Devil's Cacti (Part 2 of 3)

Chapter 43

At the end of ten days, the first batch of stems had stopped fermenting at a welcome ten per cent proof and we drained the stems into buckets and manually poured the yellow liquid through the filters. It looked good and tasted even better. We bottled it up in five litre plastic bottles and set them aside. We then flushed the stems with measured amounts of water and this we had to pump directly into one of the steel tanks. We calculated we had some three hundred litres of water, flavoured with the cactus. Again, it tasted quite good but we decided we could adjust the flavour with either more clear water or the concentrated juice or cactus wine as we started to call it. We got quite excited at our success and decided to split the drained stems to see what the insides were like. Oscar got a machete like blade and we sliced the stems lengthways. The inside consisted of fibrous flesh which I remember tasting with Dennis. We scraped a quantity of this into a cut off plastic bottle and I took this to Gran and asked her to boil it up and see if that broke down the fibre. I also put some of it in a specimen jar and I intended to test the matter at the lab the next day. We split the other five stems and scraped the contents into a plastic dustbin. The shells and spines we again loaded into a couple of dustbins as this material was going to be ground up and mixed with the chicken feed.

Gran came back with a bowl of what looked like mashed potato and three spoons. “I boiled it up for you Paulo and put it in the blender. Taste it, it’s got no specific flavour but I can’t say it’s not got any flavour. I reckon if I mix it with sweet potato and turn it into croquettes or potato Dauphinoise they will go down quite well. How much of this have you got here?”

“Over half a dustbin full Gran and we will have more.”

“Heavens, what are we going to do with it all?”

“Don’t worry Gran. Once it has dried out, we will feed it to the chickens. Can I have another taste Gran?”

“Yes Mrs. Bellman it does have a specific flavour. I like it.”

“Oscar, don’t call me ‘Mrs. Bellman,’ call me Gran like everybody else does and not ‘Lady General’ like the workers out there.”

“You shouldn’t order them about so much Gran.”

“They need ordering about Paulo otherwise they would leave the place in a mess. Now look what you have done you two. You’ve just eaten all the mash I have brought.”

“Shall I bring the dustbin up for you Gran and you can then surprise our guests with your culinary prowess?”

“Don’t you be cheeky my lad. Take it up now and we can prepare some for lunch.”

After lunch, when all had complimented Gran on her new addition to the table, Oscar and I invited Dennis to sample our production of the day back in the bay.

“That is superb Paulo; the liquid is crystal clear and packs a fair punch. It’s a bit more bitter than I remember but I suppose we can alter that as they do with champagne.”

“As long as we don’t restart the fermentation, then we can play around with the flavour as much as you like. Now taste the water, see what you think.”

“This good my boy! Yes I like it. I don’t want to have too much flavour, just a taint, so we can virtually market it as mountain spring water with a touch of ‘je ne sais quoi’ eh my good man?”

“Well that would mean we would have to water it down quite a lot.”

“Come on then, dilute some by half and let’s have a tasting.”

“Right, I’ve filled a five litre container half full and topped up with our water.”

“I can still detect the flavour. Cut it by half again. What do you think Oscar?”

“Still tastes better than ordinary water. I’m not sure we can dilute it too much Dennis.”

“There you are, three-quarters pure water, try that.”

“That’s more like it, mountain spring water with a slight hint of something special. Look you two; the water on its own is good, top quality. We only need to doctor it a wee fraction to make it memorable. I think we could get away with even more dilution. I don’t want people to detect the taste on their first sip.  Want it to creep onto them and get them hooked. Do you know what I mean Paulo?”

“I see your point but we’ll have to be more scientific than this bucket chemistry job here. I’ll devise an analysis that accurately measures the content.”

“Good on you boy. How much have we got in this tank?”

“Well in the current concentration we have probably about three hundred litres but we could probably quadruple that if we dilute it to your taste.”

“That sound good and you’ve only started. You’ve got five more cages to process. Wow, I can’t wait to tell Janice the good news. Good work lads! Oh by the way, before I go I have to tell you that you are going to get a delivery of special glass bottles to hold the stuff. Not having it in plastic. Not this nectar. My designers are working on the labels. We are going to call it ‘Bellmano’s Wine’ made from natural fruits and plants. You’ll have to tell me what proof I need to put on it. I presume you can control that. Bring it down to white wine levels. We don’t want to start paying high duty on the alcohol levels do we?”

Chapter 43

In readiness for the opening of Bellmano’s Paella Restaurant, we bottled two hundred bottles of the concentrated wine and two thousand bottles of water with a twist of flavour. I boosted the concentration in the water, to slightly above Dennis’s requirements, but that could be adjusted for future batches. Antonio lent us his bottling machine, having finished with it after the wine season, and that made the job easier. Putting on the labels to Dennis’s exact requirements was a problem and I vowed that we would have to get a proper label applying machine. The label showed a stylistic drawing of the monastery gates and to add some marketing spam we had to apply a stamp reading ‘Bin No 01’ with an ancient John Bull outfit that Dennis insisted belonged to me but I couldn’t remember that.

Carmella couldn’t come to the opening, being too uncomfortable sitting in a chair, so I had to escort Gran and Manolo. All the local gentry and officials from the Town Hall had been invited and since it was free, they all turned up bringing along hangers on. Dennis had planned for this and prepared excessive amounts of paella. We entered the restaurant through a cloud of smoke as the addicts were taking their last puff and the Head Waiter immediately escorted us to a large bar area where we were served with aperitifs. I noticed Lena and Edo serving behind the bar. Edo looked totally transformed with his smart uniform and a pleasant smile. Gran had worked wonders on him. We were served with a flute of our own Monastery made wine, which tasted slightly watered down and a tapas, which was a small triangle of Tortilla, Spanish omelette, which we immediately recognised as being made from Monastery eggs. Dennis joined us for a moment to greet Gran and whisper in my ear that the ‘free drink’ was simply for the customers to get a quick shot of the special flavour before the main meal. Also it allowed groups to gather and be shown to their tables in one go and the paella to be served up immediately. 

We quickly made up a table of six with Gran’s friends and were shown to a table. Gran immediately called Dennis over and remonstrated about the paper table cloths. Dennis apologised to Gran profusely in his usual over-the-top way and told her it was Carmella’s idea, with a sly wink to me, because paella was so messy to eat. A pretty waitress brought us a glass of our wine and a bottle of water and explained that we should take a small sip and top up with water and keep topping up with water after each sip. This was news to me and I called Dennis over who explained that people would drink the concentrated stuff too quickly. This way it lasted longer and they probably felt they got better value. A waiter brought a large round dish of paella, set it down on an extension to our table and let us feast our eyes on it for a moment. It really looked wonderful with a grand arrangement of mussels, prawns, soft crabs, crowned with ‘fighting’ langoustine.  A waitress brought plates and offered to serve but Gran thoughtfully intervened and said she would serve, since the staff would be very busy. The paella was good in its own right, without the doctoring, but the addition of the special wine just meant that you had to have some more. The servings were generous so everyone had their fill.

 Gran not only served us but circulated, talking to friends and officials like a mother hen, proud of her Grandson’s endeavours. We vacated our table early to make way for a second sitting. Gran whispered in my ear that Carmella had been right to propose paper tablecloths because everybody was making a mess and it would be a problem with washing out the spices. Gran insisted on staying in the bar area and chatting to people which was fine by me. I just took a position at the corner of the bar where I could view the dining room and bar area and did a bit of people watching. The kitchen area was open to the dining room and the huge paella pan was on view for all to see and I noticed a number of people going over and complementing the chefs. The whole setup was simple but gave off a nice impression of good organisation and efficient staff. The dining room was full to overflowing with lots of people mingling in the bar area. I noticed that Dennis and even Gran were circulating and urging people to give up tables for the people in the bar. 

I did a mental calculation that with two sittings at lunchtime would amount to some two hundred covers and even at half full it would be a tidy income. Dennis had calculated that the north Europeans would come for the first sitting at midday and that the more Spanish orientated people and locals would start lunch between two and three, so that by six o’clock the whole place could be cleaned and shut up ready for the next day’s onslaught, seven days a week. I hoped that the flavour enhancing element and possibly addictive aspect would work which would pay for all the efforts that we had all put in to the project. I decided to rescue Gran, who had done a marvellous job of support and take her home before she became too exhausted. Even though it was a free event, I noticed that our bottled water was for sale at the bar but not the wine. Dennis later confided that he was worried that we wouldn’t have enough of the wine for his own use in the restaurant.

Chapter 44

December had us all busy with bottling the rest of the wine and ensuring we had a full steel tank of flavoured water ready for bottling. We also spent much time in grinding down the stem casings and spines whilst the best of the roots and inside mush was boiled down by Gran and frozen for later use. We had a couple of dozen stems left in the compound and they seemed to be surviving the cooler weather quite well, apart from slowing down in growth. I got quite adept at sowing more seeds under the plastic greenhouse for the table and hoped that my three prime stems would survive the winter, to replenish my seed stock next year. I had a major concern that if my plants didn’t reproduce I would have to resort to going out to Mexico again, to harvest the cacti and that was rather daunting, given my last experience. The restaurant was flourishing and full most days but that was maybe the simple flush of a new opening. The real test would come after Christmas when we would really see if the punters continued coming in the colder weather.

Carmella was going through a tough time with her pregnancy which was due to terminate in late December. Since we knew from the various tests that she was carrying twin girls, pink presents were appearing by the cart load. Various prams, buggies and cots were being assembled and rooms prepared. We then had a disaster which shook Carmella far more than I had expected. Mice had go into one of her storage drawers and made a couple of comfortable nests out of lovely soft pink wool, having shredded their way through most of the babies clothes and blankets. I thought it was rather cute and appropriate but Carmella saw it rather differently. We had a crisis on our hands but Gran solved by evicting poor Dennis and Janice out of their apartment and housing them in one of the converted cells for a bedroom and an adjoining one for their belongings. Janice wasn’t partial to mice either and rejected a simple swap of accommodation. Antonio solved the mice problem in one fell swoop by demolishing the old Cortijo to Carmella’s dismay. He said it would look out of place with the other new rustic buildings and he would construct another one for us to our exact specifications.

I managed to catch Dennis and raise the problem of cash with him. I was concerned that all the money was flowing out and little coming in. I had already contributed another large tranche of my own money into the business and our own funds were dwindling fast. Dennis managed to assure me that the good times were coming and the forecast looked good with cash flowing in now from three sources, the builder’s merchants, the boutique hotel and the restaurant. Steve had already found suitable restaurant premises along the coast in Almunecar, Nerja and Malaga and plans were being drawn up for their development and opening in the New Year.

 

I had reduced my lab time to stay close to Carmella, although she was being well looked after by our two mothers and Olga, her self-appointed physician. I had subcontracted out a lot of the work and spent more time now talking to my professional researchers. Progress was slow and we couldn’t see any major breakthroughs appearing for a while. I just kept them supplied with the poison as required.

The birth of the twins came upon us suddenly and unexpectedly. One morning Carmella screamed in the bathroom and I learned her waters had broken and the birth would be imminent. We had planned that an ambulance would take her to the hospital for final delivery and that was immediately ordered. By the time Olga and the ambulance arrived one twin was already screaming in Maria’s arms and the other on the way. Carmella’s mother was a star, whilst my mum was the goffer and I bit my nails on the veranda with worry. I only learned later that my wife was in good hands, Maria being the unofficial midwife in her village in Mexico and this was a normal event for her. Olga left them to it and joined me on the veranda to cancel the ambulance and hospital bed. Twenty minutes later we heard a second wail of a new born and our inquisitiveness got the better of us and we rushed in. I was the proud father of two perfect twin girls and mum was grinning from ear to ear. I clutched one and Carmella the other whilst we sat together congratulating each other.

 Once the euphoria had died down, Doctor Olga inspected them carefully and pronounced them perfect apart from looking too much like me. She then ushered us out of the room with the twins to show them the World and to the gathering crowd, as she needed to do further things with Carmella. The crowd had grown as the word had spread and most had brought their lunch forward to view the little off-springs and bring more presents. People are very kind and I felt a proud father watching my lovely daughters being passed around and cooed over. I don’t know why everyone including me thought them beautiful when they looked like crushed prunes that wailed every now and again, to every ones delight. Great Gran was very proud and even hugged Dennis though Janice got the look of ‘when are you going to surprise me?’ We then had the official weighing in and the weight, length and other things all charted in an official looking notebook which reminded me of my own record books. My daughters were going to be fodder for some research team in the future, like their Dad.

Carmella recovered quickly but had put on a lot of weight having been largely immobile for such a long time. Doctor Olga insisted she would lose the weight with exercise and a good diet. We already ate a good diet so whilst the Grandmothers fought over the privilege of looking after the twins, we went on walks around our estate, to inspect the fence work and the progress on the site with the new fruit trees and the vines. Antonio had over two hundred vines planted on the lower terraces, all provided for with water and the old surviving trees had been extensively pruned and treated chemically to prevent spread of disease. Our favourite walk was down to the river and up the other side where the goats grazed on the lush grass and herbs that were copiously fed by our irrigation channels. I didn’t have the heart to tell the goatherd that at some point Antonio’s fencing teams would cut these grazing fields out for goats to be replaced by roaming pigs.

We decided that at some stage we would have to widen the paths to allow access from the monastery on a quad bike and that they would be excellent for horse riding. We gradually mapped out a route around the estate which would allow Carmella to ride a fair distance around the perimeter of our land. I would have to have a word with Antonio and see if it was feasible to get a small machine in to do it.

Christmas was a wonderful affair with Dennis closing down the restaurant in town for the day and bringing the whole staff up to the monastery. There was a huge menu based on dishes that the new chefs were going to present at the new restaurant in Nerja, on the coast, which was due to open in a few weeks’ time.  A lot of people invited themselves along for the festivity and, of course, the pride of place resided with the twins, which now had switched from the prune look to more of a peach appearance. There were heaps of presents for the twins that would have been more appropriate for quintuplets. Antonio being the most practical and thoughtful of men, brought his builders van laden full of disposable nappies and having heard the tale of my demise, brought me a box of adult diapers, just in case. The whole day’s festivities lasted from about midday to late in the night with food, drink and dancing lacing the day throughout. Four of the remaining cells that had been renovated were used for people to crash out if they needed to and a fleet of taxis were ordered to take the party poopers home. I dreaded to think what the New Year festivities were going to be like. Already people had booked up with us and were eager to help with the arrangements, food and drink.

Chapter 45

The New Year went by quickly, the twins Jessica and Maria grew rapidly as Carmella downsized also rapidly thanks to the walking and mainly to a diet of Mexican mash, as Great Gran had christened it. This was the mush from interior of the cacti after it had fermented and we had flushed out most of the flavour. I had tested the food content of this material and found it void of any calories but completely consisting of what the dieticians called essential roughage. Since it had some addictive content still lurking in it, it became quite palatable and even enjoyable. Carmella ate huge quantities of it, felt sated and her weight plummeted. Dennis, hearing of this soon had his brains working overtime to financially gain from this dietician’s dream. Fortunately we only had what was in the freezer so his project was on hold but he had come up with an enterprise where we would convert the cells in the upper floor up to hotel standard and then run a sort of health farm, particularly since we had a swimming pool, sauna and gym and a trail through the estate for walking or jogging. Patients who were prepared to pay extra for creature comforts would stay at his boutique hotel and be ferried up to the monastery daily for their treatment. This required more investment but cash was now freely flowing in particularly from the restaurant business.

The paella restaurant was such a success that Dennis was contemplating closing it down and reopening as an upmarket place with best Egyptian cotton tablecloths, where he could double his charges. The Nerja restaurant again was a very successful upmarket establishment, where charges were astronomical but the customers kept flocking in. Here Dennis had included a menu of stews and casseroles from all around the world so that they could easily be doctored with our elixir, with frequent interchange of new dishes, to keep the interest alive. The Almunecar restaurant was also in the same mould and a second one was due to open as a paella and fish stew place. The only thing that held up further development was the ration of our wine and water. We had planned to increase our production at least six times of our last batch when the weather improved. In fact we had increased the size of our plastic nursery greenhouse so that we could get a running start by storing the full pots there whilst the stems were still small. We had sixty cacti potted up, caged and ready to transport outside.

Our first batch of pigs arrived for fattening up with our special Mexican meal mixture. The butcher assured us that they required only three weeks of our special feed to take on the flavour. We gave them an extra week of freedom to roam the compound before the butcher converted them to high quality Serrano ham, various smoked sausages including chorizo plus a variety of terrines and pates. All these products featured on the new restaurants menus after extended tasting trials at the monastery. The discarded remains were ground up, dried and incorporated in chicken feed so we had a good production of flavoured eggs and poultry meat and nothing was wasted. Again the pig fattening programme was delayed until we had a continuous supply of our wondrous feed.

I now had more time to pursue my research which got a boost from my extra application but as with all things like this, it was ninety-nine percent perspiration and two percent inspiration. Progress was slow but I battled on hoping for a breakthrough. The only success was that we had found an anti-dote to one of the elements which was then administered to our burglars and it had some beneficial effect, even though they were still in a coma. Steve and his lawyer had presented the Police with a private charge against these two for breaking, entering and slaughter of livestock. This was just a safeguard for us, just in case we were prosecuted for negligence. 

The building works in the yard were finished by mid-March and Carmella was busy furnishing our brand-new rustic house, which looked fabulous inside and guaranteed vermin proof. The pool area again was finished and we had streams of potential clients coming to inspect the arrangements prior to buying something similar. They all seemed more impressed by the outside barbeques, bread ovens and bars than by the pool and Antonio had to have his designers produce a variety of variations on this theme to offer to his clients. The pool, he was certain, would come into its own in the warmer weather, when the punters could test drive all the facilities. Antonio was getting plenty of orders and had to increase his workforce to accommodate all the extra work which was a pleasing phenomenon during the current recession. Great Gran became Antonio’s greatest help and secret selling weapon. She could charm the birds from the trees and the rich people, fell hook, line and sinker for her charms. The good lunch, with splendid ambiance, always helped to seal the deal. Great Gran even enjoyed it. Some of the buyers became our long lasting friends and regulars at our lunches. Manolo demonstrated that he was quite an expert on solar systems and became Antonio’s chief consultant and salesman, advising old and new customers on their equipment. 

One element of the new building which everyone thought a bit quaint and rather out of date was the laundry. I insisted that Antonio separated our house from the rest by a large room with washers, dryers, ironing equipment and an outside drying area. It became a communal meeting point and was such a success that the women insisted on installing a small fridge, kettle and tea making equipment, plus some benches outside so that they could chat whilst their smalls were churning around in the tub.

Chapter 46

The next few years sped by with the twins thriving under the watchful eyes of two Grans and a Great Gran. The pool came into its own during the warmer months and our daughters, Oscar’s boys, a bunch of kids from the neighbourhood and Great Gran spending most of the day in the water. Great Gran organised games and competitions for them in the pool so that soon, all could swim like fish. They also got English and French lessons, with Great Gran reading and telling them stories in different languages. What an easy way of learning any language at that young age and when it was fun.

Dad and Mum spent so much time with us that they rented their house out in Cheltenham and Dad took over the commercial side of the Builder’s Merchant although our competent Jurek ran the operation and we made him a Director and shareholder. Dennis was left concentrating on the restaurants and hotels. The restaurant business had expanded to a second in Nerja, a hotel and restaurant in Granada, two restaurants in Malaga, one in Lanjaron and four more in the pipeline. All were doing extremely well and at the end of our second year in business we were able to pay all the shareholders a modest bonus with promise of more to come. The cactus flavouring of the wine and water ensured that these establishments were packed to capacity with ‘Reservation Only’ notices on display. Oscar had more or less taken over the cactus plantation from me and I was concentrating on the special wine and water production. Carmella was out and about picking up waifs, strays and dropouts from the streets of Orgiva. They came to live in the village as we now called it and helped us with the mass of work that was required to run the whole estate. Great Gran took them under her wing and transformed them into useful and sensible members of society. 

The biggest transformation was with Edo who now took over the whole of the poultry operation and also the pig fattening. This had expanded substantially and extended into our neighbours farm. Joseph did the buying and Edo looked after all the animal husbandry. Edo was reading up and educating himself on the internet and was becoming an expert on his chosen subject. He was literally like ‘pig in shit.’ Our production had expanded so much that we had to employ a full time butcher to handle all the meat processing. The local goatherd supplied us with young kids ready for fattening so it was not unusual to find the children playing with them in the yard. I always wondered what they thought when every now and again the fattened ones would disappear and new skinny ones reappear.  Most of the production was used by the restaurants or in the monastery, with the surplus sold at an outlet at our Granada restaurant. Our special wine was not for sale to the general public but we had a great demand for our flavoured water, so much so that we had to install another couple of stainless steel containers to increase our production. 

My research into wine making and production had ignited an interest and I turned my first crop of grapes into very passable wine which vied with Antonio’s on the lunch time sessions. Dennis immediately suggested that we expand the production which was fine by me since I could carry on my vintner’s experiments and rapidly learn the art. We bought in grape juice from Spain and all over the World so there was no season for me and I could make wine continuously using different varieties of grape. The less acceptable wines were flavoured or doctored with our cactus juice and sold as table wine in our restaurants. The better wines were put down and used at the monastery. We were virtually self-sufficient in vegetables, fruit, eggs, sweet chestnuts, almonds, meat, wine and olives which Antonio pressed for us. The goatherd now supplied us with goat’s milk and Carmella’s Mum converted it into cheese. Much of it was again doctored and sent to our restaurants to much acclaim. 

Lena, our Latvian stray, married one of Antonio’s contractors and came to live with us permanently, in the third rustic dwelling. She gradually took over from Great Gran in running the monastery and did that with lots of enthusiasm and efficiency leaving, the dear old lady to be the childminder in chief. The Guardia Civil paid Lena’s former employer, who had abused her, a visit to retrieve her passport and work permit. Since she didn’t have a permit in the first place, the former employer got a hefty fine into the bargain. With Great Gran, she took on the job of licking the waifs and strays into shape that Carmella found and surprisingly was more rigorous; ‘poacher turned gamekeeper’ syndrome. The extra labour was very welcome since Janice and Carmella had opened a health farm and charged extortionate rates for getting rich people to eat less, or more of our less fattening food. This business was a success, since the visitors could eat their fill of the cactus mush, turned into exotic creations by Lena and it was totally roughage with hardly a calorie in it.  Being addictive, our visitors ate it with gusto. They also enjoyed the ambience of the lunches, use of the pool, sauna and gym.

 All were very satisfied with their stay in the converted cells and usually booked a return trip on leaving. There was also the cache of spending time in a Monastery. By that time, we had built a stable and acquired four horses for Carmella and a handful of small ponies for the children. Antonio had sent round a man with a small machine to cut pathways throughout our estate beyond the compound where we and the children could ride freely. Some of the guests and paying visitors also enjoyed the facility. Every morning, I alternated with either a long swim or a run along these paths, usually finishing of with a dip anyway. Life was grand.

Chapter 47

My research was going well but required a lot of painstaking lab work to finalise to my satisfaction. It took just over three and a half years to complete my Doctorate and publish my Thesis. I had managed, with the help of the Consultants at the Department of Tropical Medicines at Granada Hospital to develop an adequate antidote to the poison of the cactus and I was able to put it into production and supply the hospitals in Mexico and particularly Monterry where I had been treated. Although they didn’t have too many incidents, it had immediately saved the lives of two local Indians who had been too adventurous and one foolish tourist climber who had accidentally been scratched. The various compounds that made up the poison caught the interest of a number of pharmaceutical companies, including my old one, who have researchers trawling the published papers for items of interest and I was able to sell the rights to the use of certain complex natural compounds for various medical purposes plus organising the vital supply of the raw ingredients.

I collected my degree at Granada University with practically all the occupants of the monastery and former neighbours and friends being present. The only sad thing was that Great Gran wasn’t there, having died peacefully and happily a few months before. An old contact from the UN Water Agency, Richard, happened to be there at the presentations and we met up later for a drink and chat about old times. He offered me a position in the Agency, to train local people in getting clean water for the villagers of Namibia firstly and other places in Africa, India and Asia. I mentioned it to Carmella, more as an afterthought than a serious proposal and she jumped at the chance. I suggested that we go for initially six months and suggested that with her experience in commercial agriculture the Agency would find us both a job. Within a month we were packed up and on our way to Madrid with our two daughters to catch our flight to a new life in Namibia. Carmella saw it as a chance to travel the World and give something back to the community. Also to do as much travelling as possible before our Jessica and Maria had to start the grind of formal education. It was sad saying goodbye to all of our friends and neighbours but thrilling to start a new chapter in our lives.

