Chapter 16
How few there are who have the courage to own their own faults,
or resolution enough to mend them.
-Benjamin Franklin
Dave walked up to the car, slid into the passenger seat and shut the door behind him.
Silence.
Zac wiped his eyes with his forearm.
“Did blubbering about it help?”
A mute shake of the head.
“Let’s talk it through then...”
Zac fired Dave a cautious look.
“I was just about to go for a drive. Clear my head.”
“How long since you slept eight hours straight?”
“A while. I’m not sure anymore.”
“Any sleep on the plane?”
“Not much.”
“I guess you know it’s not safe to drive like that.”
Dave held out an outstretched palm. Zac handed over the keys with a sigh of resignation.
“How did you know I’d be here anyway?”
“Because you’re a lot like me. And it’s the sort of thing I would have done 35 years ago...”
“I can’t see how we’re alike. Our cultural backgrounds are different. And you’re ex-military and I wouldn’t want to be military in a million years.”
“We’re alike in other ways. We share the same intense desire to lead others by example. And help others avoid pitfalls... And like you I get angry at the people I love...”
Zac sagged his head against the car headrest and exhaled noisily.
“You’d think I wouldn’t get wound up by her eh? I mean she’s eight years younger than me... But it’s always been the same... She points out a weakness and I take on the challenge and address it.”
Dave chuckled.
“Nothing wrong with self-improvement. You just have to pick when you take on the challenge.”
“Not advisable when you’ve got jet lag?”
“Or when you’re recovering from tackling another challenge like Farliga Pass. I never take on a challenge when I’m exhausted unless it’s unavoidable.”
“Standing in a shower isn’t exactly physically demanding.”
“No. But Farliga Pass used up your emotional reserves too. And having a shower with other people can be quite daunting when you’ve never done it before.”
A guarded sideways glance.
“How did you know I’ve never done it before?”
Dave laughed.
“Bounding carotid artery... too timid to make more than fleeting eye contact with me when you normally find it easy... constantly soaping your pubic area in an attempt to shield it from me, in case I was a peeking Dave...”
Zac exhaled noisily.
“Actually I was intrigued when Maya told me you all took Farliga Pass,” ventured Dave.
“Did she tell you I froze on the rope bridge?”
“No. Although I read between the lines when I saw the photos. I’m surprised John didn’t help you make the crossing actually.”
“He was doing something else important with the Airforce blokes at the time. But he said they were monitoring our progress.”
Dave nodded.
“Did he tell you about his own experience on the rope bridge?”
“He said when you finally coaxed him across, you made him go back over again.”
“And again. We went back to the point where he’d glitched and went over the same ground again and again until he was relaxed enough to walk out on the bridge by himself and sit down on the ropes and eat chocolate with me and Jen.”
“Jen and you used to sit out there together?”
“All the time. It was one of the few places we could kiss and cuddle without being interrupted... Saw some photos this arvo which suggested another couple felt like kissing in about the same spot actually...”
Zac’s lips quivered.
“Hmmm... Something happen up at the Pass you need to talk about?”
“Stuff happened... Stuff didn’t happen... Pandora’s box territory Dave. Keep out unless you’ve got all night.”
Dave laughed warmly. Zac cleared his throat.
“The Pass was difficult for me. But tonight’s been mega-difficult.”
“I know... Take your shirt off.”
“W...why?”
“Because you coped with Hope’s challenge up to the point where I examined the ulcers on your shoulders... So that’s where we go back to, to get past this glitch.”
Zac removed his shirt and positioned his arms protectively in front of his chest. Dave read the body language.
“Okay. Let’s talk about what happened from that point.”
“I’m too ashamed to talk about it... And afraid.”
“Sounds like an echo of Eden to me.”
“Adam had it easy. He hid from God ‘coz he discovered he was naked. But no one else was around to think he was a gay paedophiliac...”
“You know, I’ve interacted with a lot of men over the years and I’ve pretty much seen it all... Early on in my career I worked out a fail-safe way of determining if physical contact is perverted. It’s called intent. Gay behaviour involves intentional contact between two people of the same gender for sexual gratification. And paedophiles intentionally involve children in their distorted scenarios...”
