by Len du Randt
Jared squeezed her hand. ‘It’s okay,’ he whispered. ‘I’ll be fine.’
‘No you won’t!’ she sobbed. ‘You won’t be okay.’
He rubbed her hand gently, wiping at the wetness. ‘We have to be strong,’ he said. ‘We have to believe that everything happens for a reason, that everything happens the way it’s meant to happen.’
Rebecca forced a smile. She wiped at her cheeks with the back of her hands and inhaled deeply to regain control of her emotions. ‘You’re right,’ she said. ‘Everything will turn out the way it’s meant to. You’re alive, and that’s all that matters.’
* - - - *
Justin jerked awake. He was still in front of the computer, its monitor glaring at him through the darkness. He yawned and stretched out before wiping the tiny spittle of drool at the corner of his mouth.
Must have dozed off, he thought as he lightly rubbed his fingers over the keyboard impressions imprinted on his cheek. He stood up and headed to the kitchen where he poured himself some orange juice before making his way back to his study.
‘Now where was I?’ he murmured as he repositioned himself in front of the computer again. He swallowed half the orange juice in one go.
The dream, he remembered. His book was accepted for publication. He couldn’t remember all the details, but he could remember that some large publishing house wanted his book. He smiled. Yeah, right.
Justin re-read the last paragraph of a short story he had started writing in order to keep his skills honed while he waited for the rejections to pour in. He paused at the last sentence. Facing him on a single line were three words: He must see.
Justin frowned. He couldn’t remember typing that. He re-read the paragraph. There was nothing in the context of what he was writing that would lead to him typing that sentence. He shook his head and chuckled as he replaced the words with his own.
* - - - *
‘But he’s fine, right?’ Tanya asked as she poured herself a Rosé. She offered some, but Rebecca politely declined.
‘Despite the fact that he might never see again, I guess he is fine, yes,’ Rebecca answered.
Tanya smiled. ‘It’s sad that he’s lost his sight, but I’ve seen him overcome far worse obstacles.’
‘That’s true,’ Rebecca said and returned the smile. ‘He’s a fighter.’
‘Some of the greatest men in history had some sort of handicap,’ Tanya said and Rebecca wondered if it was meant to make her feel better. ‘It actually made them stronger, drove them harder.’ She took a sip of her wine. ‘Maybe this whole thing will turn out to his advantage. Who knows?’
‘I hope you’re right,’ Rebecca said. ‘I really hope you are.’
* - - - *
Jared prodded a fork in the general direction he believed his plate to be. ‘That’s right, Mister Greene,’ a nurse said, trying to help him stay on the right track. ‘You’re almost there.’ Jared poked in mid air, and then made contact with the wooden tray situated above his waist. He stabbed a few more times before the fork made contact with the porcelain, resulting in an ear splitting screech. Jared flinched. ‘Great work, Mister Greene,’ the nurse said. ‘The hardest part is over.’
‘This isn’t working for me,’ Jared said. ‘I can’t do it.’
‘Now, now, Jared Greene,’ the nurse said, trying to sound as stern as she could manage. ‘You can’t give up this early in the game. You can’t quit now.’
‘This is stupid and I don’t like it,’ Jared insisted. ‘And talk normal to me, for crying out loud! I’m blind, not brain damaged.’
‘I meant no disrespect, sir...’
Jared ignored her and stabbed at his plate again. Something soft made contact with his fork, and he pressed the utensil into it.
‘That’s a piece of potato,’ the nurse said reluctantly. ‘You got it spot on, Mister Greene.’
Jared wanted to cry out; he wanted to scream and lash out at everyone and everything. Instead, he secured the potato on his fork and raised it to his mouth. The teeth of the fork struck his own, shooting a sensation of pain through his jaw that stabbed into his brain. Jared cursed and flung the fork the length of the room where it struck the door with a clang before clattering to the ground.
‘Oh my,’ the nurse managed and stood up.
