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It is so hard to love someone that is in love with someone else. Mark has been able to make me feel like I am there with Stef and JP as they try to navigate this dangerous time. I hoped that Jeff would be able to overcome his issues and this made you feel like maybe he had and that made what is coming so much harder.

This was the chapter when I realized that Stef was more into Jeff than anyone realized. You could tell by his reaction to JP that Stef was really worried about Jeff as much as JP. I love how Isidore handled the situation with Sam. It was so French... Vietnam was such a waste of so many good men. It should have never lasted as long as it did.

It just takes that one thing to push someone back into that life of drugs. Stef should have known better but in the end it is Jeff's problem. How JP handled the crowd was perfect. He understands what so many did not back then or even today; that violence never really works in the end...

An interesting way to meet your future boss. I am not sure that I would recommend it but it worked out well this time. Stef and JP just mesh and although the tension is there with Jeff, he seems to be moving back into the family.

We get to see the struggle of not only dealing with coming off of drugs but having to deal with the blatant homophobia at that time. It was good to see JP's life with his family. How they bolster his reserves and help keep him centered. A woman running a construction office in the 60's would have been almost unheard of.

Drugs can be so insidious. Once they have you in their grip; it is a fight for the rest of your life to keep them at bay. Great work with the scenes between JP and Jeff. I can feel JP's anguish and his resolve. Colleges at that time were such a hot bed of change and often those in the best position to help were forced out because of their beliefs. Northwestern's loss will be Stanford's gain.

This was such a sweet chapter; like the calm before a storm that we all know is just around the corner. It is so easy to forget that sometimes it is the little things and moments in life that make it so worth while... I find myself looking at the date on each chapter and getting physically ill. I just cannot image how Mark is handling writing and re-lliving that day. No one viewed the world the same way after the events of that day. Even if no one in the extended CAP family is hurt or killed; those over a certain age will have their lives altered in ways no one could have been ready for. I know that Mark will handle this with dignity and honesty but I can say it will be really hard for me to read and re-live those events again. Will has learned a great deal from his family. Unlike Marie, he understands that with great wealth and power comes great responsibility. Everyone should always strive to make life better not only for themselves and their family but others around them and the world as a whole; but those with the resources to do the most have a great responsibility then the average person. JP and his family have done what they can to help others. Sometimes it is personal and no one but the person they help really knows and other times it is helping to revitalize a whole town or setting up centers for homeless teens. You can do what you can behind the scenes or out front to try and encourage others, but the most important thing is to make a change for the better in the world around you... What Will did for Kai's family cannot be underestimated. Just making it easier for someone with a disability to get around in their own homes is such a major deal. The physical limitations that one faces with a disability can drain not just the person with the disability but all those around them. This was truly the act of a good soul. Will and Kai are at an age that makes it almost impossible for a long distance relationship to work. It is hard at any age but when you are that young, it is next to impossible. I do hope they stay friends and stay in contact with each other because I think it benefits both of them to be in each others lives. I really loved how Will handled the situation with Stef and his and JP coming to see him. I thought the scene when Stef and Malcom were discussing the locked steel door was just hilarious, JP was perfect there as well. The steel door isn't just a physical instrument to keep everyone out; but a powerful non-verbal communication to others about Will's feelings. It is amazing how much JP understands Will and how in tune they are in so many ways. Wade maybe more like JP than anyone else, but I think in some ways Will is what JP wishes he had been as a young man growing up... Robbie seems to be more in tune with Will right now than Brad. I hope that Robbie is able to keep Brad on an even keel with this situation. I don't think Will really wants to hurt his father but he understands that what he will face in leaving Kai will be emotional enough that he can't handle any other drama on top of it. Will is going to need his family around him and their support when he gets back to Escorial because I think he cares about Kai a lot more than even he has admitted to himself. Will doesn't want to get hurt again so he is trying to prepare himself but no one is ever ready for that... I can't wait but am terrified but what is coming...

WOW, great picks for the last two chapter... I especially loved the Mama Cass song, I am very partial to the 60's and early 70's... Make Your Own Kind of Music was also used the movie Beautiful Things in just a perfect place as well... Beautiful Day was perfect for that moment as well, it fit the tone of the chapter just perfectly... Great Job on these picks....