Zac moistened his lips.
“...but that’s different to intentionally contacting someone’s genitals for medical purposes... or contacting a child’s genitals as a parent... or light-hearted physical contact between friends in the shower... or accidental contact... or a child’s explorative contact,” continued Dave softly.
Zac drew a noisy breath.
“Watching you and Petrina interact tonight was entertaining but there was obviously no perverted intent on your part or hers. Your four year old friend was just curious to know whether your lighter skin felt the same as her darker skin... Except as a result, some things which you’ve been keeping the lid on worked their way to the surface and now you have to deal with them... How about you let down your guard and we talk about what’s really bothering you, eh?”
Ω
An awkward silence. Zac moistened his dry lips and risked looking at Dave in the fading light.
“Up at the Pass I slept in a share bag under an incredibly romantic starlit sky, centimetres from a sexy woman and my body was completely unresponsive to her. Which didn’t bother me at the time...”
“But it does now?”
“Yes... Because tonight I had to fight off an intense wave of arousal when you examined my shoulders. And I’m too scared to even think about the sensations I experienced when a four year old petted me.”
Dave laughed heartily.
“God designed our bodies to respond to touch Zac. And to sights... smells... sounds... a range of sensations. People respond to pampering in different ways depending on the setting and their mood at the time... Some people drool and doze off... others become reflective and share their secrets... others are enlivened - their bodies become acutely sensitive to touch and even the slightest brush of the hand can trigger arousal.”
Silence.
“Don’t you feel threatened sitting this close to me without your shirt on after what happened in the shower?” blurted out Zac.
“Do you feel threatened sitting this close to me without your shirt on?”
“Why should I feel threatened by you?”
“Run a background check on me some time. A few years back I escaped prison by the skin of my teeth. I was dragged through the court system... Cross examined in public about my involuntary erections... Accused of indecently assaulting three girls... Publically made out to be some type of warped parent... Ridiculed by other Christians... I had to stand down from my job because of the scandal... Jen had to keep our home running largely by herself... I couldn’t even see my own children without a supervisor for nearly two years...”
“Sounds like something I never want to go through,” murmured Zac.
“At the time it happened, I was a b
loke’s fitness instructor in the Airforce. There was this other fitness instructor who worked with the women - her name was Maree. Jen and Maree were best friends. Maree was married to an Airforce pilot - Steve. Then Jen and I got married. We hung out a lot together as two couples. They had three girls. We had three boys. Then Steve got killed in a botched training manoeuvre. After his death, we kept doing things together - as a threesome with six kids. Sometimes Maree used me as a sounding board about problems she was having bringing up her girls as a widowed mum. Now and then I took Maree’s girls camping with our boys - as their surrogate father - to give her a break.”
Dave stuck his feet up on the dash.
“Occasionally we discussed more personal topics... like her needs as a woman now Steve was dead. In one of those personal conversations she asked me about involuntary erections - and specifically about my involuntary erections. I answered her questions truthfully because I thought she needed information and she could no longer pick Steve’s brains...”
“You’ve got guts. I’d never let a woman pick my brains about personal stuff like that,” murmured Zac.
A dry smile.
“I’m more careful these days. But at the time, things were messy work-wise, and all the instructors were doing their best to help each other out.”
“Why?”
“Some equal opportunities directive from the Ministry of Defence had changed our job descriptions and I was now required to provide fitness instruction to women as well as men. And Maree had to instruct men as well as women.”
“You mean lead mixed teams like Gordon’s pushing me into doing?”
A friendly chuckle.
“Well it was a little more involved than what Gordon’s expecting you to do, but you sound like you feel similar to how I felt at first. Jen was a huge help. She quietly encouraged me to take the new arrangements in my stride... Maree was pretty agro about the changes though. And because I was working with her more closely, I noticed some things about her which she’d previously kept well hidden... On top of that, men complained to me about her debauchery in the male change rooms... women approached me and quietly expressed their fears... and I had Jen’s boss asking me questions about the issues different people were raising with him.”
