by Justin Price
“I’ll call Jenson right away. He actually just got out of a meeting.”
“Thanks mam”, said Abbie.
The receptionist dialed up to Jenson…”Hello Mr. Moon. I have Abbie Clark here to see you. Are you available? Great…I’ll send her right up.”
She said, “Jenson is ready to see you. Just take the elevator to the twenty-first floor and his secretary will show you to his office.”
“Alright. Thank you very much”, said Abbie as she walked toward the elevator.
She got in the elevator, which was completely transparent on every side. She quickly punched “21” with her index finger and shut her eyes tightly. There was no way that she was going to look down while she was going up. It was a test to see how long she could hold her breath as the elevator slowly climbed each floor.
Finally, she heard a “ding” and the elevator door opened up. She walked out so fast that she nearly ran over the secretary who stood waiting in front of the door.
“Oh! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to run into you like that”, Abbie said apologetically.
“It’s alright. Problem with heights?”
“Yea”, she said with a hint of embarrassment.
“I kind of figured. It took me three months of that to get used to it after I started working here. It wasn’t until I knocked the boss off his feet that I realized that I needed to get over it.”
They both laughed at the thought of the little one-hundred and ten pound secretary putting Jenson flat on his back. When they finally caught their breath, the secretary said, “I’m sorry. Let me introduce myself. My name is Kelly.”
“Pleased to meet you Kelly. I’m Abbie.”
“Yea…I’m so sorry to hear about your friend.”
“Me too…me too”, she said exasperated.
“Follow me”, Kelly said.
The two walked down a hallway that had conference rooms, recording studios, and lounges on either side. All the way at the end stood double doors made of solid oak. “Right this way”, said Kelly as she ushered her through the doors, into Jenson’s office suite.
“Ms. Clark. It’s so good to see you again”, said Jenson as he got up from his desk and met her in the middle of the office.
“It’s great to see you Mr. Moon. Thank you for inviting me here. Your office is amazing.”
“Well, thank you…and please…call me Jenson. Mr. Moon was my father and I am not my father”, he said with a smile.
“You’ve got it Jenson. Listen, I just want to apologize for the way I acted when you came to see me in the hospital.”
“No, no, no. Don’t apologize for that. I came to see you too soon. It wasn’t a good time and I completely understand. How are you holding up?”
“About as good as expected”, said Abbie. “But, please tell me you called me here for something different than talking about this. I need to get away from all of that for a while.”
“Oh, yes. I understand. So sorry. The reason that I wanted to meet with you is that I got ahold of your demo. Actually, it was this past weekend when you and Jenna were at my club. She slipped me a copy of it and I listened to it a couple of days ago.”
“Okay…What did you think?” asked Abbie.
“It was very good. I am surprised that no recording labels have picked you up yet. It was truly amazing and I think that an act like yours has a place with a major label. You have all the ingredients for success in country music. You have been in Nashville for what…seven years? You’ve paid your dues…you’ve been turned down…and you know what it is to feel real pain. That’s what it takes to be a real star in our business…and not just the kind that lasts a couple years and goes away. I think you have staying power.”
“Well, Mr. Moon…Jenson. I am so flattered. It was a dream of ours that one day we would get signed by a label like yours.” Abbie looked down and said, “I just don’t know if I can take that offer now.”
“Why not?”
“Well, for a couple reasons. For one, it was just as much Jenna’s dream as it was mine…She even got you the demo. I don’t know if I could capitalize on that knowing that she never had a chance to see it happen…to experience it for herself. “
“You can’t give up on your dream. It’s a terrible tragedy what happened, but your still here. Your life can’t stop where hers ended. You still have a story to tell. Carry her memory with you. Honor it and protect it with the music that you make.”
“Yea…I know. The second reason is that the kind of music that I want to do now maybe isn’t what you are looking for.”
“What do you mean? You don’t want to do country anymore?”
“No. That’s not it. My values have changed over the last few days. I just want to do music that means something. All the songs about drinking and partying just don’t appeal to me anymore. The sad songs of heartache and self-pity don’t mean anything to me and the ones about sex don’t appeal to me. I want to do uplifting songs. I want to do songs that matter. Ones that make people feel better.”
Jenson walked back to his desk and sat down for a few seconds with chin resting on his hand as if in deep thought. “Okay”, he said. “You’ve got it. If you sign with us, you can consider it done. That’s not what usually sells, but maybe it will be a breath of fresh air to some people. There could be a market for it today.”
“Thank you so much sir! I’ll take the deal then”, said Abbie with excitement.
“Great. Now, I do want to give you fair warning. If your songs aren’t selling, we will have to either change it up or cut you from the label. It’s business…”
“I understand. Thank you so much for this opportunity sir.”
“You’re very welcome Abbie… Can you be in the studio starting next Monday to record some of your songs with us? You will have full accompaniment and we will discuss the terms of your contract too.”
“Absolutely!”
“Good. I look forward to it.”
