“I’m pleased. I have seniority over the other guys, so it wasn’t fair to keep me on overnights. Anyway, my boss got permission from corporate to move me and they said yes.” He glanced over at Gabby, who was talking to Rachel by the railing. “And Gabby is on days too, so we feel like more of a normal family now.”
“I think that’s a good sign that things have cooled off. Maybe Charles Morgan has moved on and forgotten about us.”
Dillon squinted into the sun above them. “Or he got the message when I went to see him.”
“Maybe so. Maybe so.” Christopher nodded and glanced at him. “He hasn’t made any kind of threat toward us since you went to Denver has he?”
“Not one. Nothing. I don’t even look over my shoulder anymore.” He stopped and pointed at the fins of a pod of dolphins near the ferry. “I sleep good at night.”
Rachel and Gabby walked up and joined them as they looked over the side of the ferry, near the bow. Rachel locked her arm in Christopher’s. “Did you see those dolphins over there?”
“Yeah, we did.”
“They are so beautiful,” Gabby said, pointing. “I’ve never been on the ocean before. This is so neat!”
Dillon looked over at Christopher and then back at her. “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Just wait 'til we get to the reef.”
Gabby snuggled up next to him. “I can’t wait.”
That evening, the six of them sat on Travis and Julia’s front porch and ate supper. Julia kept going back into the house to retrieve something she thought someone needed. But Christopher thought the night was just about perfect. He hadn’t enjoyed himself so much in a long time.
Travis took a bite of broiled fish and looked over at Dillon, who was across from him at the table. “Did you get the microchip okay? Did all of that work out?”
“Yes, thanks for mailing that to me. I got it back before Christmas.”
Christopher joined in. “Are you still carrying it in your pocket?”
“You know, I did for a while, then I just stuck it in a drawer and switched back to the one in my back.” He reached over his shoulder and rubbed his left shoulder blade. “After a while, it seemed like it was just too hard to keep up with. But if I ever need to, I can switch back.”
Travis looked out at the sunset, then at Dillon. “So, it’s true that you can’t go in some businesses?”
“Yes, it’s true. Morgan doesn’t want us shopping at their competitors’, and they don’t want us getting insurance from any unapproved company.”
Travis tilted his head. “Where are they going with that?”
Christopher answered for Dillon before he could speak. “They’re forcing their workers to play their lottery. That’s where the company makes its real money. That’s why their wages are so good.”
“I don’t understand,” Travis said.
Dillon spoke. “If you can’t get a good retirement pension, you have to play the lottery to make it when you retire. And we have to retire at sixty-five.”
“What about you?” Travis said. “Do you have any retirement?”
Dillon nodded. “I do. I bought mine before Morgan started cracking down, so I’m good.”
Travis nodded. “That’s good.”
“But it’s getting tough on the newer workers, and some of the older workers who didn’t buy insurance in time,” Christopher said. He looked over at Dillon. “But at least I think the murders have slowed down.”
Travis leaned forward. “You think so?”
“The scuttle around the store is that there have been no murders in several months,” Dillon said. “And I know there haven’t been any in Springfield.”
Travis took a drink. “That’s good. Maybe he’s moving on to this lottery thing instead.”
“That makes sense,” Christopher said. “Or maybe Dillon put the fear of God into him when he went to see him in Denver.”
Dillon grinned. “I do know this, I know he hasn’t sent anyone anywhere near us since I went out there.”
Travis grinned and raised his glass.
Dillon looked over at Christopher. “I didn’t exactly turn the other cheek though, when I went and threatened him.”
Christopher shook his head. “I think when Jesus said that, he was talking about taking revenge on people, hitting them back.” He glanced at Dillon. “What you did was stand up to a bully.” He took a drink of tea. “And you stood up for all of us. I think Jesus would be pleased with that. After all, you could have killed him when you had him in your sights, but you didn’t even strike him with your fist.”
Travis nodded and laughed. “Well he did shoot that poor guard in the foot.”
“Sometimes you have to hurt a bully’s friends to get a message to him,” Christopher said. “Again, Dillon could have killed him too, but he chose not to.” He looked over at Dillon. “I’m glad this guy’s my friend. I’m glad both of you are my friends. And I’m proud of Dillon for standing up for us.”
Travis raised his glass again. “Hear, hear.”