Dave drew a deep breath.
“Around that time, Jen and Maree had a fallout. Jen’s never properly spilled the beans about it, although I have my suspicions... And shortly after that, Maree’s girls fabricated this story that I’d wrapped my leg around them on a couple of the camping trips I’d previously taken them on. It was their word against mine, because my own boys were too young to be considered credible witnesses. And by raising the accusations, Maree effectively transferred the heat off her and onto me.”
Zac shook his head in disbelief.
“The police... Child Protection... even Christian friends, all sided with Maree because she put on the helpless widow act. The case went to Criminal Court and the prosecution brought up what I’d told Maree about my involuntary erections... It looked particularly bad for me, because when the cops had originally asked me about the camping trips, I’d naively answered all their questions honestly instead of exercising my right to remain silent. And the prosecution used my honest answers against me... For instance the cops had asked, do I sometimes wake up with morning erections - and I said yes because it was the truth. Then they’d asked if my kids hopped into bed with me at night and I said yes - because that was also the truth. But from those two statements, the prosecution made me out to be some type of pervert that touched up kids.”
Zac shook his head in disbelief.
“Then Child Protection jumped on the bandwagon and said my answers indicated my own kids were at risk as well as Maree’s. So I lost the right to live at home with them... And I lost my working with children clearance and the right to do phys-ed with kids on the base school... So reluctantly my boss had to suspend me from my regular duties. Fortunately, the position of mentoring Gordon came up and Jen’s boss recommended me for it. Otherwise we might have been in dire straits financially.”
“What a mess,” murmured Zac.
“The accusations Maree had put her kids up to making against me were false... And in the end a jury decided they were false. But it cost me a year’s salary to defend myself... And even though I was found not guilty, my reputation was tarnished. Jen’s boss was incredibly supportive through it all. He ended up pulling some strings again when the mentoring position with Gordon finished, and we got a transfer together as a family off Malmstrom Airbase... to pioneer another project...”
“Farliga Pass?”
“Yep... My new job involved mentoring Special Forces leaders and enlistees who were working in high pressure jobs like the U.S. Airforce Security Service. My strategy was pretty simple. I trained men to find the grit within themselves to tackle hard things - like Farliga Pass - and helped them confront their personal struggles and weaknesses. About a fortnight into the job, I was at the airbase getting supplies and a couple of blokes narrowly escaped death in front of my nose. I helped patch them up then up then took them both back with me to watch ‘em for shock. Later that night I ended up having a heart-to-heart with one of the blokes... He was all knotted up in his guts... for similar reasons to you... We talked through his sense of guilt until he was comfortable about his sexuality... And I shared my experiences over the past two years with him. And warned him to learn from my mistakes...”
Dave smiled reflectively.
“I thought it was a private one-off conversation with one young man. But this guy was a Native American - and he didn’t have the same inhibitions that Western men tend to have about opening up to other men. He was so freed up after our conversation that the following night he told the whole group of men about our conversation! And his openness triggered a fireside conversation about guilt which lasted several hours... One bloke talked about his guilt as a victim of incest... another talked about how dirty he felt after visiting a prostitute... I got to share about how Jesus died to free us from guilt... Blokes were blubbering... I prayed for a couple of them... The word got out that the place was unique... And even the Big Brass rocked up to attempt Farliga Pass and pour their hearts out - sometimes in private to me and other times very publically... The following year the guy came back to the Pass with his new wife, eager to spice up his marriage! His wife and Jen got on like a house on fire. And they came back every year as a couple. I still chat to the guy now and then. And he still considers me his mentor. But the truth is, every time I interact with him, I’m so inspired that I feel like he’s my mentor...”
“Sounds like a powerful friendship. I wouldn’t mind talking to him one day myself.”
A flicker of a smile from Dave.
“I might be able to arrange that... Why do you want to chat to him anyway?”
“Because you mentioned he’s Native American... I know someone whose dad’s Native American... But his dad won’t tell his son anything about what he was like when he was younger... And he doesn’t talk openly about involuntary erections the way we’re talking... And his son struggles with it.”