This was such a sweet chapter. It showed how much Will has grown and how well he was raised. Unlike Marie, Will understands that giving back to others is one of the hallmarks of behaviour that everyone in this family has been raised with. Sometimes it is helping a town revitalize itself, establishing a center for homeless teens, or giving one person the ability to get around better in their own home. Some people never learn the lesson but with great wealth or power comes greater responsibility... I really like the way that Will has put up the steel door. It is a physical message but also a non-verbal one as well. Strange that JP seems to understand the message better than the others involved, or maybe not so strange. I do hope that Will and Kai stay in touch. I think at their ages a long distance romance is almost impossible but staying friends and keeping in touch would be good for both of them. This was that sweet oasis of calm before the storm; not just the dinner at Escorial but the coming tragedy. I find myself looking at the dates on each chapter and feeling a little bit ill as we get closer to that horrible day. Even if no one in the extended CAP family is actually hurt or killed; no one over a certain age ever viewed the world the same... Thanks for this sweet reminder of how to enjoy each day as it comes... Great job, Mark.

Well, he does but I picture him much shorter than George...

Okay, someone that will remain nameless is falling down on the job... There are no song pics for the last chapter.....

I agree with just about everything that you are saying... That is why I clearly stated in the first line of my comment above that " Okay, I am going to start by saying that this is a fictional story and Will is not a real person; as far as we know... " and I did that because in the context of the story there is nothing wrong with what Will is doing. Several people have made comments about the number of sexual partners that Will has had in the story; most of my post was addressing that. If Will was a "Real Person" I would be concerned about his behaviour, but since he isn't; let's just enjoy the story... I understand that that are on the other side of the fence on this issue and I do think they have made a valid argument but this is a work of fiction and is what Mark has written and I hope we can just enjoy the story. I haven't always been able to do that, and it is all Mark's fault... If he wasn't such a talented writer; I would not get so caught up that I get unreasonable attached and involved in the lives of these wonderful creations of his... Bad Mark, Bad Mark...

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, like assholes everyone has one... I am not sure who said this but I read it somewhere once. I agree that had the battle been fought at sea the outcome would have been the same but probably not as conclusive for the British. The fact that the French army was really destroyed by the time the officers escaped back to France was a real blow to the country. It is true that many of the French officers and leaders escaped and caused additional problems but the loss of the ships and the tens of thousands of well trained soldiers caused problems for years to come... The truth is all we can do is look back at what happened and marvel. We can never really know what would have happened if the battle had been fought at sea. Mark has done a great job of creating and describing one of the most important battles in all of history. I really felt the fear, death, and victory of those that lived it in this story. I have to wonder if Granger will turn his attention back to getting to London before Maidstone or if Winkler and Jeffries proved able to deliever their message. God I can't wait to see what is next....

Okay, I am going to start by saying that this is a fictional story and Will is not a real person; as far as we know... The Mendle study that Tim is referring to doesn't so much link sexual activity in adolescents to depressive symptoms or clinically severe depression as it links random non-romantic sexual activity. Those that engage in sexual activity with no emotional attachment or meaning have a much higher chance of developing either depressive symptoms or clinically severe depression. What this study lacked was a componet that dealt with what drives that behaviour. Often sexual behaviour of this type is driven by other factors, that can have as much to do with development of depressive issues if not more than the sexual component. Actually those factors may drive the sexual component rather than the other way around. Plus, the study also shows that those that had even multiple sexual partners but within a romantic or committed relationship had a much lower percentage in development of the depressive issues. So it isn't as much the sex or even the number of sexual partners that can be the issue but whether the sexual activity takes place in a romantice relationship or is simply random non-romantic sexual activity. That being said, the problem I have is when you lump all adolescents together. I have seen some that could hop from bed to bed with no issues and others that even one sexual encounter was one to many. But, to be honest, if I was seeing an adolescent Will's age that had thirty sexual partners; I would be looking for what was driving the activity. The problem with that is that in this story; Will really doesn't have any of the standard issues that one would look at in trying to find out what was driving the behaviour. I really thought about it today and I had six sexual partners before the age of fifteen. I was up to over fifty by the time I graduated high school; I grew up in small town in rural Texas and there really wasn't anything else to do but drink, get high, or have sex, or some combination there of. By the time I had reached forty-five I was well into triple digits. Okay, I went through a major slut period that lasted most of my mid and late 20's and early 30's... I know guys that have only had one or two partners that are my age and those that have had double what I have had; what drove each of us to make the choices we made? Okay, now to the newest chapter. I really like that Hank and Jeanine seem to be in such a good place. I really like that Will has been able to bond so well with Hank and really seems happy that Hank has made Jeanine happy. I do not think Hank can die on 09/11 unless Jeanine does as well; I really don't think that Jeanine could handle losing Hank after everyting thing else that she has gone through... I loved how JP and Isidore really understand and care about each other. The ties that bind them run so deep and really no one except maybe Stef really has any idea of what all they have been through in their lifetime together. Marie is going to be trouble. I don't know what it is going to take to snap her out of the idea that she is untouchable but the issues coming up might do so... Great chapter and I can't wait to see where it leads next....

