJ was old enough to go there. I had Brett and Cesar meet at Third Edition. Was it still open when you were at GU?

And there went my chance to write a military funeral. Last time I visited Arlington National Cemetery, I watched a funeral procession with a caisson. I've been wanting to describe that for a while.

I need to be careful with you, you notice things other readers don't!

Although I've tried not to turn Ritch's story into a CJ-type travelogue or foodie adventure, I still needed to include a couple of scenes with those subjects. Brett once advised Thiago never to turn down the opportunity to travel, and I figured it was something he would repeat to his sons. As a matter of fact, I'm outlining a story where he's the driving force behind an immediate family trip. You guys can start guessin when and where too. LOL