Summerabbacat

Decidedly so. She got her just deserts. Sh fell off a bridge. Dead. LOL.

I wonder if Levi’s grandfather was an admirer of Franco @Gary L.

I must say the limitations of Levi's former life was somewhat upsetting @Charles26. I suspect money was tight in the Chambers household, whether this was due solely to financial poverty is hard to gauge. I get the sense his grandfather was the type of person who equated happiness with sinning, that joy was a luxury only the wicked could afford, that to be living a morally upright life one had to be miserable. This mentality did not allow for frivolous gifts as such gifts were the work of the devil. It was stated in a prior chapter Levi's grandfather liked the races; I wonder how much of what he earned, if he was still working, was lost to gambling. I also have to wonder if Levi's grandfather was still working. It is not clear if he was of a similar age to Matt's and Luke's parents, but from Levi's description of him, I have to wonder if he was much older, which may also explain why Julie's mother was already deceased. It also appears Julie either did not work outside the family home, or if she did it was menial work for which she would not likely have been paid very much.

How often I have wished to be able to apply more than one emoticon too @Philippe.

I don't believe there is any excuse for Thomas Donnelly's appalling behaviour @drpaladin. He is a complete arsehole. I so want to describe him as that other word I cannot use as I think that it is more befitting. His life is one of business investments, ways to demonstrate what a great man he is. He is so fucking shallow and conceited he makes me want to puke. I don't believe there is a snowballs chance in hell he will "make up" with Owen as this would require him to climb off his self-built throne upon which he sits. He will never understand Owen because he does not want to. As for Suzanne Donnelly, it would take a miracle, one bigger than the second coming of Jesus, for her to defy Thomas in any way. Her remark "I'll help you pack" after Thomas had just delivered his condescending lecture to Owen, spoke volumes. I was wrong about her when I said she had the intelligence and personality of plasticine, a pot roast would be closer. The bright side of Owen leaving behind his meagre belongings was that he left that crucifix behind, the one which had been watching and judging him for years. It would have given me the creeps.

Eric astounded me too @mayday. Suzanne Donnelly aka Charlie McCarthy behaved as I thought she would, looking to her husband for an instruction as to what she should think, how she should feel and react. Thomas Donnelly surprised me to some extent; his arrogance even greater than I thought and his heart even colder than I thought. It appears he is totally devoid of concern or love for anyone other than himself. I am inclined to believe he even thinks of Suzanne as a business investment. I too was surprised Owen's car was in his name. I think @drpaladin is probably correct, the car could be claimed as a business expense.

Eric's reaction really surprised me; clearly he has enough of his mother's warmth and caring to counteract the cold detachment of his father, a father who is a clone of his brother, Thomas. It would be difficult for Suzanne to lose her mind @Aevylian; she would have to prove she had one to begin with.

The Big Bad Wolf? Members of Jehovah's Witness? An encyclopaedia, vacuum cleaner, Tupperware or Avon salesperson?

"Levi looked back across the quadrangle at Jimmy and Dan, who were looking his way. Then his gaze shifted to another group of kids, at the edge of which sat Casey Thompson. He was looking at Levi, in much the same way as a cat would look at a bird, he thought, and it unnerved him." If I remember correctly it was a Thompson who assaulted Aaron when he was younger, and it was Luke and Matt who were instrumental in seeing he was brought to justice. It will not surprise me if the family has "recruited" Casey to attempt to charm Levi, win him over, before inflicting harm on him to avenge what they see as Matt and Luke's wrongdoing to one of their own. I hope my speculation is way off, but one should never underestimate how low the Thompsons will stoop. "Maybe there was something in that old saying about hating the sin, but loving the sinner? Who knew?" What a crock of faecal matter. That is what it is Levi. I think with continued visits to Father Costas for counsel, Levi will gradually recognise the Old Testament for what it is, the rantings of flat earthers who wandered through the desert cooking with camel shit. A quiet, rather uneventful chapter @Mark Ponyboy Peters. I hope Levi is not going to be subject to ill-treatment at the hands of the Thompsons' for the reasons I have stated above, but it is certainly not beyond the realms of possibility. Avalon and its inhabitants are welcoming Levi more and more with each passing chapter; he appears quite content with it now being his home. Just the name itself implies something beautiful and serene. I would so like to post Avalon by Roxy Music for this chapter as it is such a wonderful song, but I cannot bring myself to do so because Bryan Ferry is such a twat.

I must say @Topher Lydon you painted very vivid images of most of the "cast" in this story, at least for me. Most had a very real physical presence.

I have never seen that show as I did not own a TV for most of the years during which it was broadcast. I suspect I may well have liked it though.

I wonder @Paladin if Butch might have room to squeeze cleaning of my apartment into his busy schedule. He sounds positively gorgeous and so thorough. I was surprised Shane, Lachlan and particularly Maria were oblivious to Martin and Nathan being a couple. I am almost certain Nathan accompanied Martin, Benjamin and Justin to the luncheon at Shane and Lisa's home. If so, who did they think he was? It proves one thing though, both Benjamin and Justin are discreet. Rick proved his weight in gold again with champagne flowing at the lunch. Such a thoughtful man. Eddie's suggestion to have a barman to serve at the party to ensure no one under the age of 18 is served alcohol was a very sensible one. Simon's mention of Natasha and the possibility of a complaint from her was very wise, particularly given her previous report to the police. It was interesting to note Maria and Lachlan picked up on this too, suggesting both are well aware of what a spiteful and vindictive bitch Natasha is capable of being. Zaphod Beeblebrox? WTF. I think you may have mentioned this character in one of your prior stories @Paladin because the name does sound vaguely familiar.

