by Jeff Dixon
“Did I tell you I was preaching out of Numbers 11, about how we shouldn’t complain and gripe so much? That sure did sound like a complaint to me.” Hawk tapped the Bible that he had placed on the table when he came in.
“You didn’t let me finish. I was trying to say I hate being on television with this Band-Aid on my head, because I don’t want to distract anyone from being able to worship by worrying about my injury. . . . See, it wasn’t a complaint, just voicing concern for the congregation.”
“Nice recovery,” Tim whispered to Hawk.
“So what are you getting ready to do?” Juliette looked toward him. “You’ve started to figure this out, right?”
“Hold on just a minute.” Tim raised his hands in front of him. “This time, see if you can keep my wife safe from the bad guys out there, will you?”
Hawk knew Tim was kidding him. After Hawk had rescued Juliette from her captors months earlier, Tim had promised Hawk to be his protector and bodyguard for the rest of his life. Although they had often joked about it, the situation could have turned out badly. That they all could be in the same room today, laughing and talking, was a blessing.
“This time, I’ll be a bit more cautious.” Hawk nodded.
“You don’t know how to be cautious.” Juliette shook her head. “I have to watch out for all of you in this room on most days. When you get together, you guys think you are indestructible.”
For the second time, the door burst open. It clanked into the doorstop, revealing a breathtakingly stunning brunette. The interruption caught them all off guard, and no one spoke for a moment. The woman at the door surveyed the room with confident green eyes that stopped when she saw Hawk. She extended her hand toward him as he continued to stare.
“Dr. Grayson Hawkes, I am Kate Young from Total Access.” She granted him a brilliant smile.
“Uh, hi . . .” Hawk stood as he shook her hand. “I’m Grayson Hawkes, you can call me Hawk.” He realized that she had already said his name, but there was no way for him to take it back after he had repeated it.
“Nice to meet you,” Kate said boldly. “Looking forward to getting to know you. We will be spending a lot of time together over the next few days.” Taking a quick glance around the room, she nodded slightly. “Just wanted to say hello. I’ll let you all get back to your business.”
Just as quickly as she entered, she turned on her heel and exited. The room remained silent as they all stared toward the empty door.
Juliette, however, was not looking at the door. Men, she thought. She studied their reaction with an amused grin. Tapping on the table to get their attention, she cleared her throat.
“Is there something wrong, gentlemen? Are you just starstruck or did you decide to be rude and gawk at Ms. Young? Seriously, you act like you’ve never seen a glamorous woman before.”
Shep opened his mouth to say something, but Juliette cut him off with a wave of her hand. Raising an eyebrow, she smiled at Tim, who smiled back at her. He quietly moved his index finger toward his eye and then pointed it toward her. It was his way of saying I only have eyes for you. Her smile grew wider. She turned her attention to Hawk. With a playful snap of her fingers to get his attention, she continued.
“Hawk, did you forget that you have company with you this week? Total Access means that she has total access all week long. This is the behind-the-scenes interview that all America has been waiting for. You remember this, right?”
“Yes, of course I do.” She noticed he quickly cut his eyes away from hers.
“Can I have a word with you alone, please?”
Jonathan moved to the door and waited for the room to empty. Pausing, he looked at the preacher for the evening. “I’m going to go ahead and get started, if that’s alright. Don’t be long. The music set is about twenty-five minutes, give or take.”
After Hawk nodded, Jonathan silently closed the door.
Juliette came around the table to where Hawk was standing. He raised his hands in an attempt to wave off what she was getting ready to say. She stopped, slid out a chair, and sat down slowly. With a smile, she lifted her hand and invited Hawk to join her at the table. Squinting a puzzled eye toward her, he took a seat.
“That was a . . . um . . . very smooth introduction to Kate Young a few moments ago.” Juliette continued to smile to soften her comment.
“Yes, don’t know what happened. We were talking about solving this clue, and she caught me by surprise.”
“Well, Hawk, about that . . . I have tried to warn you about this Total Access thing. This is an important week for you, for the company, for the Disney shareholders. You have burst onto the national scene and so far have been very selective about who has had access to you. Now that you’re venturing beyond the company’s television networks and news outlets, we won’t be able to handpick and control your dealings with the media as much. We have been taking some criticism for that . . . as you know.”
“I know,” Hawk stated matter-of-factly. “You have been doing a fantastic job at keeping—”
“Stop.” Juliette offered a backhanded wave. She knew he was going to say something nice and try to turn the conversation into some type of encouragement for her. It was one of the things he always did for those around him. “I’m not fishing for a compliment. I know you appreciate what I do, and you know I’ll keep you out of trouble to the best of my ability. But as I told you before, Kate Young did not get where she is today by being a lightweight news journalist. She’s the best there is. She has power, she has influence, she has clout. If she senses a weakness, she is going to go after it like a shark to blood. I don’t think she has a preset agenda. To the best of my knowledge, Total Access is not trying to do a damaging piece, and it doesn’t have an ax to grind. But listen to me, Grayson . . .” She used his given name so he’d know she wanted his full attention. “She will bury you in the interviews and slice you up in this behind-the-scenes special if you don’t bring your A game. Got it?”
