The Premise

by Andy Crossfield

  William Downs' body was slumped back in the chair with the stone knife handle still protruding from his chest. His blood had pooled beneath him in the seat and was now dripping into a puddle on the floor. Jack searched William’s pockets and retrieved his phone, then called 911 and then Karen. She had no idea she and Sam were in danger and had seen no evidence they were being followed.

  It took the Bethesda police hours to process the scene and by the time Jack and Colleen were released, they were exhausted. Neither of them felt comfortable riding back in the Consulate Car, so they called a regular cab and actually enjoyed the diversion of the driver’s mindless chitchat about the weather and sports all the way back to DC.

  Chapter 36 The World Reacts

  October 31, 2016 began with a spectacular sunrise. It was cold and clear in Washington D.C., and Jack woke up early. He had a strange feeling about the day. He felt more apprehension than negativity, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that his world and everyone in it would go to bed that night with a completely different outlook on the future.

  Predicting world changing events is tricky business. Nobody he’d ever heard of woke on November 22nd, or December 7th, or September 11th and announced to the world that it would change on that very day. Amateurs could predict the commonplace; everyday events like love or fortune could be interpreted in enough ways to dazzle the willingly gullible. But predicting history's truly significant events had tripped up soothsayers and doomsday adherents since time’s beginning.

  Still, Jack's gut told him something of great importance was going to happen as he scanned the crowd that had hastily assembled for Max’s event. Down in front were the few members of the press that could get there on short notice, each reporter jockeying for the seats with the best access to the bank of microphones and podium. Behind them were rows of seats reserved for Max’s inner circle. His family, friends, and a long list of legislative associates and staff began filing in with expectant looks on their faces; there to hear what Max had described as "something very important."

  Jack and Colleen, Karen, Kyle, and Sam were seated behind the staff. Max wanted them to have a more prominent seat, but Colleen and Karen opted for the less obvious seats near the back. Jack had flown Delores in to hear the senator speak, telling her it would be well worth her while. He hoped in a small way to help her make sense of Tom’s death. Delores couldn’t get over Jack’s new eye color and was surprised to see Colleen shared the rare trait.

  As Jack waited for Max to begin and the conversation with Colleen waned, he began to think about all the events that they had lived through, and how lucky they were to be sitting there.

  At that very moment thousands of miles away, Willis Santiago, the head of security at The Palazzio Hotel, was wrapping up his paperwork on the crime spree he had unofficially dubbed Colleengate. Across town, the chief at LVPD had tied the hotel break-in suspects to another long list of crimes in the Las Vegas area and they awaited trial in jail.

  Ramy Basra was sitting again at the Chicago Police Department answering more questions. This time the detectives were joined by the FBI, who wanted to know more about Project Termes and the scope of testing IFT had done at Crimson Desert State Prison.

  Warden Cooley, the new acting CEO of ReformCo, was reluctantly accepting Brenda’s resignation, a condition demanded by the board in order to save her pension.

  Sheriff Glover was feeling confident that his growing list of evidence would be enough for the grand jury to force cooperation from the command at Randall. But that all changed when Colonel Bradford Cushing Chastain's wife went out to the garage and found his lifeless body hanging from the ceiling.

  Jack’s far-off thoughts were brought back into focus by the crowd’s audible gasp as Max walked to the podium. Those who had not seen him for some time were shocked to see how much he had changed. As he looked out over the crowd, his violet stare silenced the room more effectively than silverware on crystal. Those too far away to discern the radical change in his eye color had to wait for the word to be whispered like wildfire to the back rows.

  "Good day to you all and thank you for coming" Max said to the hushed room. "I will be as brief as possible, and please accept my apology now, since I will not be taking questions at the end. My reasoning for this will hopefully become apparent to you all."

  Max took a sip of water and acknowledged some old friends in the room before continuing. "I’ve been in Washington for over 20 years; an experience mostly filled with satisfaction, if not accomplishment." Max said as he looked understandingly at his wife Margaret, seated in front of him three rows back. "In that time, I’ve learned pretty well how to get my way. You see, I'm what my friends call persuasive and my enemies call a S.O.B. Of course, this being Washington, sometimes a convincing argument and logic are just not persuasive to overcome the powers of self interest and influence.

  "It’s no secret that there is an unseen tote board here in Washington. A running tally of favors granted and favors owed. Sometimes collecting on those favors involves actions that come close, very close, to the boundaries of what’s legal. And sometimes, perhaps more often than we would like, in our haste to get things done, we’re tempted to exceed even those sketchy boundaries.

