As Scott approached Michelle, he held out his arms to hug her, but she held up both hands to stop him. “You can’t hug me until you admit you violated the most important rule we have.”
Scott studied here playful expression until he was compelled to ask, “What rule did I violate?”
Michelle looked away and then back at Scott. “Maybe I should write this down for you. Rule number one: Scott will always be on Michelle’s side even when she is wrong.”
Scott was also smiling at Michelle. “I must have forgotten that rule in the passion of the moment.”
“I cannot believe you said that to me. Right now you are up to your ears in trouble and you keep digging the hole deeper.” Michelle replied.
Scott placed his arms around Michelle with no opposition. “What else have I done wrong?”
She put her arms over his shoulders and replied, “I’ve slept by myself for the last two nights. I don’t like it and it is your fault.”
“Why is that my fault? Was I supposed to just stroll into your house last night and climb in bed with you? I can see your dad’s face now.” Scott replied.
Michelle thought about his question for a moment. “You should have found a way to sneak in. Anyway, we have to go now because they are waiting on us.”
Hank, Anna, Joe, Nancy, Betsy, and William were seated at the table drinking their morning coffee. They pulled up two chairs and exchanged greetings with everyone. Betsy poured coffee for them before she offered doughnuts. When she sat down, William started to speak, “We will be leaving in a few minutes for East Kings Ridge. Scott, I know you drove some trucks when you worked for the John Deere dealer. Do you feel comfortable driving the motor home?”
He answered without any reservations. “I have also driven some 32 foot U-haul trucks to Asheville when I was in school. I shouldn’t have any problems.”
William nodded as he spoke. “Good. Hank and Nancy are driving their car. They will follow behind Joe and Anna, who will be in the box truck. Scott and Michelle will follow Betsy and me in the Cadillac. Once we get there, Betsy will work with Michelle and Nancy to get them up to speed on the operation since they are new to the game. Hank, Joe, and I will get Scott’s feet wet on the setup procedure. Does anyone have questions?”
There was a period of silence before Scott asked a question. “I realize I’m new to this, but can you tell me what we’re doing?”
William started laughing as he pointed to the sky. “That might be useful information to have. The others already know but let me give you the quick answer. Milton Snyder is the U.S. Congressman from that district and he ran for office on a family values platform, only his family values aren’t exactly what you might think. He was seen in the Virgin Islands with his scantly clad staff director in a rather incriminating position. He was kissing her and had his hand on her rear end and it so happens we have a photo of his adventures.”
Michelle asked a follow-up question. “Are you going to release it to the press?”
Joe sought to explain their plans while William sat back and listened. “The congressman or his people control the local press. We plan to honor several elected officials at one of our salvation meetings. The elected officials think they are there to get the recognition for being good family men and most of them are. When each official is invited up to the stage to get their recognition, we will show a picture of the town mayor with his spouse on the fifteen foot wide projection screen system you saw the other night.”
Betsy picked up where Joe left off. “When the congressman comes up on stage, we will show the photo of him in the Virgin Islands with his staff director. All of this will happen in front of the people and press who come into our tent seeking salvation. It should make for some interesting moments when the congressman is facing the audience and doesn’t know what is on the screen behind him.”
Hank spoke next to finish the explanation. “When the show starts, the image will be uploaded to his website. We will also be placing it on his Facebook page. A copy of the picture will be emailed to most of the people in his district shortly after we leave town.”
Scott looked at Michelle briefly before he asked his most important question. “Is any of this legal?”
William smiled as he responded. “With the exception of hacking his website, it is all legal. Your dad does a great job of keeping us within the law.”
While Scott had a thousand other questions, William was ready to get on the road and Scott assumed he had used his quota of questions for the time being. William and Betsy made a slight change of plans when they decided Betsy would ride with Scott and Michelle for the first two hours so that she could go over some of the equipment kept in the motor home. She was also going to explain the bookkeeping system and some of the reports that had to be filed.
It took Scott a few minutes to become comfortable driving the motor home, but once they were on highway 70, he began to relax. Betsy and Michelle were sitting at the table drinking coffee, talking about campaign finance laws, and looking at their financial reporting activity. Traffic was light allowing Scott’s mind began to drift away from their conversation to the time Michelle, and he spent at the beach. Amie’s contention that Michelle and Beth had some psychic link continued to dominate his thoughts.
The caravan stopped briefly in Winston-Salem for lunch before continuing the trip into the mountains. With three more hours to East Kings Ridge, Betsy joined William in his car leaving Scott and Michelle alone in the motor home. Michelle and Scott agreed it would be best to wait until they returned home to discuss their beach trip.
Michelle chose to discuss what she had seen when she and Betsy went over the financial records for the “Salvation Show”. Funding for the organization came from many sources including private donations, the collections during town revivals, and corporate sponsorships.
She was equally surprised to learn that all the money raised during revivals was given back to the community through contributions to local charities. As they continued driving towards the mountains, Michelle placed a CD in the player so Scott could listen to William speaking at one of the Salvation Show revivals.
