Copyright © 2020 Dante F. Lupinetti
ISBN-13: 978-1-7360396-1-8 (Paperback)
ISBN-13: 978-1-7360396-0-1 (eBook)
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.
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Table of Contents
1.The Hot DC News Market
2.Slain in the Spirit
3.Going Viral
4.The Past Catches Up
5.More Trouble with the FBI
6.A Walk in the Park
7.The Polygraph
8.Psychic Spies
9.Demoing the Gift
10.Sunday Morning
11.Meet Up at the Church
Sneak Preview
About the Author
1
The Hot DC News Market
When the cherry blossoms of spring gave way to the sweltering heat of summer, the nation’s capital transformed from a winsome southern plantation into the nation’s armpit. The manicured lawns and stately white buildings visited by adoring crowds seemed less attractive when shrouded in humidity.
As Zeke Jackson packed for his long trip from Lincoln, Nebraska, to Washington, DC, to start a new job at WJOP, his father looked at the showcase he had built to house his son’s awards and trophies for news reporting. He pulled out the statue of a reporter with his sleeves rolled up, pen in hand, writing on a tablet.
“Ah,” said Zeke, “KOLN’s On the Beat Award. My first in 2016.”
Zeke’s dad put it back and pulled out another. Zeke’s eyes teared up. The Lincoln Community Award, 2018. Zeke won it for his coverage of a local church’s outreach to the homeless.
“Should I continue?” asked Zeke’s dad.
“No…no…,” said Zeke. “I…I…don’t want to reminisce right now. I’ll nev…never be able to leave.”
“That’s the idea, son. Your mother and I don’t want you to go. You have everything you need right here in Lincoln: a family that loves you, a good job where you’re doing great without a lot of stress, a community that loves you, a fifteen-minute commute to work. What more could you ask for?”
“A chal…chal…challenge,” said Zeke. “I need a challenge. Washington, DC, is one of the top news markets in the country. No…no…self-respecting reporter would pass up a chance to work for the top news station in one of the top markets like DC.” WJOP’s news director Harvey Schmidt, a hard-shelled man with a soft center, had seen potential in Zeke and hired him to shore up his news department.
When Zeke finished packing, he put his luggage in his red Toyota pickup and came back inside the house to say his goodbyes. First, he embraced his mom, squeezing her tight. “I la…la…love you, Mom. I’ll be home for Christmas.”
“You better be,” she said as she handed him a tin of cookies for the long ride.
Then he embraced his dad. “I la…la…love you, too, Pops,” said Zeke.
“Well, if I can’t change your mind, I might as well cheer you on,” said his dad. “Godspeed, son.”
“Oo…oops, I almost forgot. Where’s Cucho?” asked Zeke. His dad yelled the dog’s name, and Cucho came running. Zeke went down on one knee, and the big golden Lab jumped into his arms. Zeke wrapped his arms around the big dog as Cucho licked his face.
“I think he’s gonna miss the dog more than us,” said his mom.
“I think you’re right, Joan,” replied his father, Rodger.
“I’ll call you when I get there,” Zeke called out as he waved goodbye.
And with that Zeke walked out to his truck for the thousand-mile drive to Silver Spring, Maryland. He drove for ten hours before stopping at a Holiday Inn for the night. He got a sub from the Subway next door. That tided him over until the next morning.
He arose at 6:00 am, ate the free breakfast, and got back on the road. He arrived at the house he rented in Silver Spring at 1:00 pm.
The next morning, he reported for work.
Zeke stepped quickly along the sticky August sidewalk and up the long set of white stone steps toward the arched entrance of the white stone building. He clenched his right fist and punched the air. With a solid sense of confirmation, he shouted, “Yes!”
Zeke entered the building and stepped up to the receptionist. “I…I…I’m Zeke Ja—”
The pert redhead glanced up with a smile and interrupted him. “Harvey’s expecting you,” she said. “I’ll show you to his office.”