 

The month prior to departure was doubly hectic. Apart from bringing ourselves up to date on water matters and agricultural methods in arid areas we also had to have a crash course in first aid and tropical medicines which was far in advance of the St John’s Ambulance Brigade stuff. We spent a lot of time at the Granada Hospital Department of Tropical Medicine learning about diagnosis, prevention and cure which was more about getting the patient to the nearest clinic or hospital for full treatment. Dennis was always pestering me to ensure he had a regular and reliable supply of our cactus juice. I assured him that all was in hand and made him promise that the outer perimeter fence was regularly checked and always in tip-top condition. I didn’t want anyone to even attempt to penetrate the cactus compound. I spoke at length to Carmella’s father, Manolo about this serious matter and he suggested we put an electrical cattle fence through the wire netting and sensors which would set off alarms and sirens if the fence was being cut, damaged or interfered with in any way. I told Oscar to follow that up and have it all working prior to us leaving and damn the expense.

Oscar who was my second in command and very reliable pulled me to one side one day and started whispering which was his way of telling me something important. “Paulo, you are now making lots of wine down in the under-build and I’m afraid the smell is possibly going to affect the guests.”

“Well thank you for telling me Oscar. What do you suggest?” I answered knowing full well that Oscar not only had researched it thoroughly but also had a fine solution. “I didn’t realise that my bucket chemistry down there was so noticeable.”  

“It’s not just that Paulo, It’s that Janice has told me that we are turning down a lot of guests because we have no more accommodation.”

“What’s that got to do with my chemical factory Oscar?” I asked knowing full well that that he had the answers but needed some wheedling out.

“Well Paulo, Dennis is always complaining to Antonio that the tennis court is not level and Antonio tells him that because it’s built on an earthquake crack and will always move whatever he does to repair it.”

“Dennis always complains about them when I now beat him. I shouldn’t take too much notice of a few cracks Oscar,” I answered now completely out of kilter with the direction this conversation was going.

“Carmella and the new Lady General, your Gran or mother, have complained that there isn’t enough parking spaces for guests and the Spanish are so inconsiderate when it comes to parking and your Gran is for ever telling them off and they just shrugged their shoulders in the Spanish way.” 

“Well at least they were polite to the new Gran,” I answered trying to get Oscar to turn to his solution but I knew it would need a little more prompting and digging.

“Oh they were very respectable to the dear lady. But parking is going to be a major problem as you develop the estate Paulo.”

“I know, we’ll get Carmella to find another dropout in Orgiva and appoint him as car-park attendant. That would solve the problem Oscar,” knowing full well that he had a more subtle and original solution.

“Paulo, I don’t like too many of these people on site that your wife invites here. They are fine but need a lot of patience and time to develop into useful workers. I’m also concerned about them being silly with the compound.”

“Well everybody knows that they will be thrown out on their necks if they even get or be seen within a metre of the compound.”

“Yes Paulo but that’s when you are here and you are the Boss.”

“Hey Oscar, when we are away you will be the head honcho and all will listen to you in my absence and don’t forget I’m only a plane ride away and will be back if there is any sign of trouble. I will make sure to formally appoint you as my second in command here before we go and Dennis is only your support and has no say in the operation around the cactus plantation. Is that clear?”

“Thank you Paulo. That is very thoughtful of you, but that was not the matter I’m trying to point out to you.”

“Sorry Oscar, do carry on.”

“I was thinking Paulo, if you allowed the staff to park on the Tennis court then only guests to park up here in the front yard. We can then place some planters and make the place really attractive.”

“That sounds good but it will upset Dennis and do we have so many guests these days?”

“Oh we will Paulo if you will allow me to convert the under-build into guest accommodation and Antonio will build us another tennis court on a better plot. Maybe two, so guests can play.”

“OK, where are you going to move me and my equipment and your own workshop and garage?”

“I suggest Paulo that to make the operation with the Devil’s Cactus safer we should build a winery for you within the compound then we don’t have to drive the cages outside.”

“Why didn’t we think of that before Oscar? It’s so obvious now.”

“Paulo, Paulo you had so many things to think about and who would have forecast that you would be so successful. We are now in expansion mode.”

“True Oscar but what about the expense?”

“The accommodation development will be quite cheap since the main structure is already there. Antonio wants to branch out into building tennis courts for the rich and he can’t show ours here to prospective customers so he will build a new one for us to promote his business. The winery, storage and workshops can be constructed cheaply down in that dip that we can’t use because of the steep slope. It will be virtually out of sight and we can plant some further screening.”

“Well what is stopping us Oscar?”

“You are the boss Paulo and you have to make the decisions. I’m only providing you with observations.”

“Oscar, if you have any more brainwaves like this then just go ahead with them when I’m away. Just raise it at the monthly Board Meeting. Carmella and I will be on the telephone for those and we will support you.” 

“Thank you Paulo.” 

“Another thing Oscar, from now on I suggest you take control of all operations here. I’m too busy with other matters to work on the estate. Now get a meeting together and get this plan off the ground as soon as possible.”

“But what about our capital costs Paulo? Can we afford it all?”

“Just check with Steve our accountant. Last time I spoke to him he told me all the businesses were doing fine and we should expand. I need to take Carmella to Granada to finish off her course of injections.”

“Thank you Paulo.”

Chapter 48

We stayed a couple of days in Jo’berg to give the twins a rest, arrange a couple of nannies for them and to finalise our destinations and objectives with the UN Relief Agency. Our remit was quite complicated and far more wide-ranging than we first anticipated. We hoped that we would be holed up in one village and do our work in the surrounding area. Instead, the local administrator having read our CV’s and confirmed our experience, set both of us a far more important task which would mean far more travelling with the twins than we had hoped for. We were to work closely with a geological team to find underground water sources and secondly test the soils and suggest the best crops that could be grown on them, particularly commercial ones. That was Carmella’s prime task with her Botany background and experience.

After a tough and uncomfortable journey we arrived at a small township of Kerrywanda, on the edge of the semi-desert. It was a dusty dry place with hardly a plant or tree in sight. We were allocated a small bungalow with a fenced garden which would keep the twins in and hopefully the mangy dogs out and there seemed to be a lot of them around scavenging for scraps. Our two local nannies who called themselves by quaint English names of Rose and Parsley were already in the house, cleaning away the dust and preparing the home for us. Both of them were no more than eighteen if not less. Both married with children of their own who were being looked after by their grandparents whilst their husbands were away tending to the sheep and goats.

Carmella quickly suggested that Rose and Parsley brought their children to live with us as an extended family. This pleased them even more to have their children close at hand but their emotional attachment to their own children was not as close as we expect in the West. Carmella explained that it was because of the high incidence of child mortality and the frequent loss would be too much of a burden on the mothers. The other dilemma Carmella had was that the three new comers wore only a shift to protect them from the sun and no diapers or nappies. The kids just soiled on the beaten earth of the house and their mothers just cleaned it up. It seemed an easy solution so Carmella had the twins adopt the same system although by now they were virtually potty trained. The only difference was that Carmella trained them, like cats or dogs, to do their business in only one area of the house or compound barring accidents. This could be cleaned up and regularly disinfected. There was an earth closet the end of the compound with a crude shelter and I had another hole dug and the whole thing repositioned to a new site. Water was collected from a well by the two nannies and we made sure it was well boiled before it was used internally and a special water purifier added before the water was used for washing. Parsley and Rose were suspicious of this but Carmella insisted and soon the first sign of the benefits were seen with the clearing up of the constant diarrhoea that the three local children suffered from plus their parents. My first task in the area would be to check the water and probably clean out the well as I had done in Mexico, cap it and install a hand pump. My other important immediate task was to construct a screen and a bucket shower to swill off the daily dust and grime which blew off the desert.

Our next major task was to feed ourselves and our extended family. I bought two kerosene pressure stoves for cooking and boiling the water and Carmella hired a lady to cook for us and buy provisions locally. She had to instruct the cook on how we wanted our food to be prepared and both Rose and Parsley happily ate our fare even though it may have been unfamiliar to them. Their children unlike our twins were always ravenous and would eat anything edible so our feeding arrangements were quickly sorted. The living arrangements were also quickly established. Carmella and I had one room to ourselves with a raised bed, all the children slept on rush mats on the floor in the second room and our three helpers slept in the main living room. We cooked and ate outside, beneath the veranda and everyone was happy. By the end of the week we were nicely settled and in a comfortable routine. The local elder suggested that we should employ a gardener cum watchman so a local was found to do that task which was mainly to clean up after the children and chase away the dogs. It also provided the old man with employment, food and shelter. He slept under the veranda at night on the premise that he was providing protection.

In the second week our equipment arrived in two large trucks, one pulling a water bowser and two Land Rovers, one for me and one for Carmella. Our work was to start. One truck was full of drilling equipment and plumbing materials that I had specifically ordered and the second was more onerous in that it was full of camping equipment plus Carmella’s and my water and soil testing equipment. Our first task was to sort everything out and I had to employ four local men to help me unload and reload the trucks and from previous experience I employed a fifth man to watch over the other four so that nothing disappeared. He was paid by results and turned out to be most officious. 

Ten days later the Geological team arrived with their Land Rover, trailer with their scientific equipment, and a truck with their camping gear and four helpers. Our compound was full to overflowing with all the vehicles. Derek from Denmark, an elderly experienced geologist, was the leader of the team and Arnoud from Holland was his young assistant, fresh from University. Both spoke excellent English so communication was not a problem. They had been out here for two months and it was Derek’s third term of duty so he intimately knew the lay of the land and the ways of working with the locals. They were very easy going, hard workers, heavy smokers and even harder drinkers. Derek’s excuse was that the smoke kept the bugs and mosquitoes at bay and the water was generally too foul to drink.

Our first task was to draw up a programme of work. Derek’s team was to pinpoint the likely drilling sites for water and my task was to drill and check the water quality plus set up the necessary pumps to raise the water to the surface for local use. My first task was to employ and train a team of six men to operate the drilling rig and to clean out existing wells. Derek helped by letting me have two of his experienced men who spoke enough English to be able to act as foremen and translators. This proved to be a godsend. My previous past experience with hiring local labour in Africa proved essential for me and also for Derek. The locals were generally not used to continuous employment and frequently would become homesick and go off or they were needed for farming tasks by their family. This generally caused major delays in carrying out our programme of works. I insisted on a system of payment, which was quite generous by local standards, where the men were paid by the week. If they missed a day then they forfeited that week’s wage. It was harsh but I found that when applied once there was no more absence. Derek renegotiated the same terms with his team on the same basis and had no further trouble. The men could negotiate a week or so off work if they were desperately needed at home but each time they took leave they dropped to the bottom of the seniority level, a system which I always adopted. The most senior man was always the truck or Land Rover driver and they got their meals first in line. The next was the Rig Captain who looked after the drilling engines and pumps and so on. So going off for a week or walkabout as we called it meant that not only they lost a week’s wage, they also lost status in the team and that proved most important. Once all this was established in both teams and also with our servants we had no problems after a few tests.

Having selected a team I decided to train them in drilling and well clearing as far away from the crowds as possible to avoid the usual distraction. It was, in the local custom, very discourteous to ignore anybody so we had to allow our men to greet and chat with people who came up to them to enquire what they were up to or just pass the time of day. In town this would disrupt the work continuously so we chose a spot, miles away from any habitation for our first drill and there was a disused well nearby that could be checked out for water and maybe even resurrected. We all decamped in our trucks and Land Rovers in a convoy, leaving behind our watch-keeper to guard our bungalow on the threat that he wouldn’t be paid and dismissed if he let anyone into the compound or building. We left him with sufficient food for a week.

The twins thought camping out in the scrub a treat in that they weren’t confined to a compound. We also had a bowser full of water so no more chores for Parsley and Rose to go to the well, although they probably missed the chat and the gossip there. We set up camp in a hollow, sheltered from the prevailing winds and allocated the largest tent to Carmella, the children and their nannies. Derek, Arnoud and I had the next largest tent which also doubled as our office and workshop. The men had a couple of the smaller tents though most of them chose to sleep under the stars with a rough blanket. An awning was struck to provide welcome shade for the cook and eating area and also shade for the bowser.

The first day, both teams worked together in setting up the drilling rig for the first time. It was a slow learning curve and I was glad of Derek’s and Arnoud’s assistance in patiently teaching the men the basic use of the tools. Carmella was busy in setting up the catering arrangements with our cook and also setting up a class for the children where they sang songs, played educational games, did sums and some writing in the sand. It wasn’t long before we had an audience of curious ragged children from far away sitting on the nearest vantage point, a safe distance away and watching our every move. I warned everybody that they were not to make any eye contact or have any communications with our audience otherwise they would become bolder and get closer and closer and eventually interfere with our work. They sat their stoically with their eyes glued to our activity as if in a trance. Where they came from and how far they travelled each day was a mystery to us?

On the second day we had the drilling equipment set up to my satisfaction and even got the engine going and sank the first pipe which allowed us to practise adding a second pipe in-situ on the rig rather than just laid out on the ground. On the third day we drilled and the geologists checked the core for permeable and impermeable rock. At a hundred and twenty metres we hit gold, that is, water under pressure which was perceptible immediately. We swapped the drill pipes for water pipes, sealed the top with cement, attached a hand pump and we had success at our first attempt.  I set up a canvas water trough and we filled it to overflowing. The water was slightly saline but it was water and the next thing we witnessed was the twins stripping off their shifts and clambering in as if it was the swimming pool at home. Rose followed and I climbed in to look after them since the water was fairly deep. With a lot of splashing it soon got down to waist level and the other three children, rather shyly, not having witnessed a scene like this, were persuaded to take part in the fun. It wasn’t long before we all were taking turns for a dip in the chilly water which was a most pleasant relief in the wasting heat of the scrub. It wasn’t long before a goat herd appeared with his smelly flock and got quite excited by the sight of water. We erected a canopy with some spare canvas and a jury rig of pipes to stop the sun scorching the children and we got the men to dig out a long shallow trough in the ground and filled it with water so the goats could have their fill. Carmella decided that the salt content wasn’t high enough to be a danger to the animals and probably a benefit in that it might get rid of some of their intestinal problems. The goatherd was shown how to operate the pump and he spent most of the time bowing and praying to his God for providing his flock with water. We seemed secondary in his eyes which was probably correct. We only supplied the means to get at it.

Having got over our success, the real work began in checking the quality of the water, the local soil and taking and bagging samples. That evening when everybody had had enough of the water bath we packed the canvas trough away, said goodbye to the goat herd, who stayed to share our meal and fortunately herded his smelly goats away to some distance away. He did leave us with a parting gift of plenty of goat milk and unfortunately a live kid goat for our supper next day. Carmella and I didn’t know if we could face the five children parting from their new found pet. We compromised and told them that the kid would have to go back to its mummy the following day. The men were already looking forward to a supper of fresh, juicy kid.

The following morning we decamped and moved on some ten kilometres to a site of an old well. It had been abandoned for some time and the well head was in a dangerous condition. The geologists were eager to find the permeable rock which was the origin of the water and also the type of impermeable rock beneath that trapped the water stopping it draining away. I set up part of the drilling rig over the well head and decided to investigate down below.  A pulley system was set up and I let the men practise lowering and raising a bucket of sand up and down the well to my command. Satisfied with their response and working of the levers I decided that it was to be me, in the first instance, to be lowered down the well to inspect. I stepped warily into the bucket and allowed myself to be slowly lowered down into the chasm. I had a helmet with a head torch so I could inspect the walls of the well. After ten metres I had them pull me up and we adjusted the position of the rig so that it was plumb centre over the well and there was no danger of scraping the walls. I went down again to twenty metres until I could see the bottom. The well walls were in too great a degree of disrepair for me to allow my team to dig below and clear the well to water level. There was a danger that the walls might just cave in. Instead I used the rig to give each of my team a chance to be lowered into the well. They would have to do this as part and parcel of their job so it was important to give them that experience.

Not to disappoint my geologist friends I decided we should drill borehole alongside and provide Derek and Arnoud with valuable samples. We drilled some forty metres down, through the water bearing rock to the impermeable barrier of clay and they were satisfied. For good measure we fitted a water pipe with a self-priming pump and solidly cemented this in to prevent the equipment being taken away too readily. As usual we had an audience of kids sitting patiently on the hillside observing every detail. The next morning we invited some of them with much coaxing to come down and showed them how the pump worked. The water was again slightly saline but would probably do wonders for their insides.

Satisfied with our training we packed up and drove back to Kerrywanda, to some civilisation. We paid off our men and told them to be back in five days’ time when we would have more work for them and I promised them a bonus if they all turned up. We now had a working team for well drilling and also for checking the open wells although they would require more experience in that area. A promising region had been identified for us by Derek, some one hundred kilometres away where underground water was supposed to be plentiful and the land relatively flat so that agriculture under irrigation might be possible. Carmella was to survey the soils in the area and determine what the land could be used for. The geologist team were also to be in the area to map and we were to liaise frequently to provide them with core samples.

Chapter 49

All our men turned up, some even days earlier, all eager to earn the extra bonus promised and I suspect to be fed. They slept under the veranda and seemed happy to spend the day playing a sort of dice game. Carmella had the domestic arrangements worked out thoroughly and with precision and the regime amused our geologist colleagues immensely since the locals were very happy-go-lucky types that didn’t generally respond to organisation too well. The water was brought and boiled, the local tea made for all, all the children washed, floors cleaned before breakfast and the routine went on all day. All our servants were never overworked but kept busy with regular chores. Parsley tended to be on the lazy side so when not looking after the children, spent her time with Carmella helping with her soil testing. Even the men were ordered to mend the perimeter fence which they did reluctantly but cheered up when they were rewarded with a jug of local beer. This induced them to ask for more simple chores that only men could do. Carmella got them to park all the vehicles neatly to one side of the compound to allow more space for the children to play. Again a jug of beer delighted them.

It was time for our monthly conference call and we set up our satellite phone and sat in our Land Rover waiting for the call.

“Hello, its Steve, can you hear me Carmella and Paulo?”

“Loud and clear Steve. We are all well here. Please continue without the pleasantries. Not sure how our connection will work.”

“OK Paulo. We have Oscar, Manolo, Steve and Dennis at this end. Antonio will join us later. I’m Chair on this occasion and the first and main item on the agenda is the new development that you instigated with Oscar. He has done all the investigations and costing. I’ve looked over his shoulder and all looks kosher. Dennis thinks we should have done this long ago.”

“Thanks Oscar for doing all the background work on this,” I added thinking that Oscar had shifted the origins of this development project onto me for good reason. “How about the finances for all of this?”

“No problem there Paulo as yet. Dennis has a project pending in Granada, which we will come to next. We have extended your project by adding a proper butcher’s shop and meat processing area. Our builder’s merchant business will initially cover the cost of the building works since it will be promotional work for them. We have already extended the tennis court for car parking and the front yard is full of planters and looking good.”

“Hi Paulo and Carmella; it’s Dennis here. We are most excited about this project especially the added accommodation. Our bookings are full and having to subcontract to local hotels. I might as well get onto my business. I’m in the process of buying a large restaurant in Granada, in the Albacin area, overlooking the Alhambra. This will be our flagship with no expense spared. It will take us some six months or more to set up so I hope you folks will be back for the opening. Our finances will take a knock initially since I had to pay top dollar for the site but our returns will be astronomical based on our other places. It has seating for over three hundred on three floors and a large patio.”

“Sounds exciting Dennis and we will be there at the opening. One important question I have for you there. How is the security progressing on the perimeter fence?”

“No need to worry on that front Paulo. I have just signed off some hefty bills for the work done. Fort Knox would be proud of our achievement and even a mouse can’t get close without setting off alarms. Is there anything else you need from us Paulo?”

“Yes Steve, its Carmella. Can you double our allowance for the next few months? We have a larger staff here to look after than we had anticipated.”

“No probs Carmella and keep up your good work. We’ll let you go now. Antonio has just barged into the room eager to get more work. Bye.” We closed down our satellite phone happy that all was well at home.

“Carmella, I didn’t say anything but you know that all this development and improvements was your dad’s ideas I believe. It has his hallmark. He then passed this onto Oscar who confronted me with it. I wonder why he placed the kudos and credit for all this on me and Oscar.”

“That’s dad Paulo, he never likes to accept credit for himself and maybe he felt safer if you proposed it, you being the Head of the Company. He told me all about it and how you listened so patiently to Oscar and immediately put him in charge, even over Dennis as far as your compound goes.”

“He’s a sound man, your dad and has a good mind. I’m also happy to leave Oscar in charge of the whole operation. He’s very conscientious especially with the security issues. We can’t have another devil’s cactus incidence, can we? It would stop us in our tracks. Dennis is so dependent on the supply of our elixir.”

“Don’t you feel at all guilty about conning the clients? Dennis’s charges at his restaurants are exorbitant, all because this stuff you produce is addictive.”

“Let’s say I don’t lose any sleep over it. It’s a natural product, harmless from the nutrition point of view and far less harmful than the excessive taste enhancers and E-numbers used by the big boys. No additional salt, sugars and fats. In fact, I believe that Dennis probably serves the healthiest food in Spain. The essential thing is that the customers love it and come back for more.”

“I would agree on that point but I’m concerned about the addictive element.”

“Look, we have been eating it for years now, are you getting withdrawal symptoms? I’m not.”

“I must admit, we should have sneaked some of that stuff over. The food here is dreadfully plain. Hey Paulo, less of this chat! We have work to do and our team will be wandering off if we don’t keep an eye on them. Where are you taking the kids today?”

“I’ve arranged some donkeys and camels. We’ll take a ride out. No you don’t need to say it. I will be careful. I’ll take Parsley and Rose plus a couple of the men. We’ll each be in charge of one kid. No worries!” 

    

Chapter 50

We were delayed a week waiting for more well drilling supplies to arrive and to keep the men busy I decided to drill a water hole and install a pump in a patch of bare land a stone’s throw away from our compound in Kerrywanda. Apart from providing a training exercise for my team and keeping them from going walk-about, I wanted to establish a secondary water supply for the township since I wanted to clean out their well. I had already checked the water there and it was quite contaminated as I had predicted, hence my insistence on having it thoroughly boiled. Since we had arrived and set up the regime with the water being boiled there had been no instance of tummy problems or diarrhoea with anyone living in the compound.

We started drilling and soon had a crowd of watchers who not only wanted to give advice but unwanted help. I hired a couple of guys with sticks to keep them at bay. It didn’t take long to hit water and as I anticipated it was clean and unpolluted unlike the well. Karrywanda was originally established on the basis of a good water supply at hand. We fitted the usual pipes and pumps but firstly filled our bowser to the brim with clean water. This was towed to the town well for people to use as an alternative. I had told the town elder my intentions and after much sucking of teeth and a bit of money changing hands I had his permission. The appeal to the greed of the elders was a much quicker and more efficient way of getting the job done otherwise they would have had to go through endless meetings and even then they would have found a way of avoiding making any decision.

I had my men construct a well-head derrick out of drill piping in the manner of scaffold pipes and we had ourselves the means to hoist men, materials and rubbish up and down the well shaft. The gang foreman set up a petrol driven engine to pump the well dry and I lowered myself down for the first inspection. The walls were in reasonable condition but needed some repairs and rendering. The base of the well was as I expected, stinking mud below the water with the odd bone sticking out. With my four metre measuring stick I prodded around the mud and established that we would have to clear away at least three metres of stinking debris.

The men were reluctant to descend at first and unsure what was required. This well was dug and built in the traditional way with apertures in the crude brickwork to position cross beams as working platforms. I found this method cumbersome and instead used a couple of aluminium ladders, sunk into the mud base, which could be hoisted up later. I positioned the ladders and filled the first bucket of sludge and hoisted myself out. As with all things in these parts, it was important to put on a good show for the mass of onlookers. I stepped out of the brim and delayed the raising of the bucket until I had everyone’s full attention. I lifted the bucket and flung the sludge on the ground splattering numerous feet. The stench was horrible and the crowd backed away. I had my foreman swill the sludge with the away pipe from the pump. Having seen my display and the respect I had received from the crowd I had no problem with volunteers to repeat my task. Once the crowd had been sated I only then allowed the buckets to come up without the man. Only the foreman got the accolades as he flung the sludge, washed it with the pipe and pointed out the bones of small creatures that had fallen in. 