“I’ve got it, coach.” Hawk smiled reassuringly. “Got it.”
“As far as our little mystery here, let’s figure out the clues we have, and as soon as they pack up their cameras and Kate gets back on the plane for New York City, then we will unravel this puzzle . . . alright?”
“Sounds good.” His eyes widened, and he grinned from ear to ear.
Juliette laughed. “You’re lying. You are not about to wait to solve this mystery. You are too tenacious, and you can’t let it go . . . can you? Then at least let me know what you’re doing so I can run interference for us. Promise me you’ll do that.”
“I promise.” Hawk looked like he meant it. “Really, I promise.”
“Fine.” She sighed deeply and slumped back in her chair. “Remember you have your first formal sit-down interview with Kate Young tomorrow
morning at ten o clock.”
“Yes, I will be there.”
“She’s pretty, isn’t she?” Juliette slowly rose from her chair to leave.
“Who?”
“She who!” Juliette narrowed her eyes and nodded toward the door, where Kate Young had entered.
“I didn’t notice.” Hawk waved her off.
“That is twice in a matter of moments. It’s bad form for a pastor to lie to a friend. You need to work on that, preacher man.”
“Don’t know what you are talking about.”
“That’s the third lie.” Juliette was unusually cautious as she continued. She knew how deeply Hawk had been hurt by Kiran’s betrayal months before. Deliberately, she had avoided asking him many questions about his female friends or acquaintances. “She is pretty, isn’t she?”
“Yes, I suppose she is . . . in a glamorous, beautiful, television-personality kind of way . . . if you find that kind of look attractive.”
“If you find that kind of look attractive.” Juliette shook her head, relieved he had responded playfully.
“Exactly.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
* * *
THE WORSHIP SERVICE ENDED, and as always, people lingered, laughed, talked, and greeted one another. The lobby of the worship center was spacious and featured a coffee bar that became a gathering place for families and friends after the worship event ended. Hawk mingled and stayed busy greeting people but kept his eye open for his friend Al Gann. Al worked for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and was the point man for any and all activity related to law enforcement on Disney property. Although Disney had its own security force, it interfaced closely with the sheriff’s department. This structure had been in place for years and had been very effective. The Walt Disney World property was one of the safest places you could ever visit.
The two men found a high-top table in the corner, away from the crowd. Standing up and leaning onto it so he could be heard over his flock’s chatter, Hawk slid the picture, now tucked back inside the envelope, across to Al.
Taking the envelope from Hawk, Al opened it, glanced at the picture silently, then looked back up. “Reginald told me about this.” He turned his head side to side before he spoke again. “Is this another one of those great treasure hunts?”
“It could be,” Hawk admitted. “Farren Rales seems to think so. I can’t imagine it would turn into the same type of, well . . . problem that it did before.”
“Hmm . . .” Al raised an eyebrow skeptically. “You have a way of getting involved in some fairly complex situations.”
“What?” Hawk allowed his jaw to slump open. “Why do people always say that about me?”
Both men laughed. Al was a church member who, eighteen months earlier, had become involved when the quest to find the key had gotten out of hand. He had bought Hawk the time he needed to solve the mystery before law enforcement had to become actively involved. Al was also a friend of Reginald Cambridge, which allowed for easier communication between the two offices. Sometimes the informal communication was more essential to keep things running safely and smoothly than were the official lines of communication and procedures.
“So what are you going to do with this?” Al held up the envelope.
“I suppose I’ll see if I can look into what it might mean, just a little bit.”
“Can I help?”
“Yes. Did Reginald tell you about my little run-in at the theme park yesterday?”
“He did.” Al leaned heavily against the table. Speaking so softly that Hawk had to strain to hear, he said, “That is serious and dangerous. I don’t like what we are dealing with here.”
“I don’t either.” Hawk leaned in as well. “But we know what they want. Right now, there is no danger. They want me to give them the key. They’re going to try to intimidate me to get it. But they also seem to be doing this now because another part of some big picture is getting ready to fall into place.”
“And this has to do with that ghost guy . . . George, who you met last night, who gave you the picture.” He patted his head with the envelope. “I don’t know why these Imagineer guys just don’t come out and tell you what they want you to know. Their mysterious puzzles are a little too risky, if you want my opinion.”
“It’s because this is a chapter in a bigger story. A story they have been a part of for a long time. They are the ones telling the story, and now we are a part of it. Solving the mystery is the next segment of the story.”
“That sounds crazy. You’ve been hanging around them too much.”
“It may be crazy, but it has been a pretty crazy and unbelievable eighteen months since I found the key, hasn’t it?” Hawk asked lightly.
A sudden change in the noise level of the room caught their attention. As they turned to see what was happening, the people in the lobby seemed to gravitate toward the set of doors on the far side of the worship center. Camera phones were raised in the air, and the two men stood up straighter to see what had caused the commotion.
Kate Young had just entered the lobby and was instantly swamped. Allie Crossman was at her side, trying to gingerly navigate the crowd and keep the fans from being overly aggressive. Kate smiled, shook hands, waved, and signed a couple of napkins from the coffee bar that had been shoved in front of her. Slowly she began to make her way to the front doors of the building.