Dave paused.
“In my experience it’s not so much a cultural issue as a parenting issue. When kids are young their parents cuddle them... massage them... sleep with them. And kids happily shower with their parents... And chat about everything under the sun like Petrina was doing tonight... But then... around eleven or twelve... the echoes of Eden start creeping in. Most parents are still happy to continue answering their kids’ questions. Some even try and initiate discussions. But usually parents can’t handle seeing their kids squirming. And if their kids show any reluctance in a discussion, parents will generally back off and avoid the topic thereafter. I mean the last thing you want to do as a parent is make your self-conscious kid feel even more awkward...”
“I’ve never really thought about why communication about sex can stop between parents and teens.”
“Teens often turn to alter
native sources for information - like peers, the internet or other trusted adults... Which is where you and I come in. We need to be armed with the correct information so we can correct any miseducation that’s happened since the glitch with their parents. And be prepared to fill in the gaps if the people we’re interacting with have missing information...”
Dave made deliberate eye contact with Zac.
“The thing is... sometimes there’s a lot of emotional baggage attached to responses like involuntary erections. And if you haven’t quite come to terms with them yourself, it’s difficult to help others in the area...”
Zac drew a steadying breath.
“What’s the school of hard knocks taught you about involuntary erections Dave?”
“That they’re involuntary. And embarrassing when other people notice them... But they’re part of the way God has designed men. And feeling awkward, guilty or in any way negative about God’s design is counterproductive. It’s like the clay telling the Potter what type of vessel it wants to be made into.”
“So I should just accept them?”
“And understand that they’re more likely to catch you unawares when you’re relaxed or being pampered. Take what happened tonight... The shower is normally somewhere private where you relax and let your guard down. And if you have an involuntary erection there - or even a voluntary one - well it’s normally a private experience. It’s just that tonight the shower wasn’t private... and neither was your response to pampering.”
Zac self consciously moistened his lips.
“Thanks for the chat Dave... It’s good to have some perspective on some of it. Everything’s been going haywire the last few weeks...”
“What type of haywire?”
“Can of worms territory Dave.”
“Sounds scary!” laughed Dave light-heartedly. “You chatted to Gordon about the contents of your can of wrigglers?”
“I’ve been reluctant to tell Gordon most of it.”
“I thought you two were close enough to share scary secrets...”
“Gordon’s got more than enough on his plate at the moment. He needs time to get to know Jake and I don’t want to eat into their father-son time. And he needs time to adjust to his mother-in-law moving in with him too... I’m really happy that he’s got Jake and Joyce in his life now... Even if it means that the two of us won’t be as close as we used to be...”
“You know, what the caterpillar calls the end of the world, God calls a butterfly.”
Zac smiled emotionally.
“From the snippets I’ve heard over the years, you’ve undergone a metamorphosis under Gordon’s mentoring... Maybe you need a different type of mentoring to learn to use those new butterfly wings... and reproduce after your own kind.”
“Reproduce after my own kind?”
“The real function of leadership is to produce more leaders Zac. Not just followers.”
“And to learn how to do that I need a mentor who won’t let me get away with as much?”
Dave laughed.
“Your choice of words... But I happen to believe that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks...”
“Did anyone ever tell you you’re a scary old-timer?”
“I take exception to scary... I’ll accept confronting!” grinned Dave.
“You’re head of the team who watch the Weathermakers... I’m head of the Geophysical Research team... Our paths have never previously crossed until the other day. But what if we have to work together again?”
“I hope we do have to work together again. I felt ten years younger after hanging out with you and your pups the other week.”
“But Gordon’s our boss. If I open up to you, you might slip and tell Gordon things I didn’t want him to know... Or you might secretly think I’m... weird or something...”
“I agree opening up about something so you grow free in that area involves risk. But you can’t steal second base if you keep your foot on first.”
Zac moistened his lips.
“I know that a leader needs to be courageous enough to invest time and energy into himself as well as others but...”
Silence.
“I can’t believe you’re talking me into talking about this!” groaned Zac.
