by Todd Kirby
he asked Jeremy, “Where’s your gun?”
“Don’t you worry about that,” said Ratchet. “The kid’s always rode with me, I’ll make sure he’s ready.” As Skeeter walked away, Ratchet finished loading his revolver and looked Jeremy in the eyes. “You up for this, kid?” he asked. Jeremy just smiled and nodded.
“Alright everybody, let’s ride!” yelled Skeeter.
The Bikers mounted up, and the sound of dozens of bikes starting up was like thunder. They set out in pairs down the road to the depot. About ten minutes into the ride, a light rain started coming down, but the gang rode on undeterred. As they rode through the gates of the depot, the rain started coming down harder, and Jeremy said a silent prayer. “God, I’m not afraid to kill or die, but if You want me out of the riders, You’re going to have to help. If you don’t do something tonight, then I’ll presume You don’t care, and I’ll go back to the lifestyle I know.”
Less than a minute after going through the gates, the riders came upon the exchange. They surrounded the Chupacabras and the supplier’s van. There were a couple dozen Chupacabras, as well as Roger standing there with a briefcase. He was getting ready to hand it to the supplier, who was also wearing Chupacabra colors. Skeeter and Ratchet’s group turned off their bikes and dismounted. The rain continued to pour as both sides drew weapons.
“Joseph,” Roger spoke up. “You’re making a huge mistake.”
“You’re the one who’s making a mistake Roger,” said Ratchet. “You started this the day you invited the Chupacabras onto our turf.”
“Oh, this was started long before then…” said Roger.
While they were speaking, Jeremy noticed the supplier. He had an oddly familiar looking tattoo on his forearm. It looked like… “Aces and eights!” Jeremy yelled.
Everything seemed to shift into slow motion at that point. The supplier pulled out his gun and shot at Jeremy, but Ratchet jumped in front of him and shot back at the supplier. Suddenly guns were blazing everywhere as people ducked and dove for cover. One of the Chupacabras near Jeremy pulled out a badge and yelled, “Federal Marshall, everybody freeze!” Then he spoke down at his vest pocket, “Texas red! I repeat, Texas red! All units converge!”
Jeremy saw Ratchet fall to the ground, so he bent down and tried to pull him up to help him to safety. But as he did, Jeremy saw that Ratchet had been shot in the chest. As the rain poured and the bullets flew, Jeremy heard sirens and saw black vehicles coming in from everywhere. He said to Ratchet, “Come on, we’ve gotta get out of here.”
But Ratchet said, “I don’t think I’m going anywhere, kid.”
Jeremy looked up and saw that the supplier with the ‘Aces and eights’ tattoo was lying on the ground over by Roger. Roger was being handcuffed by the undercover agent with the badge.
“You need to get out of here though.” said Ratchet, coughing up a little blood.
“I’m not going anywhere without you.” said Jeremy. “We’ll get you some help, you’re gonna be fine.”
“I don’t think so kid.” said Ratchet. “I’m cold.”
Jeremy took off his vest and wrapped it around his old friend. “Is that better?” he asked.
“Kid,” Ratchet spoke again. “I’m not gonna make it this time, I need you to do something for me.”
“Anything.” said Jeremy.
“Pray with me.” Ratchet said, his voice breaking now.
“What?” Jeremy said, shocked. “I don’t know how to pray.” But as the rain continued to pour and the firefight slowed with the onslaught of federal agents, Jeremy felt the urgency of his friend’s request. “Okay.” he said.
Ratchet closed his eyes. “God,” he said, “I’m so sorry for all the bad things I’ve done. Please forgive me, I don’t want to go to hell.” Coughing up some more blood, Ratchet winced in pain, then continued, “I’m so sorry, God. I’m so sorry…” Jeremy watched as Ratchet opened his eyes a little. Then suddenly his eyes got wide and he said, “Elizabeth…” After that, he was still.