Bravo to Manuel for having the courage to follow his convictions. Vickie was a monster. She may have been lonely, but that is no excuse for how she treated her fellow residents of Grey Harbour. I hope Caleb got over his feelings of guilt that he should have been a better friend to her. He owed her nothing. A couple of things puzzled me about the epilogue @Topher Lydon. **Diana Holloway** was found guilty of medical abuse and obstruction of justice. She was sentenced to ten years. She's never met Grace Holloway. She never will. I assume this means she never met her daughter again after being sentenced. I am very pleased about this, but somewhat miffed she got off so lightly, particularly when you compare her sentence of 10 years to the 20 years sentence Maria Herrera received. I assume her biological father got custody of her. **Maria Herrera** is serving twenty years. She sends Chloe letters. Chloe doesn't read them. She sends them back unopened with *Return to Sender* written in careful handwriting. It's the only thing Chloe has ever sent to anyone in Grey Harbor. I am not quite sure how old Chloe when she having sex with Ms Herrera was but thought she was probably 16. The relationship she had with Ms Herrera was consensual, in fact she appeared to be the aggressor more so than Ms Herrera. As for her returning Ms Herrera's letters, this does not surprise. She, Chloe, was a spoilt selfish bitch who just took, took, took. Admittedly Ms Herrera should not have had a relationship with her, but I think she got a raw deal, especially when compared to Diana Holloway's sentence. I think Isaac and Daune got raw deals too, and I am uncertain what they actually did which was so wrong it warranted detention. A very enjoyable story which held my interest throughout. I must say Grey Harbour itself took on a persona, unforgiving, frigid, bleak and mind-numbingly dull. Given its climate I am surprised there were not more murders. Its weather made Merrickville appear positively tropical.

Burnt orange in colour with long wheat stalks (?) dyed emerald green, fuchsia, electric blue and fluoro purple sweeping out of it in all directions at least 1 metre in length. Rose petals, gardenia-scented candles, lime-scented sheets, vanilla-flavoured lube, and the pièce de résistance, Donna Summer’s album version of Love To Love You Baby, all 16 minutes and 47 glorious orgasmic seconds on the turntable, on repeat.

You are too kind @Vcs. Billy Porter is gorgeous. Nobody rocks a hat like he does. Cher's mother remained ageless until her death at age 96. I think young Cher at the age of 80 may have had a little cosmetic refreshment over the years. I loved Twin Peaks and the soundtrack album was superb; one of the biggest selling albums of the year in Australia in 1991, and Falling was a massive hit too. "The two young men cuddled atop the large, soft feather bed; quiet remained until the sound of Shir knocking lightly at the door could be heard. Only loud enough so she would hear, Jake called, “We’re coming, Shir. Thank you.” I think the boys "enjoyed" themselves @Vcs

I was wondering to whom the 'suicide' tag was applicable; it did not occur to me it might be Vickie. I assumed it was for Mark Park after the last chapter, and I guess it may still apply to him too. I feel as if I should have some sympathy for Vickie, but I don't. She was a horrible person who made the lives of any number of people hell. I think the question is can they by bothered to investigate any further now they think they have found their man. Caleb may save the day with more of his memory returning. I won't be upset if his mother ends up as a corpse either.

And Casey seriously short of any balls, given he does nothing to challenge said friends behaving like Neanderthals towards Levi.

Jake's beautiful black stallion, Midnight. I must confess I wouldn't mind riding Orville's stallion. Neigh.

The ambience, title and lyrics of this gorgeous song from Twin Peaks are apropos for this beautifully written chapter @Vcs.

This innocent comment from Mannly had me in stitches: "Yes, ma'am." Mannly grinned. “Can I ask you something?” “Of course, Cher, what’s up?” “Well, I’m just curious: why do you call me Cher? The only person I’ve ever heard of with that name is the lady who was in that old group my mom used to listen to, Sonny and Cher. Isn’t she tall with long black hair? I don’t look anything like her, and I’m certainly no female.” The Cher would be horrified; she would have Mannly tied and bound for using such an obscenity. Old, that word is not in Cher's vocabulary. She did look gorgeous in her 20's with long black hair.

Mannly and Jake are set to have their first date, but Mannly is worried about what to wear so he does not embarrass Jake. The age old worry of many straight, gay or anything in between men and women or anything in between when going out on a date, especially a first date. "Suddenly, he heard Jake calling to him from outside, “Hey, Little Man, come out, will you?” Looking somewhat confused and to no small degree curious, he excused himself and stepped out on the porch. “Good morning, Mannly. There’s someone here who’s been anxious to meet you... " I wonder if Jake has thought ahead and arranged for someone to attend the ranch with clothes for Mannly, especially for a first date. I hope its Billy Porter as he will have Mannly dressed to the nines and looking fabulous. Montana will not know what has hit it.

A @Summerabbacat saying - if patience is a virtue then vice is its just reward.

Bajungas? I had not heard that one before @weinerdog.

I used that word once in a comment @drsawzall when naming a character from the Australian TV show Prisoner. She was an officer of the prison not a prisoner, a nasty piece whose nickname was Vinegar T..s. @drpaladin had to “scold” me on that occasion too.

It seems Levi and Matt have developed, or are well on the way to developing, a father/son relationship to make "our Kylie" proud @Mark Ponyboy Peters.