The Journal: A Prophecy, A President & Death

by Parker, W. Leland

  “Um-hm.”

  “And what you sense is that what God was trying to tell you was going to happen is now about to start?”

  “Um-hm.”

  “And it starts because of …”

  “Because of the kiss.” Says Joseph. He smiles and relaxes also. His mom has in fact put into words what was whirling around in his head. He’s wondered: can it all be starting again? Are the two connected somehow? Is God trying to warn them, warn the country through them—through him?

  Lauren then says, “So specifically, someone kisses someone and that starts everything?”

  “And it ends it too, if that makes any sense.”

  Joanna says kind of in a daze, “It completes the circle.”

  Lauren, “Joey, can you tell if it was a girl kissing a guy, or vice versa?”

  “No, just a kiss that everyone takes note of.”

  “Then, wait a minute; all we need to do is to make sure that no one kisses anyone for the next few hours.”

  Joanna looks at her perplexed.

  She explains further, “Look, if we have credible evidence that the president’s life is in danger, and that the events that lead up to that peril are initiated here, then all we have to do is stop it at its source.” Joseph starts shaking his head. “Joe, it’s every Secret Service agent’s dream and sworn duty to keep their president alive, and the hope of that dream is to stop it before it ever gets started.”

  Joseph continues shaking his head, which his mom sees as rude, and nudges him. Still he can’t help but utter, “But, Miss Coles–”

  Lauren, “You said, and I believe you, that this is what starts it!”

  “But, Miss Coles, it’s not like that.”

  “Besides!” she says with excitement, “We don’t have to stop everyone from kissing, it’s really just Joanna and me.”

  “But–”

  “If no one kissed either Joanna or me, and if we don’t kiss anyone, then we’re pretty much set.”

  Joanna motions to let Joseph speak.

  Joseph then calmly says, “But, Miss Coles, it’s not like that. My premonitions—they weren’t, um, negotiable. God wasn’t showing me the future as a possibility; it was a done deal!”

  “But Joey, shouldn’t we even try? I mean, that’s our job here, the safety of the president. Should we just throw our hands up in the air?”

  Joseph laughs a little and says, “Ha. That’s exactly what you should be trying.”

  Joanna smiles at his inference of having hands lifted in the air to God, but feels for Lauren, and her responsibilities.

  Lauren then turns to Joanna, “Mrs. Market—Joanna, please; I don’t have your faith. I can’t just close my eyes and ignore my work, my duty, my code! Surely it won’t hurt anything by us committing not to being kissed or kissing anyone for the next three to four hours.”

  Joanna takes a big sigh. “Lauren, I’ll do it. For your sake.”

  “But, Mom,” exclaims, Joseph, “that’s like, closing the blinds to try and keep the sun from rising!”

  “Perhaps Joey. But Lauren is our friend, and it does not, in fact, hurt anything by supporting her on this. Assuming you are right and God told you these things, and your dream is now connecting the two, he will have what he will have.”

  Lauren smiles and says, “Thanks, Joanna. You’re right; we are friends. Thank you.”

  As Joanna slips a sheet of cookies into the oven, there’s some commotion from the other room.

  Lauren remembers, “Oh, my! That’s right, Hinton will be in here for my head in a second, we’ve taken too long.”

  • • •

  They reenter the dining room only to see Mrs. Phelps giving Agent Reese a big kiss on the cheek. “What the hell!” exclaims Lauren, as Joanna, gasps from shock!

  Hinton, “Apparently, they know each other. Reese was an understudy of her husband’s; seems he started with the Bureau in New York.”

  “So you just let the woman kiss the man!” says, Lauren in disbelief.

  “What the heck is wrong with you?” He replies, confused and slightly annoyed.

  Lauren walks around the table and sinks into her chair. She simply cannot believe the paradox of having insisted on keeping Mrs. Phelps around, only to have her be the one who gives the kiss that starts everything into motion!

  Lauren shakes her head in stunned disbelief and stares across the table at Joanna. Joanna can only provide an expression that says, “What can anyone do!” Joseph does all he can, not to have a face that reeks of, “I told you so,” but it is not easy.