A truly great victory and a grand telling of it... I really felt as if I could hear the cries of the dead and wounded, smell the gunpowder burning, and feel the heat of the fire. It was a majetic telling of one of the great battles in history. Granger really understands what needs to be done and how to get it done. I don't know what Mark has planned for him but I could see him going much farther than most of those around him. Soon we will find out how Granger will return to London and if he will beat Maidstone back or if his sending of Winkler and Jacobs accomplished what he needed them to. I have to wonder if Winkler will find his replacement for his lost love...

This was a great chapter. I really like how JP and Isidore handled their discussion. That is how two adults should handle the issue. I am really glad to see that Isidore will be remaining at Escorial with Frank, don't forget that Frank and JP have a history as well... I am going to really hate it if anything happens to Hank or Jeanine. They both seem to be getting on track and really appear to be good for each other. I can't see Jeanine surviving anything happening to Hank so soon after everything else... If you take one then take them both... I am starting to think that Tim is right and that Tony needs to be visiting New York to discuss an issue with his trust... Brad is going to have to learn that the his current mode of action isn't going to bring Will around to his point of view... Brad is going to have to up his game to stay ahead of Will. I am afraid that everyone is in for trouble from Marie...

And the search for love will continue in all its forms...

So close and yet so far away.... the thought of what was possible but never realized.

Jason needs to feel safe and have the time to get the therapy he needs to survive. I am sure that when push comes to shove, JP will see that he gets both. The real problem is going to be Jeff. I know JP was prepared but then Jeff made his big speech and he went off and did what he said he would never do... JP is a very sexual being and if Jeff isn't there, someone else will be. Jeff had to know this... I almost think that Mark did this on purpuse. He introduced a side to Jeff that made it easier to be pissed at him; but it didn't help what was coming...

"Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" This just says it all...

Loved this chapter, family is such a big deal for JP. I have to say smart move all the way around for him and Isidore to marry. I know Jason is upset but he has to understand he never really had a chance. I do see this causing problems down the road...

JP, Jeff, and Isidore had a real connection. They fit seemlessly together in a way that few couples do, much less when you add a third. JP and Jeff's time in Chicago was so special. I loved how JP handled the situation with the lawyer, how upfront he was. The idea of gay marriage was so far out there then, it really was the punchline to a joke...

This was a great chapter... Isidore was in the US to stay with Ace and JP had a ready made family. I think it is great how far his father has come in regards to JP and Jeff. The scene with Carol, Stef, and Jeff at the end was just priceless...

This is one of those chapters that seeing JP and Jeff together makes me so sad... Stef is really growing into his own. He is learning that it isn't all about him. Tonto and JP's parents prove that in the end love does make the biggest decisions seem little...

Magnificent... The writing in this chapter was truly just first rate... I really felt as if I was there watching the battle unfold. The accuracy of the historical battle was weaved into the storyline just perfectly... Granger is in the thick of it where you would expect him to be. Nelson truly was a great commander. His inspiration made those that served him love him. What he spoke when he was injured is said to be the words he spoke in actuality at the battle, great touch. Granger is able to read and understand those around him. He seems to understand so much better than others what motivates others and why they do so much of what they do. This is one of the secrets to his success. The second part of the battle should be equally grand. The destruction of the Orient was said to be truly horrible... You are spoiling us rotten with this pace of posting but I hope you don't stop.... LOL...