“You’re talking yourself into talking about it. I’m just sitting here waiting for you to define haywire.”
“Haywire as in wet dreams... temptation to masturbate... crazy thoughts... up and down emotions... when I’ve always had all those areas pretty much under control in the past... Which makes me wonder about my current fitness as a leader... Which is another reason why I can’t discuss it with Gordon. If a leader can’t control himself, he can’t be trusted to lead others. Agreed?”
An amused grin from Dave.
“What happened about three weeks ago Zac?”
“Um... I met you and Jen... I built an E/M weapon with the Australian team... and discovered Gordon had a biological son called Jake...”
“....and fell head over heels in love with Maya!” finished Dave.
“Falling in love does your head in like this?”
Dave’s eyes danced.
“Maya’s your first beau, eh?”
Zac nodded cautiously.
“Your testosterone’s probably through the roof then... Things’ll settle down eventually... But if you want them to settle down quicker, you two should make it a short engagement and a death-do-us-part marriage. One where you pamper each other every night and have sex as often as you can.”
“That’s the bit I’m scared about...”
“Having sex?”
Zac bit his lip and shook his head faintly.
“You know, fear makes strangers of people who would otherwise be friends,” said Dave.
Zac drew a deep breath.
“What if I didn’t feel anything in the share-bag with Maya the other night because I’ve got early onset male menopause or something?”
Dave doubled over with laughter.
“I’m serious Dave. What if Maya thinks I’m a stud and I’m really a dud?”
“Zac - You haven’t had a chance to tell me what happened and didn’t happen out on the Pass, but I’d dare say you were coping with a bucketful of things that would’ve put the brakes on anyone’s passion the other night - physical exhaustion... worrying about getting safely across the rope bridge... anxiety about whether Hope was okay... a respect for Maya... Jake’s presence as a chaperon... godly values... your natural coyness... pain from carrying too heavy a pack... And that’s just the things I can think of off the top of my head.”
Zac cleared his throat softly.
“I’ve never been stressed about not getting aroused before because I’ve never actively encouraged it to happen... I didn’t realize how terrible it feels inside when it doesn’t happen.”
“Hang on to that feeling. It’s given you insight into what it’s like for the single guys on your teams who don’t abstain. They feel they have to keep performing. Promiscuity puts an unnecessary pressure on young people to perform sexually - outside of the security of an accepting marriage... We all need someone in our lives to tell us we’re okay, when we’re having self doubts about our sexual prowess... And the best person to do that is our helpmeet.”
“Which is why Gordon’s tense about...”
Zac stopped mid comment. Dave’s eyes sparkled but he said nothing.
“I’m a full-on hypocrite. Saying I’m concerned you might tell Gordon my secrets, then nearly doing the same to him.”
“Don hasn’t been secretive about his mid-life crisis around either of us. And he wouldn’t take offense at us discussing it either.”
“I haven’t known what to say to help him... My whole adult life has revolved around working out coping strategies for high testosterone levels. And even though I appreciate what Gordon’s going through is hard for him, I still feel life will be a breeze when I finally don’t have to keep on my guard.”
“Life always throws s
omething up at you Zac, irrespective of your age. If it’s not boiling hormones, it’s loss of libido or the threat of arthritis.”
“So what did you suggest he do about what he’s been feeling?”
“I told him to make a list of challenges and get out there and do them.”
“And getting to know Jen is one of his challenges?”
“I dunno. But if it is, he’ll have a tough time!” chuckled Dave. “Jen’s got this thing about not getting too close to anyone I work with. She’s been like it since the incident with Maree...”
Ω
Gordon meandered past the massage nook then stopped midstride and started sniffing near the bottles of massage oil.
“Looking for something?” asked Jen from the kitchen.
“Sorry. There’s a fragrance wafting out from here... It’s triggered a memory from years ago - back when I first sacked with to your other half... I’m trying to find it...”
A shy smile from Jen. She picked up the casserole she’d prepared and put it in the oven.
“Here it is... It’s coming from this bottle...” continued Gordon, pouring some oil into his palm and rubbing it with his fingertips to enhance the fragrance.