“Thank you!”
Abbie walked out of the office, flying high. She couldn’t believe it. Her dream had finally come true. She was going to be a real Nashville recording artist. She was never so ready to get on with this new season of her life. It was almost surreal…like a dream.
The Vasquez family stood just out of view of the road when a white Cadillac came cruising down the road. They walked out to meet Javier Fernandez, the former gang leader who had turned his life over to God.
Noah opened the door for Joanna and Ryan to get in the back. They got in and Ryan walked around and jumped in the front seat with his old friend, Javier. “Thank you so much for driving up here and picking us up amigo.”
“It is no problem at all Noah. You know that I would do anything for you and your family.”
Ryan sat in the back seat, staring at Javier’s arm. “What are those on your arm?”
“I’m sorry Javier”, said Joanna. “He’s just a curious boy.”
“Oh no…there is no need to be sorry…Well…little amigo, these are tattoos. It’s ink right under your skin. I got most of them when I was ridin’ with my gang. My life is a lot different now, so I have gotten some of them changed.”
“Wow. Can I get a tat…?”
“No!” shouted both of his parents in unison.
“Maybe when you are an adult, but we will cross that bridge when we get there”, said Noah.
“What bridge?” asked Ryan?
“Never mind.”
Javier chuckled. “So Noah, why were you out there in the middle of nowhere?”
“Um…well…we are fugitives now.”
“Oh no! What’s going on bro?”
“It’s a fairly long story, but we were being listened to at the prison where I visited my uncle Fernando. They heard our whole conversation, including the part where we were to go to the forest to uncover the truth about God.”
“Oh no…That is not good.”
“No, it’s not”, said Noah. “Well, what happened was…we were apparently followe
d and after I went into the woods, the feds pulled up and nearly caught Joanna and Ryan. They got into a high speed chase that ended in a head on collision into a tree for the officer, and they escaped. Joanna was wounded and we were all separated. I honestly believe that the only thing that helped us reunite and get out of here alive was God.”
“That sounds like a crazy time man. I’ve been arrested before, but not for anything like this. The only reason I haven’t is that I pretty much keep my faith to myself unless I know someone who shares it. These days, you can’t say much at all…especially near towns and cities where they have those bugging chips.”
“It’s a scary world”, said Joanna. “We are already fugitives before we even know what the whole truth is.”
As they were talking, they came up to a place in the road where traffic seemed to be backed up. As they slowly crested the next hill, they could see that there was a traffic stop ahead. Their hearts sank as they realized that the police were probably looking for them.
“Well, isn’t that nice”, said Javier. “It looks like we have less than a mile to figure out how we are going to avoid this.”
“Is there a side road somewhere close?” asked Noah.
“I don’t know this highway that well, but I certainly hope so.”
Air Force One touched down in Damascus at nine o’clock in the evening to attend the demonstration of the new technology that had been invented and manufactured in the United States. President Cain stepped off the plane with the secret service to little fanfare. He shook a few hands as he walked down the tarmac toward the armored limo that was waiting on him.
‘Back in the day, we wouldn’t have been sharing technology like this with Syria…or anybody else for that matter’, he thought as he ducked into the car. ‘Something is going to have to change soon, or else I’m not going to have a country to be President of.’
Everything that had once seemed so right about joining the World Council and surrendering their sovereignty now seemed terrible. He was still trying to process the guilt as well as become more accustomed to his new way of thinking that had been supported by the constant presence of God since his encounter at the White House.
This felt like a turning point for him. He would have to go into the lion’s den and fain allegiance to Assad, while knowing that he could very well be the evil incarnate the bible had spoken of. It was a trip that he was ready to be done with. He even wondered if a man like Assad was telepathic. If he could read his mind, then it would all be over for him.
As the limousine drove through the streets of Damascus with a police escort, he looked out the tinted windows at the strange land. It seemed so ironic to him that so much western influence could be seen in this part of the world, yet the true influence that the United States had once had was diminishing by the day. A new world order had arrived, thanks largely to him.
They arrived at the palace and entered through the golden gates to the beautifully landscaped court. ‘If the White House looked like this, the American people would want me impeached’, he thought.
The limo stopped in front of the red double doors and President Cain stepped out into the clear Syrian night. He walked up the steps, preparing his heart and mind by silently praying that God would protect and deliver him from the evil that stood inside waiting for him.
The doors opened up and he entered into a grand room with the ceilings reaching the pinnacle of the palace some one-hundred feet in the air. Just past that was a grand staircase with the bannister and railing made of pure gold. To the left was a large banquet table prepared for him and the scientists who were visiting. He breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that maybe he wouldn’t see Assad until tomorrow.
“President Cain! It is good to see you again.”
Liam turned to the right to see Samyaza walking down the hallway with the usual swagger that he was known for. ‘Oh great’, he thought. ‘Here comes Mr. Wonderful himself.’
“Hello Samyaza”, said Liam.