With the mechanical equipment we had at out disposal it didn’t take long to clear the mud to the bottom. I allowed half a dozen buckets of clean clay to be hoisted out and called a stop. I ordered my foreman Ado to reduce the pump flow and had myself lowered into the well for a final inspection. The walls were still covered in slime so I had the men swill them down with buckets of water and showed them how to suck up the dirt with the end of the pipe leading to the pump above. I then organised a truck with some men to go down to the dry river bed nearby and bring back a load of sand and gravel. With this and a mixture of cement I had them render the sided of the well and fill in the cracks. The simplest method I showed them was to throw a ball of wet concrete mix at the wall, smooth it off with the hand and finally to go over the surface with a wet wooden trowel. They were quite used to this having built mud adobe houses so they completed the task well without too much waste falling to the bottom. My final task was to construct a brick wall around the well head to stop things including people falling in. This was done quickly with local adobe bricks, rendered with our concrete, making it all strong and safe.

I let the pump run overnight with a man tending it and next morning tested the water quality. It was good, as good as from the pump we had installed earlier but after a time the water would get contaminated with debris falling in and would need cleaning again. I would have dearly loved to have installed a hand pump but traditions die hard in these areas. Collecting water from the well was as much a social occasion for the local women as a chore. I congratulated myself silently having wiped out many tummy bugs in one stroke. My men were happy in achieving something beneficial to the community and received the necessary training for many more such tasks ahead.

Our supplies finally arrived and I made the decision to be away that day. We packed the two trucks, Carmella’s Land Rover with our own belongings and my Land Rover with the technical equipment, filled the water bowser and departed in a cloud of dust, leaving the watchman in charge of the compound and bungalow that had been our home for the last four weeks. I let Carmella lead the convoy with me in the second Land Rover pulling the bowser. It was important for her driver to understand who was in charge rather than me being there. Carmella had her Satnav which pinpointed where our geologist team were camping so I had no fears that we would lose our way. This would also impress her driver that a woman could find her way so easily in the scrub. Ado, my current Foreman, drove the vehicle for me and I kept a steady eye through the dust cloud on the following trucks.

We were spaced some hundred meters apart to avoid being covered in a thick layer of dust. Fortunately the wind was from the side and following trucks escaped the worst. We stopped after the first half hour to check the tyres, especially the pressures. We were going to encounter some tough terrain so I wanted to be sure the tyres were soft enough to give a little over protrusions and avoid punctures which would slow us down.

 Soon there was no marked track and Carmella allowed the driver to weave about, keeping to the smoother surfaces. The going was much better than I hoped, without the corrugated surfaces, normal in the outback. To an onlooker it would appear that we were lost and going around in circles but Carmella, with her Satnav knew exactly where we were and even calculated accurately when we would arrive at the camp. Our drivers weren’t that sure and during the stops argued amongst themselves that the lady was totally lost and that we should camp at the nearest water hole. I just ignored them. The twins amused themselves by teaching the local three, English nursery rhymes and songs in both English and Spanish.

Carmella led us into a deep gully, which narrowed to a steep sided canyon. I could see signs of other tyre marks so I was quite confident of our route. The canyon rose and suddenly we were on a low plateau with visibility in all directions. About two kilometres away in a hollow we spotted a thin whiff of smoke spiralling into the sky and there were the trucks and tents of the Geologists. The team ran out to greet us and all were quite animated. To mark our arrival I cracked open a case of beers that I had brought especially for the occasion. They had been stored in our electric cool box and were still cold. The kids enjoyed cans of coke as we set up camp and the cooks prepared an evening meal. Once the kids were asleep Derek, Arnoud, Carmella and I sat around a table, under a kerosene lamp, sipping a glass of South African red, planning our next week’s workload.

Between the three teams we had over a hundred square miles to cover, stretching from the low mountains in the background, the low vast plateau and the adjoining lowlands. The plateaux had been identified as reasonable terrain for the development of agriculture given a regular supply of water. The geologist team of Derek and Arnoud had confirmed that the flat area was part of a geological syncline where the rocks had been folded into a basin and the surrounding rim consisted rock folded the other way into anticlines or over folds. Since the rocks in anticlines are stretched they break into cracks or faults and are easily worn away hence the mass of gullies worn out in previous ages of high rainfall, many thousands of years ago. The geologist had chosen this particular area above a large gulley since they suspected that salt deposits, squeezed through all the broken fissures were probably near the surface. Derek admitted that this was classical textbook stuff but what led them to want to investigate further was that they found wild animals licking the rocks in certain areas. They wanted my drilling team to confirm that fact and give them a better understanding of the layered rocks below them.

We divided the blank map into a grid ten kilometres square and decided to investigate the plateau by Carmella sampling the soils at each intersection and my drilling team would drill as close as possible to each intersection in search of potable water and provide the geologists with more sound data. Derek and Arnoud were excited at the possibility of discovering an artesian well system, similar to that of London and Paris basins where ancient underground water might just come gushing up on its own accord caused by the surrounding pressures. Arnoud was more sceptical saying that the water may have already long gone escaped through the cracks and fissures, during the violent mountain building process. The strong wine gave us courage to our convictions and we crept off to bed in high spirit.

After a degree of argument between Arnoud and Derek about where I should drill for best effect I was more pragmatic and chose a site that made my job of drilling the easiest.  We set up the rig in the early morning light and went off for breakfast. Carmella, Parsley, Rose and the children drove off early to explore the area directly Northwards which neatly split the area in two and give her a useful cross section of soil samples. Since she would be stopping every ten kilometres according to her Satnav, her passengers would get regular stops while she did her tests in situ. I didn’t like the idea at first but nor did I like them to be near the drilling rigs. Carmella won. We started the drilling slowly and rigged a canopy over the working area to protect us from the searing sun. The geologist would arrange the rock bores on the ground and inspect them intently for fossils and other significant features only known to the specialists. I was more intent of hitting a water supply. It took us most of the day to hit moist rock. As the samples were brought up Derek would do his first exact scientific test by licking the sample. When we got to the wet samples we got the first interesting result by his face screwing up to a grimace and a shudder going through his body. We had hit the mother-load he was interested in. His further tests were just a light tip of his tongue to check the salt content of the rock.

At seventy metres I decided to check if we could pump water. We set up the canvas water trough and filled it with cloudy water. I checked the specific gravity and stopped Derek from doing his tongue test. This water was a pure saline solution that no one could drink. I didn’t want to drill any deeper since major complications arose particular with the diesel engine we had to power the rig. It was already overheating with the workload and the heat of the sun wasn’t helping.

“OK guys, we have water of high salinity which is of no use for agriculture or even for animals. I call this a successful day, don’t you?” I asked in a quizzical way with a smug smile.

“We got our samples Paulo and proved the vicinity of a possible salt dome,” said Arnoud. “That might be interpreted as a success.”

“I know what you are up to Paulo. You’ve done this before somewhere,” answered Derek. “OK, spill the beans as they say in UK.”

“We have ourselves a salt mine. Salt is still an expensive commodity around here unlike home and in great demand. We set up a family in a business of salt extraction.”

“But won’t that need capital expense Paulo?” asked Arnoud.

“The biggest expense is the drilling and we have done that,” I answered and waited for the next obvious question.

“But the cost of fuel to power the pump will be too prohibitive,” suggested Derek with a knowing smile as if he had found the fault.

“Ah but we install a hand pump which will be powered by a split oil drum set up on a drill pipe harnessing the wind.”

“Don’t look so smug Paulo; you still have to extract the water. If you pour this stuff on the ground it will just soak in and make the ground even more useless.”

“Not if we puddle the clay you have found in the gulley and construct shallow ponds. The with proper water distribution channels we can constantly fill the ponds and the sun around here will do the rest.”

“OK Paulo; let’s check this out. We’ll take a truck and collect some clay and you select a suitable location for your pond and by tomorrow night let’s see how much salt we get. I bet you a beer we won’t have enough to sprinkle on your English fish and chips.” 

“You’re on Derek. Off you go and get the clay and we’ll see.”

Carmella’s party returned to see ten grown men prancing around in a frenzy, to blaring music from a truck radio, in bare feet to boot.

“Hey what are you guys up to? Have you all gone loco?” shouted Carmella as the kids and nannies looked on in disbelief. We stopped our antics and they all turned to me as the spokesman.

“We are making a salt pond by puddling the clay and its more fun to music. How was your day?”

“Can we join in?” shouted the twins.

“No you can’t! You will get yourselves all dirty. You can watch and throw water at some crazy men but I forbid you to join in.”

“Carmella the trough is full of very saline water. Don’t drink any. It’s really foul.”

“Thanks for the warning. I think I will have a bath in it. I hope it’s cool.”

“It’s twice as salty as the Dead Sea so you will be able to float in it. We’ll be finished in half an hour and we’ll all need a shower under the pump. The cooks have a meal ready for us all when we have finished here,” I shouted. I got a wave of acknowledgement in reply and the kids filled buckets at the pump and brought them over. We started the jigging and dancing again as I instructed the children to splash water over our dance floor. We managed to spread the clay over a surface the size of half a tennis court which was probably larger than needed.  I then had Ado direct the stream of water on the surface as we stooped around the perimeter wedging up the clay sheet to form a dam to stop the water draining away. We ended up with a pond of water ranging from ten centimetres to about twenty deep; a little crude but sufficient to win me my beer. We swilled ourselves down at the pump and the kids stripped off and joined us in the shower whilst their mums bathed in the salt water. I swilled the kids down with fresh water from the bowser to stop them itching from the salt. The adults just washed their faces and delicate bits.

“Hey Carmella, how did you get on today,” asked Derek as we were eating our late dinner.

“It was hot and dusty and the wind was hotter than my hair drier but we learned some interesting facts. Met a goat herd and his family heading for a wedding. We shared water with them and I found out that they only come up onto the plateau after the occasional rains or just to cross it to get to the mountains.”

“So grass does grow given some water?” I asked.

“In profusion apparently, but it only rains one year in four. The soil samples at different depths are interesting though. Beneath the dust layer there is a high vegetable content.”

“Yes, we have seen signs of a much wetter climate in these parts in the distant past,” said Arnoud. “There are signs of severe water erosion and we found some ancient tree stumps of species only found in wetter climes.”

“I thought you only looked at rocks and licked them?” I added.

“Paulo, don’t mock us. Our detective work uses all the scientific and non-scientific tools at our disposal. We learn more from using our senses than in the lab.” answered Derek.

“Well just don’t take things too far Derek,” said Carmella. “I’ve already witnessed the results of unscientific investigations that nearly proved fatal. Ask Paulo but not when I’m here so don’t go licking poisonous rocks.” We finished our main course and started on the goat cheese and wine.

“What are you going to do with your find then?” asked Carmella. “Is it worth taking further?”

“I’ll contact the agency and let them know of the potential. If we can get an agricultural community up here then I think the salt distillation is viable.”

“Paulo, explain to me how would the local people convert the brine into commercial salt without huge investment in plant?” asked Arnoud.

“We are talking low scale development here. A family would construct a number of ponds, adding more each year. Tomorrow I shall construct a windmill out of one of our empty oil drums. That will power the pump to water the ponds. The sun will evaporate the water and the salt will crystallise out. Rake it up into piles out of the water then fill conical cone moulds and hey presto you have solid cakes of salt that you can handle like rock.”

“You’ve done this before Paulo, haven’t you?” asked Derek.

“Of course he has Derek,” said Carmella, “He behaved like this in Mexico as if he knew nothing and turned our village upside down, for the better mind you! But there is no community here only passing migrants. Paulo you will have to find us water and plenty of it.”

“We’ll drink to that!” added Derek raising his glass.

The next day the geologist team decided to stay on and watch me construct a windmill. I had my men pack up the drilling gear and I got Dangol aside, a bright young lad, always smiling, to teach him how to use an acetylene torch to cut and weld. I got him to cut the empty diesel drum in two, lengthways and then we welded the drums along the edges to a drill pipe and we had ourselves a wind vane. Dangol then welded a large pulley near the base of the pipe and we embedded all this in a shallow hole resting on a steel plate with a spigot to act as a crude spindle. Derek and Arnoud brought their camping chairs around to watch the proceedings, occasionally giving a helping hand. Near the top of the pipe we welded another ring and on top of that we had second ring with four hooks to hold the guy wires to keep the whole thing upright. The two geologists helped to get the devise straight and adjust the guy wires with me holding the spirit level.

 From my store I produced a long piece of fan belt, cut it to length and joined it around the pulley horizontally and then onto the flywheel pulley of the petrol driven water pump, vertically. With a bit of adjustment to the tension I was ready to demonstrate my wind turbine to the masses. Both teams had downed tools to watch the result. I got Dangol to demonstrate since there was insufficient wind to turn my devise. He ran around the pipe pushing the drums, skipping over the fan belt. After a few turns water started gushing out of the pipe to my relief and the pleasure. My audience clapped and jumped up and down in glee as Dangol was encouraged to run faster and faster until he misjudged the skip, tripped on the belt and went sprawling into the dust. At that point I called a halt to the proceedings ordered the men back to finish loading the trucks, ready for our next drilling site. I then took Derek and Arnoud to inspect our brine pond which I had filled with the pump. The water had cleared and already there was a perceptible film of white covering the clay. Derek shook my hand and accepted that the system would work. I explained to them that having intermittent supply was beneficial in that there was less likelihood of excess brine spilling out of the ponds and poisoning the soils.

A shout and a distant dust cloud alerted us to vehicles coming our way. We soon recognised Carmella and her crew returning. I hadn’t expected her to return until evening so suspected she might have a problem. I ran over to meet her and greet the kids that came spilling out of the Land Rover. 

“Hi, have we a problem?” I asked quite concerned.

“No, no!” she shouted smiling and for all to see and hear. I suspected something but decided not to raise the matter in public. “We decided to come back for lunch and see your windmill contraption.” I got Dangol to demonstrate the workings of the windmill without the wind and we assembled for lunch. The workers were happier under a canopy and on the ground whilst the Europeans, the children and their nannies sat around makeshift tables on camping chairs under the main tent canopy.

“OK Carmella, you have a concern?” I eventually asked.

“Yes, I have a problem with my driver Adida. He is pain and won’t listen to a woman giving him orders. He doesn’t believe I always know the best way to a place and of course he gets lost and won’t listen.”

“OK, I’ll replace him but I’m not sure what I can do with him. I don’t want to be rid of him. We’ll be a man short.”

“He’s already told me he would rather work with the drilling gang.”

“OK that settles the matter. I have Blanco, the guy with the white birthmark down his neck. He’s my best man and he was my next Rig Captain in line. I hate to lose him but that’s better than you having a problem.”

“Oh, you’re a darling Paulo!  Knew you would have a solution. Blanco seem to like the children.”

“Leave it with me. I shall have a word with Blanco and make this a promotion for him, a little more money, and I shall instruct him to obey you. As for Adida, he goes to the bottom of the pecking order and losses his driver’s pay.”

“Isn’t that a bit harsh Paulo?”

“We need to demonstrate who’s in charge around here and that we will take swift action. We have an important task to do around here and hopefully help the locals. Excuse me but I’m going to make a show and dance out of this and if anyone doesn’t like it they can just pack up and go home.”

We didn’t have any more quibbles from the men after that and Adida was suitably chastised. He eventually became Rig Captain and regained my respect. But the men knew that for the slightest misdemeanour, even being late, they could be docked a seniority position in the team and respect is what they all craved for; further north, in the Sahara, the Berbers were more troublesome, these guys were pussycats in comparison. In the first few weeks we only managed to drill one test every other day but with experience and familiarity with the equipment growing all the time we sometimes managed one a day. Our data was growing all the time and the geologists got more excited each time we brought them new result sheets and samples. They pored over their maps sucking pencils and breaking out into heated discussions. We moved camp several times mainly at Carmella’s insistence since her work was taking her further away. Blanco proved a boon to her, mainly because of his love of the children. He was better at looking after them than Rose and Parsley and this allowed Carmella to collect more data. 

On one of our supply trucks, arrived two huge pieces of block-board and rolls of clear plastic. On the boards Carmella drew our search grid and mapped her results. I plotted our drill sites and the geologists liked it so much that they coloured in a geological map on a plastic overlay. At a glance we could see the picture of the terrain unfold. Using our Satnav’s recorded data we plotted the altitudes on our journeys and Arnoud would religiously mark on the contours each evening. The huge maps became a focus of our evening’s discussions as we pored over the data and surmised or predicted our finds the following day. Derek, with all of his experience had a canny knack of correctly predicting what we would all come up with and was happy with the confirmation.

 He took me aside one day and in a simple manner explained his principles of research. It was he said, like geometry at school. You had a theorem and you had to prove it. He liked to have a theory of what we should find each day and go out and prove or disprove it. He said it would give us a true perspective of our work. In future I took greater part in the discussions and learned a lot about geology and mapping of underground structures in the process. Once we finished, the boards would be turned over and act as table tops for our dinner. At dinner Carmella would look at me and raise an eyebrow. I tried to ignore it but she would persist. I knew she was asking if I had struck water. A slight shake of my head told her I was still searching.

A month or so on the Plateau our dog started to howl one morning. Blanco had found a stray dog for the children which they all adored. We ignored it and eventually it gave up but an hour later someone spotted a dust cloud on the horizon and a jeep arrived towing our spare bowser plus two officials from the agency. They wanted to confirm our findings and our regular reports. The day was wasted, by us all, poring over the large map and discussing the results of our searches. They seemed more interested in what Carmella had found and her proposals on land utilisation if water was available. I admit I felt guilty in not finding water but it seems from the geological reports sent in by Derek, he was confident we would find a good supply. The two officials stayed overnight and departed next morning after a long discussion with Carmella. I felt like a spoiled child, not being allowed to listen to the grown-ups.

By the end of the second month, we had surveyed the whole of the boundary of our designated hundred square kilometre area and also criss-crossed it in various directions. We were now infilling the rectangles. The colours on the map and overlays were getting bolder and started to link up and make sense.

“Paulo, we have decided that you drill a deep well at this point,” requested Derek after our evening discussion.

“Fine by me. It’s on a regular intersection. Do you want core samples or just sludge?”

“No samples, we’ll all be there with you. A day of rest for us as you might say. We want you to drill right through this thick layer of clay.” continued Derek.

“That’s deeper than before, are you sure?”

“We need to check what the permeable sandstones and limestones are holding down there. Arnoud suspects it’s the source of the brine water that we have found at the perimeter of the plateau as on our first drill. I don’t think so. I suspect that the brine is coming from a solid plug of salt, deep below, that has migrated up the anticline to the edge. In Europe we would have exploited this commercially in a big way but not viable here at the moment. Your simple methods are more appropriate and beneficial. You are a practical man Paulo and an excellent technician. I’m glad the Agency sent you here plus Carmella. The Agency is most impressed by her work. You have both done great things here.”

“Hey Derek you sound as if you are giving a leaving speech. What are all these eulogies for?”

“Paulo, I have a feeling in my bones that our work here is complete. We are the technicians and experts that do the discoveries. Along come the developers and entrepreneurs that take over from us and we have to step aside and find new lands to conquer.”

“So you think we will strike water tomorrow?”

“It hardly matters if we do or don’t Paulo. Either result will complete our task. Our work is done. Our ground maps confirm what we can see from the sky. If we simply wanted to map this place I could do it from a comfortable armchair at home with a laptop switched to Google-Earth map.”

“I’ve never seen my task with the Agency with such perspective. I thought I was a pioneer bringing potable water to the poor masses and charging about on my steed doing good deeds.”

“And so you are Paulo in your own way but in all things there is a bigger picture. The people down there always look up and say the people up there don’t know what they are doing. That’s life and from what Carmella tells me you have seen both. You have a business empire and you make decisions that affect many of your minions that you don’t even know about but you are doing it for the common good. Some may not like them and will complain. In the past I ran a large geological bureau and sent people like you out on a wild goose chase but for a wider purpose. I’m here now as a minion of the Agency doing a job and they will decide the outcome. It is their job to make decisions with the politicians, all I pray for is that they make the right ones and do them quickly.”

“Now Paulo, don’t despair, we are all required for our expertise at this level. I can at least sleep peacefully at night with no cares in the world. You on the other hand have an empire back in Spain to worry about and giving a helping hand to the developing world. I appreciate your enterprise Paulo, especially since I have found out that you are funding all this work out of your own pocket; most commendable and far better than donating to a charity box. Now no more of my preaching, let’s go and finish a few bottles of that wine, after all, we don’t need to store any for a later day.” 

Chapter 51

The drilling crew were busy whilst we were sitting under the canopy passing away the time with general chat. No one wanted to discuss anything serious that morning. There was an air of expectation. Blanco had taken the kids off with their dog on some adventure and Rose and Parsley were asleep in their hammocks. Every now and again someone would raid the cool-box and bring some beers. This was going to be a long day. Derek’s men stood around the rig looking on interested but soon got bored and went off to play dice. It was going to be a long day of boredom which could end on a high or a low.

“Derek, what are you going to do after this tour?” I asked as the conversation flagged.

“I’m hoping to fly to Madrid, pick up my lady friend and go off somewhere for a well-earned rest and a bit of luxury,” he answered taking a thoughtful slug of beer out of the bottle.

“I didn’t know you had a girlfriend Derek?” answered Arnoud. “I thought you were married?”

“I was, she died. I got bored with my Company, sold it and signed up for this. My sixth tour with the Agency, third in Namibia.”

“So where did you find time for the lady friend then?”

“She was in the same boat and we met on a flight to the Far East. She’s a freelance art dealer based in Madrid. I call her up occasionally between tours and we meet up if she’s free.”   

“Why don’t you go and use our house near Orgiva. You will be very welcome and the scenery is splendid,” offered Carmella to my surprise and a little annoyance that she had offered first.

“Yes and you can go and eat at all our restaurants free of charge. All I want is a truthful report on the food and ambiance.”

“That’s very nice of you both. Do I detect Paulo you want me to do a Michelin star inspector’s job?”

“That’s correct Derek. I want to know what they are really like to the outsiders. I want a no holds barred report.”

“The offer of good accommodation and good food seems too good an offer to miss. I’ll let you know when I get in touch with my lady.”

“The offer is open for you too Arnoud,” added Carmella. “There’s plenty of accommodation for you and friend.”

“I might take you up on that Carmella but I first have to do the rounds of my family as expected……………” Suddenly there was commotion from the direction of the rig. 

I rushed over and was suddenly hit by a spray of muddy water which blinded me for a moment. The Rig Captain was shouting and yelling and the rest of the crew were just standing there dumbfound. Wiping my face with my hand I tasted some of the mud by accident. A feeling of euphoria swept over me and I jumped up in the air and screamed like a banshee. My jig was cut short by a noise like a steam engine blowing off a head of steam and blasting its whistle for all its worth. I yelled and gesticulated wildly that everyone should run for their lives. The rig was going to blow its top and so it did whilst all looked on amazed and frozen by my mad antics. A sudden gush of muddy debris shot out of the drill pipe covering everybody in brown mud.

 The canopies all collapsed under the weight and people were screaming and trying to get away. Suddenly the mud fountain changed to clear water and at last we were all now subjected to a downpour that washed away our covering of mud. I turned my face up into the sky with mouth wide open. The water was sweet as if it came from a mountain stream. I continued my dance, exposing all sides of my muddy body to the violent action of water beating down from a great height. Looking around, I was happy to see most of the people and the children were well clear of the waterfall and slowly edging to the perimeters, attempting to wash off their mud. Only the Rig Captain had stood by his post and was grinning wildly at me, sensibly from under a hard hat. I struggled over and he clamped a protective hat on my head and we embraced and continued our merry dance, out beyond the perimeter of the shower. 

After all the merriment and astonishment I got the team together and issued orders that they understood. We capped the well with a Christmas tree of valves and gauges and gradually turned off the fifty metre waterspout as I gazed at the gauge. The pressure was satisfactorily high and I ordered the hose to be turned on so that we could fill the trough half full of clean water and dunk the muddy kids in. The hose was then used to swill the mud off all our equipment, tents and vehicles. People were too busy rescuing their personal possessions to come over and congratulate me. I was the pariah who had caused all the mess.

Lo and behold, a goatherd arrived with his flock having seen the spout from a long distance and had come over to investigate. Carmella took charge and ordered Blanco to plough a twenty metre, deep furrow and I was ordered to fill it with water for the goats. It was at this point that things started to lighten up. Carmella decided we should celebrate our discovery with a feast and barbecue. Blanco was instructed to buy two young goats which were speedily dispatched, gutted and skinned by the goatherd. The lights or lungs were thrown to the dogs, who fought over the titbits ferociously. The offal was carefully washed and deposited in the cool box. The heads were split open with an axe and with the entrails were dumped on a nearby mound as an official offering to the Gods and we watched them being dragged apart by the vultures and buzzards. Derek had his team go off with a chainsaw to collect fire wood whilst Arnoud was ordered to check our stock of wine, beer and coke for the kids. 