“Ratchet?” Jeremy said. “Ratchet!?” As Jeremy pulled his old friend close to him, he began to cry, “It’s okay… it’s okay. We’re gonna get you some help. HELP! SOMEBODY HELP! Hang on Ratchet, it’s gonna be okay…”
As the rain finally began to subside and the shooting stopped, an EMT came running over to where Jeremy and Ratchet were. He picked up Ratchet’s wrist and felt for a pulse. Then he put the wrist down and felt Ratchet’s neck. The EMT looked at Jeremy and shook his head, then he rushed on to another person who had been shot.
Clinging to Ratchet’s now-limp body, Jeremy rocked back and forth, still repeating, “It’s gonna be okay… it’s gonna be okay…” As he looked around, he saw Roger in the back of a police vehicle, and most of the Chupacabras and Skeeter’s gang had been rounded up into paddy wagons. Several bodies lay on the ground, including the supplier, who someone had placed a body bag over.
Eventually a man came over with a stretcher and said, ”We need to take the body, son. And you’re going to have to go with the officers.” Jeremy gently laid Ratchet’s body down and straightened up his vest. He wiped the tears from his face as he stood up, and nodded to the man.
The officer in front of him took out a pair of handcuffs and said, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” Jeremy turned to face away from the officer, and put his hands behind his back. As the officer put the handcuffs on, he began a familiar speech, “You have the right to remain silent…”
Jeremy didn’t remember much of the drive down to the station. He didn’t remember much of the wait in the cell either. In fact, most of the next three hours was a blur. The only thing he did know was that Ratchet was gone, and Jeremy had no idea what was going to happen next. He almost didn’t hear his name being called by the guard. “Jeremy Bonds!”
As Jeremy walked up to the cell door, the guard unlocked it and said, “Come with me.”
Jeremy didn’t ask any questions, and he didn’t look into the other cells as he walked the long hallway down to the police offices. He just resigned himself, broken, to whatever happened. The guard walked Jeremy into an office where the federal agent from before was sitting at a desk with a stack of manila folders on it. The agent was looking at a folder marked ‘Bonds, Jeremy’.
“Have a seat.” said the agent. As Jeremy sat down in a chair opposite the desk, the agent went on, “Mr. Bonds, I have enough evidence to put everyone at the crime scene away for a very long time. Everyone at the crime scene was either under investigation, carrying an illegal weapon, or in the act of committing a crime.” Then the guard looked at Jeremy and finished, “Everyone but you. You had no weapons, you haven’t committed a crime since you got out of jail several months ago, you didn’t even resist arrest. What exactly were you doing at the scene of the crime?”
After a moment’s pause, Jeremy said, “Talking with God.”
“Talking with God?” mocked the agent. “I talk with God on Sunday morning, and sometimes before I eat. What exactly were you talking with God about at the scene of the crime?”
“He was telling me he doesn’t want me to be a biker anymore.” Jeremy said, still not looking up.
“You know,” the agent began, “that’s pretty solid advice. I think I would listen to that advice if I were you Mr. Bonds.”
Jeremy looked up at the agent, completely stone-faced.
The agent leaned back in his chair and sighed. “I’ve got some good news for you Mr. Bonds. I have over fifty individuals with serious crimes that I have to finish processing before I can go home tonight. I do not have time to try and find a reason to punish you for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.” The guard closed the folder and said, “You are free to go.”
As Jeremy stood up, the officer finished with, “But know this, Mr. Bonds. If I catch you as much as jaywalking, I’m going to remember that I�
��ve already given you a second chance.”
Jeremy exited the room, thinking to himself, “I’ve been given a second chance alright, but it wasn’t by you.” He signed for his things at the front desk and walked out the door. Jeremy’s bike would be impounded with the rest, and there was no telling when it would be available. He would have to walk or hitch a ride home, and it was the middle of the night.
Jeremy walked down the city streets alone in the dark, and as he did, he made his thoughts known. “I don’t know what you want from me God. I don’t know why You’re calling me, or why You saved me back there, or what You have planned for me now. But it’s a long walk home, and I’ve got nobody left, so…” But as Jeremy turned the corner, he saw the hospital, and Allison was just walking out of the ER doors. “Seriously?” Jeremy said, looking up at the sky. “This is who you pick?”