“Greetings! Welcome to my palace. Please make yourself at home.”
“Thank you. I am quite impressed with the lavishness of your palace. It makes the White House look like the home of a pauper”, said Liam.
“Oh, surely not. Your home has character and history. That can’t be replaced”, said Assad.
“Yes indeed”, said Liam with a hint of a smirk.
“Please…come with me. Our other guests are already here and visiting at the banquet table. Do you care to join them?”
“Sure. I would like that very much.”
Samyaza and Liam walked over to the table where Adnan Bahar was entertaining the two guests. The three of them were laughing and carrying on when they walked up to the table. When they saw Assad and the President, they bit their lips and did their best to stop laughing so they could greet them.
Liam went to shake their hands and they both stood up as straight as a soldier in boot camp. Nick had been caught off guard and didn’t have enough time to prepare himself for the sight of the President. He was a bit nervous, but not as much as he would have been under normal circumstances. Assad was there after all, and there wasn’t a person on earth that would have made him any more nervous than him.
“I am pleased to meet you Mr. President”, said Nick.
“Likewise”, said President Cain.
Liam looked over at Charles and shook his hand. “You must be Charles Billingsley.”
“Yes sir!” he said with excitement.
“I remember you. I met you briefly as a matter of fact a few years ago at a luncheon in New York for the World Health Organization. Your contributions to the medical field and science in general is staggering.”
“Thank you sir. I really appreciate that. I have moved on past my work in the medical field though after my wife passed. I have other interests now like the wormhole generator.”
Cain looked astonished. He knew theoretically what a wormhole was, but that was just it…wormholes were theoretical. “Tell me more about this technology that you have created.”
“The generator opens a small portal, which is really a rip in the fabric of matter anywhere in space. We can control the size of the portal with the generator. We feel that theoretically one could use it to go back in time, but the results we have found have actually suggested that it leads to a different plain of existence entirely…maybe even an afterlife.”
Liam looked at him with his eyebrows furrowed…almost in disbelief at what he had just heard. “The afterlife? What makes you think that is the case?”
Charles took a moment to think about how much he should say. “Well, I saw my wife in the portal who had passed away some years ago of cancer. She was as healthy and beautiful as I remembered her in her peak of life.”
Assad stood by smiling, but not a bit surprised. President Cain was still shocked at the implications though. “Do you know what this could mean for the world? I can’t even imagine all the possibilities. Maybe this is a way to immortality.”
“I know. There are so many possibilities that this could open up and we could gain so much understanding of what life is like after death. We would no longer have to wonder.”
Liam grew solemn and thought to himself: ‘I know what life is like after death. I don’t have to wonder anymore…There is something about this that isn’t right.’ His spirit grew more disquieted about these new revelations, but he couldn’t voice any of his concerns or he would risk giving his position away.
“It will be interesting to see the outcome”, said Liam. “It was great meeting you both. I am going to retire for the night. The flight zapped my energy pretty good.”
“We will see you tomorrow bright and early”, said Assad. “My people here will show you to your room and take care of you.”
“Thank you sir”, said Liam as he turned to walk away. He wondered to himself what he was getting himself in to.
CHAPTER 14
Abbie walked into the prison to meet her attacker face to face. God had give
n her a mission of forgiveness, even though it seemed like the most impossible thing that she could do in the face of what she went through and witnessed on that terrible night. She came to the front desk and saw a receptionist who seemed to be a tough, weathered lady.
“Can I help you?” she asked.
“Uh…yes mam”, Abbie said hesitantly. “I need to see Logan Smith please.”
The woman pushed a button in front of her and in a gravelly voice said, “We need Logan Smith. He has a visitor.”
She looked back up at Abbie and asked, “What is your relationship to the prisoner?”
Abbie had to think about what to say for a minute. She couldn’t really say she was his victim or that she was the best friend of the woman that he had murdered. Finally she decided…”Friend…I am a friend of his.”
“Okay…I need you to walk through those doors there and go to your first left. A guard will bring him out shortly.”
“Okay. Thank you”, said Abbie. Her heart began to thump harder and harder. Her palms becoming cold and clammy. All she wanted to do was run the other direction and not have to look the man in the eye ever again. What was she thinking?
She was ushered to a chair in front of the thick glass and she sat there with her leg shaking nervously. ‘God help me to do this’, she thought.
After a minute, a guard came through the door on the other side of the glass, leading Logan Smith in handcuffs to his seat. When he sat down and looked up at Abbie, his hollow eyes became like saucers. He recognized her instantly from the night that he attacked her and Jenna.
“You’ve come to see me?” he said confused.
“Yes”, answered Abbie, trying not to choke up.
“What for?”
“I am wanting to give you something.”
“What would you possibly want to give me?” asked Logan. “You know what I did.”
Abbie drew in a deep breath. “I have come to forgive you…to let this all go. I can’t hold on to it.”
Logan looked at her for a minute with apprehension, but deep appreciation. “Are you serious?” he asked.