In one violent arc, Jared swept his arm over the try, smashing everything to the ground next to him. ‘Get this away from me,’ he growled. The nurse stood there, frozen on the spot. She did not dare say a word. A soft knock on the door calmed the enraged man to a certain degree.
‘What?’
‘Jared?’ a male voice asked softly. Jared could hear expensive shoes walking over the cheap tiles. ‘It’s Dean…Larson…’
‘Dean,’ Jared greeted his Financial Director as he suppressed the anger in his voice. ‘Please excuse this mess. The nurse was just about to clean it up.’
The nurse sprang to life and knelt down beside the bed where she picked up broken pieces of crockery and food from the floor. Dean gave her a moment as she finished up. She shot him a forced smile and left the two to their privacy.
‘I came as soon as I heard that you were awake...better,’ Dean said.
‘Better?’ Jared asked and stifled a chuckle. He pointed at his eyes. ‘This is better?’
Dean didn’t answer right away, giving Jared’s anger some time to subside. ‘It’s good to see you again,’ he said after the pause.
‘Wish I could say the same,’ Jared said and swallowed hard. He clenched his teeth and exhaled loudly.
‘I’m sorry,’ Dean said, ‘about the...the...eyes...’
‘What’s up with Whyte & Greene?’ Jared interrupted, taking the pity party down a different road instead.
‘It’s gone, Jared,’ Dean said. ‘There is no more Whyte & Greene.’
‘What?’
‘It sank. The Patterson deal killed all our resources.’
Jared shook his head. ‘That can’t be right,’ he said. ‘Shaun wouldn’t allow that to happen.’
‘You haven’t heard...?’
‘Heard what?’
‘Shaun is...’ Dean said and sighed. ‘He’s dead, Jared.’
The words sliced into Jared’s mind and his stomach tightened. ‘What...?’
‘He committed suicide about a week ago. Seems like the whole Whyte & Greene thing must have been too much for him. He shot his wife with a shotgun and then turned the gun on himself.’
‘You’re lying! If this is your idea of some kind of sick joke, I’ll make—’
‘It’s no joke, Jared. Shaun is dead, and so is Whyte & Greene International.’
Jared shook his head. ‘But I just saw him yesterday, at Amy’s funeral.’ He rubbed the headache that stabbed at his brain with each thought.
‘The funeral was a month ago,’ Dean said calmly. ‘Maybe I should come back at a more suitable time.’
‘No,’ Jared said. ‘I’m sorry.’
Dean gave Jared a minute to compose himself and structure his thoughts before he bought the conversation to its main point. ‘Your house was sold, Jared, and so was the Bentley. Whatever insurance pays out for the Vanquish will go straight into the company account.’
‘You can’t do that,’ Jared said. ‘That’s private property.’
‘It’s a clause that you wrote into the contract, Jared, to protect your staff in case this exact scenario ever happened.’
‘I can’t remember...’
‘It doesn’t matter,’ Dean said. ‘It’s on paper. You signed it with three witnesses.’
‘So much to digest,’ Jared said and rubbed a hand through his hair. He took a deep breath. ‘What do I have left?’
‘Not much, I’m afraid. Your savings account should have a few thousand dollars left, if that much.’
‘Not good,’ Jared said. ‘What more can go wrong? Where’s Lisa?’
‘Oh man,’ Dean said. ‘You’re not going to like this.’
‘What? Where is she?’
&nbs
p; ‘She’s dead, Jared. Her body was found almost a month ago, more or less around the same time of your accident.’
‘Tell me you’re joking, Dean.’
‘Unfortunately not, Jared.’
‘Why the hell is everyone dying around me?’ Jared asked and slammed his fist on the bed beside him. ‘Why is this happening to me?’
‘I don’t know,’ Dean said. ‘But I suggest you pull yourself together and see if you can make a comeback. You’re a good business man, Jared,’ he said. ‘You just got dealt a bad hand, that’s all.’