Allison stopped in her tracks and squinted to see who was in the darkness coming toward her. “I’m armed!” she called out.
“Good for you.” Jeremy called back.
“Jeremy?” she said. “Is that you?”
“Yes, it’s me.” he replied. “Have you come to take me home?”
Allison looked at him quizzically, and said, “What? No, I… The strangest thing just happened. I was supposed to be off tonight, but I got a call about an hour ago saying they needed help. So I came in, but when I got here they said nobody called me. I distinctly remember somebody calling me about an hour ago saying, ‘Hello, this is Elizabeth, we need you at the hospital…’”
Jeremy stopped walking and turned suddenly pale. “Did you say ‘Elizabeth’?”
“Yes,” she answered, “but they don’t even have an ‘Elizabeth’ on staff here. I guess it was a wrong number, but what an odd wrong number.” Then she looked at Jeremy and said, “Are you okay?”
“No.” he replied. “Can you give me a lift home?”
“Sure.” she said. “I’m parked right over here.”
The two got in Allison’s car and started down the road. After several minutes of silence, Allison said, “So… what were you doing walking down the street in middle of the night? Did your bike break down?”
“No…” said Jeremy. “I was involved in a turf war between rival gangs when the feds showed up. My best friend’s dead.”
“Are you being sarcastic?” Allison asked.
“No,” Jeremy replied, “My bike is in impound, I’m not sure when it will be available.”
Allison stammered for a moment, “Should I… do we… need to take you to the police or anything?”
“I just came from the police,” he said. “I’ve been released.”
“Oh, well… that’s good.” Allison said. “I guess.”
After an awkward silence, Jeremy spoke up again. “Allison,” he said, “can you take me to your church tomorrow?”
She glanced back and forth between Jeremy and the road, and said, “Yes, absolutely. I mean, technically it is tomorrow, so you mean here in a few hours, right?”
“Yes.” he affirmed.
“Oh, Jeremy.” she started to sound excited, but then she remembered the rest of the conversation. “I’m so sorry about your friend. How did he die?”
“He died saving me.” said Jeremy. “I should be the one who’s dead.”
“But you’re not.” Allison said. “And that tells me that God still has plans for your life. Jeremy, can you tell me why you want to go to church?”
“Because I feel like God is chasing me,” Jeremy answered, “but I don’t know anything about Him. And maybe if I go to a church, I’ll found out what I’m supposed to do next.”
As they pulled into Jeremy’s driveway, Allison put the car in park. “I believe you will.” she said. “I’ll pick you up at 10:00?”
Jeremy nodded. “I’ll see you then,” he said as he got out of the car. He walked into his house and plopped down on his couch. Staring up at the ceiling, Jeremy felt his eyes get heavy. “Tomorrow…” he said drowsily as he faded off to sleep, completely exhausted.
CHORUS 3
(New Beginnings)
Jeremy was waiting on his porch when Allison drove up the next morning. He had his cleanest pair of jeans and the only t-shirt he owned that didn’t have a beer brand on it. Allison was wearing a sundress and she had done her hair and makeup like she was going somewhere important.
“Wow,” he said. “You look… beautiful.”
“Thank you,” she replied. “You clean up pretty nice yourself.”
They didn’t say much on the way to church. When they arrived, the church parking lot was already filling up. Everyone seemed nice, and a lot of people asked who Allison’s ‘friend’ was - she simply introduced him as ‘Jeremy’. Jeremy wasn’t sure what to expect. He thought maybe people would turn to each other and whisper when they saw him, or hide their children when he got close. To his surprise, everyone just treated him like he was a regular attender.
They went into the sanctuary and found a seat just as the music was starting. As Jeremy began singing, Allison gave him a surprised look.
“What?” he said.
“You still have a beautiful voice.” she said with a smile.
As they progressed through the songs, Jeremy listened to the lyrics he was singing. When he was a child, he didn’t think about the words, he just sang along. Now however, the lyrics seemed very poignant. It’s one thing to sing of forgiveness when you don’t think you’ve done anything that needs to be forgiven. But when you’ve done the things Jeremy had done, the discomfort level becomes almost palpable.
