by Chad Josey
Joe stood at his desk shuffling through his papers. Years of memories and hard work trapped in binders and folders on his desk and bookshelves. It was a painstaking task reviewing everything without stopping to reminisce about his work. His thoughts about Salvation replaced his memories.
Mary and me… on a rocket? Living on Mars? We’ll be Martians.
Sarcasm was his usual defense against stressful situations. As Joe sat behind his desk, he pulled closer a stack of papers, followed by pushing another pile off his desk into the trash beside him.
So, now I’m Mr. Important. I will be the one who develops cures for cancer and illnesses... on Mars… I can’t even get funding to do that here.
He made two sections placing items he wanted to send to Salvation: a keep and a maybe pile. The trash can was home to his third choice, the obvious things not going on this fantastic journey.
Joe pulled out books and notebooks jammed with loose-leaf paper from his bookshelf. Dust rose into the air from the books, which had not moved in months.
Conference notes from April… keep.
Fantasy football stats from 2011… trash. Dammit, I should have drafted Brady first that year.
Climate studies and their impact on human genome development… keep. Anything in there about the climate on Mars, Dr. Jennings? Nope. That’s why I’m going and you’re not, Sucker.
Oh, shit… a Playboy.
Joe pulled the magazine from the shelf. It sat stuffed between two volumes of research material. He flipped through the pages. Naked women in various positions unfolded in front of him.
I told Charlie not to keep these around the lab. Maybe I should put this in the keep pile.
Joe stood with his back to the opened doorway. He turned to the centerfold admiring the picture, while facing the bookshelf.
“If I’m interrupting anything, I can come back later.” A familiar voice came from behind him.
Joe rushed to close the magazine embarrassed like a twelve-year-old, who his dad had caught with his hidden porn stash.
“Uh, oh, it’s not mine…” Joe’s words escaped him. His face turned bright red. As Joe turned, Gabriel stood in the doorway wearing an expensive gray, Italian-made suit with thin navy blue pin-stripes. “Gabriel? What are you doing here?”
Joe dropped the magazine into the trash and went over to shake Gabriel’s hand. “I know it’s only been a few days since we last saw each other. But, I said I would check-in with you from time-to-time.”
“Yeah, I know. But, I didn’t think it would be so soon?”
The two men walked through Joe’s cluttered office. Joe extended his hand out to the chair in front of his desk as Gabriel sat.
“I'll be honest. The reports I’ve been receiving… well, I wanted to come and see how you’re doing?”
“Reports? What reports?”
The question came fast at Gabriel as Joe sat at his desk behind the stacks of papers he had created.
“I won’t go into the details. But, like I said in Colorado, let me assure we are monitoring you. Mainly, we are confirming you are okay, and to know if you’re keeping up on your end of the bargain.”
“My end of the freakin’ bargain. What bargain is that? The part where you tell me we’re all dying except the chosen few who get to escape and live on Mars. Some bargain.”
“This is my point. Our experience tells us we need to watch after those we recruit to Salvation. We've told others in the past... and, well, let’s just say, for some… it’s too much to process.”
“Too much to process… you think?”
“I want to be completely honest with you because I can sense your hostility here. We’ve told others before, people respected in their fields. And, after about a week, we would learn they had killed themselves, or they would try to tell others.”
Joe pushed back from his desk. The wheels on his chair squealed against the floor. “How many people have you told?”
“Like I said, I’ve been doing this for years, now. There are others like me who recruit people to join Salvation, also. Me, I’ve personally recruited a couple of hundred people, before you.”
“Any other scientists like me? Will I have a team of people to work with there?”
“Already at Salvation, there are two staffers who will be your go to people.”
“What the hell are staffers? What credentials do you need to be a staffer?”
“You can call them whatever you want. Basically, two people will be assigned to help you in your ongoing research, in your discoveries, in your whatever.”
“My whatever? You mean a possible cure for cancer?” Joe held up a binder full of paper from the keep section of his desk.
“Yes, your potential cures. If humanity is to survive long term, they will always face a threat. Your work might lead to a solution someday… if not by you, by someone generations from now.”
“Oh yeah, on the Venus colony, maybe they can help with the cure,” Joe said as he slammed the binder down on his desk.
“Don’t be foolish. It’s too hot to survive on Venus,” Gabriel said as he laughed. “So, are you doing okay? You look like you haven’t slept?”
“Haven’t slept is an understatement. Between my thoughts about the end of the world… living on Mars… everyone on Earth dying… sure, I sleep. And, then when I do, I have these terrible nightmares. So, yeah, I’m doing pretty freakin’ great.”
“That’s why I’m here. We’ve not given you any options to talk to anyone about this. You have all these emotions and feelings trapped inside your head. So, I’m here to listen and answer questions to help. Eden really needs you. We don’t want you to do anything foolish.”
“Like kill myself or go running through the streets screaming it’s the end of the world?”
“Yes,” Gabriel said. His voice was cold and frank. “Exactly, that.”