Gordon joined Jen in the kitchen and held his palm under Jen’s nose to sniff.
“Sandalwood and Jasmine...” replied Jen as she switched on the oven.
“So that’s what it is... I haven’t smelt this for years... But I’ll never forget the first night I smelt it... I don’t think I’ve ever asked either of you. Who blends Dave’s favourite massage oils? You or Dave?”
“Dave,” said Jen as she started wiping down the kitchen benches. “He did aromatherapy and massage as part of his training as an Airforce fitness instructor. Before he worked one-on-one with you.”
Gordon smiled reminiscently.
“Those were character-building days. I never gave it much thought until recently, but I must have been a right pain in the butt. Repeatedly trying to go AWOL on Dave. Especially when he was already under pressure... I remember the night I gave up trying to leave actually. Dave had just finished chatting to you and the boys and when he put the phone down I noticed his eyes were moist... and I realized he was upset inside...”
Jen stopped tidying up and looked over at Gordon.
“I never realized he cried,” she whispered. “He was always so strong around me...”
Gordon looked reflective.
“He was strong most of the time... But that night I sensed he needed someone... it was one of those defining moments in our relationship actually... The hippy in me decided the military man could do with a neck rub... I remember helping myself to his bottle of Sandalwood and Jasmine blend then I started massaging his neck... He was surprised by my actions at first... then he let his guard down... and then all these feelings tumbled out... He told me all about Maree... Everything that had happened because of her... How much he missed you and the boys... Up until then I had no idea about what he was up against... Or that maybe he needed me as much as I needed him...”
Gordon paused.
“I guess that was a horrendous couple of years for you as well as him. Your best friend making accusations about your husband...”
Jen’s eyes clouded.
“It was my fault as well as Dave’s.”
“Why?”
“I can’t tell you! I’ve never even told Dave!” wavered Jen.
“Jen! You look like you’re about to cry! Please don’t cry... I’m sorry. I had no idea it was still such a painful topic or I would never have mentioned it. Especially since Dave’s not here to hug you better and you don’t like hugs off me.”
Jen started sobbing. Gordon rested a cautious hand on her shoulder.
“I knew what she was like Gordon! I should have warned Dave!”
Gordon drew Jen close. He gently kneaded her neck with his fingertips.
“You massage like a woman,” sniffed Jen.
“Scary thought.”
Jen laughed emotionally.
Silence. Gordon kept massaging Jen’s neck.
“The whole Maree thing. It’s only resurfaced again recently,” whispered Jen. “Since the Canney kids rocked up.”
“Why?”
“The last night Zac stayed - when you were getting to know Jake - Zac asked Dave if he’d teach him some strokes on Maya. It was intriguing watching the two of them interact... Zac was asking question after question and soaking up every word Dave said and Dave had this glow about him... you know... like he had come out of retirement and was doing something again which he just absolutely loved...”
“I didn’t realize he felt like that,” said Gordon softly.
Thumbs pressed Jen’s neck lightly in slow circles.
“And then a few days ago, Hope rocked up and Dave had a full on conversation with her. He was completely relaxed about the conversation... He chatted away to her like the old Dave... The unreserved Dave I’d married... I was thrilled inside to see the old Dave back in action... But sad at the same time. It’s taken him all these years to get over what happened and trust single women again Gordon. If only I’d warned him, what happened with Maree might never have happened!”
“Warned him about what, Jen?”
“I knew what she was like, but I thought she’d changed because she’d married.”
“Changed?”
“One part of her liked men and this other part hated them... And then there was this other part that liked women... too much...”
Smooth, gentle strokes kept coaxing Jen to pour out her heart.
“She was my fitness instructor when I joined the Airforce... At first I thought she was just teaching me about my body. You know... filling in the gaps in my knowledge about intimacy...”
“But you gradually realized she was bisexual?”
Silent tears ran down Jen’s cheeks.