Jeremy was relieved when they finished singing and sat down. A preacher walked onto the stage and welcomed everyone, then he began his sermon. “Today’s sermon is titled: The Cost of Redemption” he said. As the preacher spoke, Jeremy listened very intently. The preacher told story after story of people in the Bible who were changed. A tax collector, an adulterous woman, a cripple, a leper… all of these were changed completely by their interaction with Jesus. All of them went away profoundly different from when they came.
The preacher said that Jesus removed people’s sins, “as far as the East is from the West.” If Jesus allowed former tax collectors and prostitutes to be disciples, to be close to him and follow him and preach in his name… then people really can change. Yesterday’s sin does not determine tomorrow’s salvation. Jeremy looked at the people around him. Was that guy across the aisle an adulterer? Was that woman a gossiper? Was the fellow up front a thief? Was someone in here a murderer?
At the end of the sermon, the praise band started playing another tune. The preacher said, “Do you need to be redeemed? Do you need to ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins.” Suddenly Jeremy started replaying Ratchet’s death in his mind.
“Stop it.” he thought to himself, “concentrate on the music.”
O come to the altar, the father’s arms are open wide…
Jeremy felt compelled to do something. “I’m staying right here.” he tried to convince himself. But the compulsion was growing stronger.
Forgiveness was bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ…
“Sweet Jesus…” thought Jeremy, “I feel like I’m gonna explode.” He looked up in defiance. Not in defiance of God, but in defiance of anyone who would stop him from claiming his redemption. Before he knew it, the words were coming out of his mouth. “God,” he said, “I’m so sorry for all the bad things I’ve done. Please forgive me, I don’t want to go to hell.” He felt someone beside him put their hand on his shoulder. “I’m so sorry, God. I’m so sorry…” He felt someone else put their hand on his back, and as he looked around, dozens of people were gathering around him and… praying?
Jeremy felt like everybody in the room knew about his sin, but he didn’t care. There was something strange and beautiful going on inside him. All at once, Jeremy fel
t clean. He felt forgiven. He felt… redeemed.
He heard Allison say, “Jeremy, do you want to ask Jesus into your heart?”
“Yes.” he said, as tears began to fall down his cheeks.
“Repeat after me,” she said. “Jesus, I know that I’m a sinner, and I believe you died to pay the punishment for my sins.” Jeremy repeated, and Allison continued, “Please come into my heart, forgive my sins, and help me to live for you.” After Jeremy had repeated that, Allison threw her arms around him and said, “Congratulations Jeremy, you’re saved!”
Everyone around him was crying and patting Jeremy on the back. Several people were saying “Hallelujah!” or “Amen!”.
“So what do I do now?” asked Jeremy, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.
“Do you believe what you just prayed?” Allison asked.
“Yes…” said Jeremy. “I do.”
“Then live like it.” she said.
The praise band played another song, then the church service dismissed. Afterward, Mary Lynn Dobson came up and gave Jeremy a big hug. With tears in her eyes, she said, “Oh Jeremy, I haven’t seen you since…” and then she trailed off, not sure if Jeremy’s jail time was common knowledge.
“...our last Bible study?” Jeremy finished.
“Yes.” Mary Lynn agreed. “I was hoping you were… alright.”
“A lot has happened since then, I’ll have to tell you about it sometime.” said Jeremy.
“There will be plenty of time for that.” Mary Lynn added, “Are you interested in helping out with the jail ministry?”
“Yes, definitely.” Jeremy acknowledged.
And Jeremy was a man of his word. Life changed quickly and dramatically for him after that. He was baptized the following Sunday and became a regular attender at Renaissance church. A little help from Ronnie Murphy got Jeremy’s bike back within a week, and Jeremy was able to get a job at the local Harley dealer in the service department. Turns out the owner was a member of Renaissance.