Scott turned to Michelle when the performance ended. “He doesn’t even sound like the same person. He sounds like one of the evangelicals you hear on TV.”
Michelle was also amazed with the production. “I couldn’t believe the sounds they got from the musical performance. Betsy, Hank, Joe, and Anna are amazing. Betsy can make the keyboard sound like a full orchestra.”
Scott nodded showing his agreement. “It’s for sure they are not a fly by night outfit. I have to admit that I am excited about seeing this dog and pony show in real life. I can’t wait to see the look on the congressman’s face when they put up his picture with his staff person.”
Michelle was also excited. “Betsy said you are going to pretend to be a reporter from Philly. You’ll enjoy that.”
Scott glanced at the mirror, as he had to change lanes. “And what are you going to do?”
Michelle was on the verge of laughter. “I get to scream in horror when I see the picture of the Congressman with his bikini clad friend.”
Scott thought about the plan for a moment. “This is going to be tough on the congressman’s wife, don’t you think?”
“I asked Betsy about that and apparently she is just as power hungry as her husband. She will stand by her man as long as he’s in office. I would guess if he should lose the election, she will kick him out faster than lightning.” Michelle replied.
The caravan rolled into East Kings Ridge around three thirty in the afternoon stopping at a vacant lot next to a shopping center, which was to be used for parking. Scott stopped the motor home behind William’s car as Joe drove the truck and trailer onto the vacant lot. Once all the vehicles were stopped, everyone came in the motor home for a conference. Betsy and Michelle made coffee and snacks for the meeting.
Once everyone had gathered around the table or were standing close enough to hear the conve
rsation, William began to speak. “Some of what I am saying is so Scott, Michelle and Nancy will get to know our procedures. We have four local men who will be here to help set up the tent and get the chairs and equipment in place. Michelle and Betsy will pay the men when the job is finished. Joe, Hank, Scott, and I will get the equipment up and running and Joe can show Scott how to tie the generators into our power system. I would like for everyone except Scott and myself to run through our music for tomorrow night and give Nancy a chance to practice with the group. We should have everything in place by eight o’clock tonight. Any questions?
Joe noticed Scott was confused. “Scott, we don’t do a show on the first night. We like to let people drive by, see the signs, and let the local gossip get fired up. We should have enough advance publicity that the excitement is filling the air as we sit here.”
Betsy went over a few more details. “Tonight, William, Joe, and Anna will stay in the hotel with me. Scott, Nancy, Hank, and Michelle will stay here with the equipment. We have motion sensor lights, but the four of you need to keep at least one person awake throughout the night to keep an eye on things.”
Over the next three hours, everything came together in a well-orchestrated plan. The travel trailer was unhitched from the box truck and set up. Within fifteen minutes, the tent was rolled out, anchored, and raised into place. As the extra help brought in the sound system, lights, and the large projection screen system, the inside of the tent was beginning to look just like the inside of William’s barn had looked on Wednesday night.
By seven-thirty, everyone was in the tent testing out the sound system and lights. Once satisfied that everything was operating as planned, William, Scott, and Michelle sat at the sound and light control board while the rest of the group took their place on stage.
Nancy was the bass guitar player, which was something the band had never had before. They started playing music in order to let her become familiar with playing in the group. It was obvious she was talented and just as obvious that the group enjoyed playing together.
William deferred to Betsy on all the issues of music as she had the group go over the transitions between songs several times until she was satisfied. At the end of the rehearsal, it became clear that William was tired before Betsy came to him and insisted it was time to head for the hotel. Joe and Anna left with William and Betsy leaving Hank, Nancy, Scott, and Michelle in the tent to close down the operation for the night.
Hank took the time to explain how to shut down the generators and turn off all the equipment to Scott. They agreed Scott would stay awake until four o’clock in the morning to watch over the equipment and that Hank would then relieve him. Hank and Nancy went to the travel trailer while Scott and Michelle went back to the motor home.
After entering the motor home, Scott and Michelle sat across from each other at the table looking at each other for several minutes. His voice finally broke their silence. “William has an amazing operation here and I am really looking forward to watching them put on the show tomorrow night.”
Michelle was also impressed. “Watching them set up everything was impressive too. Except for you and me, everybody knew what to do and they knew when and how to do it. There is no telling how many times they did this before.”
“I would never have imagined them being able to play the music they are playing. They sound like professionals and I couldn’t believe how Nancy just picked up the base guitar parts like she had been doing it forever.” Scott noted.
Michelle agreed. “Betsy is so talented, but then again, they all are. I wish I could play an instrument of some kind, but I don’t know what I would play.”
Having exhausted the conversation, silence once again fell over the table as though a shroud had been placed over them. Michelle looked at Scott knowing there were things she needed to tell him, but her reluctance to talk was very evident. Still, the awkward nature of silence gave her few options but to speak. “Scott, I’m lost and I don’t know where I am supposed to be.”