“I might never have met Dave if it wasn’t for her. She introduced us. And we knew we were meant for each other within hours of meeting each other. We had the same goals... and wanted to do the same things... We got married... and I thought the past was the past. Except then her husband died... And that whole side of her nature reared up again... She wanted me again... I told her I loved Dave. That he satisfied my most intimate needs... And something in her snapped. She said that if she couldn’t have me, then she was gonna make sure that Dave couldn’t have me either.”
Jen wiped her eyes on her forearm.
“I should have warned him Gordon... But I was too ashamed!”
Gordon exhaled softly.
“And you’ve never told Dave about any of this?”
“No... I’ve always been too disgusted about what I nearly became. And what she wanted me to be again once she lost her husband... But all these years I’ve wondered... if I hadn’t of resisted her... if I’d let her have her way with me... she might never have attacked Dave the way she did...”
“I understand what you’re saying Jen. But you know, the converse is true too. If Tess was alive, and she told me she had the fortitude to resist someone who wanted to destroy our marriage, then I would have been proud as punch of her...”
Silence. Gordon hugged Jen closely.
“Thanks Gordon... Thanks for being a sounding board.”
“You were my sounding board the other night, remember?”
A faint smile.
“Are you going to tell Dave my secret?”
“How about I let you tell him? When you’re ready, eh?”
Silence.
“This... this is awkward all of a sudden,” murmured Jen.
“Wasn’t all that top-to-toe training of Dave’s supposed to make us immune to awkward?” retorted Gordon cheekily.
Jen laughed emotionally and broke away from the contact.
The phone rang. Jen drew a calming breath and picked it up. She listened for a moment then looked over in Gordon’s direction.
“It’s John... for you. He’s aboard the Jefferson. You might want to take t
he call down in Dave’s den. I have to go out and pick up a guest who’s arriving shortly. I’ll serve dinner when we get back...”
Ω
“Was Jen a fitness instructor too?” asked Zac.
Dave shook his head.
“Nah. She was a secretary for the Big Brass at Air Intelligence. They called her Wonder Woman, because she always managed to pick up little details which made a big difference and sometimes even cracked cases wide open... That’s how the position of mentoring Gordon came up actually. Her boss slotted me into it because Air Intelligence needed Gordon, but Gordon refused to enlist. And because I was responsible for Gordon 24/7 it made it easier to cope with missing my family. When my own mess was finally sorted out, Jen’s boss created another tailor made opening for us out at Yellowstone. We stayed there for years - mentoring leaders... honing the survival skills of the best of the best... And then Air Intelligence ended up joining us out at the Pass... They reckoned they couldn’t do without Wonder Woman on their team, so they moved their headquarters out to us!”
“Which explains all the satcom gear up at the Pass.”
“Ah ha.”
“So John was Jen’s boss?”
“John was 2IC at the time so we saw a lot of him... He took the helm when Chad’s ticker gave up. Just before we retired ourselves.”
The pieces fell into place. Zac moistened his dry lips.
“For years we spent nine months of the year up at the Pass training blokes and the three coldest months of the year travelling as a family. Every year while the kids were growing up, we visited a different country. Australia was one of our favourite destinations however. Two of our boys married Aussie girls. And when Gordon asked us to establish a B & B near JORN and head a team that monitors weather modification activities in Western Australia, we both knew we’d found the ideal semi-retired lifestyle.”
“I admire Christians like you who can flourish in the armed forces. I couldn’t handle the cognitive dissonance.”
“I’ve never killed anyone Zac. I’d kill someone to protect the people I love. But I don’t support senseless wars anymore than you do. The way I saw it was, every man I worked with up at the Pass was somebody’s son, maybe someone’s brother or husband... or father... And I was in a position to impart wisdom to that man... teach him additional survival skills... improve his fitness... give him the edge... prepare him emotionally, physically and spiritually... to maximize his chances of being reunited whole with family after his assignment.”
“Sounds like an intense version of what I do with my research teams.”
“I told you we have more in common than you realize.”
“Thanks for being a sounding board Dave.”
“My pleasure young lion... Come on. Let’s nip inside and see what everyone else is up to, eh?”
The Codetalkers (The Rebelutionaries Series: Book 2) Page 18