Jeremy not only served on the jail ministry, but his vocal skills won him a place on the praise team as well. Between his new nine-to-five at the dealership and his ministry responsibilities at church, Jeremy almost didn’t have time to get into trouble. Of course, trouble still occasionally found him.
Several months into his Christianity, Jeremy agreed to take some of the youth group boys to a city park to play some basketball. They had found an open court and just started playing when a group of thugs came up and one of them said, “Aye, you’re on my court.”
The youth group boys started to walk off the court, but Jeremy walked up to the thugs and said, “Your court, huh? That’s funny, I don’t see your name on it...”
The thug holding the basketball lifted up his shirt to reveal a knife, and he said to Jeremy, “You see it now, chump?” And all the thugs started laughing and saying things like “That’s right…” and “Show him…”
A wicked smile crept across Jeremy’s lips and he said, “Pull it.”
“Say what?” said the thug.
Jeremy leaned in and enunciated, “I said, pull it.”
“If I pull it,” said the thug, “then ima cut you with it.”
“No,” replied Jeremy, “If you pull it, then I’m going to take it from you, and stick it so far up your backside that you choke on it. Now I… said… pull it.”
The thug looked Jeremy up and down, noticing the tattoos and scars on his arms. Finally he said, “Ima let you play on my court for now… but ima bring my posse back later.”
As the thugs walked away, Jeremy called out, “Bring your friends. I’m here every Thursday at 7:00.”
When the thugs were out of earshot, one of the youth boys came up to Jeremy and said, “Isn’t Thursday at 7:00 when the Police Athletic League plays their games here?”
“Is it?” smiled Jeremy. “Hmmm… I guess I meant to say ‘Tuesday’...”
The youth boys finished their games, and Jeremy made them promise not to tell the senior pastor about this little ‘incident’. But that event seemed to be a foreshadowing of his ministry. Knowing that thugs could be an issue any time the youth wanted to play ball at the city park, Jeremy began working on a solution. He asked for signups at church, requesting some of the men to help out with teaching basketball skills to the youth. One of the first to sign up was Hezekiah Washington.
‘Hez’, as he preferred to be called, was a middle-aged man who was used to working with his hands. Blue collar like Jeremy, he didn’t look for trouble, but he didn’t back down from it either. Jeremy met with Hez and told him about the incident the previous week, asking if he would be willing to help out. Hez agreed, oddly undeterred by Jeremy’s story.
The next Tuesday, Jeremy, Hez, and several other adults took the youth boys back to the city park. They were having a great time of teaching and fellowship, when the thugs from before showed up, but this time there were more of them - including some older boys. Hez looked at Jeremy, and Jeremy nodded.
The oldest thug spoke up. “Aye, that was real funny about Thursdays at 7:00. Your cop friends aren’t here to help you now.”
Hez squinted as if he saw something familiar, but didn’t know from where. Then he suddenly spoke up. “Percival? Percival Jones?”
The oldest thug looked shocked, then stammered, “It’s… it’s P-Dawg, man.”
Hez raised an eyebrow and went on, “Percival Amos Jones, does your momma know you’re out here causing all this trouble with people?”
Suddenly there were murmurs from the rest of the thugs like, “Amos?” and “Yo P-Dawg, you know this guy?”
“Come on, Hez…” Percival said. “Not in front of my boys…”
“That’s Mr. Washington to you, Percival.” said Hez. “I ought to drag you down to your momma’s work right now and tell her how you’re acting.”
Percival put his hands on his hips and rolled his eyes. “This can’t be happening...” he said, shaking his head.
“I’ll tell you what,” said Hez. “I’ll make you a deal. We’re starting a basketball camp here with skills training and scrimmage games. If you and your boys will come to our camp, I won’t tell your momma about all this.”
“Man,” Percival objected, “we don’t need no camp. I know how to ball.”
“No,” replied Hez, “You know how to drive to the basket and foul. You can’t shoot long range and you can’t run the point. But I can show you how to do that and more.” After not hearing a reply for a few moments, Hez went on, “But, it’s up to you. I drive right past your momma’s work on my way home…”
“Alright, alright…” agreed Percival. And the other boys reluctantly followed him over to where Hez and Jeremy were.