Scott nodded his head understanding how Michelle felt. “Things were easy for us before we went to the beach.”
Michelle had the same somber expression. “When we got to the beach on Wednesday and had our truth session, I thought we were doing the right thing. Now, I am not so sure. I wanted to have a physical relationship with you and I thought that would bring us full circle, but it didn’t.”
Scott started to smile, mostly to offer Michelle some support. “I thought after Wednesday night that my life was all planned out. We would date for a while and then get married. By Friday night when Beth was out fishing with me, I realized there might be a flaw in my plan. I felt an attraction to her that I couldn’t get out of my mind. I know I love you and I spent most of the day thinking about how I could be attracted to her and love you at the same time. It didn’t make sense to me.”
“Did you ever solve that problem, Sherlock?” Michelle asked with a lighthearted expression.
Scott glanced down at the table. “I think so, but I don’t believe you are going to agree with me. Beth needed me and you didn’t.”
Michelle placed her elbows on the table and let her chin rest in the palm of her hands. “That’s not true, but I understand why you would feel that way. I grew up with three brothers and I learned to stand up for myself and take care of myself. I had to in order to survive. I have needed you ever since the first time I stepped up to the plate to play baseball. I just don’t always show you or tell you. I also have a few issues of my own to face and I don’t think I am doing a very good job of setting my direction. Just to be fair, I don’t think you have all your ducks in a row or you would not have been playing around with her.”
Scott replied. “I felt like you kept trying to push Beth and me together. She was with us in the hot tub, by the pool, on the beach, at dinner, in our bed, and everywhere else. I assumed you were having second thoughts about us and that you were keeping Beth around in order to keep you and I pushed apart.”
Michelle’s response was blunt and reflected her feelings. “After Saturday morning, I was trying to push you away. When you went off with Amie, I started to think you had no intention to keep a commitment to me.”
“I was just trying to help the girl.” Scott insisted.
Michelle was ready to explain everything to Scott in a way he would have to understand. “Scott, my issue goes deeper than Amie. I know how you felt about Ashley and how serious the two of you were about each other. I still feel like I have to compete with Ashley. When you went off with Amie, I realized you felt some obligation to fix all the broken girls. First it was Beth, and then it was Amie.”
“Are you saying I should not have tried to help them?” Scott asked with a tone of disbelief.
Michelle shook her head. “Of course you should have tried to help both of them. You made Beth feel so much better by letting her know she had not been raped by Moose. I don’t know. Maybe you can help get Amie on the road to salvation. My problem is that I don’t know if you still love Ashley or if you feel so much guilt that you are trying to save the world to make up for what happened to her.”
Scott was showing a great deal of both frustration and restraint as he lightly banged his fist on the table. “If I had made a different choice that night, Ashley would be out playing softball or something instead of wasting away in that wheelchair being unable to be who she was meant to be.”
Michelle thought she might be able to get Scott to talk about Ashley, which was something he had always refused to do. “Scott, you had nothing to do with the accident. You didn’t invite her to go camping, you didn’t suggest she go to the river, and you weren’t driving the car. You are not responsible for the choices she made.”
Without his normal resistance to talk, or perhaps because he let his guard down for a moment, Scott offered her a simple explanation. “Ashley thought I was going to take her home after the prom and then take you to the river to camp out. If I had stayed out all night with her or just gone home, As
hley would be free today. There were several things I could have done to change history, only I didn’t do them.”
Michelle was shocked to hear his statement. “How do you know she thought I would be there?”
“When I got to the hospital, several of her friends were there and they were all upset. They told me it was my fault she had gone out to see if I was cheating on her.” Scott said as he looked away.
Michelle was skeptical of his reaction. “Are you telling me you let a few high school girls give you a truckload of guilt to carry around for the rest of your life?”
Scott smiled. “I’m smarter than that, even though it took me a while to figure out I could not control her choices. At the same time, I have to take responsibility for the choices I made. There were things I could have done, but I didn’t do them. Now, Ashley pays the price for my not making better choices. When I see someone like Amie and I know I might be able to make a choice that could help her, then I have to make that choice to help her. It may not be rational or realistic, but I have to do what I have to do.”
“How was Ashley when you went to see her yesterday?”
Scott took a deep breath. “She had a hint of a smile. Her eyes were moist and sparkling. I just wish I knew if she were glad to see me or if the pollen was making her eyes water. I’ll never know which it was.”
“Does Ashley keep you awake at nights?” Michelle asked.
“Only on the days I go to see her. On all the other nights, I say a prayer for her and go to sleep knowing there is nothing else I can do, other than to visit her more often. I give her an hour or so a week. That’s not much of a gift. I want to give Ashley her life back and I don’t know how.”
Scott got up from the table and headed for the motor home door saying he needed to check on everything. Michelle assumed he was taking some time to be alone, as he was gone much longer than he should have been. She was confident Scott had told her much more than he had intended to say.
Brother Willy's Traveling Salvation Show Page 26