Al turned toward Hawk. “You know Kate Young?”
“Nope, sure don’t.”
“Pretty girl.”
“Hadn’t noticed.” Hawk wrinkled his nose in mock dislike.
Now the crowd followed Kate and Allie to the doors. As Kate spoke with people, she looked up across the lobby. Her eyes met Hawk’s. Rising up on her tiptoes, she flashed a blazing smile that brightened the entire lobby. She waved at him and then stepped out the door.
“I thought you said you didn’t know her.” Al stuck his elbow in the preacher’s ribcage.
“I don’t . . . no kidding.”
“Well, it looks like she knows you.”
“That’s what I am afraid of.” Hawk frowned.
Juliette and Shep slid up behind him and immediately were caught up in watching the famous reporter leaving the building. Shep soon glanced at Al and then nodded in approval, letting Hawk know he’d noticed that Hawk had actually given Al the photograph as planned. While Shep began to give Al some of the information he had shared with the group earlier, Juliette turned toward her boss.
“You look nervous. Any reason?” She tilted her head inquisitively.
“Maybe this Total Access thing wasn’t such a great idea.”
“It’ll be fine. She’s just a beautiful woman. Don’t let her intimidate you,” Juliette reassured him.
“You’re the one that said she was tough. I think you used the phrase shark to blood or something like that, didn’t you?”
“Just trying to get your attention.”
“You got it.” Hawk turned back to the door, as the lobby was now quickly emptying out. “Juliette, you asked me to let you know what I was up to . . .”
“Yes?” Concern crept into her voice.
“I am going to see what special delivery Walt’s Aunt Jessie has for me.”
“When?”
“Now.” Hawk strode across the lobby without another word, and before anyone could say anything to dissuade him, he was out the door.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
* * *
THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS DRUMMED a steady beat as they tossed water back and forth across the windshield of the Ford Mustang. Hawk had aimed the car away from Celebration and was following his GPS toward the rural town of Paisley. Twenty minutes into his drive, he’d been hit by wave after wave of heavy rain that now fell in sheets around him. Drops pelted the roof of his car, and the noise drummed around him. Squinting his eyes to catch a glimpse of the road after the wipers opened up a brief view, he slowed his speed.
County Road 42 was a two-lane winding road that snaked along the border of the Ocala National Forest, which gobbled up a huge portion of north Central Florida like a black hole. Dense and dark, it was easy to lose your way in, if you moved off the beaten pathways that cut through it. Many a person had gotten lost in the depths of the forest, and Hawk silently prayed he would find the cemetery before he had to venture in too deep.
The GPS could not seem to locate the road he was traveling on. No streetlights and no other cars on the highway made the trip more intimidating. Hawk wondered why he hadn’t waited until tomorrow to make this journey. Passing the marker that beckoned him to turn into the Clearwater Lake area, he slowed into a series of turns.
A deer darted across the road in front of him. The headlights illuminated the animal for an instant, and then the water on the windshield caused it to disappear from view. Hawk swerved to keep the car under control on the slick black asphalt.
He felt the car slide off the shoulder, and he slumped to his right, grasping the wheel hard as the tires sank in the ground just off the paved road. As the wiper swiped back across the glass, the deer was gone. His tires churned, then grabbed, and he felt the car come back under his control as he steered back
onto the county road. The road twisted to his left, and he caught a glimpse of motion just past the tree line. The Mustang bounced across a dirt road intersecting the highway. A black wrought-iron fence jutted out into his path. Instinctively, he pulled the car to the left, trying not to jerk the steering wheel with too much force and cause the car to careen out of control or flip.
The Mustang’s fender grazed the black iron fence. Sparks showered into the air, illuminating the rain drops into an impromptu light show. Depressing the brake, he tried to bring the car back under control. Finally, it came to rest along the side of the fence.
Lightning flashed, as if on cue, lighting up a white oval gate just in front of him. To his right, Grayson Hawkes saw a blackened expanse of property, accented by monuments of granite and rock—tombstones. This was the entrance to a graveyard.
Surely this had to be it. He had not just found it, he had run into it. Sitting in his car in the glow of the dashboard panel lights, he contemplated what to do next. He was sweating from the sudden rush of adrenaline surging through his system. Exhaling loudly, he turned again and looked out into the darkened cemetery. He questioned why he had been so eager to find it now, but he was here, and he was going to go in.
“This may not be the best idea you’ve ever had,” Hawk said aloud.
Opening the car door, he was hit by the onslaught of the downpour. Instantly, he was soaked. He pushed the front seat forward to survey the backseat for a jacket. There was none, but he did spot the flashlight he kept back there. He slapped it against his palm, and the beam cut through the darkness, only to disappear in the shower of raindrops. His shoes sank into the mud as he made his way to the gate, and he could see deep gashes in the soil where his car had come off the road and crashed into the iron fence. Further back, he saw a deer staring at him.
“Thanks a lot.” Hawk raised his voice over the rain. “You about got us both killed.”
She flicked her tail and bounded into the forest.