“Darling, have you got a large sheet of metal plate in your store.”

“What do you want it for Carmella?”

“I want you to provide me with a bit this size,” she ordered, showing me with her arms, “and four of those car jacks that I’ve seen you use.”

“They are not car jacks but I know what you mean. The plate is a bit rusted,” I replied  still waiting for an answer.

“That doesn’t matter. It will burn off.”

“You still haven’t told me what you want all this gear for Carmella?”

“It’s obvious Paulo. I’m going to make flat breads, tortillas, chapattis. Call them what you like. To wrap the roasted goat meat in. And when you have done that you can set up the spit like we have at home. Fully adjustable so that we don’t get any burned offerings.”

“Yes Sir Carmella!” I mumbled and went off meekly to do her bidding.

That evening we all sat around the fire and watched the two goats being roasted on the spit by Blanco. Behind us was the hiss of paraffin stoves flaming under a sheet of steel plate resting on four ‘car’ jacks, fully adjustable. Derek’s cook was flipping flat breads over, under Carmella’s direction while on a steel tray she was slicing the liver, heart, kidneys and sweetbreads. Blanco, who I had learned, had some previous experience of barbecuing would occasionally stop, prod the carcass with an evil looking curved knife and carry on turning. Even the kids sat on the ground at a safe distance, with their dog, looked on enchanted and expectantly.

Suddenly there was activity at the barbeque, the spit was moved aside by a couple of helpers and Blanco was thrusting a strip of meat on his knife for Carmella to taste. A nod of her head and Blanco was back at the carcasses, slicing off strips and throwing them into a large tray held by one of his helpers. Even the dog was sitting up and taking notice. Suddenly the sizzle from the hot plate changed, along with the aroma, as the sliced offal was flung onto it and speedily turned by the cook with his long knife. All eyes suddenly switched from the spit.  The skeletons appeared on the spit as Blanco expertly carved the meat off the bone and cast it into the tray. Carmella ordered Rose and Parsley to carry flatbreads and distribute them around the waiting participants. The local workmen were served first to their surprise and initial embarrassment. Blanco carried the tray of meat around and fished out a piece of meat and placed it on the outstretched flat bread. The cook followed with the tray of offal. Carmella had already arranged some filled breads for the children and the dog got its bone. After the first round of breads, beers were handed out to the men and we cracked open our wine. The children would get their cokes later. We managed three rounds of bread each, the last one with a meagre filling or just a wipe of the tray.

I looked around at the party, all looking elated and though how happy I should feel but deep inside I had the feeling that this was to be our last supper. Tomorrow the geologists and their team would drift off to Windhoek for a flight home, I would contact the Agency and they may or may not give me further instructions. Carmella had finished her report on her laptop and only needed to print it off. The men would disperse back to their villages with a tidy sum of money to help the local economy. An arm bent over me with a bottle and filled my glass.

“A penny for your thoughts Paulo?”

“Hi Carmella. Just thinking that this is the culmination of our work and soon we will be parting from these people we’ve met. Ships in the night and ole that, but I always feel sad at these partings.”

“I know what you mean but hopefully we will still keep in touch with Derek and Arnoud. I’ve already made arrangements for them to be made welcome back at the Monastery.”

“Have you been in touch with your dad? How is he coping?”

“Problems at the mill I’m afraid; Dennis, your brother, is having problems with the purchase in Granada and making life miserable for everyone but more on that later. I have a proposal for you. It’s about Blanco.” 

“Oh no, you’re collecting the World’s flotsam again?”

“Blanco has been brilliant help to me. He’s an orphan you know. No family to depend on and to help him out. He’s out of work most of the time. His ambition is to accumulate enough cash to buy a farmstead and a wife or two.”

“Has he been eying up Rose and Parsley?”

“No, he says they are lazy and good for nothing. He wants a wife that will work willingly so they can have a good life.”

“So how do we help?”

“I don’t mean to give him a handout Paulo, just a leg up. A year’s wages at the Monastery would buy him a farm and with a bit left over for the celebration. There may even be a piece of land for him to develop here now that you have found the water.”

“OK, so we sponsor him for a year.”

“No what we do is take him on for training as part of the Agency educational programme. I’ve talked to your Richard already and that way Blanco’s not obliged to us. The Agency will take control of his education and we just provide the means and position.”

“You have thought this through. Have you spoken to him about it?”

“Of course not! I’m not a fool. I’ll suggest the scheme to the Agency men when they visit next. Have you any objections?”

“Of course not Carmella. It would be a good opportunity for him but what if he finds the grass greener on the other side and decides not to come back.”

“I’ve thought of that but Richard told me that they have a sort of golden handcuffs with their schemes. The candidate doesn’t get his money, bonus whatever you call it until he comes back and a follow up grant after a year. He will have to go through a rigorous interview process here.”

“So what will it cost us?”

“The Government will cover the cost of his ticket. We pay his wages to the Agency and provide him with living, training and some pocket money. With the potential sum he accumulates he will be quite rich for these parts and the Agency will help him find land and get him on his feet. You Paulo get cheap labour.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for him to go to England where the basic wages are higher?”

“Probably but the Spanish climate is more like this than green and wet England. We might be able to teach him how to farm this arid land. I have to go now and put the little darlings to bed. We’ll talk later, about dad and you’re no good brother.”

Chapter 52

“Paulo!” whispered Carmella insistently. “We must talk.”

“OK,” I answered and pulled her camp bed closer to mine so that we were mouth to mouth. I couldn’t resist giving her a kiss.

“No, we must talk,” she answered but not pulling back but putting her hand out to hold my cheek tenderly. “I’ve talked to father and he says your brother Dennis is like a bear with a sore head and is making life difficult for everyone. Even Steve can’t get through to him.”

“You said that there was a problem with the purchase of the restaurant in Granada?”

“That seems the cause of it. It appears that the sale is falling through because a family member of the vendor has turned up and wants some of the money, or a lot of the money. The legal entanglement is getting to Dennis.”

“This seems par for the course in Spain on the old buildings but why has it come up so late in the process?”

“This relative has turned up out of the woodwork and claims that the whole building belongs to his family and not to the current vendor. Our solicitor says it will take years to sort out and delay the whole process.”

“Can’t Dennis just abandon the whole thing and find something else?”

“His heart is set on this place and it seems that this person is only doing it to spite the vendor. There seems to be a sort of family feud between them.”

“I remember Antonio telling my Grandpa about such things. They can go on for years. What we need to do is find out what each party wants out of the deal and let them know in no uncertain terms that neither will get a penny plus lots of legal costs if they pursue this course of action.”

“But even the legal people can’t get any sense out of them.”

“OK, it’s a stalemate situation and we don’t care who wins as long as we or Dennis can run a restaurant there. I’ll talk to Antonio tomorrow and ask him to visit both parties privately and put a proposition to them which will be something like this. We will rent the premises for say five years and the income, less local rates, will go into a special fund in a bank. The two parties can have a ding dong of a legal fight and the fund will pay their legal expenses at the conclusion. That will ensure that they will fight to the bitter end and it will take a long time. In the meantime Dennis can keep a look out for different premises.”

“But will they agree to that?”

“There’s nothing better that the Spaniards like than a drawn out legal battle. We will be on the sidelines just fuelling the issue with the cash accumulating in the bank for them. This will take years to settle and when Dennis is ready he can just walk away from the mayhem.”

“Sounds too simple Paulo; they won’t accept, then what?”

“I think Antonio will make them see the value of this deal and persuade them. We’ll fix up the sat-phone first thing tomorrow. I’ll also talk to Steve.”

“What about Dennis, your brother?”

“No, he’s too pig-headed when he’s got a bee in the bonnet about something. I promise, first thing. Smashing barbeque idea of yours if I haven’t said it already.”

The connection was good that morning and I had a long conversation with both Antonio and Steve.

“Well?” asked Carmella, eager for me to expand.

“I now know why Dennis is up in arms over this. The fool has done extensive work on the place before the deal was signed off by the Notary. He doesn’t like being made a fool of.”

“Yes, but what did Antonio and Steve have to say about your suggestion?”

“Oh they liked the idea but they think the vendor will cause a problem. Hang on, I suggested that with the work already done to the place which is mainly ripping stuff out plus some structural work may play into our hands. I told Antonio to point out to the vendor that the place is now useless to him in the current state and he can’t sell it on or gain any rent. We will also take legal action against him for misleading us into the sale if he doesn’t go along and recover all of our costs.”

“What about the other guy? Will he accept this deal?”

“Antonio reckons all this other person wants to do is create mischief and if there is a pot of money available to pay for lawyers’ fees then he will jump at it. Antonio is off to Granada this minute to have a heart to heart talk with both of them in true Spanish fashion. We’ll call later in the day and see if they have a result. I’m going to call the Agency and tell them the good news about the water.”

The guys at the UN Agency in Windhoek were suitably ecstatic at the news and promised to come down in a few days to talk to us in detail. We were to stay on and for a few months to drill more water wells on the plateau and parcel off the land, suitable for small farmsteads. The geologists, having finished their tasks were to return to Windhoek to complete their reports. I suggested that we might need their crew and truck and they were to send them back with essential extra drilling supplies that I would require.  I passed the message on to Derek and Arnoud and they immediately started to pack up camp and wanted to set off before midday. I suggested they take one of the bowsers full of fresh water so that they could at least have some comfort on their stops and they took up my offer now that we had our own plentiful supply. After an early lunch, we said our farewells and they were off in a cloud of dust. To keep our crew busy I had them lay out all our drilling equipment so that I could check it off and order what more I might need. I decided on the spur of the moment to take a Land Rover, Carmella and the twins and we should explore the valleys on the edge of the plateau. It would give us time to be altogether as a family unit rather than be cheek by jowl with lots of others.

I’m glad we did because the valley and canyon we chose was quite beautiful with the odd tree growing here and there out of the full glare of the sun. We eventually reached the plain of scrub below, rather desolate and totally uninviting to the European eye. We saw a wisp of smoke in the distance and decided to investigate. It was a village of some dozen huts or shelters surrounded by animal corrals of thorn bushes. There was no sign of any agriculture just animal droppings suggesting a pastoral settlement with the men and flock out scavenging for edible grass. The women were too coy to come out to us and stood hidden in their dark doorways. The children were more curious and surrounded us at a safe distance. I pulled up nearby the well, took out a bucket on a rope and expertly dipped the well. The well was deep but the water came out murky. It needed cleaning and a proper wall around it to stop the debris falling in. I took a sample for checking later and poured the water into a depression. Immediately a number of scrawny dogs appeared licking up the water. Carmella noted the SatNav position of the village, the number of dwellings and we drove out slowly trying to avoid a dust cloud. We were sent off to the accompaniment of barking dogs and running children who now had the audacity to come out in the open. Our exploration took us further along the escarpment of the plateau and eventually after a few false starts up small valleys which ended up as dead ends we eventually managed drive up back onto our plateau. We had somehow taken ownership of this desolate area and wondered what the Agency had in store.

For two days we waited for the Agency guys to turn up so the crew slept, played a bit of football when it was cooler or dice under the canopy. The highlight was always to take a dip in the canvas trough which we refilled with cool water at intervals. We contacted Antonio a few times, who was having a hard time in persuading the vendor but a legal letter for astronomical compensation and our bid on another property nearby made him see reason. The matter was now in the hands of an independent Notary who was drawing up the papers. Dennis was now a new man according to Steve.

A shout and a cloud of dust warned us that transport was coming our way. The convoy of a Land Rover towing an empty bowser and a large truck made its way to our encampment. We greeted three guys from the Agency plus the crew that had previously worked for the geologists. They had brought some cool beers so we passed the time away nicely exchanging news before we got to the serious business at hand.

The Agency guys wanted us to set up ten further village locations along the plateau and I was to drill wells to provide the water. The location of the villages was more Carmella’s domain so I left them poring over the huge map we had made and I went over to check the equipment that the truck had brought. Since I had paid for it I wanted to make sure that all that I had ordered was on the truck. Whilst the former geologist’s crew were setting up their tents I had my men offload the gear and check it off against the list. It was all there bar a few pipes. Since I now knew the depth we needed to drill to I had the pipes counted off and reloaded onto the spare truck, a bundle for each site. I had ordered a huge roll of plastic tubing which I hoped to slide down the bore hole and save on piping but that might be just too difficult to achieve. I would probably have to leave the drill pipe in the ground.

I rejoined the crew at the mapping table and Carmella was obviously in charge telling them what was possible and what was too risky. Eventually they settled for eleven settlements, each arranged petal shaped around a bore hole supplying clean water. There would be between a dozen and thirty farmsteads, clustered into a village situated on the best soils that Carmella had identified. Carmella insisted that they appoint a chief of each village who would farm and also control the water supply. She added that if they used too much water the soils would quickly become saline and useless. I backed her up on that point and said they should install water metres at the well head and the village would be allocated only so much water. We then talked about the composition of the villages. Who should be given the land and under what conditions? I agreed to fund two advisors to help the farmers and to control the water supply for a term of two years initially. That would be the development period and if it was a success then I would fund the setting up of further villages with further wells. The promise of funding always talks loudly at such gatherings and they agreed to Carmella’s and my terms. I then posed the issue of salt extraction and suggested that it should be left for later.  Carmella accosted me after dinner.

“What have you got up your sleeve about the salt extraction? I can read you like a book. Tell all!”

“I just thought it might be a good business for our Blanco when he sets up a farm nearby and a brine works as a sideline. After all with the money he will accumulate, he will have at least half a dozen wives to look after.” I got an angry glare for my pains.

The next two months fell into a routine of me drilling wells and Carmella with her ex geologist crew marking out the areas for the farmsteads using her GPS and a pot of bright paint. With any spare men I would leave Adida in charge of the drilling and go off to the nearest village on the plain and clean out and refurbish the wells. I would sit under a canopy with the village elder and pass the day smoking and losing at dice. The men knew their job and I left them to it. I tried to explain to the village elder that I only provided the transport and the local men were fully responsible for the work. It seemed to please all parties.

“Hey Paulo, it’s time we went home,” said Carmella one day as we were resting under a canopy.

“Why? Are you getting bored with all this?”

“No, it’s not that, it’s the twins. They are picking up the clicking sound the locals make. They are going native.”

“They’ve adapted themselves ever so well here, to the heat, food, water and the locals. They spend more time following Blanco about than their own father. They’ve all even improved their swimming in that water trough. They’ll just love the large pool back home.”

“I know. I had a message from Dad. He says that Dennis is nowhere to be seen at the Monastery; spends all of his time in Granada on his pet project. I don’t know how you do it Paulo. You seem to do the right thing, in Mexico, at the Monastery, even here. The Agency guys were most impressed when you butted in.”

“Yeah, but that was money talking. I was offering them funding for this project on a plate.”

“It wasn’t just that. I could see they sat up and listened to an expert on the ground. As to the money Paulo, where is it all coming from? Have we got enough for ourselves? I worry sometimes.”

“No worries on that score. We both get healthy salaries from the Company as Directors even if we are not there and Gran left all her money to me to spend on a good cause as long as it didn’t go to a cat’s or dog’s home. She knew that I would be itching to go out and save the world at some stage.”

“Talking about dogs; what are we going to do with that dog of ours here? Rose and Parsley don’t want it.”

“When the time comes I’ll give it to one of the goatherds that abound here now that we can provide water for their herds. I’ll explain to the twins that the dog has grown up to be an adult now and needs to find work for a living. It’s no longer a child and can go and look after the goats, protect them from the wild animals and vultures. That should do, don’t you think?”

“There you go again, coming up with a marvellous solution. Have to go now and check on the men marking out the plots.”

“How do you assess the size that each plot should be?”

“Lay of the land, quality of the old soil beneath this dust and how easy it is to get water to the plot. I try and get them petal shaped but it’s not always possible to do that. How long do you think the water will last here?”

“It’s a huge artesian basin, probably the size of London from the North to the South Downs. I haven’t yet fathomed the thickness of the aquifer, the porous rock holding the water. The geologist gave me a thickness but I have forgotten. The problem is that it’s not being replenished by rain in the hills as far as I can tell. It is ancient water from former times, when all this was a lush green landscape. That’s why we have to conserve it the best we can. I would say with proper management we should still see thriving settlements here in twenty years’ time from now. I liked the way you planned for organic growth Carmella.”

Chapter 53

Having completed my task of drilling eleven wells, fitting them with gauges and valves, digging long troughs nearby and lining them with puddled clay so that the goats had water to drink it was time to pack up my drilling equipment and wait for Carmella to be satisfied with her allotment plans. I had also sent a team down to the plains below the plateau to clean and refurbish the wells and improve the health of the villagers by a factor of ten. My team had worked on over fifteen wells and I considered setting them up as a commercial independent outfit to go from village to village cleaning up their wells but came to the conclusion that the villagers in this region were just too poor to pay for such an important service. I might just put the proposal forward to the Agency guys on our return to Windhoek.

Carmella spent most evenings poring over her laptop and transferring her field data to Google-maps of this area. These satellite maps were a godsend and with GPS positioning the allocation of the farmstead areas couldn’t be disputed. As the satellite maps were updated from the sky we could even make out the well heads and even our sprawling encampments. Blanco, who was a great help to Carmella by reading and recording the Satnav, couldn’t believe that we were constantly being spied on from the air and would hide whenever a plane flew over high in the sky. He had difficulty with comprehending that something so high that he couldn’t make out in the sky could see him so clearly. Satisfied with her maps and notes we packed up and made our way back to the compound at Kerrywanda. The caretaker was shocked to see us back and started scurrying around trying to dust the place clean. We had no intention of staying there more than one night. The vehicles were tightly parked apart from Carmella’s Land Rover which would take us to Windhoek, and the bowser was emptied for the last time into our canvas trough so that we could have our final bath and wash down.

The men were paid off handsomely and jumped with glee at the amount of cash they had in their hands. I was initially worried for them they might be robbed but they assured me that their families would be arriving soon to greet their proud sons and fathers who had earned so much money. I learned from Blanco that most of them had enough for their families to survive the worst for well over a year and if they spent their money wisely on some animals they might even increase their fortune over time. Blanco who was on his own had sought advice from Carmella and his money, or most of it was going be invested in a Bank account in Windhoek.

We were glad to leave the dusty township of Kerrywanda but sad to part with our team of men and helpers who had served us so well. We packed our Land Rover with the minimum of belongings, hoping to re-supply ourselves in Windhoek. Our suite of rooms at the hotel were a luxury difficult to comprehend, even for us adults, with running water, air-conditioning, satellite TV, baths, showers, fridges and large beds. We ran amok in the restaurant and ordered far too much food and felt rather foolish at our greed. Back in our rooms I checked my Email and got a message from Richard inviting us urgently, after our de-brief with the Agency guys, to Cape Town for a few days. After a quick consultation Carmella agreed and I rearranged our airline tickets to fly Cape Town to Madrid direct and Iberia offered us a Madrid to Granada flight free of charge.

“Very pleased to meet you all as a family in person at last,” started Richard as we sat sipping soft drinks in the bar of our hotel. “You are a rising star in our field force Carmella. I’m getting wonderful reports on your excellent work out there. You probably don’t realise how much good will and good publicity you have engendered for the UNRA.”

“Thank you kind Sir, but we were only doing the job in hand and God provided the water, not us,” answered Carmella taking on a slight blush.

“That may well be but you both did an excellent job all round and I congratulate you. I’ve seen some of the maps you’ve sent and the detail is unbelievable. Our development team will love you when they get started on the next phase.”

“And when will that be Richard?” I asked.

“That I don’t know as yet. Soon I hope, before the ink dries but there is much political work to be done and palms to grease before we get the go ahead. I will keep you informed or at least my secretary will. I have recently been promoted and I’m sorry that I won’t be responsible for field agents like you. I’ve become one of those Politico’s that are despised but I now have the task of spreading the word and the message far and wide.”

“Congratulations, I recently got a lecture on people like you and I am now more respectful.”

“Thanks for the confidence booster Paulo and this brings me to my next request. The Agency wants to honour you, Carmella and Derek on your achievements here and elsewhere.”

“But we haven’t done anything special or out of the ordinary,” piped in Carmella.

“The world likes heroes and the UN likes the publicity and we plus a number of universities around the world would also like to award you with honours for their own publicity,” added Richard as he paused and sipped his drink. “The ceremony is taking place in the Autumn and is nicely linked to the Nobel Prizes so we will get maximum publicity. Carmella is to get a Honorary Doctorate from the University of Mexico City, Derek will get an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Copenhagen and poor Paulo here, since he already has a Doctorate from Granada, is to get an honour similar to the Freedom of the City that you give out in England.”

“Do we have to give speeches?” asked Carmella.

“I’m afraid you do because there will be an invited audience from the commercial world and we have to inveigle them to support our cause, not just in the monetary sense. I will be asking you, if not begging you to say something nice about your former company Paulo. They are one of our prime targets and their pledges will be announced when the conference ends.”

“You know they kicked me out when I was ill, working for them?”

“I know all of that Paulo and all I’m asking is for you to shoehorn lots of money and pledges out of them. That leads me to your man Blanco. His application has gone through on the nod but we would like you or Carmella to pledge in your speech to sponsor and provide placement for ten deserving people over five years.”

“Is that a threat Richard?” I asked.

“No not at all Paulo, it’s simply another tool in our armoury for these rich companies to delve deeper into their pockets.”

“But can we afford all that?” asked Carmella.

“It’s not a question of money. The Agency will help if need be but we want to show the world that a medium sized company like yours can contribute so much to the Developing World. We have already figures to show how much in time and hard cash you have spent and it’s staggering in proportion to your operating profits.”

“Have you been spying on our business Richard?” I asked.

“Researching old boy! Had to make sure it was all kosher and you weren’t making it by growing illegal substances in your poly-tunnels,” continued Richard as Carmella gave me a knowing look. “I want you to play ball with me on this one. It’s my first assignment in my new position and I want to prove my worth and go on to do better things.

“OK, we play ball,” I answered, getting an acknowledging nod from Carmella. “On one condition; you tell me what you have discovered about our Company?”

“Only that you are all doing very well out of it and I’m envious. You are the fastest growing Company in Andalucia according to your tax returns and by the way, the UN have engineered that all of your expenses here are tax deductible. They have such a scheme in Spain. I know the banks do a lot for the local community.”

“But much of this money has been donated by my Grandmother.”

“I know Paulo but I’m not going to tell and the tax people are only too happy to redress their constant problem of drawing out the last drop of blood from the people. They like to be seen giving some back. All of this is in the blurb to be published and sent out this month. We are going to make a meal of this, therefore you will be sponsored and go through a rigorous selection but don’t worry, you have been selected. It’s all top show and don’t we need it. UNRA spends most of its time on crisis management and hasn’t the time or the effort to praise the army of supporters like you. Now lunch is ready. It is on my generous expense account. I also have had you upgraded to First Class on your flight home as representatives of the UN, including the children. Now don’t argue! It’s not going to cost anyone a penny. I checked and Club Class is full so upgrading you to First means they can sell four more tickets. One last request; I have heard that various culinary inspectors have been visiting your restaurants to check them out but bookings are difficult to come by on my busy schedule.”

“Why don’t you come and stay at the Monastery then?” exclaimed Carmella with excitement in her voice. “Then we can show you what real food is really like. Our chefs come to the Monastery to hone their skills so you won’t be disappointed.” 

Chapter 54

The flight was uneventful apart from having some luxury in First and Carmella deciding that we should have more children.

“So you’re wanting to conceive and join the mile high club in one?” I asked with a grin.

“No silly, it’s just that the twins just seem one child. You always refer to them as ‘the twins’ and they have started calling themselves Dum and Dee. You’ll have to start referring to them by their proper names not Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee.”

“What are their proper names by the way?” I asked and got a sharp elbow for my pains, nearly spilling the champagne. “I’ve no objections as long as you don’t have triplet’s.”

“No chance of that. They did enjoy the company of the other kids. They were all great together.”

“Yeah but they were all much the same age. Imagine the younger ones pinching all their toys and knocking down their Lego towers?”

“It will do them good and they are getting a bit spoilt anyway.”

“I put that down to too many Grandparents. It would be good if the focus suddenly changed from them. Right Mr. Paulo it’s for you to do your duty but not in a cramped toilet please.”