  "I’m guilty of all that and more." Max said with his head up and in a loud clear voice. "Before I go on, I want to point out that I’m here voluntarily. There is no inquiry or sanction pressuring me to make this statement. Rather, I’m here because of a remarkable transformation of character. I'd like to thank those who forced this change on me, because, well, sometimes we are the single worst judge of what is in our own best interest." Max paused and took another sip of water to compose himself as a murmur spread through the crowd.

  "You have no doubt noticed a physical change in my appearance, and I assure you the change from within is even more dramatic. For those in the back, or those who haven’t noticed, I now have eyes that are the most persuasive shade of violet. If you don’t believe me when I say persuasive, just ask the many colleagues I’ve had my way with in the past few days."

  The tension in the room lifted as hearty chuckles erupted from the audience.

  "I have my newest best friends to thank for my rebirth." As Max nodded to Colleen and Jack, the entire room turned in their direction and a gasp went up as they noticed their common trait.

  Max waited for the buzz to die down and began again. "In my long experience with this place, nobody comes to Washington with the intent to do harm, but doing good is much harder that anyone thinks. As those of you from large families know, it's hard enough to find consensus around the dinner table, imagine if there were 535 of you!"

  Max paused again and waited for the chuckles to fade. "But that is no excuse for my actions. Regrettably, I used my influence to push for passage of the Rebuild America bill; a fine piece of legislation that, like so many other good ideas that come here, has a fatal flaw."

  Again Max paused and took a deep breath. "I’m told that fourteen people died; victims of greed and corruption created by competition for the contract. I exerted pressure on the military to cover up those deaths." The crowd gave up another gasp as the reporters held their recorders even closer to Max.

  "I succumbed to pressures with the mistaken belief it would allow me to do good works. When in reality, I was becoming part of the very machinery that needs dismantling so badly in this town. That I’m only human is no excuse, but it goes a long way to explaining why I’ve called you here.

  "Today, I stand before you a changed man; not of my own choosing perhaps, but changed nonetheless. So this morning I’m announcing my resignation as senator of the Great State of Nevada, and promise to work closely with the authorities looking into my transgressions. If I’m lucky, and I can put to rest the many questions those who judge me will no doubt have, I intend to run again in four years for reelection to my post. In the meantime, I intend on doing everything I can to make this transformational vaccine available to anyone who wants it."


  Max’s eyes began to dance and sparkle as he contemplated his next point. "For the first time in my adult life, because of this serum, I have a feeling of absolution. I can fully, entirely, and completely forgive myself, as well as all those who have wished me harm. And may I tell you how entirely liberating that is! My thoughts are not clouded by greed or envy, my relationships are more vibrant and honest, and my future is indeed limitless.

  "As I mentioned previously, a 'side effect' of this medical miracle are these most striking violet eyes – a gift from the courageous and brilliant developer of the serum. Shakespeare could have had no idea how right he was when he said the eyes were the soul’s window. In the coming months and years, those of you who also opt to make this transformation will understand how your lives can be richer. It begins with the hardest first step many of us ever take, and that is to forgive ourselves as we also find it within ourselves to forgive others. Those gathered here who know me would not describe me as an especially religious man, but my transformation in the last few weeks has been nothing short of Biblical. And I intend on leading the effort toward making this discovery as universally available as possible… whether I am doing so from prison or not!

  "I’d like to close by thanking the people of Nevada for the opportunity to serve them, my family for their unwavering support, noted author Jack Colder for changing my life, and especially to Dr. Colleen Baker for making that change possible. Thank you for this opportunity to address you all, and may God Bless America."

  Max left the podium with a huge smile, and left the audience in a state of shock.

  In the weeks that followed Max’s press conference, interest in his admission and remarkable conversion hit a fever pitch. The public was captivated by each new story contrasting the senator’s influence peddling and the high-level cover up on one side, against his transparent innocence and those piercing violet eyes on the other. Unlike any disgraced politician that had gone before him, Max freely answered candidly and honestly each and every question put to him. In every instance, what became apparent to anyone following the progress of the investigation was the inescapable conclusion that the senator’s life was comprised of two starkly different worlds. The first world was one of a Washington power broker, able to rationalize almost any action if it furthered his ability to acquire even more power; and the second world, which even his harshest critics described as living in a state of grace.

  Polls taken soon after Max’s resignation reflected a desire on the part of the public to punish the senator. But that view changed as daily news stories began detailing the senator’s forthrightness to even the most damning questions. Max’s testimony convinced the public that whatever Max Deason had been before his transformation, he was now absolutely worthy of forgiveness.