‘This isn’t a bad hand,’ Jared spat. ‘This is a universal conspiracy against me. I’m blind. Or haven’t you noticed? I can barely eat; how the hell do you expect me to do business?’
‘That will come with time,’ Dean said. ‘Many highly successful people out there are handicapped in some way. You still have the power of your mind, Jared. And that’s what you will use to get back to the top: your mind, not your eyes.’
‘I can’t...’
‘With that attitude you’ve already lost, I agree. I have to go now, but take some time to think about what I’ve said. Give it a few days to digest.’
‘Wait. Can’t you stay a while longer...?’
Dean squeezed Jared’s leg. ‘I have to go. But I’ll be back later to discuss the liquidation proceedings with you.’ With that, the Financial Director turned and left, the echoes of his footsteps down the hall echoing his words in Jared’s mind: You still have the power of your mind, Jared. And that’s what you will use to get back to the top: your mind, not your eyes.’
* - - - *
The quiet calm inside the house was a sharp contrast to the ripping wind outside.
Lightning flashed.
Thunder rumbled and roared.
Trees swayed to and fro as rain pattered against the bedroom window. Rebecca moaned softly and turned, kicking the duvet slightly off her. Despite the raging storm outside, she was sweating.
In her dream she was walking through a parking lot. Cars were stretched out for as far as the eye could see. The sinking sun lingered slightly above the horizon in the distance. She was looking for her car in the maze of cars.
A movement to her left caught her attention.
Rebecca shot a glance in that direction. ‘Hello?’
No answer.
Someone was here with her. She could feel it.
‘Is anyone there?’
A thud behind her. Rebecca spun around. A cat had jumped onto the roof of a car next to her. She sighed and looked up to continue her search for her car. The man in front of her made her shriek and jump back a little.
Her heartbeat pounded away in her ears. ‘It’s you!’
‘Peace,’ the man said and smiled a big toothless smile.
‘Who…who are you?’ Rebecca asked. As she spoke the words, she couldn’t help but feel that she knew the man from somewhere. ‘And what did you mean when you said those things about Jared the other day?’
‘Oh, I think you know the answer,’ the man said.
Rebecca blinked and the man was gone.
‘Jared must see,’ a voice spoke behind her.
Rebecca spun around and her hand shot to her mouth. ‘Simon...?’
Simon smiled as he approached her. ‘Jared must see.’
Rebecca shook her head. ‘He can’t see,’ she said. ‘He’s blind.’
‘The time for Jared to fulfil his destiny has come. For God’s glory to be revealed, he must see.’
‘Why doesn’t God just heal him then?’
‘He will,’ Simon said. ‘But He needs someone to do it through. Someone who will take a step of faith and speak the words.’
‘Speak the words?’ Rebecca asked. The answer dawned on her and she shook her head. ‘Not me,’ she said.
‘Someone,’ Simon said and took a step closer, ‘whose heart is pure.’
‘I can’t do it...’
‘He must see, Rebecca,’ Simon said. ‘And you’re the one through whom the Lord wants to do it.’
Lightning flashed.
Thunder clapped.
Rebecca woke gasping for breath. She kicked the duvet off the bed and sat upright. After a few seconds, she switched on the bed lamp and only once she managed to control her breathing did she get out of bed. She headed to the bathroom where she drank a substantial amount of water before facing herself in the mirror.
He must see.
‘It was just a dream, Rebecca Greene,’ she said to her reflection. ‘Just your subconscious trying to find solutions.’ She splashed her face with water before returning to bed where she pulled the duvet over herself again.
The time for Jared to fulfil his destiny has come.
Lightning flashed outside, illuminating the room for a split second before everything went dark again. A few seconds later, the rumbling in the distance caught up.
For God’s glory to be revealed, he must see.
‘How, Lord?’ she whispered. ‘How can I do it?’
Lightning flashed.
No verbal answer came, but in her heart a solution formed. She felt foolish and self-conscious. What if it didn’t work? Would Jared be even more frustrated and hurt? Would he be offended? Would she be able to believe anything again?
