The cart moved slowly down the road of the crowded street as a young man sulked behind the cart out of clear sight . It was clear that the young man didn’t want to be seen as he scowled at the passing shopper’s as if willing them to leave. As much as that would have helped him in following the cart it would have not saved him from the amusing glare from the stranger on the top of the hill.

After a while………

“well did you find what you were looking for?” asked the middle aged man sitting in the love chair who had his eyes closed . The man was wearing a light brown sleep gown and green slipper’s.
“ humph” a grumbled grunt came from the down the hall that led to the front door.
“ let me guess , no. how many time’s do I have to tell you…..”
“ ….I assume you‘re not talking to me since I have found what I was looking for.” a silky smooth voice interrupted the other man.
The middle aged man sat up rigid and stiff as if someone had just walked over his grave and then trampled on it. “ what are you doing here mareleom, I told you 15 years a go that you were not welcome here.” the mans stance muscles stretched with rage rather then surprise now. He had thought he was talking to his son of 17 years, but it was obvious he was wrong.
“ I know what you told me 15 years, and 6 months ago charley but I think I have given you enough time to come over you prejudiced and think the good of the boy seriously.” mareleom answered the other man calmly and ignoring the rage to hit the other man in the nose. Cary wouldn’t want this, yea Cary wouldn’t want this. He ranted in his mind to try to calm him self.
“ Thank you , mareleom but I think I know how to handle my own kid.” charley said as he calmed himself with the same thoughts as mareleom and went back to his earlier occupations. “ now would you care to take of your hat and coat so we can discus this more comfortably then stand in the hallway and shouting at each other.” It seemed the other mans world had caught mareleom by surprise. While he been traveling from his estate form up north Scotland to his brother-in-laws house in London he had thought of couple of different reactions to him showing up in his house but none of them had included being invited in the resting parlor. Well he had to admit he was thinking more of worst outcomes. One of which included both of them shooting at each other with guns. “ oh, don’t look so surprised you know I’m not the one to fight and besides even if I were I wouldn’t have the strength to take you on , if you haven’t noticed I’ve become some what of an old man.”
“ well I wouldn’t go that far charley but I just think you’re a bit deep in your cups.” came a soft but mannered reply
“ yea, I guess your right.” there was a sudden silent as both man sat there staring at anything else rather then each other. It was just getting a bit warm when suddenly both spoke at the same time.
“ I wont let you take jack from me” (Charley)
“ Look charley I’m not here for jack’s custody “ (Mareleom)
Then there was another uncomfortable silence as both men looked at each other in utter surprise.
“ your not”
“ of course not I would never think of doing that to jack and you.” the younger man snorted and started on rumbling about stupid idiots. Then ,“ did you really think that I would do that charley” came a very low sad voice.
“ so you never intended to take jack from me.” came a slow inquiry
“ of course not why would I do that I know how hurt you were about Cary’s death and She would have never forgiven me for separating her family. Also I would never think of that besides I thought that you were the one how wanted to keep jack from his mothers side of the family since I know you didn’t fully approve of her origins.” the other man just glared at him as if had just spoken in Greek. “ and I didn’t know that I was or both of us were in a wrong assumption till last week when I came back from America. Really , I can’t believe that things have gotten so bad for us. Anyway I’ve been settling my new importing base in America and haven’t returned to Scotland or England for the past 7 years . So here I come to enjoy a little vacation and then try to knock some sense into you while I was here anyway. But it seemed that someone else had another idea rather then wait for me to go to you,” and then mareleom told his brother-in-law how he found his great aunt waiting for him with a lecture and a stick to make him listen. So when he enters his own estates and thinking about going to bed and taking a bath when to his surprise he finds himself in front of his great Aunt Merald. Who was standing there with a broomstick in her hand and a hand on her hips demanding he tell her why he hadn’t answered her letters and how he should go apologies to his brother-in-law about being stubborn for causing him pain right after poor Cary died and all that and when he denied that and said she was Mistaken she throws a bunch of letters she said she had gotten from his brother-in-law’s new housekeeper and pushed him out the door. Without any explanation of what he had done. So since he couldn‘t go back inside the manor he rented a room in the nearest inn. After he had slept and eaten he read the letters that had him kicked out of his own house. Then he found out that both of them were mistaken and were accusing each other for all these years for nothing.. And so he haired a coach and came straight here.