  He had become a flesh and blood expression of what the country had been longing for. Everyone knew the country had been on the decline. In parallel to Max’s first life, most saw America becoming obsessed with greed and ruled by those consumed by the quest for influence and power. What gave the country hope was the prospect of a second life. A convincing repudiation to those who only saw ruin in our future. Max offered the country the hope of harmony and rebirth, and it was all due to the miracle of scientific discovery.

  The intriguing storyline was not lost on political and social commentators. Max had been given the gift of self-forgiveness, which evolved into the ability of his public to extend the same to him. Some pushed for acquittal simply so that Max could make the serum more quickly available to the growing millions of people clamoring for it. Another whole movement sprang up and demanded laws stating every elected official should be required to receive the serum upon taking their oath of office.

  Social media websites became obsessed with Colleen, and groups of all kinds clamored to secure her as a speaker. Those who heard her speak became instant fans, coining the term Absolution for her serum. Grant money poured in from all over the world in an effort to hasten its testing and public release. The waiting list for the drug had reached 35 million in the United States, and many millions more around the world.

  Jack’s book sales took off, too, and his public appearances had to be tightly controlled to prevent the large crowds from crushing him. Karen and Colleen worked feverishly to complete the testing necessary to mass-produce the vaccine. Publicity prompted thousands of test subjects to apply. Just about everyone it seemed had something in their past they regretted.

  On June 10th 2017, Senator Max Deason was exonerated of the remaining charges against him. Two weeks later, Absolution was approved to be sold by prescription as a 'personality modifier' with an off-label use as a treatment for HIV.

  The End

  Epilogue

  Jack watched Colleen closely as she read the last few pages of the manuscript. When she finished, she set it aside and looked at Jack with a completely blank expression.

  "Well?" he asked impatiently.

  "Well," she said, pausing to draw her reply out even longer and driving Jack crazy with expectancy. "Do you think your fans will accept that your next book is non-fiction?"

  "Colleen," Jack replied in a defensive tone. "Does it read like non-fiction to you? I mean, we lived it and it still seems like fiction to me!"

  "Well, maybe, but now that everyone has heard of Absolution... are you sure this won’t be viewed as old news?"

  "Old news? Does the Bible get old Colleen? How about the wheel? This vaccine is changing the world Colleen! It’s spreading virally! Every new trustee is referring ten more! I think some background on how your discovery came to be… and very nearly didn't, would be of interest to the millions who have entered their second life. Don’t you think?"

  "Maybe," Colleen hemmed, "but there are still lots of unanswered questions. Like, why did you name it The Premise?"

  Jack sighed, then composed himself and answered calmly. "Because of how all this started… my seminars, remember? Curing crime was 'the premise' of my seminars. Pure fabrication. Created to gauge public reaction to an event that, incredibly, turned out to be real!"

  "Okay, but you don’t tell anything about what happened to Sam, or Kyle and Megan, or Karen, maybe you should wait until we know a little more about how their lives turn out."

  "Okay, what’s the real reason you’re hesitant about me publishing this Colleen?" Jack said as he slid next to her on the couch.

  "You’ll think I’m silly," she said hiding her face by looking in her lap.

  "C’mon, what is it?"

  "Well, …did you have to make me come down so hard on Kyle? He’s a good kid, just a little awestruck by the money was all."

  Jack smiled as he reached in to steal a kiss. His eyes glistened just the way hers did when she was happy. "Colleen, you are loved and revered by millions of people around the world… I think they will allow you a temper. Besides, it only makes me love you more."

  Jack got up and went into the kitchen to pour them a glass of wine while Colleen sat watching the sun dip below the Pacific.

  "Don’t think I didn’t notice you evaded my question!" she shouted after him.

  Colleen smiled and sighed. She realized she had never felt so completely content as at that moment. Counting so many blessings caused her to begin thinking about all the struggles they had overcome to get to this point, and how they had come so close to dying. Thoughts of dying coaxed images of her brother Marcus to come flooding into her mind. She remembered how he was really the one responsible for the decision she had made early on to go into medical research. His ultimate sacrifice had provided the grit for her to achieve something special.

  Colleen knew Marcus deserved a better fate; a better reward for his compassion and fierce loyalty to those he loved. She had tried to dedicate her life to all the acts of kindness he would never be able to provide, and she knew, at that moment, deep down she knew, that he would be very proud of his big sister.

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