Zeke nodded. He cringed that his first words at his new job had already branded him. But he reminded himself that his reporting at CBS affiliate KOLN had won him several awards for investigative reporting and community affairs. Maybe he’d just been the reporter behind the anchor. They kept him off the air most of the time, but everyone knew the talking heads were reading Zeke’s copy. People trusted Zeke. They believed what he wrote, and he’d built quite a following over the years.
“I’m Julie, Julie Stokes,” she spoke over her shoulder as she led the way. “Harvey hired me a couple of years ago. He’s a good boss. No nonsense, though.” They climbed a flight of stairs. Zeke noticed her long shapely legs and the graceful way she navigated the steps in heels. They walked down a long well-lit corridor. Upon the walls hung plaques attesting to the solid reputation the station had earned over the years. One plaque in particular caught Zeke’s eye. Embossed with an image of the Pentagon and the World War II statue of marines raising the flag, it read:
The Pentagon recognizes WJOP’s accurate,
heroic 9/11 coverage in the face of harm’s way.
Zeke stopped to read another plaque, but Julie motioned with her right hand and said, “Come on. You can read those later.”
When they arrived at the news director’s office at the end of the corridor, Julie entered without hesitation. “Good morning, Harvey. Here’s your new hire.” Looking at Zeke, she said, “Let me know if you need anything. Welcome aboard the top news station in DC.”
“Well, like the lady said, welcome to the top news station in DC,” Harvey said. “And I mean to keep it that way.” He reached into the top drawer of his desk, pulled out a cigar, and proceeded to light it without any concern. Smoke billowed above his desk and slowly drifted into the bullpen outside his office. “You don’t smoke, do you, kid?”
“No…no, sir,” said Zeke.
“Good. It’s a nasty habit. The management tolerates my occasional indulgence, and nobody dares complain. Zeke, news has gone soft in the DC area. People are starting to mock the whole industry. We built our rep on truth-telling and integrity. I’m not going to listen to someone call us fake news after I spent twenty years building this department. I think you can help us, here.”
“Ye…ye…ye…yes, sir,” Zeke replied.
Harvey squinted at his new hire, shuffled some files, and opened one with a story Zeke had submitted with his application.
“I followed some of the stuff you did back in Lincoln. Not bad, kid, but this town is not for the weak of heart. Don’t worry, though. We’ll toughen you up. This stuttering thing. You get rid of it, and we’ll talk about going on the air like you told me you wanted. Zeke swallowed and nodded. Like he hadn�
��t tried to kick it before? Like it hadn’t been a problem all his life? But Zeke wanted to go on the air. The possibility of it was one of the reasons he took this job.
“Look, kid,” Harvey replied, “I’ve got an idea for your first assignment. This famous faith healer Fernando Dollar lives in DC. There’s been a lot of controversy about this guy. Some think he’s preying on the community. Some think he’s legit. Let’s see if he can cure your stuttering on camera. I want you to get him to try to heal your stuttering. I’m not expecting you to be healed, mind you, but if he does, great. And if he doesn’t, we will have exposed a fraud. Either way, it’s a win-win. Why don’t you take a camera crew over there and interview the guy? I’ll have Sly go with you to do the on-air interview. You give him the questions.”
“Real nice,” Zeke whispered under his breath.
“I heard that,” replied Harvey, “and there was no stuttering.”
“S…s…s…sorry, sir,” said Zeke, “but…but…but tha…tha…tha…that’s definitely ex…ex…exploiting my disability.
“We use what we can, kid. Anyway, it’s a win-win. By the way, Zeke, did you fill out the paperwork for your security clearance and White House press pass?”
“Ye…ye…yes, sir,” replied Zeke.
“Stop with the sir stuff,” Harvey replied. “If you want to impress me, write some good copy.”
“No…no…no…no problem, Boss,” Zeke replied.