‘I’ll try,’ she said. ‘But I’m scared. Scared of what people might think if it doesn’t work. I’m scared that it will work. I don’t know what to expect, Lord.’
Hope conflicted with fear; emotion with intellect.
‘I will call Justin,’ she said finally. ‘Please let the answer lie with him.’
* - - - *
‘How is he?’ Justin asked.
‘Frustrated,’ Rebecca said and sighed. ‘He doesn’t eat or talk anymore.’
‘He needs time.’
‘I’m bringing him home with me, Justin.’
‘You know he’s more than welcome here, Becky. I’ll have his room ready by the time you guys arrive.’
Rebecca was tired and ready to go home. She just wanted to be with her husband. Soon, she thought. She wondered if she should tell Justin about the dream or just let it go. Rebecca felt foolish for even thinking about it. It was just that and nothing more, she thought. A dream.
‘I started writing a new book,’ Justin said. ‘While I’m waiting for an agent to get back to me I figured that I might just as well get started with the next one.’
‘Oh really?’ Rebecca asked. ‘What’s it about?’
‘I don’t want to give away too much now, but it’s about a guy who can see the past.’
Rebecca rolled her eyes, but the boyish enthusiasm in Justin’s voice was a breath of fresh air for her aching bones, so she decided to humour him. ‘The past?’
‘Yes. You know how people in some stories can look into the future and see what will happen?’
‘Yes?’
‘Well, this young attorney can actually look into the past and see things the way they actually happened.’
‘That’s...nice...?’
‘Imagine looking at a suspect and seeing the actual crime unfold right in front of your eyes? Would you defend him if you knew he really did it? Or imagine that the President of the United States was a serial killer and you could see the crimes that he committed over the last few years. Would you do something about it? And what if he somehow found out that you knew?’
Rebecca smiled. ‘That’s actually an interesting concept. So what happens in your book?’
‘Oh no, I’m not telling you a single thing more,’ Justin said. ‘You’ll just have to read the first draft and find out yourself.’
‘You can’t do that!’
Justin laughed. ‘I knew you’d be interested. But I’m only done with chapter one now, so you still have a while to wait.’
‘Not fair,’ she said and smiled. He was excited again, and that was enough to motivate and drive him for however long it took to finish the first draft. The rejections knocked his enthusiasm a bit, but this new book raised his spirits, s
o she humoured him as much as he needed. She opened her mouth to tell him about her dream but swallowed the words.
‘I originally started with a completely different storyline,’ Justin said. ‘Something completely different to what I started with initially.’
‘Oh?’ she asked. ‘What happened?’
‘I fell asleep at the keyboard.’
Rebecca giggled. ‘It’s not the first time that has happened.’
‘Yeah. But anyways, I went to pour myself some juice. When I got back to the computer, the words “he must see” were typed on a new line. The strangest thing is that I didn’t write it. Yet, there it was when I sat down.’
Rebecca sat upright, her heart fluttering wildly in her chest. ‘He must see?’
‘Yeah. After two more scenes the words haunted me so much that I wrote a whole new story around it.’
For God’s glory to be revealed...
‘Anyways,’ Justin said, ‘I have to pick Monique up from school. I’ll call you back later, okay?’
...he must see.
‘Okay,’ Rebecca said, and with shaking hands replaced the cell in her handbag.
* - - - *
‘Mom?’
‘It’s me, Jared,’ Rebecca said and placed her hand on his.
‘I can’t take it anymore,’ he said. ‘I can’t go on living like this.’ She gently rubbed his hand, allowing him to vent his anger and frustration. ‘Nothing is real anymore,’ he said. ‘Everything around me is just a bunch of flashing colours; colours and…and overwhelming darkness.’
‘All you need is time to get used to it,’ she said softly.
‘I don’t want to get used to it!’ Jared snapped. ‘I want everything to be the way it was before...before this!’