“OK Mrs. Paulo, I’ll get my tackle checked over and we’ll drill for babies for a change.”

Since we were sitting in the back row I constructed a hammock out of airline blankets strung between the seats. The twins played under them as tents and hidey-holes and when they fell asleep, we snuggled them in the hammocks and they were gently rocked on the way to Madrid.

“What’s with all this Honours business? What do you make of it all Paulo?”

“Just plain publicity. They have a good story and they want to tell the world. Since it’s the UN the others just want some kudos out of it. We have to go along with Richard and give him what he wants and it will be a good plug for our restaurants.”

“You mean for Dennis!”

“Hey you sound a bit harsh and protective of your father. I understand but it’s our joint Company and the restaurants are just as much our responsibility. If they go pear-shaped then Dennis will expect to be bailed out by you and me.”

“OK, but I don’t feel I’m contributing.”

“Oh yes you are! You look after the administration of the Monastery, arrange the meals and accommodation.”

“Yes but mother and your mother do some of that.”

“But you’re in charge and I think, since you are constantly on site, you should take over the slimming business from Janice. She has her hands full with her hotels and Dennis’s restaurants. You do most of the welcoming of guests and making sure they are all well cared for.”

“Yes, but that is just because I am the host, on the spot and it would be impolite not to.”

“Well you do a good job of it and in future, especially when you’re eight months pregnant and don’t feel like it, make sure you still do it. Our fortunes lie on it being a family affair where everybody cares. Once we lose that then we will be less fashionable and people will go elsewhere.” 

“I didn’t think of it in those terms I just was enjoying every minute of it I suppose.”

“We’ll continue to enjoy it but take a professional stance and ensure all our staff have the same attitude. I’m going to have a brotherly word with Dennis. It was unprofessional of him to take it out on your father like that. I can’t imagine your dad doing anything wrong. Look. the twins are stirring we need to keep them amused for an hour or so until we land. Don’t you want any more of this Serrano ham dear?”

“Not really. It’s nowhere near as good as the stuff we produce at home. Maybe there’s an opening for us here and get more publicity!”

We were first off the plane and managed to connect to a convenient flight to Granada airport where we were met by a posse of people bearing flowers and gifts for the twins. Everyone wanted a piece of the news so we spread ourselves over four cars in the convoy back to the Monastery. It looked totally different to when we had left it. Instead of being strewn with cars and trucks, the main terrace was now a mass of colourful planters and the stone paving had been swept and scrubbed till they shone.

My mother and father were there and told us that there would be the usual feast to mark our homecoming and asked us what we wanted to do after we had unpacked. On the mention of packing a shout of horror went up that we had left our luggage at the airport. I had to calm things down by telling them it would be delivered as part of the First Class service offered by Iberia. After the milling crowd had been placated and impressed by our travel arrangements I decided that what I wanted was to take the twins into the pool and show off their swimming ability. The evening turned into a pool party rather than a long sit down affair. Everybody threw off their airs and graces and donned their swimming gear. Carmella and I got all of our welcome hugs and kisses in the pool. Dennis came over and gave me a hug and said how delighted he was that I had found a solution to his problem. He added that I had also solved his caterers a timing problem with the feast since it was all going to be ‘El Fresco’ and he departed to organise the chefs. We didn’t see much of the mum’s and dad’s since they were enthralled with the twins. 

“Glad to be back?” I asked Carmella when we managed a quick moment together.

“I am but I detect some tension in the staff. Some bickering that I’ve never noticed before. I’ll have to get to the bottom of this.”

“There you are doing your job already darling. Now don’t wear yourself out for tonight. I don’t want you suddenly developing a headache,” I said seriously but got a deserved ducking in response.

Chapter 55

The following morning Manolo collared me and wanted to show me the improvements to his area after breakfast.

“Paulo, Oscar and I have been experimenting with the cacti and have something important to report. No, no, I have been safe all the time, be assured,” as he noticed the look of concern on my face. He continued, “I was thinking that in Mexico, in their natural home, they wouldn’t get so much water.”

“Oh, we know that but they wouldn’t grow so fast either. They get their water mainly from the dew on the rocks in the morning. The water we give them here allows them to grow bigger, taller and faster and that’s what we want. Sorry Manolo, I was interrupting,” I said, realising my rudeness as Manolo stood there patiently, waiting for me to finish.

“Apart from surviving, what is the most important point of their lives?” He asked and immediately answered his own question with, “Procreation!”  I wondered where this was leading to and had Carmella already spilled the beans on our plans? 

“I agree but what is your point Manolo?”

“Here the cacti live in luxury and with no threat to their lively-hood they don’t think about producing flowers so for two of our prize plants I cut off the water supply and do you know what happened Paulo?” he asked. I suspected already but I had to let Manolo have his say and glory.

“They wilted and got thinner and the spines started to drop off.”

“Well not quite but both of them started to produce buds and both have flowered. Oscar put them in quarantine in the large poly-tunnel and tried to cross pollinate them with a feather duster I pinched from Mom and we are waiting for them to mature and be ready for harvesting.”

“Wow, that means that you have solved us the problem of getting more seed. Brilliant! It means that I don’t have to go back to Mexico!” I shouted with obvious glee.

“There is more Paulo. You know how insistent you were about security of the perimeter fence?” said Manolo and I nodded my head in agreement and allowed him to continue. “Antonio said we should plant a row of prickly pear cactus outside our boundary. They grow very quickly and no person or animal will venture through them even if they had no sense. Antonio brought a trailer full of cuttings and I planted a double row by just sticking the pads in the ground.”

“Grandpa used to make me do that! I had to wear double pair of gloves and even then I got pricked by those nasty spines. They take very easily. Go on Manolo.”

“I’ve only managed about four hundred metres so far but it got me thinking. Do you know those side shoots on our cacti and branches that grow and are a nuisance to us in harvesting your crop?”

“Yes?”

“Well, I got Oscar to cut some off and planted them in spare tubs and they have taken so we have a secondary method of propagation if the seeds don’t work,” said Manolo, quite excitedly.

“Hey, you didn’t......?”

“No Paulo. Oscar used the octopus and it was easy. I helped in your suit and sprayed the scar with silicone which falls off after a week or so. We now have more than twenty new plants, all thriving.”

“That brilliant, you have done well. So what was the problem you had with my brother? Tell me.”

“It was nothing.”

“I need to know because it was affecting my operation and I need to know everything if we are to be successful. Tell me!” I said forcibly.

“He thought I was spending too much time in the field with Oscar and not attending to the brewing.”

“The idiot. I’ll have a word with him. Have we finished here then you can show me the new building?”

“Two more things Paulo. The collecting of specimens for your chemical extraction is a tedious and lengthy process for Oscar. He picked a few from each stem. He now picks a container full from four or five stems very quickly and leaves a scar.”

“Don’t tell me, they produce a branch at that point.”

“Yes, so we get five or six new stems from each plant. I suggest that we don’t transplant them until we harvest the main stem. Let Mother nurture the young until the last moment. You don’t have to rely on the seed buds anymore.”

“I’m out of a job here Manolo. I will have to go away more often.”

“Don’t do that Paulo, we will miss the twins. I do suggest that that you get two more reliable workmen. I have too much to do.”

“I can see that Manolo. I will see Antonio straight away on that matter. He may let us have some of his. Now what’s happened to the main gates, pig pens and hen huts? They’ve all disappeared.”

“Yes Paulo, when we cleared the main square and put in the planters. These things looked out of place and the guests didn’t like the smells. We have moved the gates up by the new buildings and the hens and pigs have gone there also. So have the nursery poly-tunnels. I have set up a screen of planters as temporary screens and planted espalier fruit trees behind that. You can see them over there.”

“The place looks so much better; more of a palace than a Monastery.  Now show me the new buildings and tell me what progress you have made there.”

“Antonio built them very quickly to demonstrate to his clients. We had the opening ten days after the foundations were laid. The cactus processing plant is all now working and with the double security doors we don’t have to leave the compound. You will be pleased. Only the wine making process needs moving over and I was waiting for you to return to organise that and how you wanted to arrange things.”

“OK, so you haven’t started converting the under-build into apartments?” I asked pointedly.

“Apart from your wine equipment, it is all clear but Janice doesn’t like my plans. She wants five large apartments and I’ve planned for ten.”

“OK, we can cover off all that at the full Board Meeting tomorrow and I will Chair.” We then went off to inspect the new building which was nicely screened off by a mound with trees planted and even though it was already in a natural hollow. The detail was meticulous, particularly with the safety and security of the cactus preparation area. It was split into two. The Danger Zone was totally secure and had to be manned by two persons at any one time linked to the security system. Once the poisonous spines had dropped off, the carts could be wheeled to the processing area where the security was at a lower level. Manolo was keen to show me the automation he had installed which had changed the process from bucket chemistry to a factory process. Special pumps and control dials everywhere. I was impressed and saddened that I was no longer hands on in this area. I had my wine to mess with.

We then inspected the new parking area which had been extended so that even guests chose to park there and then to the under-build. Apart from my wine making equipment all had been stripped out and marks chalked onto the floor. I decided not to pursue the plans at this stage. We then went over to the new tennis court which had been built on a terrace, just below the pool area. On our way I immediately noticed a long terrace wall, all hidden by a long array of photo-voltaic solar panels. There must have been fifty of them.

“I installed those as part of my solar power brief. By ordering in large quantities I got a huge discount,” answered Manolo to my questioning look. “They are hidden from view and currently provide all the days power for running the fridges, air conditioning and electrical machinery in the workshops. Any spare I use directly for heating the water.”

“You have solar panels on the roof for that and why don’t you sell the spare back to the Energy Board?”

“Too much administration and we don’t have that much spare. I bring clients and show them the gauges whizzing around and they are impressed. Antonio has already installed some at his house and Steve is the next in line. We get just under three thousand hours of sunshine here a year and the dials keep spinning even in cloudy weather. I’m mainly selling to the expats and give them a good deal if they buy one of these tried and tested panels.”

“Aren’t you losing energy that way Manolo?”

“The capital costs are enormous and only viable for the long term. These panels are on loan and better be used than in their packaging.”

“How many systems have you sold Manolo?”

“I have installed ten so far and have orders for twenty more in the pipeline. You can see the spaces in the array here. These have gone to be installed by contractors that Antonio trusts.”

“Next question, do we make any money on this?”

“I currently have a markup of hundred percent on the equipment but Dennis says it should be more.”

“Why is all the ground cleared by the side of our house?”

“That’s another project I have. I propose we build two more Cortijo’s like yours and mine for Dennis and your parents and free up the apartments in the main building for paying guests. It’s good business.” I decided not to dwell on that element any further and we went off for lunch. Since it was early, a sample of my wine was called for.

Chapter 56

After lunch I pulled Dennis aside and told him to be in the main office in ten minutes.

“OK, what’s all this about Paulo. I know, your Manolo and Oscar have been crying in their milk, is that it?”

“Yes they have and had every right to. I put Oscar in charge and he’s been doing an excellent job as I have witnessed this morning and Manolo his second in command.”

“But he’s put the production in jeopardy by spending too much time in that compound of yours playing with that silly octopus machine and getting Oscar involved.”

“Did you ask Manolo what he was doing or did you have to shout at him in front of the others?”

“He was wasting time and money. Do you know that he installed new gates and scrapped the old and the money he has spent on those ugly black panels must be enormous!”

“Look Dennis, he is a Director and equal to you and me in voting rights and you have no right to shout at him in public. The Board Meeting is the place and you will have your chance tomorrow.”

“I had to look after things when you were away Paulo. No point in letting things slip, was there?”

“I think you had different reasons for feeling insecure Dennis. The commitments you made on that property in Granada were ridiculous and none of it was approved by the Board.”

“Things had to be progressed.”

“And we have a rule that any investment of that size has to be fully approved by the Board. Dad wouldn’t have allowed you to invest in building works before you had full claims to the property. At least now we haven’t got the capital costs of the purchase hanging over us.”

“You don’t have to be so high and mighty over this. My revenues keep this company afloat. It is peanuts your contribution! You’re just playing at it!”

“Don’t shout Dennis! Who baled you out of that mess in Granada and what contribution have you allocated to my elixir and water which I bottle and you place in your accounts. What if I was to cut off your supplies Dennis? What value do you place against my contribution now?”

“Now we are all in this together Paulo. It’s all for the common good.”

“I agree and from now on we need to get more professional. We have grown too big and no longer a cosy family business. Think about it and consider dividing the business into defined sections and appointing managers to look after the day to day running and we consider the bigger picture. Now I have a confession to make. I have interfered with your side of the restaurant business and had an independent survey done on your restaurants.”

“So you have been spying on me. That’s ridiculous. My brother, to do such a thing!”

“Hey, wake up Dennis. On one hand you say we are in it all together and then you baulk at some constructive criticisms.”

“OK, what is it you have to tell me? The publishers of eating places have been inundating me with requests to include my restaurants in their books. I have been turning them down in their thousands.”

“And do you know why that is? They need your advertising revenue. Have you had any of the independents?”

“Not as far as I know. What have you got for me? It better be good!”

“Well it’s not all good I’m afraid, Dennis, but it’s probably a fair survey on your establishments. You know Derek, the geologist who stayed a week ago with his Spanish lady friend? I asked him to give me a critical report on all your restaurants he visited and he went to them all, some more than once, he liked them so much.”

“So what’s the problem? What the hell did he find wrong? Was the decor not too his taste?” asked Dennis with a sneer.

“He got the official Michelin Guide survey format and looked at over a thousand pointers their inspectors go through. The food came out on top but you scored some low marks on presentation and staff service. It makes interesting reading. I was hoping just to massage your ego but this report does the opposite.”

“Give it to me. The man’s an idiot,” he snarled as I handed over a fully stuffed envelope.

“You should take notice and if you don’t believe it then commission an independent survey of your own. You should do that from time to time anyway.”

“Go and teach your Grandmother to suck eggs!” shouted Dennis and stormed out.

“What was all that about?” asked Carmella. “We could hear the shouting from the pool. You should have closed the windows Paulo. Is Dennis upset?”

“He is but I have told him some home truths. He’ll see sense. If not, then we should think about splitting our businesses altogether.”

“You didn’t show him Derek’s report, did you? I had a peek and it was quite scathing in parts.”

“Derek was just following the pattern and no more. His personal comments were rather generous I hope.”

“Where do we go from here Paulo?”

“OK, I want you to take over the Monastery and the slimming business. Your dad takes over the cactus farm and brewing with Oscar as his Manager in charge. I look after the wine business. We take on more people to manage the bits and pieces in between. And every so often we take a critical look at all our operations. A kind of quality measure to see that we come up to standard.”

“Who sets the standards?”

“We do and we regularly measure ourselves against them.”

“By ‘we’ you mean the Board don’t you?”

“I suppose so. Now I have work to do and need to see Steve before the meeting tomorrow.”

“I hope the meeting doesn’t end up in a shouting match?”

“In a way I hope it does. It will clear the air and my dad will ensure we all go off happy.”

   

 The morning of the Board Meeting I was busy priming both Carmella and Manolo on how they should present themselves and that they should stand firm and not be swayed into doing other things. I had already primed myself on our financial state and had a long discussion with dad on my plans and got a guarded agreement. Much depended on how Dennis and Janice were going to react. They hadn’t even bothered to consult Dad or even Steve prior to the meeting. Mother didn’t want to take part in what might turn out to be a family dispute or squabble.

After some preamble with niceties and accepting the agenda I let Dennis start with his restaurant business, especially the developments at Granada. He didn’t complement me on my intervention and had a dig at my sending a Michelin spy to criticise his restaurants. He did admit that there were some points that he might adopt.  He let out a bombshell that I wasn’t expecting, of him and Janice moving to Granada to be on top of the job. In some way that made Carmella’s task easier with Janice being offsite more than before. When he got to the accounts and bragged that his particular business was bringing in all of the honey. I had to interject and requested that the accounts be altered to show his purchases of goods from the Monastery so that Manolo and I could show some of the benefits. He reluctantly agreed and the prices were set at wholesale top prices on ham, cured sausages, chicken and eggs. For the elixir we decided to initially price that at a good bottle of Spanish wine, bought direct from a bodega and the water at Lanjaron prices. Suddenly the balance was redressed somewhat and I felt more comfortable when there was a majority vote.  

The next matter was Janice and her health club. Matters looked good financially but Carmella butted in that she was unhappy with Janice being more offsite than before and away from the business. She proposed that she should take over this slimming business being always on site and it was also in her remit to manage the overall site. Janice was told in no uncertain terms by dad that she should continue to expand her Boutique Hotel business with the Monastery continuing to supply the necessary food items. The vote was two against but Carmella got her health club and outlined her plans to develop it further. These were well received especially when she made supportive references to Janice’s hotels.

Dennis then attacked Manolo who defended himself bravely and managed to show that his valuable work had ensured the continuation of the essential supplies. Dennis switched his attack on the work on the gates and his solar business. I supported Manolo on the protective gates issue and he comfortably answered the questions on his solar business by stating that no capital was expended on equipment until there was a positive sale and all the equipment that was set up at the Monastery was on three months credit, plus most of it was already earmarked for a customer. He finally stated that he should concentrate on the cactus business and a sales manager should be appointed for the solar side. That went through with a unanimous vote.

Steve had already adjusted the accounts at my request and suddenly Dennis’s business was vying with our Builder’s Merchants as the top profit makers. Our bottled water came a close third. After Dad had described the developments in his area Dennis chose his moment to attack his brother and asked what my future contribution I was going to add, having taken a six month’s sabbatical. I was ready for this but not the venom in his voice. I answered that I would take the wine business to further heights by producing medium priced blended wines for the catering trade. This caught Dennis by surprise and he wanted to know where I planned to store all this wine. I replied that I intended to sell each production as it was bottled and that since it used our elixir, my production would be geared not to impact on the other businesses. I pointed out that in two years, once I had established my market, my profits for some cheap bottled grape juice, brewed, blended and bottled would easily outstrip the projected profits of all the business put together. Dennis immediately queried that allegation but both Steve and Dad supported my figures.

 I then intimated that I would develop the meat processing business by injecting our elixir into chicken and pork flesh like the big boys do but I would miss out on the water and other additives. Dennis immediately damned my approach but I stood firm and told him that I would only sell to catering firms that bought my wine. I would therefore reduce my sales and marketing costs to the minimum and maximising the bottom line. I had stolen Dennis’s thunder as the business wonder boy and I was afraid of his reaction. Steve calmed the events by pointing out that the restaurant business was running at over ninety percent occupancy and we should consider further expansion. This was music to Dennis’s ears and he expounded at length on the locations of his future exotic restaurants. Dad closed the meeting at half three and we departed for a well-earned lunch. I was pleased that Carmella immediately sat next to Janice to discuss hotel expansion and dad sat himself next to Dennis to brush up his ego. I was relieved that I had done my homework and had diverted a revolt. I suddenly realised that responsibility at this level of business is no easy matter. When we were a back-room outfit, decisions were easy.

Dennis avoided me for a few days and then suddenly approached me with a big smile as if there had been no animosity between us.

“Paulo, I want to apologise for being such a dick head,” he announced, grasping my hand in both of his in a vigorous handshake. “Janice read the report you had produced and though I was a complete ass-hole for not taking note!”

“Hang on Dennis, it wasn’t my report, it was produced by a friend based on Michelin guide lines.”

“Whatever, I will have to put a spark up the arses of my managers or they’re fired. Thank your friend for me and tell him that I have taken note. I will have such a report every so often until they all come up to scratch.”

         “If I were you then do it on a regular basis.”

“I will, I will. Just a small thing niggling me Paulo? You won’t ever cut my supply of the elixir will you?”

“As long as you don’t piss me off and keep off Manolo.”

“He’s a pillock! Telling me that ‘it’s the way Paulo would do it’ all the time.”

“I think you were a little off colour at the time Dennis. Rest assured that Manolo has found new ways of propagating our Devil’s Cactus and your supply is good even if we don’t produce any seed here.”

“How’s that?”

“Well make up to him and ask him yourself.”

“OK I will. Janice was a bit miffed at first by Carmella muscling in on her Slimming business but we had a long talk with Dad and he told her she was neglecting it and was better off concentrating on the Hotels.”

“I think it will be for the best Dennis and I promise to supply you and her as a priority over my wine development.”

“That reminds me, can you produce some of that water with some fizz in it. Plenty! I want to serve my guests with a dollop of elixir topped up with lots of bubbles.”

 “A sort of ‘Kir Dennis’. I’ll look into it. I can’t see any difficulty. Maybe to help serving it, I’ll put it already mixed in champagne bottles so you can have the ‘pop’ that goes with it.”

“Excellent idea! Why didn’t I think of it before? We’ll serve it as the guest come in with nice little tapas and make sure they get a slug of our magic potion straight away. I could serve them crap after that and they would still enjoy it. Only joking, in fact Janice and I are off to explore the best restaurants Europe have to offer and pick up some tips. The idea is to be the best and jack the prices up accordingly.”

“Antonio tells me he can’t get his friends and clients into your places. Have a word with him.”

“We are fully booked up for months ahead. That’s why I need to open the Granada for the overspill.”

“Have a word with Antonio for me and sort something out. We can’t afford to piss him off. He’s helped you so much.”

“Paulo, I’ve had my head up my arse for so long that I’ve lost sight of my priorities. I’ll do what all the big boys do and have a table set aside for such an occasion. It will make Antonio’s guest feel ever so special. Good for business eh? Must go but you don’t mind Janice and me moving out do you?”

“Not really. You will be back often enough and Carmella could do with extra accommodation for paying guests.”

“That’s another barney I had with Manolo over his plans for the under build; at least its Carmella’s business now. Chow!”

Chapter 57

Rod or Rodriguez for long, was a huge fellow built like the proverbial brick shit house, in his blood spattered apron and a cleaver in his right hand, the arm being the size of our best Serano hams, one had to be respectful and call him ‘Sir.’

“Hi Paulo, what do you think of my new establishment?”

“More importantly Rod is how you like it?”

“Built to my specification with total separation for all activities. My tutors would be proud to see this.”

“I thought your dad was your real tutor?”

“He was and I know my meats from him. He had to deal with all qualities when the times were hard so I recognise good meat from bad Paulo,” he said swinging the cleaver in emphasis. I stepped back. “Sorry Paulo but my dad was from the old school and hygiene was simply throw down another handful of sawdust. Here, every microbe has a sore head. Do you need me for anything Paulo? I’m busy at the moment.”

“This can’t wait but I’ll be brief. I want to develop and expand further. Not just with our own grown meats but with stuff we buy in. I want you to consider this and get some more assistants because I want to treble my output.”

“But the slaughter facility is too small for that Paulo.”

“I know, I know but we buy in prime cuts for processing. Have you any experience in injecting meat and such things.”

“You don’t want to get into that kind of business Paulo. It’s just ludicrous and unethical the way they try and turn rotten meat into some saleable product. I left that behind a long time ago so I hope you don’t introduce that here Paulo!” he said firmly with a fierce wave of his cleaver.

“No way Rod but you must know how we doctor the meats with my cactus juice or at least get the pigs and poultry to feed on it.”

“I see, so you want to buy in top notch meats and process them to give them that Monastery touch. Well that’s different. I can do that for you Paulo. We should demand a great price for that.”

“Thanks Rod. Can you give it some though, suppliers, equipment and all that. Start small and we can experiment here. And don’t forget to get some assistants in, the more the merrier. If this takes off we will need them,” as I hurried off, leaving him smacking the blade on the palm of his hand in thought. I then went off to see the space allocated to me for my wine and water business. Being empty it looked enormous and it gave me a fright. How was I going to fill it, but I already had plans and with the huge steel vats, even this space was going to be filled. I looked outside and there, attached to the building was another extensive area under an open canopy. Philipez, the newly appointed gardener was walking by and I asked if this area was earmarked for machinery storage. He looked puzzled at me for a moment then explained it was for my fermenting vats which were being delivered next month. I was to have a huge area, larger than planned so I had to get my thinking cap on and start planning production in earnest.

My plan was to produce middle priced wines in quantity, blended to a known flavour or type but sold by the name of the chief grape, all under the Monastery banner. These would be sold, as bottled, to catering wholesalers as house wines. I predicted I could produce some forty thousand bottles at a time and have no storage problems. The secret to my success would depend on the addition of juice to the mixture and turn it into a good product that people would want to buy repeatedly. Having had the conversation with Rod about meat processing I had no qualms in the ethics of it. My wines would be good and people would want more. Having done some initial calculations and with Steve and dad, I was convinced that I could make my fortune, just as Dennis was doing with his restaurants. After all, a little bit of rivalry was a good thing for business.