“Look, kid, this is a fifty-thousand-watt, class-A all-news station. We blast the night skies, and people hear us down on the Mexican border. Furthermore, what’s local news for DC is national news for the rest of the country. You made it to the big leagues, kid. Now, get out there and hit your first home run.” Harvey sat at his desk and yelled for one of the other reporters in the bullpen. “Sly, get in here. I want you meet Zeke.” As Sly moseyed in, Zeke loosened his tie. “Sly, meet Zeke Jackson. We’re expecting big things from him. Show him around the station and then take him downstairs and help him put together a camera crew for an interview.”
“Welcome aboard,” Sly replied. “I’ll show you around.”
“Wha…wha…what did you say your last name was?” asked Zeke.
“McDonald, Sly McDonald.” After they left Harvey’s office, Sly looked at Zeke and said, “So not even here an hour and you already got an interview. That’s hitting the ground running.” Zeke couldn’t tell if that was a compliment or a warning. Before leaving the bullpen, Sly showed Zeke his cubicle. “You’ll be sitting in this cubicle, right next to me,” Sly told him. As they walked down the hall, Sly pointed out the bathroom, the break room, and the copy room.
“When do we…we…we get to see the on-air studios?” Zeke asked.
“What’s the difference, kid? Harvey’s not gonna let you on air with that stuttering problem.” Zeke clenched at the nasty comment but tried to overlook it. “Listen, kid. I don’t mean to get off on the wrong foot,” Sly said. “It’s just that around here we don’t mince words. People just say what’s on their mind. No offense.”
“N…n…none taken,” replied Zeke, “but that’s why I need to do this interview. This guy, Fer-Fer-Fernando Dollar, is a famous fai…fai…faith healer who liv…liv…lives in DC. Ma…ma…maybe he can heal me of this stut…stut…stut…stuttering problem.”
“You really think so, kid?” Sly asked.
“I…I…I…I don’t really believe it, but my m…m…m…mom totally believes this stuff. Harvey th…th…thinks it’s worth a shot. Anyway, if…if he doesn’t, then we…we…we…we…we’ve exposed him on camera.”
“Well, everyone knows about Fernando Dollar,” said Sly. “He’s made a business out of fleecing the flock. Let’s go get this fraud.”
They walked down two flights of stairs to the basement.
“The camera crews stay downstairs with the equipment and the studios. They like to keep the equipment and studios in the basement because it’s cooler,” Sly said.
They walked over to a room where the video and audio guys hung out cleaning their equipment and prepping for the next mission when not supporting the live in-station broadcasts. Sly introduced Zeke to the engineering supervisor.
“John, this is Zeke. He’s a newbie, and Harvey has asked him to interview televangelist Fernando Dollar. Can you guys be ready tomorrow morning if Zeke lines up an interview?”
“Sure, I can spare two guys,” John replied. “Are we gonna trap this fraud? My mom has been sending this guy money every month for the last five years. I’d sure like to bring him down.”
“Sounds like you guys got a mission,” said Sly. “Go get em, kid.”
Suddenly, Sly’s phone rang. It was Harvey. “Are you guys done down there? What’s taking you so long?”
“We were just talking to John. We’ll wrap it up”.
“Get back up here. I want to talk to you.”
“OK, Boss,” said Sly.
They both went back up to Harvey’s office. “What’s up, Boss?” Sly asked.
“Sly, I want to talk to you alone,” said Harvey. After Zeke left Harvey’s office, Sly closed the door, but Zeke’s cubical was close enough to overhear the conversation, especially with Harvey’s boisterous voice.
“Watch him,” he overheard Harvey say. “Go with him. He’s going to give you some questions to ask Dollar on air, but I want you to do the on-camera interview. We can’t risk someone stammering and stuttering all over the air.”
“Sure thing, Boss,” replied Sly.
Meanwhile, Zeke called the office of the Apostolic Reformed Church of which Fernando Dollar was the local pastor. The church secretary/assistant answered and listened to Zeke’s request for healing from stuttering and an interview.
“Actually, Pastor Dollar has a healing session tomorrow morning with a small group of people,” said the secretary. “I’ll include you and let Pastor Dollar know. I’m sure it won’t be a problem. Be here by ten am.”