  Mrs. Phelps says to Joanna, “Can you believe that this is the young man who Carl trained at the Bureau; who is the same young man that he later contacted with the picture of the page out of Joseph’s diary!”

  “Oh, I can believe anything,” says Joanna, with a hint of irony.

  James looks at Lauren. “Are you okay? You don’t look so good. What happened?”

  But before she can answer, Hinton says, “Look, future investigator, do you mind?” Then, turning to Lauren, says, “I need to hear everything that has bearing on this case.”

  Lauren begins to tell him, while Joanna switches seats again with Agent Levy to tell Robert about the new connection between Joseph’s old prophecies and his current dreams. Robert though, is still a little bunched up by his office situation, and feeling a little indigestion.

  As Joanna is talking, she sees that her husband is distracted and says, “Sweetheart, are you okay? You don’t look well.”

  “I just need some antacid.”

  “I’ll get it.”

  “But you haven’t even finished eating.”

  “Please Robert,” she insists; “let me.”

  “No Joanna,” he insists further; “you’ve been up and down all afternoon and I’ve done nothing but sit here.” He turns to Agent Levy and says, “Shall we go, sir?”

  Agent Levy, tired of all the mystical talk answers, “With pleasure;” and the two men proceed upstairs talking about general things unrelated to the case.

  Joanna can tell that Robert is a bit moody, and does not try further. He and Agent Levy go to the upstairs bathroom to retrieve something for his relief. Meanwhile Lauren finishes updating Agent Hinton who is convinced more now than ever, that whatever is written in Joseph’s journal is one hundred percent guaranteed to come true!

  They finish the meal in relative silence. Hinton and Lauren are in stunned realization that there is nothing that can be done to stop what’s happening from happening. James is trying to figure out what was going on between him and Lauren in Joseph’s dream. What can he have been attempting to get her to say No, so forcefully!

  After Robert returns, he is a little more receptive and Joanna finished catching him up on things. Afterwards she quietly continues eating her food, wondering as to where this new prophetic dreaming is going to go. Is this the culmination of the former gifting, or the beginning of a new one? Towards the end of the meal Mrs. Phelps is the only one saying anything, reminiscing from time to time with Agent Reese about her late husband, Carl.

  After everyone seems to be done eating, Joanna brings out some cookies and begins clearing the table. She leaves one place setting for Mary, just in case she’s hungry when she returns. It is at that point that Mrs. Phelps begins to wonder what’s taking her so long:

  “Hmm. Mary is normally back by this time. She begins preparation for dinner right about now.”

  Joanna, “Perhaps she was thrown off her schedule, remember we delayed her getting to her work by at least an hour.”

  “Oh, that’s right.”

  Robert grumbles, “Humph. At least she got to do her work.”

  “Oh, sweetheart!” says Joanna, as she takes his plate. She proceeds to give him a consoling kiss on the cheek when she stops, “Whoops! I almost forgot! Are we– Agent Coles, are we still not–?”

  Lauren kind of shrugs, “I don’t know anymore,” and despondent, adds, “I mean, seems like what’s done is done.”
r />   “Well, I won’t take any chances; not ’til eight.”

  Lauren smiles, “Sure, let’s do that.”

  Joanna, still attempting to brighten her husband’s mood, says, “I’ll just have to resist your charm for the next three hours.”

  Robert grunts, “Humph.”

  Mrs. Phelps, still on her prior topic kind of mumbles as she gets up, “Well, I might as well get out of this robe, though my timing is so thrown off from eating lunch so late, I probably won’t have any dinner anyways.” She proceeds upstairs to change.

  So Little Time

  After dinner Robert resumes his perusal of the newspaper—it does a good job of distracting him. Joanna thus feels free to talk to with Lauren and Mrs. Phelps. Agents Reese and Levy watch the perimeter and Agent Hinton listens in as the boys talk about the dream over at the gaming corner.