“I haven’t seen of you a lot lately,” I said pointedly to Carmella as I managed to get a seat next to her at lunch.  “And another thing, can we have some real food instead of this cactus mush we are all eating. We both lost eight kilo’s in Namibia and if I stick on this diet I’ll be a stick insect.”

“Oh you poor thing. It’s good for you and good for the business. Look around; the guests are looking at the regulars and murmuring that this diet really works. Look at Antonio; he’s lost his beer belly and looks ten years younger, same for your dad and mom.”

“OK, OK, I give in. Now tell me what you have been up to?”

“I’m looking after the guests as they expect to be treated by the host. I’m recruiting like mad and I’m trying to urge Antonio to get on with the under-build. It’s been delayed and we need the space. Dad said that the guests who were bussed up from Orgiva had no place of their own to relax, take a siesta or just get changed so with Janice’s blessing, all guests will live onsite. Day bookings only, will come up from Orgiva. You may have noticed that some of the staff are talking about moving out to the farm house with Joseph. Don’t look like that! I’m having the rooms modernised and even Joseph is going to have a ground floor apartment.”

“We seem to be increasing our staffing rate at a hell of a rate?”

“We need to! Can’t rely on your mum and my mum to do housework. Once this place is up and running to my standards, I shall be putting the prices up. Have you met Philipez yet?

“Just a quick word as we were passing.”

“Well he’s appointed to ensure the planting for the guests is superb. He worked at the Genralife in the Alhambra for a time, so knows his plants. His next priority is the kitchen garden for fresh supplies all year round and then he can tend to the trees and your vines.”

“Well you have been busy!”

“I have also started on job descriptions, regular performance reviews and quality measures for all areas of the Monastery, including yours Paulo. There is no escape.”

“My, my, what’s brought this about?”

“That no good brother of yours insinuating that I did nothing for this place except go horse riding! I must go and see if the guests need any more food.”

“Hey what about the skinnies like me? Those fatties don’t deserve anymore!”

“That’s why they like this place and the regime. They can eat as much as we give them not just one lettuce leaf, and little do they know that the mashed potatoes their stuffing into their faces haven’t got a calorie to note in it. They are all losing weight and loving it. Bye love.”

I grabbed another spoon full of mash and put the spoon back into the bowl, heeding Carmella’s words. I would have to visit Dennis’s restaurants more often. Antonio slid into the empty seat beside me.

“Great food eh? Don’t look so glum. Look at me. I have lost my pregnant look. Lady back home says it’s good for me.”

“Next time Rosario cooks for you, invite me over. I need some meat on my bones. We’ll be looking like inmates of the concentration camps in Germany.”

“Don’t speak of that Paulo, we had similar things in Spain during the Civil War.” He crossed himself and carried on. “Paulo, I’m too busy and getting on to bother with wine making anymore and yours is far better than mine. Will you take over my wine business?”

“I didn’t know it was a business. I don’t recollect you selling any. You give plenty away and we are all grateful for that.”

“No serious Paulo, I’m getting tired of it.”

“OK here’s the deal, you pick your grapes and mine and have them processed into grape juice. I don’t have the equipment for that anymore. You sell me the grape juice, I make it into Antonio’s wine and sell the bottles back to you at the same price. A deal?” Antonio sat quietly and rubbed his chin as a mischievous smile appeared on his face.

“That’s a deal that only the old General, your Grandfather would think up Paulo. I will accept only if I pay you a few pesetas more?”

“I see, it’s the old Antonio coming out, not wanting to be obliged to anyone. You have the hardest part Antonio, picking the grapes. I just pump the stuff around in pipes and then bottle it.” I stuck out my hand and it was grabbed, plus a bear hug and the customary kisses on all cheeks.

“You have spoken to Dennis and he has seen sense. He will hold a table for me whenever I want. That is big business talk. If I get my clients into his places I have big influence. I’m a Big Knob as General used to say. They will do business with me and I support your businesses.” He finally let me go but added leaning into my ear. “Come tonight, business talk. Rosario is cooking wild rabbit,” and left me to compose myself and dream of juicy flavoursome lean meat. Why can’t Rosario just go out and buy a fat commercially produced rabbit I thought?  

Chapter 58

Mrs. Parker-Jones was a stout old lady, probably in her early seventies but one daren’t ask. She was a battle axe and the first encounter was over her mattress. Her first was too lumpy so a second was found and that didn’t satisfy her until a third was brought and that was fine. It was actually the first one from her bed. She complained that her bed wasn’t turned down for the evening, no cocoa or even a chocolate on her pillow. The following morning she missed her wakeup call and thought she would miss breakfast even though the buffet was available until eleven and most of the ladies enjoyed a lie in and made their own tea in their rooms. Not Mrs Parker-Jones. I met her in the courtyard after lunch and she accosted me and demanded to know where the walks were. I suggested that if she put on a stout pair of shoes, she could come with me down to the stream in the valley where it was cooler.  She gave me ten minutes to get prepared and arrived on the dot in a thick tweed jacket and skirt. I suggested it might be a tad warm for Spain and she just ordered me to lead on.

 I had the sense to take a bottle of water with me. Halfway down she wanted to rest so I suggested that around the next bend was a bench. She struggled to there and was obviously getting over heated. She succumbed to my request that she would be more comfortable without her jacket and she took it off reluctantly. I was about to suggest that she leave it on the bench and we pick it up on the way back but thought better of it. I offered her the bottle to drink from but she didn’t drink out of bottles. We eventually made our way to the stream and I sat her under a chestnut tree and suggested she cool her feet in the stream.

I left her there to explore further up the valley to see if it might be feasible to resurrect the old fish ponds and stock them with trout. The monks and nuns had obviously done that in bygone days. On my return Mrs. Parker-Jones had hitched up her skirt and was dangling her bare legs in the cool water. I also noticed that half the water had been drunk and she was dabbing her forehead with a wet handkerchief. I sat beside her.

“My favourite place this. Only the fish missing,” I said.

“Yes it is beautiful and I shall come again but not in this heavy garb.”

“You should get yourself some light cotton trousers and long sleeved blouse,” I offered.

“I don’t wear trousers,” she answered curtly.

“Now this is a place for cotton and trousers. There are lots of barbed plants about here and you would be restricted to only these paths without trousers. You can stroll along the terraces and enjoy the wild flowers but you would be scratched to death. Trousers are best. I can arrange Carmella to get you to Orgiva and you can purchase all you need there.”

“Thank you young man. Please arrange it for me.”

“You could also do with a stick.”

“I don’t need a stick at my age!”

“I use a stick to push away the brambles and make way through the cactus and thorns,” I explained but she ignored me, put on her shoes, grabbed the bottle and started back up the path. I carried her heavy coat until we reached the courtyard. I also noticed her sipping at the bottle which was a good thing.

“That was very pleasant young man. Thank you!” she said solemnly. Took her coat and walked off briskly to her room. I told Carmella about my experience and she volunteered to take her shopping herself the next day.

Our midday meal was about two thirty and as I crossed earlier I noticed Mrs Parker-Jones already at her place.

“I’m afraid you are rather early for lunch,” I said to her.

“Lunch is always served at one in civilised company.”

“In Spain and especially in Andalucia it can be as late as three. Can I suggest we take a short walk and I can show you my winery.”

“My husband ran a vineyard in South Africa and made his own wines.”

“So you know about wines then?” I asked.

“I only drank French wines when we were there.” She replied curtly.

“Here we are then. I’m making up a batch of wine from local grapes. The wine is a little rough so I’m going to blend it to give it a rounder taste. Would you like to taste some? It’s still very young but the flavours are distinct.” I sat her down at a table and set out some glasses. “The first is the rough red. Still fizzy and needs to ferment out awhile but that will be the bulk.”  I expected her to slurp and spit but she knocked it back. “This is the imported white stock from Italy that will be blended with the red.”  She drank it down without comment. I then mixed the red with ten percent white and progressively increased it to thirty percent. She drank down the three glasses and pointed to the first ten per cent sample.

“That is the best. You need to keep the robust red flavour there.” I sampled the glass and agreed that it was probably about right. In the next glass I upped the white a fraction.

“Too much,” so I reduced it to twelve percent exactly with a pipette.

“Just fine,” she answered. “Nicely rounded and the red comes though.”

“We should be getting back for lunch now,” I suggested and she took my arm which I though was quite fortunate after some six glasses of wine albeit small ones and not very strong. 

“Tell me young man, why do they serve such big helpings? We are here to lose weight.”

“I would say generous and the various potatoes that you get served have virtually no calories in them. You would starve just eating them. It means you stop feeling hungry and don’t crave for more.”

“So I could have six or seven if I wanted?”  

“That’s true and you would only have consumed about five calories if that. Carmella encourages our guests to fill up on her potatoes to stop pangs of hunger.”

“Oh, someone is in my place.”

“It’s better to move around. Now why don’t you sit next to Antonio here and you can talk about wines. He produced the red grapes on his farm.” I noticed Antonio portioning out huge quantities of our potatoes onto her plate and she enjoyed every mouthful. She didn’t get to desert. Mrs. Parker-Jones was asleep at the table and I knew why.

“Do you know that the old crone has booked in here for a repeat session with her sister? I thought we wouldn’t see her again,” said Carmella with surprise on her face.

“Has she lost any weight?” 

“Probably more than most. Mind you, she would go off walking every morning and afternoon in her new white trainers and slacks. I’m not sure I look forward to seeing her again but it is repeat business.”

Chapter 59

After a month or so of being back from Namibia I was supervising the installation of the huge stainless steel vats plus the myriad of pipe-work, with the help of Manolo and Antonio when Rod, my head butcher, arrives and watches the proceedings for a while, occasionally giving a helping hand or his enormous bulk to position the equipment in the right place.

“Paulo, can I have a word?” he asked at an opportune moment when we had completed one of the tasks and congratulating ourselves on a job well done. “Come with me to the shop and I want to show you something.”

“OK, I’ll leave the others to have all the fun. What have you got to show me Rod?” I asked as we walked into the butchers shop and he pointed to some boots, gown and hat. I donned them as instructed and walked up to his large bench which was laden with white plastic crates.

“I have sourced some of the best meat I could find for you. It’s all here. It’s not cheap but you won’t find any better,” said Rod with an air of authority and started slamming vacuum packed packs of meat on the bench in front of me.

“Best Angus beef, grass fed, fillet and sirloins; Pork hams already boned; chicken breasts. Look at the size of them! Duck breasts, and legs which I propose to make into confit. English lamb, grass fed and bacon sides which I intend to smoke; venison from Norway. Do you want to inspect them more closely? I’ll open them?”

“No need Rod. I trust you experience. Now how do you propose to doctor the meat with my cactus juice?” Without a word he beckoned me over to some new machinery that obviously had just been installed.

“With this,” he said proudly. “Now there are two ways of doctoring the product as you put it Paulo. I think the best for our purpose is to inject it with this machine and then gently knead it with this tumble drier type machine which will ensure that the liquid infuses all parts of the product. The soaking method is wasteful and less controllable.”

“I’m with you so far. What’s the next stage?”

“I propose to do small batches with different infusions until we get the right concentration for you. No point in wasting your valuable juice. We then have a grand tasting session and check out the best.”

“What’s with the ham Rod?”

“Paulo! You’re British! You people make best York Ham. This is going to be best in the world. Some folks find our Serrano ham too tough, chewy and stringy. This will melt in their mouths like Parma. And the bacon will be prepared to English taste. It will stop the buggers bringing in caseloads back in the plane luggage, big market for that down on the coast.”

“I’d better get my skates on and contact the food wholesalers and start the marketing.”

“Done that for you Paulo. I already contacted many people to find out their sources of good meat. It’s like a secret society and we pass on useful information. When we are ready we organise a banquet here for these people, these suppliers and wholesale clients and you serve a selection of your wines and we have a captured clientele all to ourselves. I have experienced the power of your cactus juice and it is potent. These people will be clamouring for our products. If not I will give up butchering for good.”

“Don’t do that Rod. I need you. Now since you are a key player in making this a success, then I think you should be rewarded in some way. I will talk to the board and after the proven success of our banquet I will suggest they make you a full Director with a share in the business.”

“Thank you Paulo. I will do my best for you.”

 On my way back to the installation of the vats, Manolo was lurking in wait for me.

“What is it Manolo?”

“Paulo, I am in the process of recruiting a person to take over the solar business.”

“Have you found a candidate?” I asked knowing full well he had.

“I think I have found someone in Orgiva but he may be over qualified. A Finn who is an electrical engineer by profession.”

“If you have found him in Orgiva then he must be a hippy or a dropout who has spent all of his monies and needs to earn enough to get back home?” I surmised for him.

“Yes Paulo, but I don’t want him to earn enough for a ticket home and go.”

“OK, this is what you do Manolo. Take him on plus a local from Antonio’s pool as a trainee. We contract this Finn for two years after which he will be entitled to thirty five percent of his total salary as a bonus. Golden handcuffs we call it. That should make him think twice. If he stays on then we allow him a rolling contract. I think he will be homesick and by that time we will have a fully trained local.”

“Sounds expensive Paulo!”

“Not expensive to Manolo. This work out cheapest in the long run. We need to set him monthly targets for sales and installations and there can be a separate incentive for that.”

“Thank you Paulo for the advice. I now know why you run a successful business.” I waved him away with a smile and decide my old winery needed some attention since I needed to produce a selection of wines for my sales push.

I had been experimenting with carbonating equipment to add fizz and sparkle to the wine, or at least to my elixir to supply Dennis.

“Hey, what are you up to my little brother? You seem engrossed.”

“Hi Dennis I am. You have come at an opportune moment. I am tinkering with your special champagne. We’ll call it Monastery Cava, shall we?”

“What’s the problem?”

“It’s not a problem, it’s just that I have to get the carbonation right. Too much and it will go off with a bang, contents and all. Like on the podium of Formula One.”

“The wine is a little cloudy so all you need is enough to make a pop and a little fizz in the mouth don’t you?”

“I suppose so. Here try this for size?” and I opened one bottle after another until Dennis called a halt.

“Don’t overdo it brother. It’s just for show. I think this one will do nicely. How many can you produce right now?”

“At this strength, about a thousand bottles I reckon. The elixir production is going up by ten percent per month. It will slow down during the winter but we have different means and quicker ways of propagating the cacti.”

“Do me a thousand bottles for the opening and plan for more down the way.”

“Will do. Now I have a favour to ask you. You know I am experimenting with doctored meats. I want you to consider opening a different type of restaurant using my range of meats instead of your usual casserole and paella food?”

“You mean simple ‘patatas and carne’ like the Spaniards dish up?”

“Well a bit more upmarket with a bit of tasty sauce to go with it. I’m holding a sales do for catering suppliers to taste our range of products. I would like you and Janice to come along and see what you think. Rod our butcher thinks we’ll make a literal killing on this stuff and it’s quicker to produce. We don’t have to wait for our animals to mature. We buy in the best.”

“You’re on Paulo. This will allow Janice to differentiate her cuisine at her hotels and be less of a competition to me. People will want to come to both with our killer flavour enhancer. OK, OK Paulo, it’s not an enhancer but an addictive potion but to me it’s the same thing. By the way I have managed to book a table at El Buli’s in Roses, up in the North East. Fancy a trip out there? He’s heard of us on the grapevine and I’ve invited him and his staff to eat at any one of our establishments.”

“Book us for that Dennis but doesn’t he go for very fancy stuff?”

“He does but flavour is most important to him and we also punch bags of flavour. Maybe you should take up a selection of your meats for him to try.”

“Now Dennis, on a more serious note I think we have to be more careful about talking about our elixir. I don’t want it getting out that we are using an addictive ingredient in our food.”

“OK, what do you suggest?”

“Let’s stick to ‘taste enhancer’ if we have to talk about it, and then only to our chefs and staff. Tell them it’s our secret ingredient but don’t talk about how we produce it. I will lock down our production here and make it known that the cacti are grown for their chemical content in their poisons only, not for the food. I’m going to crack down on it here and if you could do the same at your establishments.”

“True, if the big boys find our secret then we are totally knackered. Let’s make our dough whilst the sun shines, eh brother?”

“I’m looking into patenting it but as soon as that is in print the whole world will know about it and it’s a completely natural product. We don’t actually manufacture it. We just extract it like sugar cane juice. Currently we have the monopoly but if it gets out then everybody will be doing it. We would be swamped by the big boys.”

“Understand. You must raise this at the next Board Meeting and no one has to glibly talk about it. It’s our intellectual property and we have to safeguard it.”

Chapter 60

A whole three months after our return from Namibia my other production ability must have kicked in and Carmella announced her pregnancy and I sighed with relief. Her technique to conceive was to do it as often as possible. The more the merrier rather than some staged scientific method. I was being dragged off at various times during the day for special conferences but it worked. The speculation then was if it was going to be twins or triplets? 

Two major items loomed on the immediate horizon; Dennis’s restaurant opening and the Sales Banquet.  Rod was mastering his techniques and we were all enjoying his products. It was difficult with the guests who were there to slim but a boon because they all enjoyed their food and gave valuable criticism. Carmella served small pieces of meats on red and white cocktail sticks and asked the guests to comment which was the tastier. Since the red  had already been infused with the elixir it was the comments on the flavour and texture that we were after. Rod, in his best white coat and striped apron presided over the tasting and would ask pertinent questions of each guest. Although all the meats were delicious we needed to find the appropriate or minimum infusion to impart something special. Within weeks, he could foretell what the results would be and we had focused into the exact amount of infusion for each type of meat.

 It was time to book the banquet and make the necessary preparations. Carmella took over the organisation and cooking with our resident chef. Rod liaised closely with the chef and Carmella on quantity and I was left the toughest task to produce at least six different bottles of wine. Antonio’s Alpujarras wine was the first, then came my Rioja type, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Chablis type and a Pinot Grigo. I needed sufficient for the banquet plus a case of each for the clients to take home. Rod would also supply a selection of meat in a disposable cooler box. Dennis added that we should start the proceedings with the Monastery Cava to kick start the flavour buds. Antonio was worried that it would deplete his wine stock so I had to assure him that I would buy in locally produced and fermented grape juice and make up my own concoction for sale. He went off shaking his head.

Our first bit of bad luck came when the weather changed and we would have to have the banquet inside in the main refectory. Then Carmella announced that her paying guests had been scheduled to eat lunch in there. Dennis came to the rescue by suggesting that we ship the paying guests off to the Alhambra for the day and they could have their normal meal in part of his restaurant that was finished. We had a solution.

All the invited punters arrived plus their hangers on which was usual for Spain. We had catered for the extras.  Since the space was limited, Carmella had arranged a ‘top table’ of special invited guests and the melee for the hangers on and others in the main refectory. The weather held up for the champagne, sorry, cava reception in the courtyard, accompanied by Flamenco. No, I refused to do a turn not that anybody asked me. Apart from a short introductory welcome speech by me plus a summary of the menu by the impressive Rodriguez, we went immediately into the various courses and there were many.  Apart from the full range of meats we added various pates, salamis and Spanish omelettes with doctored eggs from our own hens. Rod introduced the pates, chorizos and salamis as a way of us selling any trimmings and off-cuts. 

The accompaniments were simply our versions of ‘patatas’ and traditional salad with a good helping of young cacti mixed in. Rod, our chef plus the staff would go around enticing the clients to choice cuts as seconds. It was chaotic and down in the main room the noise was at danger levels. The quantity of wine quaffed didn’t help either. By early evening many had settled down in corners and were asleep, snoring away merrily. Our main problem was getting them home and we had broken the cardinal rule at such gatherings, ensuring that our punters committed to buying our products whilst they were still compus mentis.  We had asked them to come in taxis but most had brought their own cars, the usual Spanish way. We spent hours on the phones, ordering taxis to get our guests home. It wasn’t a pretty sight. Rodriguez manhandling our guests and pouring them into the awaiting taxis.

We had a post-mortem to judge our success. The guests enjoyed themselves and there was no doubt about that. It was a great party but had we made any sales? Dennis pointed out that most of them would have to return for their cars and to collect their freebies. Maybe we could judge the results after that. Our paying guests arrived back from Granada and we had to call a halt to our follow-up.

It took a fortnight for the all the cars to be collected and the goodies to be distributed. The initial orders reflected more of polite manners than real ordering but enough for production to begin. What we hadn’t bargained for was the effect of the goodie boxes and the sample cases of wine. Once they were assessed in the light of day, the orders picked up with one or two more substantial ones. Some queried the costs and asked for substantial discounts. We held firm on all counts. It took a couple of months for substantial repeat orders to flow in and our meat money machine was up to speed.  Rod even suggested that we might drop a grade in our supply but I stood firm on that. I didn’t really want to get into mass marketing. It took a month longer for the wine orders to kick in and I was quite happy to start production in my new vats of batches of twenty thousand bottles at a time although I was set up for thrice that number.

 I had to rent a warehouse in Lanjaron to store the cases and it proved easier for the customers to call off batches as they required; some additional costs that I hadn’t bargained for. I was now importing grape juice or young wine from all over the world and the tankers were a regular sight on the Monastery road. The drivers enjoyed a good meal after they had pumped their wares into my vats. Bottling was becoming a problem, mainly with space. I hadn’t planned for storing so many empties and corks. It was a nice problem to have and regular shuttle runs to the warehouse solved that one.

 I spent many hours on my laptop trying to work out a production algorithm to match supplies with orders. Arnold the Finn, who Manolo had hired, came to my rescue. Within minutes I had a working spreadsheet that matched the incoming orders, with my production schedule and ordering supplies. I jotted down a note to give him a hefty bonus on termination of his contract.  I had five local workmen, supplied by Antonio to work in the winery and shuttle to the warehouse. I concentrated on the chemical aspects of getting the right blend and taste. I upped the production levels to forty thousand bottles and that got over the slight difference in flavours between batches. I could attribute the difference to annual natural differentiation in climate and grape quality. That was my excuse for a lack of refined palate. Steve kept a close eye on the accounts as I insisted and gave me ample warnings if I was exceeding the ratio of sales to production that we had worked out.  Arnold set up a secondary programme for me that monitored all that so that I could sleep easy at night. I wondered what incentive I would have to consider how to retain him at the Monastery for ever?

 With our rapid growth in all areas we had neglected our critical IT area to keep pace with our growth. I would have to consult with Steve and appoint somebody to produce an integrated system or pull Arnold off his solar panels. In the end we did both, with Arnold overseeing the design and implementation of the system. I didn’t think that Arnold’s heart was into solar panels and on one of our walks down to the valley and stream, where I did my best thinking I discussed various matters with Arnold. I found he was addicted to fly fishing. I suggested he might set up the ponds and introduce trout along the stream. From that point we lost a good salesman and he was found most of the time in the stream up to his thighs constructing dams and water ladders for the fish to get up to the upper ponds. Cell phone coverage wasn’t too good down there, or so he said. I let him carry on with his project, occasionally giving him a helping hand when I needed to bounce off ideas. All things were rosy in my nest. 

  

   

Chapter 61

 

The date of the opening of the grand restaurant in the Albacin had been put back a few times to ensure that everything was ready and the staff fully trained. The guest list was pored over and finalised at least six times to my knowledge. The City dignitaries were included but does Dennis invite rivals was the question? In the end only major hoteliers and businessmen were selected. Entrance was strictly by ticket only and no hangers on would be allowed in. Only half the seating would be used to give the dining areas an airy and spacious ambiance. Carmella of course had nothing to wear for the event and her bump was now showing. Dennis wisely decided to restrict the wine supply to avoid the disaster we had at our Sales Banquet. I was to supply the wines and I had special labels printed. Dennis suggested that I gave each guest on leaving a sample case of three bottles to take home. I had my work cut out.

The restaurant looked splendid, very plush and comfortable with high backed chairs, slightly tilted back so people could relax after a fine dinner. The foyer and bar were extended into the first dining area, for the champagne reception and selection of fine finger foods or tapas as appetisers. The area was awash with flowers in subdued colours. The press and a local TV camera crew were already setting up their shots and checking viewing distances when we arrived early. Dennis had asked Carmella and me to head up separate tables to judge reaction and ensure a faultless operation. As with all things Spanish, guests vied for arriving late and hangers on crowed and blocked the entrance shouting abuse that they hadn’t been allowed in.