“One more thing,” Hez spoke up. “This is my court now, there’s no weapons allowed on my court.”
Jeremy grabbed a large cardboard box from beside the bench where the water and Gatorade barrels were. He went down the line of Percival’s boys, and each one grudgingly trading in a knife or brass knuckles for an orange tank top which read ‘Renaissance Youth Basketball Camp’. When it was Percival’s turn, he said, “Aye, we getting these back though, right?”
“You’ll get them back after camp today,” said Hez, “but don’t bring them back tomorrow.”
That first day was rough, there was more fouling and cursing going on than basketball. But by the end of the day, Percival’s boys realized that there were basketball skills they could learn from Hezekiah and the others. After that first day, several of the thugs didn’t come back to camp, but many did. In the weeks that followed, Jeremy learned as much as Percival. Hez was a strong leader, firm and disciplined, but he had a real heart for those boys. Just like Jeremy had a heart for the cons.
By the end of the summer, the youth boys and the street kids were actually playing pretty well together. Hez had set the scrimmage teams up so that they all had a mix o
f both groups. Percival’s team got second place in the tournament at the end of the summer, in a championship game that was well-attended by many in the community and Renaissance church. ‘P-Dawg’ even agreed to try out for the high school team that next fall.
While Jeremy’s role inside the church was singing with the praise team, it was his role outside the church that really felt like ministry. Inside the church, he found himself being quiet and reserved - feeling somewhat limited in what he could do. With the cons and street kids however, Jeremy felt like he could do some good. He felt like he could convey to those individuals ‘hey, I used to be where you are, but I turned it around and so can you’.
And Jeremy did turn things around. His part in the jail ministry not only helped the cons while they were in jail, with his Bible study participation and visitation ministry, but he also set up and led a ministry to help the cons once they got out. He was instrumental in building halfway houses and Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous programs in his community, and a couple of surrounding communities as well.
With Hezekiah’s help, and the help of some of the other men in the church, Jeremy started a Big Brothers program for the street kids. And the Renaissance basketball camp programs eventually received statewide recognition for their success. The local high school became a basketball powerhouse in the region, and they always had several members from the Renaissance basketball camp (and the Renaissance youth) on the team.
With each endeavor that Jeremy attempted, God granted him success. Including his favorite ministry, becoming a husband and father.
OUTTRO
(Old Friends)
Jeremy buttoned up his shirt as he finished getting ready. As he combed his hair, he noticed some flecks of gray at his temple. “Figures…” he said with a sigh. Even though he had earned every one of those gray hairs, it didn’t make them any easier to accept. Convincing himself that they made him look ‘distinguished’, Jeremy put on his jacket and headed out the door.
He went down to the florist shop and picked out two bouquets. When he took them up to the counter to pay, he heard a voice say, “Jeremy Bonds?” He looked up at the cashier, and she looked familiar, but Jeremy couldn’t quite place her. “It’s me, Jenny Mahoney.” she said.
Jenny’s hair was shorter, and she had gained a little weight, but those eyes were unforgettable. “Jenny Mahoney?” Jeremy said with a smile. “Wow, I haven’t seen you in forever, how’ve you been?”
“I’m doing okay.” she replied. When she saw Jeremy glance down at her left hand, she followed with, “Divorced. Finalized about a month ago.”
“I’m sorry,” Jeremy tried to recover, “I wasn’t…”
“No, it’s okay.” she said. “It just wasn’t working out. What about you?”
“Married for several years now, and have a lovely little girl who just turned six.” said Jeremy.
“You have a daughter?” Jenny said, surprised. “Well now, that’s Karma at work.”
Jeremy smiled again and replied, “I prefer to think of it as God’s sense of humor.”
“Why am I surprised to hear you talking about God?” Jenny said, raising an eyebrow.
“It’s crazy, I know.” said Jeremy. “I’m a Christian now. I’m pretty involved at Renaissance Church and God has blessed me more than I could have ever dreamed. You should come to church this Sunday, I’ll save you a seat.”
“I think I