  Quietly, James asks Joseph, “What was her expression like?”

  “What?” says Joseph, eating a cookie.

  “In the dream, when she said no to me, did she look upset?”

  “Lauren?”

  “No. Aunt Jemima—Of course, Lauren!”

  “I’m sorry, I was– I’m sorry. Let me see … Dude I can’t remember. I don’t think so.”

  “But I thought you said you saw her face.”

  “Yeah. I just– I think she was just being firm.”

  “Firm.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Hmm. Was I rude or something?”

  “I don’t think so. I think you wanted to do something, and she just wouldn’t let you.”

  “Goodness, what could it be?”

  “I don’t know, dude.” Upset, James turns away and shakes his head.

  Hinton looks at him and says, “If you don’t mind me saying, it seems like somebody got somebody under his skin. There’s no reason to believe that the evening ends with her upset with you.”

  “She was getting in her car,” says James, who just scratches his head and looks at her.

  Then, three things occur at precisely the same time: Hinton’s phone rings; Joanna excuses herself to finish clearing the table; and—most significantly—Robert gets a text message on his phone. The latter is not supposed to happen.

  He looks around to see if anyone noticed, but the notification tone was completely muted by Agent Hinton’s phone. When Hinton steps away to take his call, Robert seizes the moment to view the message. Using the newspaper as a blind, he slips his phone out of his shirt pocket and quickly glances at the screen:

  Rehearsal at 8 pm

  That’s all that it says, but Robert knows exactly what that means. It is, in fact, the message he way hoping for: a message from his VP of sales, indicating that they are still moving forward with preparations for the big presentation tomorrow. It settles every concern that Robert had, except how he might participate in this all-important rehearsal. He slides the phone back and begins to plot how he might be there.

  • • •

  In the kitchen with Joanna, who is loading the dishwasher, Lauren says, “You know, the minister seems awfully worked up over this business at his office.”

  Joanna sighs, “I know; but he’ll find his way.”

  “You’re sure.”

  “Oh yes. I’ll admit that this has been unusually stressful for him; the last couple of years really. But this is why we agree to do this as a trial; and if it takes this to show him what he needs to see, then I thank God for it.”

  “Wow.”

  “What?”

  “You’re so—I don’t know, tra-la-la-la-la.” Lauren laughs at her own description.

  This makes Joanna laugh through, “What?”

  Lauren sobers to finish, “So, I don’t know, I can’t say whether it’s peace, or—and I mean you no offense—or are you just afraid to fight for what you want.”

  “Lauren,” says Joanna with a confident smile, “I’ve been married for twenty-two years. I know my man, and I know my God. I don’t have to fight for what I want.”

  She closes and starts the dishwasher. Puzzled Lauren asks, “So you always get what you want?”

  “Humph,” says a smiling Joanna. “Yes, I always do. I do not, however, always get what I think I want. And thank God for that!”

  Agent Hinton pops his head into the kitchen, “Agent Coles, they have restored fourteen pages from the kid’s journal. They are uploading them and will send a hard copy.”

  “That’s great!” says Lauren.

  Joanna simply says, “Wow.”

  Suddenly, there are sounds from the other room. Hinton slips back out quickly and asks what’s going on.

  Levy tells him, “Someone’s at the front door.”

  And sure enough, there’s a light knock at the door. Moving quickly, Hinton sends Reese to the doorway between the living room and the hall leading to the foyer and to the front door. He then places himself in the doorway between the living room and the dining room, and calls out to Lauren to bring Joanna into the living room, thus placing all of the assets in a perimeter of protection. As they enter the room, there’s another knock.

  Hinton tells Coles, “We’ve got someone at the door,”

  Lauren immediately unholsters her weapon and takes a position in the hall looking through the door to the kitchen out the back door, and with a clear view of the front foyer and basement door. With everyone at the ready, Levy goes to open the door:

  “Yes, who is it?” he calls through the door.

  Looking through the window on the side of the door, Mrs. Phelps nurse, Mary, answers, “Hello? It’s me, Mary Johnson.”