Proceedings started only half an hour late but that was good by local standards. The doors were locked and barred as Dennis made a short introductory speech, mainly to introduce the dignitaries and the guests were busy perusing the extensive menu. Waiters brought out my special champagne which was to accompany all courses and the guests were instructed to take a sip and fill up with our own sparkling water. This was the instructions at all Dennis’s restaurants so that the diners were constantly subjected to our addictive elixir and the food would be that extra bit special. A posse of waiters and waitresses in an array of fashionable uniforms brought out the various courses. To me they looked like First Class Stewards and Air-hostesses from a major airline. Dennis had selected well.

A table of eight, two down from me was being royally entertained by some hotelier who was obviously into bawdy jokes from the sound of the laughter. The main course was a selection of Dennis’s key-note dishes set out on the lazy-suzy in the centre of the table. Guests were expected to take a small portion of each to taste. Not our bawdy hotelier who grabbed the dishes and poured them onto his plate so that they slopped out onto the table cloth. He and his neighbours thought this hilarious and he demanded that the table cloth be changed before the food got onto his clothes. The well trained machine got into action and a posse of staff descended and had the table reset with minimum fuss.

 I initially wondered if this was set up or was the hotelier testing the service but nevertheless their swift action was impeccable and the diners at adjoining tables applauded the staff for their efforts. The next course was a selection of my special meats and later the waiters took around skewers of exotic delicacies such as alligator, ostrich, guinea fowl, kangaroo and buffalo for the diners to taste. Our hotelier grabbed a whole skewer of alligator off a waitress and started making disparaging comments about these meats in a loud voice. His next trick was to grab a champagne bottle off one of the waiters; fill and down his glass three times and then throw the empty bottle over his shoulder, landing on a nearby table and breaking glasses and crockery. By this time his fellow guests had stopped their encouraging laughter and were trying to distance themselves from him. His wife immediately disappeared to the toilet and Dennis requested that this person should accompany him to his office and he was summarily ejected from the premises. That put a dampener on proceedings and I noticed some guests quietly departing. At least the staff training held up.

At the post-mortem the next day I suggested that Dennis should humiliate the hotelier by firstly publicly banning him from all of his restaurants and publish a clip of him behaving badly on the internet. The film crews, I noticed, had being very interested in his outrageous antics. On the plus side, bookings were up with the recent publicity even though it was reputed to be one of the most expensive restaurants in Granada. The venue was to open to the public in three days’ time and we spent most of the day trying to placate Dennis and critically mark his sixty-point review which he had borrowed from the Michelin list that Derek had marked. Only time would tell, but going by the success of his other venues, we had to believe that this would be his star restaurant. He took me aside and told me of his plans to open a more traditional restaurant, a ‘patatas and carne’ place somewhere near the Alhambra. He had already hired a top French Chef to develop the sauces to go with our exotic meats on offer. I asked him to source his meat through a catering supplier I favoured, to give him a boost in the trade rather than direct from Rod.

A massive storm accompanied by an earth tremor did untold damage to the area. Large chestnut trees fell, landslides, flooding in the valley carried off most of Arnolds good work, windows broken and roads carried away. Fortunately the cacti survived unscathed even though some were knocked over. The pigs and hens had the sense to take shelter and we managed to lock them in whilst we assessed the damage in the compound. One area of the security fence had slid into the ravine and a temporary fence was hastily erected until Antonio’s team could realign the main fence on more stable footings. The road was blocked and had to be repaired. Suddenly our costs for unplanned expense shot skywards. We tried to reassure ourselves that this was only a minor setback. Fortunately we had over recruited and had plenty of staff for the clear up work. I put my wine making on hold and had my men work on the road repair as a priority. Fortunately we still had the old Ferguson tractor that the Monks had bestowed on us and Manolo had repaired. Heavy equipment for hire was rare as rocking horse muck at this time.

Chapter 62

I was checking the accounts since the cash was flowing out for all the repairs and came across an entry that puzzled me. I went across to Carmella’s office.

‘Carmella, there’s an entry here for over six thousand Euros with your code and no explanatory note?’

‘It’s under the agreed ten thousand therefore doesn’t need explanation.’

‘Yes dear but we normally add a note just for clarification. You don’t have to go on the defensive.’

‘I’m not on the defensive but I didn’t have time to add a note and you did want all costs recorded promptly since I know we are in deep mire since the earthquake.’

‘So you’re not going to tell me?’

‘Of course I am!’

‘Don’t get shirty.’

‘I’m not, it just sounds like an inquisition, that’s all.’

‘Sorry, I’ll forget it and move on. Plenty to get on with.’

‘It’s payment for a Consultancy service.’

‘What do you want with outside consultancy?’

‘There you go again. I did this before all the problems hit us. I would have done it anyway. And you are the last one to complain about employing consultants. What did you do with Dennis then? Or have you forgotten?’

‘OK, OK I give in. Mea culpa, Mea culpa.’

‘Well the thing is that I thought that my slimming business would take off faster than it has. Just look at the results.’

‘Yes but you have had tons of letters of appreciation so you must be doing something right.’

‘There’s no problem with my customers and the regulars but I’m only getting a trickle of new ones and they are mainly from recommendations. Our advertising on the web is not working so I got a consultant in to check out the web advert and my business operation.’

‘Sounds sensible but your web pages look good and you guarantee results with money back. None of the others do that.’

‘Well the consultant says that we don’t provide enough services and facilities to pamper people.’

‘What do you mean? Your customers love the place and go home revived and happy. They haven’t mentioned missing anything or have they?’

‘No they haven’t and that’s the point. To get the punters interested you have to offer them all kinds of thing to tempt them. Look at these other spas I’ve printed out. They offer a raft of services that we don’t.’

‘What’s this? Blood tests, colonics, detox and anti-oxidant treatments. Give me a break Carmella. You know and I know that these are totally unproven quack remedies.’

‘Hang on, they may be totally unproven in the scientific circles but you know and I know that there is a billion pound industry out there flogging these treatments. And don’t forget the demand for your natural chemicals is mostly from the homeopathic industry that you despise so much.’

‘Touché. So what are you going to provide and what will be the take up? This isn’t going to be cheap.’

‘That’s why I employed a consultant. What I’m proposing to provide is a selection of treatments. Now don’t laugh. Don’t forget the customer is always right. And there will be a charge. The main thing according to the consultant is that it will attract new customers. When they get here they can then choose what they want. I think we need to have staff in white coats, uniforms that make them think they are getting a kind of clinical service here.’

‘OK I see your point. I didn’t think your customers were so gullible. We offer all kinds of healthy exercise which is much better that this mumbo jumbo.’

‘Yes, but the consultant says that most overweight people tend to shy away from exercise and want an easy magic formula.’

‘Well don’t they get it here?’

‘They do but we can’t go shouting from the tree tops that we doctor their food for their benefit. I haven’t even told the consultant that. Only that we have a planned diet and it works.’

‘Thank god for that. You know I don’t want our secret to get out. I’m sure it will but by then we will be well established. Now look at this, colonic irrigation, kinesiology tests, blood infusions, food intolerances, what does this all mean. Mind you it sounds impressive I suppose and just look at their fees, twice ours.’

‘You’ve answered the questions for yourself. I don’t intend to raise the prices but there’s no harm in charging for extras.’

‘The placebo effect is very potent. I understand that. I suppose you should get some staff in nurse’s uniforms to order the patients about.’

‘That’s exactly what the consultant said. He sent a woman here. One of his staff and although she enjoyed herself immensely and lost a lot of weight she felt it was more like being a guest on holiday than being in a treatment centre. One of the suggestions is to differentiate the staff and make them appear more clinical.’

‘Oh, I like nurse’s uniforms. Will you equip them with whips?’

‘Give up Paulo. Take this seriously.’

‘OK I will but we don’t have the space for a clinic and massage parlour plus all the consultation rooms that these adverts suggest.’

‘That’s why I want you to look at these,’ she said, proudly showing her plans for extensions to the Monastery. There were two wings with stair cases and apartments plus a central imposing frontage housing more staircases and two lifts.

“What do you want lifts for?” I asked. “Does the guests good to climb the stairs and why so many stair cases?” 

“The lifts are not specifically for guests Paulo. They are mainly for the housemaids to get the laundry trolleys to the rooms. They are complaining about the heavy baskets they have to carry.”

“OK, what about all the stair cases?”

“We need them for fire risk and the existing internal ones will be closed off and converted into paying rooms. I can then accommodate twenty more guests plus all the other treatment rooms we need. And before you ask, the finance has been checked and provisionally approved by Steve, so you don’t need to worry. I know we are having a tough time at the moment but I’m fully booked for six months and my staff are telling me that we need some spare rooms weekly to do a full spring clean, full maintenance and repaint, even update with refurnishing. Our guests are heavy users of our rooms unlike normal hotels.”

“OK, I suppose you have already approached the architect and builders and got the necessary approvals.”

“We can start next week! The local Councillors want us to bring more tourists and paying guests into the area and of course it ups their revenues with the increased rates we have to pay; classic ‘win-win’ situation.”

“I give in. Who taught you all this business sense?”

“I look and learn and especially listen to what you and your dad have to say. You two are my main tutors’ darling.”

“OK, what are you after, really?” 

“I want to garner your approval at the next Board Meeting and at this moment I need you to hold the fort whilst I go to Granada on a shopping trip!”

Chapter 63

It was late Spring time and the sun was hot enough to be midsummer. The twins were thriving, Carmella was due in a month’s time and the businesses were going from strength to strength. Carmella had appointed Lena as Manager and the only ugly blot on the horizon was that Rod had parked up two fridge containers in a visible part of the estate. No amount of planting could hide them. That was the cost of success. The other real disappointment was that, as I predicted, we couldn’t hold onto Arnold the Finn. Even the Golden Handcuffs were insufficient to tame his wander lust. His parting shot was to wire the solar panels into the grid so that we sold all of our power we generated into the system at an inflated price and bought it in at normal rates, which was at fraction of the cost. He recommended we didn’t invest in more panels since the capital costs were too high. We gave him a good send off. His work on the fish ponds prompted me to visit other local valleys which ran commercial fisheries for ideas. A full conversion would mean a huge investment in concrete and I wasn’t sure I wanted to spoil such a blissful location. The ponds had been restocked and it was too pleasant to see fish jumping for flies in more or less natural surroundings then be encased in concrete pools. The local fishermen enjoyed the sport and we enjoyed the tranquillity. The only element I changed was to hew out a rough path, wide enough for a horse, which followed the stream up to the top of the valley and then joined a hill track down along the ridge. This would extend our rides and walks by another five kilometres.

Manolo had doubled the output of the cacti so we were running with a surplus of the elixir and having to store it in our warehouse. The reason for the increase was that a Homeopathic firm had ordered a huge supply of one of the elements in the poison and Manolo had to increase the picking of spine fivefold. The resultant scars developed nice little off-springs which could be transplanted. We already had four seed heads as our back up and I calculated that there must be over a million individual there. The seeds were good and we regularly planted a few rows for the salads.

One evening, as we were enjoying a pre-dinner wine of my latest creation when Rod turned up with a large tray of Serano ham slices.

“There are five varieties here. Tell me which you think are the best.” Our guests were generally used to act as voluntary tasters and critically graded the samples.

“OK Rod, we have a result. This one is overall the best and then they grade down to that one. Were any of them from our own pigs?” I asked.

“Thank you folks,” he said, picking up the empty tray and pulling me aside. “Paulo, our ham is good. Maybe one of the best from the Alpujarras but it got the lowest score here. The best is from Extremadura. They feed the pigs on acorns and this must develop into this special flavour and texture.”

“What’s your point here Rod?” knowing full well where this was leading.

“We buy in raw hams from there, doctor them with your juice and let them mature in this mountain air, then we have the best of all worlds.”

“You mean give up on our own pig production?”

“No, just restrict it to a manageable size. I will need to build some more curing sheds at the back and then I can get rid of the temporary fridges.”

“Well if it means that, then do it. They are an eyesore. Rod, can you get sufficient of the quality raw hams?”

“Those aren’t a problem but we will have to market them differently. Can’t mark them up as ‘Five Bellotas’ as they do over there. We will have to call it our Monastery Superior Serano Ham.” 

“I suppose it will demand top prices?”

“It will and once our customers get the taste it will be in great demand. As an example, I didn’t think for one moment our ostrich meat sales would take off so much. It’s one of our best sellers at the moment. Dennis will love serving this as tapas at his restaurants. It will give him the edge.”

“He’s doing well without that extra. Rod, set up the changes and I’ll get full approval from the Board. I’ll also talk to Edo to restrict the herd of pigs we have. In fact reduce it because they are making a real mess of the terraces in the compound. Thanks Rod.”

Dad came to see me as I was sampling my wines.

“Hi Dad! Do you want to try some and give me a critical opinion?”

“No thanks Paulo. I’m drinking too much at the moment. Can I have five minutes of your time?”

“Sure thing Dad. Here pull up a stool.”

“Paulo, Mum and I have been thinking. Everything is rosy here and the business is good. You have some good people here to help you. We are getting on and I think it would be good for all if we moved on and retired from all this. No, No Paulo, let me finish! We will just take a back seat. Mum wants to spend more time back home in England and I’d like to take a month’s cruise. We will still be regular visitors here to see the children but it’s time we gave up the business side.”

“But Dad, you said that the business kept you young and you would like to pass away at your desk than in a bed.”

“Yes Paulo but the last few years have been hectic and I have come to my senses. Your business doesn’t need me anymore. Both you and Dennis have good business heads on your shoulders. Carmella and Janice are learning fast so it’s time for me to bow out.”

“We’ll keep your house on for you so you can visit any time Dad.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary. The only thing we ask you to do is build an extra bedroom for us that we can use when we visit. We also intend to stay at one of Janice’s hotels when we are in Spain. Mum wants her main base to be in England with her old friends about her.”

“We will all miss you but it’s all your choice.”

“Paulo, if I was here all the time I wouldn’t be able to resist making a comment or two on the business and I’d rather make a full break. I have already talked to Dennis and Mum is talking to Carmella. Don’t worry, we will be here for the birth and then we’ll go back to Surrey.” 

“Carmella, Mum and Dad are going back home.”

“Yes I know. Has my Dad talked it over with you?”

“What do you mean your Dad? Why should he get involved and tell me?”

“We are talking at cross purposes here. MY, Dad and Mum have to go back to Mexico.”

“Ah, I didn’t know that. That’s a new one on me. I was referring to my parents who want to live back in the cold and damp elements of England and Dad wants to give up any office in the business. Now tell me about your parents.”

“Mum tells me there has been some trouble at home over the farm that Dad left behind. You know. The normal family dispute about who is doing all the work and who is taking all the credit and all that. You’ve had some of that with Dennis here.”

“Tell me about it. So when do they propose to move?”

“I don’t know yet but Mum wants to stay here until I give birth but Dad reckons that they need to go out immediately and nip the problem in the bud.”

 “You mean before they settle it with machetes behind the bicycle sheds?”

“Well not quite like that but with the Mexican temperament it could get out of hand. It seems that Dad’s elder brother lays claim to the farm but his younger brother says that Dad left it to him to manage. But since they have been away for such a time the elder brother reckons it’s his inheritance by law and right and that the younger brother is ruining it for him.”

“So what is the solution? Is there one?” 

“I don’t know,” replied Carmella with a resigned smile. “The problem is that both of them go off fruit picking in the season, just like Dad did, to California and the farm is virtually abandoned.”

“I still don’t understand what the crux of the matter is?”

“Well the younger one has a better job out there as a mechanic and stays out longer.”

“A chip off the old block.”

“Yes Pedro is just like my dad whilst Spectro is less able that way and has to work the fields.”

“Can we help in any way? Financially or even get one of the brothers to come over here for a few years? Your Dad tells me that with the money he makes here he could easily buy enough land so that he wouldn’t need to take on the migrant work.”

“I don’t know but it would be nice if they didn’t have to go off each year.”

“I suspect that land is cheap where you come from. Why don’t you Carmella buy a large enough farm for the elder brother and say a workshop for the younger one since he is handy and he could also continue looking after the family homestead. You have enough money saved up.”

“Yes but that’s our money. What if something happens to the business and we need cash for ourselves here?”

“If that happens we can always rely on my Mum and Dad or even Dennis. Anyway, that’s not going to happen so your savings could be put to some good use. Treat it as an investment. Talk to your Dad about it.”

“I’m not so sure.”

“Look Carmella, we are in the fortunate position of being financially independent. Call us rich if you want a simple term. We can help financially if that would solve a family problem. Get your Mum and Dad over there as quickly as possible and we will arrange to wire money over there for them, enough to settle the matter and avoid bloodshed.”

“I don’t think it would lead to that but it does make sense Paulo. I’ll talk it over with Mum first. She is likely to know what the root of the matter is. And now tell me about your parents deserting the fold.”

“Mum wants to go back home to her roots and Dad simply wants to get his nose out of the business. Being here he says he would always be interfering and getting in the way. He wants to pass his time away with no responsibilities other than family. They’ve plenty of money with pensions, shares and things. I think Dad just wants to spend a bit more of it on travel. Don’t tell that to Mum yet.”

“I don’t see any problem in that. They deserve some time off. I’ll go and see my Mum straight away and arrange tickets for them. They can sort out the brothers and be back for the birth.”

Chapter 64

I was in the midst of calibrating the pumps and valves for the final blend of a new rose wine I had been working on when my mobile buzzed. A glance at the screen showed it was Dennis. 

“Hi, checking up on me are you?”

“No but I need your advice.”

“What? My advice? This is new,” I answered jokingly.

“Cut the crap Paul and get yourself over here,” answered Dennis rather curtly and calling me ‘Paul’ instead of ‘Paulo’ I knew this was something serious.

“Give me five minutes and I’ll be on my way. Where are you?”

“I’m just down in Orgiva with Janice.”

“I’m on my way, just slamming the door shut.” This didn’t sound like my brother. His tone of voice was just serious but not angry. I jumped into the first car that was facing the right way and roared off wondering what all this was going to lead to. Dennis normally comes straight out with it, face to face and not hiding behind a phone.

I parked the car on the pavement and saw Dennis looking out for me from the upstairs lounge window of their Hotel apartment. It was late morning so nobody about at the reception desk or in the internal patio. I bound up the stairs and was met by Dennis.

“Glad you came Paul,” he said gripping my shoulder and guiding me into their private lounge. “It’s Janice. She’s upset.” Janice saw me and I noticed immediately that she had been crying. She bound up from the large sofa and hugged me starting to cry on my shoulder.

“Hey! What’s the matter dear?  What’s happening here?”

“It’s this letter,” she managed to burble out between sobs pointing to a sheet of paper on the side table.

“It’s a letter from the hospital,” said Dennis gravely as I steered Janice back to her seat. “We need your opinion on it. You know about such things. I told Janice you would reassure her.” I picked up the letter and read and reread it a couple of times. It was in Spanish from the hospital in Granada.

“It’s a result of a biopsy and is stating that the growth shows signs of cancer. Cancer?” I cried looking from Janice to Dennis. “No one told me you were having tests?”

“No Paulo, this has been ongoing for some time and I’ve been having regular tests for over three years now but this one has come with a negative result and I’m worried.”

“It says here that it’s in the stomach lining and there’s evidence of it spreading further. Were you aware of this possibility before Janice?”

“Well yes and no Paul. The thing is, up to now they said it was benign.”

“And where have you had these tests? Just in Granada?”

“No it was picked up in England first when I was initially diagnosed with a duodenal ulcer but they found this growth which they said was harmless but now that’s changed. What do you advise Paul. You know more about these things than we do?”

“I’m not sure about that Janice but you need to get a second opinion straight away. I’ll check with the hospital. I know some of the people there or at least they know me. I’ll find out the best specialists in that field and we’ll get you sent off for further checks.”

“Thanks Paulo, I knew you could help. Me and Janice just felt helpless.”

“What if it’s gone all through me Paulo? What if they can’t cure me?” asked Janice snuffling in her handkerchief.

“Don’t look at the worst in this. Let’s put all of our efforts into finding out what this all means. It says in the letter that you should arrange another appointment urgently.”

“That’s what worried us Paul from the beginning,” answered Dennis sitting next to Janice as I paced up and down trying to see the proper path in all of this.

“What about our business?” wailed Janice.

“Bugger the business. We need to focus on this first and get you right as rain Janice. Look, I will call someone I know in Granada and see if I can get to the right department and right specialist. Where’s the phone? Don’t bother I have my contact plumbed in on my mobile. I’ll use that.” I sat in an alcove next to a table and called my contact, who then put me through to somebody else more pertinent at the hospital whilst Dennis fussed around Janice. I had the sense to bring a pad and pencil plus plugging my phone into a charger. It took a while waiting for the right specialist and the right consultant and for them to update themselves on the patient. I don’t know how long it took but I was exhausted and sweating heavily when I finally closed my mobile and faced two expectant faces who had been patiently following my one way discussion.

“I’m afraid it doesn’t look good Janice. The original growth has increased in size, is now malignant and they have found further signs that this has been spreading. I asked for you to be referred to the best specialists and they initially suggested Madrid or possibly Geneva as the best place for you to be treated and we will get an email this afternoon. Well, I will get it on my phone and I will pass the information on. Janice be assured that we will get you the best treatment possible where ever that may be,” I said in my best perceived bedside manner but Janice just dissolved into tears.

“You’ll have to take over the reins brother until this is over. I’m going to have to stand with Janice on this all the way.”

“Quite right Dennis. Don’t you worry about both your businesses. I’ll look after them. I’ll appoint managers to keep them going through this. You just concentrate on Janice. Does anybody else in the family know about this Dennis?”

“No and I’m reluctant to broach this to Dad since I know he wants to leave the business. I don’t want him to continue Paulo. Find another solution.”

“I will, I will Dennis. Don’t either of you two worry. I’ll get good people, the best, to take over and carry on in your grand style. Now, I suggest that you come over to us. Janice can go over things with Carmella rather than just moping here. Dennis and I will absorb ourselves with daily tasks until we hear from the hospital.”      

  

Chapter 65

Doodling on my pad wasn’t going to give me the inspiration I wanted. I threw the pen away in disgust and it bounced and landed in a tray of business cards. I retrieved it after admonishing myself of childish behaviour and spied a card of a Pan-European Consulting Bureau that specialised in headhunting top people for the hotel and catering industry. I had been happy to avoid them up to now but current needs must. A clerk took down my particulars or at least checked them against his screen for any updates that might be required. I was impressed by their knowledge of our company and then we spent some time on my requirements. The clerk, Andre, was most helpful and we put together a complete summary of the saviour I needed to rapidly take over from Dennis and Janice.

Less than ten minutes later I had a call from Andre that his Director would like to speak to me.

“Hello Mr. Bellman, I hear from my colleague Andre that you require our services? My name is Xavier Berlotti and I’m a Senior Director of this company. I can assure you that we can help you immediately. Please call me Xavier.”

“Thank you for getting back to me so quickly Xavier.”

“Yes, Andre described your current predicament and I have spent the last few minutes going over your dossier Mr. Bellman and I do believe I have a candidate in the wings ready to help you out.”

“Well Xavier, that was quick. Please call me Paulo.”

“Right Paulo, I assume you are sitting at your desk as Andre had confirmed and that our first candidate for the post is on your Email if you would be so kind to bring it up. His current situation is that his Hotel that he has been managing for the last five years has closed and is about to undergo extensive renovation and update for at least eighteen months. We are in the process of contacting him at this very moment to check his interest. I honestly believe that he is ready for a change and something more challenging.”

“Right, I’ve got his CV up on my screen. He’s currently at a spa hotel in Interlaken and now will be overseeing the refurbishments. Won’t he want to continue with that and see his ideas to fruition?”

“I think he is too ambitious to sit on his hands for two years. He’s a very hand’s on type of person and wouldn’t allow himself to go stale, just a moment Paulo. Thank you Andre. Paulo, Andre has given me an update and sent Henryk Straussmann the details of your company and the job description. Let’s leave it there for the moment and I will contact you immediately we have heard from Henryk.” 

Henryk, a strict looking man with a ramrod straight back that would have done the Guards proud, arrived and insisted on visiting all of the restaurants unannounced. This seemed pointless since his description had quickly been distributed on the grapevine. When I pointed out that it would be impossible for him to arrive alone and get a table since all our restaurants were fully booked for months ahead, he finally agreed that I should accompany him and introduce him to the managers and staff. He made copious notes and wasn’t particularly good company I found. His Spanish was good if rather stilted. I put this behaviour down to simply him assessing the business he was being offered. He left bound for Zurich telling me that I would have his decision at five minutes past ten on Friday. Not seven minutes or about ten but precisely five past the hour. That’s how he was. At least he asked what I thought were pertinent questions. 