2
Slain in the Spirit
The next morning, Zeke climbed the steps to the station’s front door with the same sense of confirmation but a new sense of urgency.
Boy, things move fast around here, he thought.
“Good morning, Zeke,” said Julie as he entered the lobby.
“Goo…goo…good morning,” Zeke replied. He wanted to talk more but couldn’t muster the courage with his embarrassing stutter. The more he tried to impress someone, the worse it got.
I hope this guy can get rid of my stuttering, he thought, but Zeke didn’t hold much hope for that.
“I heard you landed an interview with Fernando Dollar,” said Julie. “Way to go.”
“Th…th…thanks,” replied Zeke.
Sly met Zeke downstairs with the camera crew. After loading the van, the four of them, Zeke, Sly, the cameraman, and the audio tech began their drive from Silver Spring, Maryland, to Capitol Heights, Maryland.
Sly commented, “We use the beltway whenever possible. DC is surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. Everyone calls it the DMV, the first letter of each state. A ten-mile drive can take hours in bad traffic.” After about forty minutes, the camera crew along with Zeke and Sly arrived at the Apostolic Reformed Church.
“We made good time,” said Sly. As they pulled into the parking lot, Sly commented, “This isn’t a church. It’s a campus. You don’t make this kind of money off a pastor’s salary.”
“Is this you…you…your first time meeting a televangelist?” asked Zeke as he handed Sly a list of questions to ask Pastor Dollar.
“Well, I’ve never met one up close and personal,” replied Sly.
“Well, I…I…I have,” said Zeke. “Let me wa…wa…wa…warn you, this is gonna seem a little strange, so just go along and fo…fo…follow my lead.”
Zeke, Sly, the cameraman, and audio tech unloaded the van and entered by way of the main entrance.
“He…he…hello,” said Zeke to the receptionist. “We…we…we have an appointment to see…see…see Fernando Dollar. I�
�m Zeke Jackson, and this is Sly McDonald. We’re…we’re…we’re from WJOP, and these other guys are our camera crew.”
“Pastor Dollar is expecting you,” said the receptionist. “Put on these badges and sign in, and security will escort you to Pastor Dollar’s office.”
As they were escorted to the office, they could not help but notice one hallway leading to a TV studio and another leading to an auditorium. Sly asked the security escort if they could glance inside the TV studio. He said yes and opened the studio door for a quick look.
“Three Sony PMW cameras,” the cameraman yelled.
“What’s a Sony PMW camera?” Zeke asked.
“It’s an eighty-thousand-dollar studio camera capable of big screen, motion picture quality video,” replied the cameraman. “Now, I know where to send my résumé.”
After arriving at Pastor Dollar’s office, the security officer introduced them to Fernando Dollar.
“Welcome to Apostolic Reformed Church,” said Pastor Dollar. “What can I do for you gentlemen?”
“Well,” said Zeke, “I have this stut…stutt…stutter I need to ge…ge…get rid of in or…or…order to broadcast new…new…news on the a…a…air. I ju…ju…just started this…this…this job yesterday, but I need to lose the sutt…stutt…stuttering.”
“Well, why did they hire you in the first place?” asked Pastor Dollar.
“Har…Har…Harvey Schmidt, WJOP’s new…new…news director, li…li…likes my reporting. He sa…sa…said I need to ge…ge…get rid of the stuttering if I want to g…g…go on the air and I do.”
“Zeke, I don’t think that’s gonna be a problem. No, not a problem at all.”
“But, don’t you have to have faith?” asked Zeke.
“Well, yes, you do. Why? Do you not believe?” asked Pastor Dollar.
“Not really,” replied Zeke.
“Not even a little?” asked Pastor Dollar.
“Maybe a little,” said Zeke.
“Well, now, that’s all you need. Jesus said, ‘If you have faith as of a mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it shall move,’ and that’s good enough for me,” said Pastor Dollar. “So, boys, is that all you need?”
Soul Reader Series: Book1: Touch Enabled Page 1