  Levy looks back at Hinton who signals to let her in. He opens the door and beckons her to enter.

  “Hi,” she says nervously, as she works past Levy, and into the living room. “Hi,” she says again to Agent Hinton.

  “Welcome back. Nice hair,” he replies, referencing her new hairdo while snapping his weapon in its holster.

  “Oh, thanks. I– I’m just checking to see if Mrs. Phelps wanted me to prepare dinner. I didn’t know whether I should ring the bell, or knock or just call.”

  He smiles politely and motions to her to proceed on. She goes over to Mrs. Phelps who is seated on the sofa. They begin to talk and Mrs. Phelps tells her that she didn’t think she would have dinner tonight, just her tea, and perhaps some light dessert.

  Joanna walks over and says, “I like your hair Mary; your whole face looks nice. Did you have plans?”

  “Oh, no. I just wanted to freshen myself up a little.” She glances ever so quickly over at Agent Hinton.

  Joanna notices and can hardly contain her smile. Always the hostess, she adds, “We were just getting comfy in the living room now, can I offer you anything to eat?”

  Going to sit next to Mrs. Phelps she says, “Oh no, thank you, I already had something while I was out. I had a very productive day!”

  To which, Robert says, from behind his newspaper, “Humph!”

  • • •

  James, still tortured by Joseph’s forecast of how things would go between him and Lauren, decides to come clean, his heart is pounding. He wants to tell her that no matter what he might do later, he’s doesn’t want it to get in the way of what they seemed to agree upon earlier; that when this is all over they would remain friends and stay in contact. But Lauren is totally absorbed in what she is beginning to read on her PDA: the digital copies of the 14 pages from Joseph’s journal salvaged thus far. At one moment she nearly gasps at something she reads!

  • • •

  Meanwhile Mrs. Phelps introduces Agent Reese to Mary as a friend and co-worker of her late husband and they talk about the coincidence.

  Mary, “But why didn’t you ever come see the Phelps?”

  Reese explains, “Well, when I left the bureau I was originally stationed out West, so I kinda drifted out of touch. Naturally, I was sad to hear he had passed. Didn’t you get my card?”

  Mrs. Phelps, “No, I didn’t get any card. I didn’t want to embarrass you, so I di
dn’t ask.”

  “Huh. I certainly sent one.”

  “Well, I didn’t get one from you. I have every card in my album.”

  “That’s too bad, I really wanted you to know how much he had meant to me. You know, when I entered the bureau, I was about the same age as Miss Coles, though not nearly as together and accomplished. I wanted so badly to do well. Having sought the FBI directly, I felt way under qualified compared to some of the other guys who had been police officers or ex-military. But your husband taught me that it I would never be a really good investigator if I made it just about climbing the success ladder. He showed me that I needed a more substantial and unshakeable foundation than even the creed of law enforcement; that I had to know it was important to do well for a higher cause than just me; to give an honest day’s work, no matter what any boss, co-worker, or situation might present.” He shakes his head remembering Carl Phelps and says, “Carl Phelps really set my path straight. He was the most centered and caring person I think I had ever met.”

  All these years later, Mrs. Phelps still cannot contain the tears that flow when thinking about her husband.

  Lauren interrupts the tender moment, “Agent, I need a moment.”

  With a very unnerved expression she pulls Reese, Hinton and Levy to the far end of the living room, and showing them a portion on a page of the newly restored journal on her PDA, she glares at them all, as if expecting one of them to make sense of what it says: Four men, lead by a woman, do all that they can, but she will see him die.

  Lauren is undone; she looks at them with scarcely contained desperation. “What can be done? This is simply too much! First Reese kisses the woman, now this!”

  Reese tries to explain, “Actually, she– ”

  “It doesn’t matter!” barks Lauren. “First I insist that she stay with us, so that the kiss can happen, then I cajole Pratt into hanging around, so now it’s one woman and four men! This is impossible! I can’t–”

  Hinton steps in and says, “Guys, let me try and work this through with Agent Coles, take positions on either side of the room.”