Joe stood from his chair and placed each hand on the highest stack of paper on his desk. “Can’t you see I’m going through my stuff and getting ready for the trip?”
“Yes, and it’s a great start. But, we’ll need more than the documents you wish to take. We need to know the equipment and the lab requirements you will need to be successful.”
“Successful? Hell, I don’t even know what to expect by living on Mars. How does the body react in a different world, in a different gravity…”
“It’s overwhelming, I know. It’s like a crazy science-fiction movie you’ve found yourself in. But, trust me, there is no Bruce Willis… there isn’t any last-minute heroics which will save the billions of people, here."
Joe grunted in frustration. He ran his hands through his hair, which remained out of place.
"Your task at Salvation is to continue your research hoping one day to develop cures from your work either by you or by others. This will help ensure the survival of our species beyond Earth.”
Gabriel’s statement hung in silence as Joe loosened his grip of the papers. Joe stared out his window. Gabriel watched Joe.
“Okay, the requirements I’ll need. What limits are there?”
Gabriel stood and joined Joe at the window. “Basically, tell me what you need. Trust me, there is no budget limitation on this.”
“There’s always a budget limit on something, somewhere.”
“Not when it concerns Project Salvation… if you only knew the real costs associated. But, seriously, contact me in a few days with your list of requirements. We’ll accommodate you as best as possible.”
“And, my documents?”
“Once you have everything you need to take, let me know and we’ll take it from there. We’ll scan everything instead of sending the actual books and papers.”
“I figured as much because we’re not talking about your typical office move here,” Joe said. An unfamiliar smile appeared on Joe’s face, something missing the last several days.
“I’m happy to see you smile.” Gabriel placed his hand on Joe’s shoulder. “So, how’s Mary doing?”
/> Joe’s shoulder lowered as a new thought of Mary entered his mind. “She’s worried about me not sleeping. I did freak her out last night.”
“Yeah, what’s this about talking about the end with her?”
Joe turned to Gabriel. “How did you know… You son-of-a-bitch.” Joe knew the answer before Gabriel could respond but wanted to restate his displeasure of being watched.
“I showed you in Colorado we are watching you.”
“In my whole house… how long have you been watching?”
“Like I said before, you and your work have been on the Eden Foundation’s radar for quite some time. I cannot get into the specifics about how long and our exact methods. But, what matters most now is going forward… how I can help you… and make sure you do your part.”
“You mean, you’re spying on me to make sure I don’t tell anyone else?”
Gabriel placed a firm grip on Joe’s shoulder and looked direct into his eyes. Gabriel’s smile disappeared. “Don’t kill yourself or tell anyone else. You understand me, Joseph.”
Joe’s eyes grew wider at Gabriel’s harsh and honest response. “Well, I’ll do my best at the not killing myself part.” Joe laughed trying to diffuse Gabriel’s terse tone.
“Am I making myself clear here?”
“But, Mary… when can I tell her?”
“I’ll come back to you on that. You’ve known now, for what… almost a week, and look how you’re dealing with the news. From our past observations, we determined you can keep this information safe… but, Mary would not.”
Joe thought about what Gabriel had said. You think I can keep this secret?
“Hell, you’re right. Mary loves to gossip too much.”
“It’s not that. Again, from our past experiences, we found it’s best for some that we tell them just before they leave… and for others, like you, we can tell you months before, so you can prepare.”
“This makes me think of another question… what about those you’ve told but refused to take part or later told someone?”
“As I mentioned last week, there is no alternative but to join Salvation. It is the only way.”
“Yeah, but, surely there’s been someone who told you, no?”
“That’s where our observations play a huge role. We fully determine those who will fit our program and assess their willingness to join before we even approach them.”
“Gabriel, look, I’m a scientist. I’ve performed many experiments that were supposed to be true. But, I was later disappointed in the outcome because the results did not yield what I understood to be true. So, surely, you’ve had one person who either refused to join or told others?”
“Please hear me, Joe, with all seriousness. There is no alternative but to join us. If anyone in the past refused or told others, let’s just say Salvation does anything possible to keep its activities safe… I mean anything.”
Joe sensed the somberness of Gabriel’s statement, which sunk into Joe’s head as he realized its meaning. “What did you do to those who refused or told?”
“Let me repeat my words, there is no alternative but to join Salvation and we will take all measures to protect it.”
The unspoken words became clear to Joe. He understood the seriousness of the situation. Project Salvation will do anything and everything to protect itself from the billions of people who know their fate to die in a few years. Salvation must prevent mass chaos to ensure human survival, even if this survival is on Mars.
This revelation became clear to Joe. Peace filled his mind with the fate of Earth, of Mary and himself, and why Eden had chosen him to join… as crazy as it sounds.
A few minutes of uneasy silence had filled the office. Joe stepped over to the half-emptied bookshelf and looked at Gabriel. “Okay, it’s sinking in. I can read between the lines here. I understand."
Gabriel smiled.
"I’m not going to tell anyone. You can count on me for that. I’ll get those requirements about the lab to you soon and contact you when I’m ready to send these documents.”