“We’ve been hurt,” Christopher said. “We had to do some things that we’ll always have to live with.” He glanced at Travis. “But we have to forgive.” He put his hand over his heart. “I don’t have room in my heart for hatred. Do you know what I mean? God has forgiven me, so I have to forgive. And the thing is, I want to forgive. I don’t want to live my life hating people and holding grudges.” He glanced around the table. “When you forgive someone, it doesn’t mean you’re saying it’s okay that they hurt you, but you are saying you choose not to stay angry and bitter. You want to fill your heart with love, not hate.”
“Sometimes it takes a while,” Rachel said. “But what you’re saying is so true.”
Julia came out from in the house. “Are y'all going to talk shop this whole trip? Look around at where we are. I don’t want any more talk about Morgan.”
Travis stood to his feet. “She’s right. Who wants to walk along the beach with me?”
“I want to go in the water,” Gabby said.
Rachel stood up. “Me too. Let’s get our swimsuits on.”
Later that evening, after the sun had set and the stars were coming out, one by one, Christopher continued to sit on the beach in his shorts and bare feet. He was enjoying the ocean breeze and didn’t want to go in. Small shells were half-buried around him and the sand felt cool in his hand as he dug them out and threw them toward the waterline. The women had gone into the house and he could hear their voices in the living room behind him. Lights from the house glowed in the growing darkness.
Dillon and Travis had been sitting beside him, on and off, throughout the evening. He felt the stress of the world and his ministry subside as he sat on the beach, so far from his world. He was looking forward to going out on the boat in the morning. He wasn’t even thinking about what happened the last time he went out there. That seemed like a dream he had had long, long ago.
That night, he held Rachel close under the covers. The window was open and the curtains blew in on a cool, salty breeze. He wasn’t afraid. Mostly he was tired from the day’s travels. Soon he drifted to sleep.
It was warm and clear the next morning as he stood and watched the sun rise from the ocean. They would board Travis’ boat in a couple of hours, but he wanted to enjoy the beach in the freshness of the morning before they did.
“Your mercies are new every morning,” he prayed silently as he stood. “Great is your faithfulness.”
Suddenly he was aware that someone was standing next to him. He glanced over at him. “Morning Travis.”
“This is my favorite time of day,” Travis said, reaching down to pick up a nearly-whole sand dollar. “You find the best shells early in the morning.” He showed Christopher his find.
“Yeah, I see that.”
Travis looked over his shoulder. “You know, I wanted to tell you something when Dillon wasn’t around.”
Christopher tilted his head. “Okay.”
“Remember our friend from the ya
cht, John Spencer?”
“Sure, how could I forget him?”
Travis glanced again over his shoulder. “Well, he called me a couple of months ago. He told me he went to Denver to see Charles Morgan in person, back in December.”
Christopher’s eyes widened. “Really.”
“I don’t want to hurt Dillon’s feelings, what he did was really brave, but John told me he told Charles that he knew about the murders and about the assassins who came down here. He told him he met us, and knew all about what happened. He knew about the dead peasants’ murders and everything.”
“Oh wow.”
“He said he threatened him pretty good. He told him he was going to shut him down if it didn’t stop. He said he got in his face and told him he was going to jail if he ever threatened any of us again.”
Christopher grinned and shook his head. “I guess it really does help to have friends in high places.”
“I’ll tell Dillon,” Travis said. “But not yet. I think I’ll know when the time is right.”
“Okay,” Christopher said. “Mum’s the word.”
“John wants us to meet him on his yacht again this August, if you guys can work it out.”
“I’ll try my best,” Christopher said. “It’s not easy to get away, as you know.”
“He said he was buying your tickets.”
Christopher grinned even bigger. “Okay, we’ll be here.”
Travis glanced back toward the house. “Well, are you ready to go see the blue hole again?”
Christopher closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. “I’m ready.”
About the Author
L. Craig Harris lives in East Texas with his wife, Jodi. He is the pastor of a small church and writes inspirational columns for his local newspaper. He has a journalism degree from Texas A&M University and worked as a television reporter in Tyler, Texas, during the 1980s. He is the author of The Dead Peasants File. You can follow his writings and posts at lcraigharris.blogspot.com.
Harris would like to thank his editing team: Casey Riley, Pat Holcomb and Jodi Harris. The book cover was designed by Lyndsey Lewellen.
Table of Contents
Copyright © 2016 L. Craig HarrisISBN-13: 978-1537789941ISBN-10: 1537789945
To Jodi, David and Savannah
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Epilogue
About the Author
The Dead Peasants' Contract: A Sequel to The Dead Peasants File (The Dead Peasants' Series Book 2) Page 20