“Buenos dias Señor Bellman. Che tal?” he asked at precisely five past ten. “I presume you would prefer to conduct our discussion in English?”

“English would better,” I answered deciding that all the formality meant that he was going to decline the position. Throughout his visit I had the distinct impression that it was I who was being interviewed. “And please call me Paulo, everybody else here does.”

“I would rather be formal at this meeting. I have considered your business carefully and the position you have on offer. I am grateful that you answered my questions correctly and according to my investigations, truthfully. I was precise about my timing for this communication since I had to visit a friend in hospital and morning visiting finishes at ten o’clock. I have some important conditions that I must raise with you Mr. Bellman.”

“Mr. Straussmann, do I intimate that you are interested in taking up the position?”

“Yes Mr. Bellman, I find your hotels and restaurant chain most interesting. My only conditions are that I can start immediately and that my contract be two full years and not the eighteen months that was on offer. That would coincide with my hotel complex being finished.”

“I accept the first condition since you know of our circumstances. Can I infer Mr. Straussmann that you would return to your former employer at the end of two years?”

“You may read that into my demand and my former position will be open to me but a lot can happen in two years.”

“Right Mr. Straussmann, welcome to the fold. I presume you have sorted out your salary and bonuses with Mr. Xavier Berlotti?”

“I have to my satisfaction. Can I now call you Paulo and you may call me Henryk.”

“Thank you Henryk. Now where would you like to base yourself? I would suggest an apartment at one of our hotels in Granada. The Monastery is rather isolated.”

“I have considered that Paulo and since I would be occupying a revenue position it would be better for me to rent an apartment in Granada.”

“Well we would certainly contribute to that Henryk. I would suggest that you come and stay with us at the Monastery initially so that we could get to know you better and you can have an understanding of all of our integrated businesses.”

“I would be most honoured Paulo. I will Email you my travel arrangements.”

“We can provide you with a car until you decide what transport you require.”

“Thank you Paulo, that’s very kind of you. Goodbye and I shall be contacting you soon.”

That was the end of a very formal conversation. I wasn’t sure that I should be pleased or angry. I had been assured by the agency that this was a top notch candidate and he came at a price. His track record was outstanding and in Interlaken he had single handed transformed an ordinary hotel into one of International standing. The owners decided to go a step further and invest in an expensive refurbishment programme and I assumed that Mr. Straussmann would want to be part of it in the future. I didn’t know what to make of him but I had a get out clause with the agency if Mr. Straussman didn’t perform and keep the business on a sure footing until Dennis returned, if he ever did. I only hope that Janice survived the ordeal of all the medication. I was on my own in this.

Henryk arrived and was a transformed person. Extremely friendly to all and had lost his apparent aloofness. He set about the business in an ordered manner with regular updates and I left him to his own devises. He seemed very competent and gained respect of all the restaurant and hotel managers. I could now concentrate on other things and assure Dennis and Janice, who were now in Geneva, that their business was in good hands.     

Chapter 66

It was a month later I had to take an urgent call from Cesar the manager of our flagship restaurant in Granada and he was calling from home before going to work. It must have been important because Cesar would have used the company phone for general matters.

“Hola Cesar, what’s going on?”

“I’m glad I’ve caught you Paulo. Are you alone?”

“Yes Cesar, I’ve been waiting for your call in my office. I thought it would be important.”

“Thank you Paulo, you see I have been asked by all the managers to contact you on a personal matter. We think it is important.”

“Go ahead Cesar but I’m disappointed that anyone of you didn’t just pick up the phone and air your problems. Just because Dennis is not here doesn’t prevent you from contacting me direct if you have an issue. Now what is all this about?”

“It’s a delicate matter and we don’t want to upset the applecart as Mr. Dennis would say.”

“Come on Cesar, out with it. It sounds important and you know me well enough to tell me exactly how it is. Tell it straight.”

“Thank you Paulo, it’s about our Mr. Henryk Straussmann. I think and we think you should know.”

“OK Cesar, what has he been doing? I thought you all got on well with him and respected his expertise?”

“Oh we do Paulo and he is very competent, very accomplished and a brilliant director. Very helpful.”

“OK so what’s the problem?”

“It’s a delicate matter and we are not sure if you have ordered him or at least directed him to take the business this way?”

“What way? Please explain in simple terms Cesar what Henryk is up to.”

“Henryk is planning to take the business upmarket. He wants to change our menus and make them more sophisticated. He wants more tables in the dining rooms so that we can increase the revenues. Where will we seat the hangers on and Antonio’s business people? He wants to have a dress code for the clients. Antonio and other local businessmen would be turned away. You know how informal we are in Spain. He wants to do away with the foyer with the champagne and tapas. He says it’s unnecessary and there are all diverting us from making greater profits and taking the business further.  He also wants to change suppliers but we can’t do that. He’s only suggesting this so that he can appoint his own suppliers and get a cut. That’s what all managers do.”

“I think I understand his point but has anybody explained our well worked formula to him?”

“We have tried Paulo but he says that’s OK for start-up businesses but we should be expanding and moving forward to better things.”

“Has he implemented any of his ideas yet?”

“No Paulo, not yet. He is using the usual modern management techniques to get all managers to put forward our own ideas at our management meeting next week where he will make us feel that we are the ones putting forward all this crap.”

“Now Cesar, thank you for putting this to me. I don’t think Henryk’s ideas are all bad but it’s not the way Dennis would want the Company to go. I think he was more comfortable with an easy going but efficient system. I don’t think that our Mr. Henryk quite understands that we are a vertically integrated company with each part totally dependent on the other. Leave this with me Cesar. I’ll talk to Henryk and tell your colleagues to carry on with the good job but don’t upset our Mr. Henryk. I’ll get back to you shortly Cesar. Bye.” I put the phone down and held my head in my hands. This Henryk was good and if we followed his plan we would make lots of money but Dennis was adamant that we follow a low key approach and keep all people happy.

“Hey Paulo, you look as if you’ve had a bad day?”

“Hi Steve, sit yourself down and take my mind off my current problem.”    

“Not money problems I hope. I’ve checked the accounts and we are very healthy at the moment thank you.”

“No it’s Henryk. He’s too ambitious and wants to take Dennis’s restaurant business up another notch. I can see where he’s coming from but it’s too much tinkering and I don’t want Dennis being upset at this moment in time. He’s put his heart and soul into this concept. It may not be the most efficient but it fulfils his dream.”

“Get him in and talk it through. Adapt the good points but don’t let him change the concept too much.”

“I’m trying to gauge his reaction if I tell him to stop. I should have had the foresight to see that given a free hand he would want to change and improve things his way.”

“Has he given you any pre-warning of this?”

“Not yet but he is good at keeping me informed. I know he is holding a meeting of his managers next week and he promised me a full agenda. Cesar called me and told me how upset and concerned they all were.”

“Maybe they all do need a good kick up the pants. Dennis was always too lenient with his staff. He was too busy with his next venture. Look Paulo, I was about to suggest a Directors meeting next week. Some urgent stuff needs discussion. I’ll tell you in a moment. Get Henryk to join us and postpone his meeting for another day. That will give you more time to think.”

“Arrange that Steve. I don’t want to upset the guy because he’s good and if he leaves then we are in the lurch again and Dennis and Janice will be upset and that’s the last thing they need at this moment.”

“Look Paulo, what you need for the restaurant business is a plodder, a good man manager who will run the business as you want without too much ambition. I think I have a candidate.”

“OK but I don’t want to lose Henryk really.”

“Well the best way to keep him is to promote him to say non-executive director, give him a share in the business and say put him in charge of developing the hotel business.”

“I’ll think about that. Now what is it you want to see me about?”

“I’m giving in my notice Paulo. Don’t look so shocked. Three months and I have a Finance person in the wings who can take over. We have to go back to Sweden to look after our aged parents. This is payback time for us; reminds me of the saying, ‘Looks after your children well because they will be the ones selecting your care home.’ We would both rather stay here and persuading them over to join us but that’s not an option.”

“That’s three lots of people leaving the business in a short spell. Four if you count Carmella. She will have to give up soon.”

“You will survive Paulo. Everything is on a strong footing so don’t worry, just go forward.”

Chapter 67

“Hello Henryk, I’m glad you came early. There are a few things I want to discuss with you.”

“I expected that Paulo, especially after I posted you the agenda and you cancelled my meeting.”

“Not quite like that but it would be convenient to hold it later. There were a number of points I didn’t agree with on your agenda and they need discussion and understanding. I don’t want to limit you but we do have a business plan for the restaurants which I should have told you about from the outset.”

“I know my managers have been talking to you. I don’t mind but they do need to change their ideas and be more efficient.”

“Henryk, I whole heartedly agree with you on that point. The managers have had it too easy and are getting sloppy.”

“Full tables all the time make the managers forget the principles of good service. I have made my own investigations Paulo and I agree I was hasty on some points and I have some pertinent questions for you to get a better understanding of your current and future plans.”

“Henryk, I don’t want to curb your ambitions but Dennis and I want to retain the basics that we have got and only tinker about the edges. I have a proposal for you to consider. I want to appoint a senior manager to oversee the restaurant business and keep it as it is. I have something more important for you. You will retain overall management of the restaurant business and in charge of this manager so you can ensure efficiency and top notch customer service. Now for you, I will promote you to a Director of the Company with a shareholding and you will develop and progress our hotels as a priority. That’s your forte I believe.”

“I wasn’t expecting that Paulo, more a parting of the waves?”

“No, the business needs you but you can appreciate the sensitive times we are going through.”

“I understand Paulo. I have been talking to Carmella and she showed me the plans for the Monastery, very interesting and well thought out. Now Paulo, if you would let me take charge of the Monastery business as well then it will kill two birds with one stone as you say in England. I see your wife is pregnant and will have to give up soon. I could take over immediately and develop that side further. Spas are my speciality.”

“Agreed Henryk but I don’t know how I will tell this to my wife at the Board Meeting later.”

“I’m sure you will manage Paulo. Anyway it is my condition of staying on and playing an active part of the Company.”

“After the meeting Henryk, I would like you to spend some time with me and going over the list of pointers that we want this new manager to progress. It’s one of Steve’s protégé’s and I would like you to be in on the interview process.”

The Board Meeting was straight forward with Steve outlining his succession in the Finance area. I welcomed Henryk on board as a Director and handing over the responsibility for the Monastery to him. The relief on Carmella’s face pleased me because I hadn’t time to warn her of this new development. After a glorious lunch Henryk and I spent two hours developing a plan of improvements to the restaurants without changing the basic concept too much. The main thing was with staff training, the appearance of the served food, and improving the customer service. My head hurt after that session. I realised that we had been muddling along without a professional view, only gut feel. Henryk was going to provide that drive and improve our profits without doubt. He was coming back next day to review the plans and operations with Carmella. Just as Henryk was leaving I spied Rod our butcher hovering outside my office door.

“OK, come in Rod. You want to see me, yes?”

“Yes Paulo. I know you’re busy but I have something important on my mind and I must discuss it with you.” 

“You’re not handing in your notice are you?” I said with horror.

“No, no Paulo but I am an ambitious man and I don’t want to be holding a knife in my hand all my life. I have a proposal. I have written it up here with the help of Steve and Carmella and they agree that it is all workable.”

“Sit down and tell me the gist of your ideas.”

“What is this ‘Gist’ Paulo?”

“Just give me an overview now and I’ll study your proposal later.”

“I want to take the business onto the next step. In fact lots of steps up the ladder. We have a brilliant product with meats and your wines but the monastery is too restrictive, too small and no space to develop. I want to move the business to a site in Granada where there are better communications.  Transport is a problem here in the mountains for supplies, labour and getting the finished product to market. We need to move and increase the business fivefold immediately.”

“Woah! That’s a bit much Rod. Where will we get the sales?”

“All in the proposal Paulo. I am restricted here and suppliers are all asking for more stock. They say they can sell all we give them.”

“OK, OK Rod. I take it you would move the butchery and meat processing to Granada. I don’t see any problem there.”

“No, No Paulo, we move your wine and water business too. Only a tanker will take our water to Granada so no more busy traffic to upset the peace here.”

“Now the sixty million dollar question for you. Does Carmella agree with this?”

“Yes, yes Paulo. She proposed this. All you have here is a laboratory and kitchen where we conjure up new meats, wines and processes. The production is done in Granada.”

“How do the finances look? I suppose Steve agrees?”

“No problem. We lease premises, equipment and vehicles and the first increase in business will cover that cost. Break even at end of first year and double profits every year after that until we reach capacity.”

“OK, next big question. Who runs all this?”

“I do Paulo and we have a sales and marketing team to support me and the rest of the business.”

“I was trying to avoid all that additional expense.”

“We are a big business now Paulo. Even Henryk was surprised that we didn’t have support services.”

“OK Rod, now where do I fit into all of this?”

“Paulo, you’re the big chief who sits by the pool with a big cigar and counts all the money coming in.”

“I like your style Rod. I will study your proposal, talk to Steve and see how viable this all is and how this all fits in with our future business plans.”

“Paulo, you have good people working for you and they want to do a good job. Don’t worry. Don’t forget to talk to Carmella about this. Much of this was her plan.”

Chapter 68

“Paul! You didn’t warn me of this development!”

“You must be very angry dear to call me ‘Paul.’ Where’s the ‘Paulo’ gone to? Hey I didn’t see you put up a fight as I taught you and then there’s the Rodreguez thing. You kept that from me.”

“Now don’t change the subject. I wanted Rod to get all the glory for his idea. Steve and I just placed the whole thing on a good financial and operational footing.”

“I presume Rod involved you to sweet talk me into it all. Did you include moving my wine business to Granada?”

“Of course! You were getting too involved and we needed a professional not an amateur.”

“Then we are quits. You seemed relieved at the meeting when this came up. Did you have an inkling?”

“When I spoke to Henryk when he first came, I realised how much I was out of my depth in this. Yes, I was doing OK and we have a fabulous product which is the roots of this business but I didn’t really know how to take it forward. I also made the cardinal sin of not looking into a successor when I had to give up so ‘Yes’ it was a comfort to put this to one side. After the meeting I had a quick meeting with Henryk to congratulate him and hand over my file for the extension plans for the Monastery.”

“So what was his reaction?”

“Oh he was very encouraging but I felt he was pandering to me so I told him to tell me straight. He said the current building was nothing to be proud of and the planned extensions were in the same vein. He went on to say we should do something more dramatic.”

“What does he mean by ‘dramatic’? The Swiss are a conservative bunch usually.”

“Well he said we should do something like in the Louvre with the Pyramid. He sketched a new wing which was all glass. Twice the size we planned and the glass wall facing the pool, our rustic buildings and especially the mountains. It would act like a gigantic mirror. People would see an extension or reflection of themselves as they dined on the terrace and the best thing is it would show up the Sierras which are hidden from view down on the terrace.”

“I presume that he has done this to his hotel in Interlaken?”

“No, the ‘Conservative’ Swiss Directors didn’t have the balls for it.”

“I like this Henryk. I think he is going to be good for our business.”

“I like him too but he is a smoothy. He said he was impressed with the way we served lunches here at the Monastery, better than in Dennis’s restaurants.”

“Yes, I got all that from him. He wants the presentation of food at the restaurants to improve to at least the standards your Lena serves. Smaller portions and if the punters object they can have a ‘Racionne’ on the house free of charge. He’s impressed with Lena and her staff. He was more impressed when I told him they were all part time cleaning staff who put on a starched piny and became waitresses.”

“Did you tell him about our secret ingredient?”

“I had to. He was most impressed and he admitted that he had a second helping of salad which he’s not particularly fond of and the potatoes. He was shocked that we allowed our inmates to help themselves freely to the delicious mash, chips and Dauphinoise whirls until I explained that there was less than a calorie in each helping. Now the Rod thing has come at an opportune moment in that the space that it frees up Henryk wants to retrain his chefs and waiters into what he called fine dining Spanish style.”

“Aren’t we going to upset our regulars?”

“He has no intention of upping the prices but serve the food in a nicer way. That doesn’t cost any more in his eyes as just slapping ladles of slop on a plate. I know he was harsh but I must admit one could see it from his point of view.”

“He was most impressed in the variety of meats that Lena served up. Did he tell you?”

“He did say we should review our menus. Interestingly he touched on a fault I always found at all restaurants other than Fast Food joints. They take away the menu as soon as you have ordered. I’m always interested to know what they have ordered at the neighbouring table. It always looks more interesting than mine. He suggested printing more and even allowing the guests to take the menu home with them as a reminder.”

“Now have you studied Rod’s proposal?”

“I’ve read it and I can see your influence there and of course Steve’s.”

“We just tidied it up and made into a proper business plan. It was all Rod’s ideas apart from my inclusion of the wines.”

“Rod attributed most of the proposal to you and Steve.”

“That was certainly not the case. We held an interview process with Rod for the job, there and then so that he didn’t have time to prepare. He came out of it with flying colours and that’s why we suggested that he should put himself forward for the position.”

“I can’t visualise Rod giving up the knife for a laptop just like that?”

“I can and so does Steve. We may have to curb his ambitions but he is more than capable of taking this forward.”

“What about my wines?”

“You’ll get over it Paulo. There are plenty of experts around that can advance your blending business beyond your imagination. Don’t forget that we are beyond the kitchen sink stuff now. We need to place the whole business on a professional footing and the finances will look after themselves.”

“Now tell me who Steve’s got to take over the financial side and manage the restaurants.”

“Ah, you will like this or maybe not Paulo. We have interviews next week and the three candidates are all sassy women. We need more women on our Board and at management level.”

“I would agree with that but why only three candidates. It seems to be a foregone conclusion.”

“It is and I have met them all and the interview is just for you to be comfortable working with two of them. Steve has never been wrong in the past. Now I want to raise the matter of our future with you Paulo.”

“Well you will continue on the Board and I’m redundant as far as I see.”

“That’s what I mean. We are independent again and we should take advantage of it. After the birth we should consider taking time off and you can then show me your Europe that you promised in Mexico, or have you forgotten your promise?”

“But that means we have to give all this up and leave the business in a turmoil?”

“We’ve done it before but you have a year to arrange things here that we can leave the business in good hands. Anyway, you always say that we are only a phone call away anywhere in the world. You could run this business stuck up Mont Blanc in a tent with a laptop.”

“Yes dear but I’m not going to go to such extremes.”

“After the birth, we need six months and then we should plan to take off and see Europe so you do the planning with the business end and I’ll arrange the itinerary. Bye, I have an appointment with some architects.”

Chapter 69

“Hola Paulo. Can I disturb you for a minute?”

“Hi Antonio. Come in, sit down. I haven’t seen you for a while to talk to. I hope Rosario is going to invite me for a meal tonight. Look, my bones are even disintegrating. This Monastery diet is no good for either of us.”

“You look good on it Paulo and I feel ten years younger but I’ll tell Rosario to make Rabo de Toro with lots of fattening accompaniments to put some flesh on us. Now I have come to inform you that I am retiring and moving to Galicia for a while.”

“Oh no! Not another one leaving the sinking ship? Everybody seems to be leaving the business.”

“It’s not that bad Paulo. It is dead men’s shoes. We are making room for the younger folk to take over. Like you and Dennis. You also have Rodreguiez, Lena, Jurek, Oscar and lots of our other young people who will take the business forward. Rosario’s parents and family are from Vigo in Galicia and she would like to spend some time up there with them.”

“So who is taking over the business, Ronaldo?”

“You will be surprised to hear that the family have elected that Alfonso take over from me.”

“But he’s the youngest and hardly out of University.”

“Ah, but we all agreed that he has the best head on his shoulders and has already proved it. Each of our sons and daughters has a stake in the business and are happy to run their bit. Now I have to ask you a special favour.”

“Ask away Antonio and you know I’ll do my best to fulfil your request.”

“It’s the new glass extension to the Monastery. I want Alf to build it for you.”

“But I understood that you don’t have the expertise to build a steel and glass structure?”

“We don’t but remember the time your grandfather gave me the first construction job. I knew nothing about building then, now I’m an expert. Alf will get experts in so that he can learn and that’s the point of me asking. I have studied the new plans and think they are fantastic. I want my family to be part of that construction. It will be marvellous publicity for Alf and launch him in his career. That Henryk has some genius streak in him. I reckon he pushed the project to propel his very own career.”

“Well I haven’t considered Henryk in that light but I can see your point there. He’s a good member of the team. Now Carmella who is carrying out the preliminary studies and considerations for the new extension is having a site meeting next week with the appointed architects. I will speak to her and put the case forward for Alf to be the main contractor. He can then subcontract the steel and glass elements. Make sure he’s available to attend the site meeting.”

“Thank you Paulo. This will make our family very proud to have Alfonso associated with such an important project.”

“Hey Antonio, I would have been mortified if I had found out that you were interested in the work but failed to tender. Since we are a private company we don’t have to put out work to tender if we don’t want to so Alf can have the job. I’m sure that the rest of the board will agree. Our families are intertwined over the years. Send Alf round. I haven’t seen him for quite a while.”

“He’s been busy Paulo tightening up my business. Doing a Henryk on it. A bit of professionalism doesn’t go amiss. Better than ‘seat of the pants’ as the General used to say.”

“Antonio, don’t belittle your achievements. Quality and customer service was your forte and that gave your success that you rightly deserve.” I said as he rose, shook my hand in both of his and sauntered off looking very pleased. 

I immediately went off to find Carmella and was told that she was in my winery.

“Hi Carmella and hi Lena. What are you two skulking around my domain?”

“Not your domain much longer Paulo,” answered Lena with a conspiratorial smile.

“Nope, once all this rubbish is cleared out and sent to Granada, this territory belongs to Lena.”

“Okay, okay, spill the beans. What plans have you got to kick me out?”

“Well your wine business is moving to Granada with Rod as you know. We’ll leave you a few vats and space to play but we are checking if this space can convert to a cookery training school that Lena will run. Henryk says we should train up our own chefs and front of house staff so that they are all up to his exact standards. Since this space will be free we can run a cookery school for local Spanish people and maybe our spa clients too.”

“I’m glad you said that Carmella. I thought a slimming clinic and cookery school were a bit contradictory.”

“Actually Paulo you may have something there,” said Lena thoughtfully. “We could run special cookery courses for our clients and that could bring extra revenue.”

“Are you forgetting something Lena? They won’t have access to our special ingredient when they get home.”

“Paulo, you’re not normally so short sighted,” laughed Carmella. “Have you seen what they charge for dietary foods? An absolute fortune. Since the stuff is dry and light that you produce we could have a mail order business. We can hardly use up all your by-product here.”

“I’ll leave it to you ladies to sort that out. Now Carmella, I need a word with you if you would excuse us for a moment Lena. Has Antonio been to see you?”

“No, but Rosario has phoned and we are invited to dinner there tomorrow night. She wants us to convince Antonio that they go on a month long cruise.”

“I know why. Antonio has just been to tell me he’s retiring and handing the business over to Alf. You know the youngest whose been away to University and some professional course.”

“I thought that Ronaldo would take over. I suppose we will learn more, tomorrow night.”

“Now, Antonio came to see me specifically to ask if his company, under Alf, could be the main contractors for the new extension. It would be a prestigious piece of work for Alf and would put him on the map as his first major job. Before you talk about experience in glass and steel, he would subcontract the specialist bits.”

“I must admit I felt rather uncomfortable when we changed the design and had to look for alternative contractors to Antonio. There you go again Paulo, finding a suitable solution to a tricky problem. I know why I married you. Give me a kiss dear.”

“Hey you married me because you felt sorry for me and I was handsome as a prince. Oh! That hurt!”

“You deserve it. I’ll phone Alf immediately and invite him to our next site meeting. All our ducks are falling into place Paulo. I hope you are keeping Dennis informed to stop him from worrying?”

“Of course I am darling but I’m watering it down a lot so that he doesn’t feel threatened by all the progress and changes we have made. I told him we’ve only tinkered with the edges and that Henryk is doing just a good job. I tell you, getting him on board was the best thing we ever did. We were amateurs in this business.”

“Hey but your Dad knew a thing or two about business and there was also Steve who kept our finances on the straight and narrow.”

“Yes but Dad’s expertise was in engineering not in catering and hotels. You must admit that even though we had a good product and were doing well, Henryk has kicked us bodily up the learning curve.”

“We might have got there ourselves dear but I agree that Henryk has been a good shock to our system. Now we have to find a nice suitable young local lady for him to marry so that he stays here.”

“Oh, we are into matchmaking business now are we? Ouch! That really hurt.”