Gabriel stood by the closed door. “I’m happy to see you coming around. If you need me, call me.”
“Hell, I’ll just talk out-loud to myself because you’re spying on me anyway, right?”
Gabriel nodded and winked acknowledging yes to his question. “By the way, what were you watching on TV the other night in your home office?”
Even though they just spoke about the Eden Foundation watching him, Gabriel’s question startled Joe. “Oh, it was nothing. I can’t sleep, so I thought watching old, home movies might help.”
“They must mean something to you because the report I have states you kept watching the same one? We can save those for you also and send to Salvation,” Gabriel said as he exited through the doorway and down the hall.
Joe turned toward the bookshelf to finish his sorting routine. He smiled as he opened the next binder from the shelf holding it above the trash.
“Well, Miss July, at least some things at home are still private.” The binder smacking the magazine echoed across the empty office.
15-Eli
June 11, 1997
Pasadena, Texas Graduation Day
HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION is a special time anticipated each year. Tonight’s ceremony at Bethlehem Senior High School is like the hundreds taking place across south Texas on this hot, muggy evening.
Cars stretched for miles in both directions on the small, two-lane highway in front of the school. Everyone in the community seemed to arrive for the evening’s festivities. Volunteers in orange, reflective vests guided cars into the football stadium’s parking lot beside the high school.
An attractive, older woman drove a faded-green Oldsmobile through the pedestrians and traffic of the two-thirds-full parking lot. Her long, brown hair flowed in the air rushing through the opened windows. In the passenger seat sat a senior wearing his dark-blue graduation gown accompanied by his smile from ear-to-ear.
An older man stood among the tall, slender east-Texas pine trees lining the perimeter of the parking lot. His gaze fixed onto the green Oldsmobile as it pulled into a parking space among the hundreds of other cars. The man stepped his way around the trees; dry pine needles crunched with each move.
At the edge of the tree line, the man lurched onto the black top of the parking lot. Heat sizzled from his feet in the late afternoon, summer sun.
The old man lumbered through the parking lot; his eyes never veered from the green car. He froze as the woman stepped out of the car.
People walked by the old man, as he stood motionless in the middle of the parking lot. They gave him a double-take as they passed. After all, the man wore a gray jacket on a ninety-five-degree day with sixty-percent-humidity.
“They are calling for storms tonight,” a woman said to her husband as they passed the old man, who stalked the attractive older woman like a lion on the plains of the Serengeti.
His attention never left her. He was careful not to get any closer than a few cars away. His eyes peeked over the top of the parked cars as the older woman approached the young graduate who earlier had jumped out of the car.
The old man heard the senior and his friend yell “Graduation!” as the woman he had followed snapped a picture and kissed the senior on his cheek. The woman left toward the stadium; the old man followed.
The old man saw the senior run after the woman grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around to give her a huge bear hug. The senior whispered something in her ear as she pulled back and kissed him, again.
This happy scene repeated many times across the parking lot. But, it was this family, which had gained the old man’s full attention. The old man stood close behind them and heard the woman’s response to the senior. “It was all I could do. I did it all for Rachel, and I am so very proud of you.”
This response brought a soft smile to the old man’s wrinkled face. A jagged scar ran across his left cheek across to his right eye stopping at his right temple. A stoic face
soon returned as the old man looked behind him. Paranoia consumed the old man as if someone was watching him… was watching this same family.
The old man regained his composure realizing he was safe. Turning back to his prey, the old man lost sight of the family.
The sun showed mercy by setting behind the tall, pine trees along the horizon. Beads of sweat ran down his scar as an escape route from the heat building underneath his black New York Yankees hat.
“Would you like a program?” a young girl said wearing a white dress standing at the stadium entrance.
The old man pushed her hand away and released a faint grunt under his breath as he passed her. Once inside, to his relief, the old man found the familiar sight of the attractive older woman’s flowing, brown hair.
He followed as she entered the stands at the fifty-yard line. She stopped beside a seated, balding man. His potbelly resting on his lap flattened when he stood to greet her.
The old man remained stationary, a safe distance away. Rage brewed within him as the balding man hugged the woman. The repeated grunt came from under the old man’s breath, again.
Throngs of people filed into the stadium to find a seat. The old man remained motionless on the pathway from the concession area to the stadium seats. He looked like a small tree standing in a stream as water rushed around him.
Time had passed. Stadium lights replaced the blaring sun. Moths, the size of grapefruit, darted around the lights dancing to the music of the marching band.
The breeze, which had blown earlier, stopped. Oppressive humidity swamped the stadium. Flashes from cameras throughout the stands matched the flashes of lightning along the horizon.
More time had passed. Everyone had taken their seats. People jockeyed to take the perfect pictures of the ceremony. The old man stood in the same position. His gaze froze on the brown-haired woman sitting beside a balding, heavy-set man.
At an instant, the mood of the sweltering crowd changed. An excitement arose throughout the stadium as the graduation march played from the band. Everyone cheered snapping the old man out of his trance. He turned and saw the hundred graduating seniors march onto the track around the football field.
