Jerry Pelletier looked through his camera viewfinder and chimed in, “Yah, Pete it's a little hot. Put a filter on it and let's see if that doesn't fix it.” Pete Gibbons grabbed a filter out his camera kit and clipped it over the front of the halogen lamp.
As the camera crew made their final adjustments, Rose O'Hara leaned towards Anthony and Tanya, sitting kitty-corner to her across the conference table in Tanya's office. “We'll be on a live feed to all the news networks in a few minutes. Just remember to relax and take as much time as you need to answer the questions."
Anthony grimaced. “I still don't think this interview is such a great idea. Is this really necessary?"
“You've both become world-famous public personalities and this is going to be the first chance for people all around the world to see and hear both of you since Tanya's miraculous recovery. Yet, I know how you feel, and I'm on your side. For the last two days, the network news anchors have been bending our brains, and they are really pissed that you will not let them interview the two of you themselves unless they're here to do it face-to-face. So, as I told you before, we negotiated a list of questions with a pool of reporters from the various networks, and I've managed to keep out the worst of them."
Tanya shook her head. “Still the same, Anthony is right. This is going to be hard."
“I know this is going to be tough, but let me be honest, because I work in the business. With all the world interest in the two of you right now, you've simply got to control the tone. If you feed the networks nothing but a vacuum, it will be filled by a lot of talking heads. Some will sing your praise and others will try to crucify you for no other reason than to feather their own nests for the sake of a few rating points. Granted, they'll still be there but this interview will set the tone for how your story is told."
“Stations everyone,” Goldberg announced. “We just got a 30-second network countdown.” The stillness in the room was eerie and only broken as Goldberg called, “On you Rose, in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1."
“Good morning from Los Gatos Triage Center just south of northern California's Silicon Valley. I'm Rose O'Hara, and with me today is 3G survivor, Lieutenant Colonel Tanya Wheelwright, the commanding officer of the Los Gatos Triage Center, and the man who helped her to a miraculous, full recovery, Captain Anthony Jarman, the End of Life Management Officer for the Los Gatos Triage Center. My first question is to Colonel Wheelwright. Tanya, I know you must have heard this question a million times already, but just how do you feel now after surviving your harrowing bout with 3G?"
Tanya smiled meekly, “I feel just fine, like my old self. It is like I never got sick."
“As you know, Tanya, countless doctors and researchers have been expressing the opinion that it is virtually impossible for anyone to have full recovery from 3G without being impaired in some way. What have you got to say to them?"
Knowing well in advance that she would have to deal with this question, Tanya had formulated a plan for a simple surprise demonstration, and now was the moment to spring her plan. “You know, I've seen these expert interviews; I doubt that there is anything I or any of the physicians here at the Los Gatos Triage Center haven't already said that will get past their skepticism. Therefore, I'm not going to talk to them. Rather, I'm going to address this issue for everyone else with a brief demonstration. One of the requirements for women ages 17-21 to graduate basic training is the ability to perform forty-seven sit-ups in two minutes. Even though the standards are more lenient for a woman my age, let's see if I can perform as well as a seventeen year old.” She turned to Anthony and said, “Anthony, could you please hold my feet for me and call the count?"
His look showed that he had been caught completely off-guard. He could only shrug and say, “Sure! Be happy too."
Pretending not to notice everyone's consternation, Tanya sat upon her conference table facing Anthony and with her back to Rose. Reacting quickly, Goldberg frantically grabbed a handheld camera and maneuvered behind Anthony for different point of view.
“Folks, this is a complete surprise to me,” Rose announced into the camera. She leaned over and visually eyed the clip-on mike attached to Tanya's tunic. “Are you sure you're ready for this, Tanya?"
“Watch and see,” Tanya said as she situated herself for a good exercise posture, cupping her hands behind her head. “Got a watch, Rose?"
“Yes, I do."
“You call the time. Remember, I must complete all 47 sit-ups in less than two minutes. Anthony, are you ready?"
“Yup, let us know when, Rose."
Rose looked down at her watch. “On my mark ... begin."
Tanya began her sit-ups and quickly slipped into a steady pace. As she concentrated on her breathing and movement, Anthony called the count. At exactly two minutes, Rose called the time and was amazed to see that Tanya had actually completed 51 sit-ups in less than two minutes.
Mildly winded, Tanya slid off the table, stood next to Anthony and kissed him on the cheek as the list of prepared questions dropped from Rose's hand.
Rose quickly gathered her thoughts and turned to the camera, asking, “What more proof do we need?” and turned back to Tanya. “As you know, last night, UNE Secretary General Antonio De Bono announced plans to award both of you with highest honors at a special event in Washington next week. Are you excited about this?"
Before Tanya could reply, Anthony leaned forward and said, “With all due respect, Tanya's recovery from 3G, the most horrific scourge in the history of mankind, was a gift of God. To let talking heads and politicians trivialize it for their own aggrandizement would be disrespectful to all of those who've perished. After all, I never saw them standing at the trenches, comforting those who were about to die. Rather, all of us should give thanks. Please everyone, let's mark this with reverence and wherever you choose to pray, please go there with your friends and neighbors and give thanks because, despite all our terrible travails, God loves us. We have not been abandoned."
Tanya looked into his eyes with admiration and love. Without turning to face Rose or the camera she said, “Rose, I believe this interview is concluded.” She continued to stand silently, looking into Anthony's eyes until Goldberg announced, “We're off the air."
Stunned silence filled the room as Anthony and Tanya unclipped their microphones. “I only wish we could have helped those who are already infected,” Anthony lamented. “Look, I've got a busy afternoon, Tanya. I've got to go.” With that, he left before Tanya could answer him.
Leaving Tanya's office, Anthony's head dipped with disappointment and rage as he walked towards the trenches. The first afternoon group was already beginning to kneel before the trench awaiting their last moments of life to end with a pistol shot to the back of their heads. Miracles and cures aside, the business of dying remained.
Caught up in his own thoughts, he failed to notice Tanya running up from behind him until she finally got close enough to him to grab his shoulder and swing him around. “Anthony, what in the hell has gotten into you?"
“Getting a medal from a man who kidnapped my son and killed his mother and the only father he ever knew sticks in my throat. So what if I took a cheap shot! Screw him!"
“I didn't mean that. You did the right thing, Anthony, and you cannot begin to imagine how proud I am of you."
He pawed the ground. “Well thanks. At least one person in this world doesn't think I'm a total jerk. Look; I've got to go."
“No!” She shouted at him. “To hell with De Bono! What I want to know is why you've been growing more distant from me ever since I recovered from 3G. What is it? Don't you see that you're hurting me?"
“Hurting you is the last thing I'd ever want to do, Tanya,” he said with a soft pained voice.
“So what is it? What is going on with us?"
“I'd rather not talk about it."
“That's not fair, Anthony. I thought we were never going to hide things from each other. Can't you see this is tearing me up inside? Why won't you be honest with me?"
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Anthony scratched his head as Tanya watched his tormented eyes with an anxious stare. “I guess that I no longer feel as if you're mine. Yeah, I know we've never made love, but that's not it."
Sensing that they were closing in on the real truth of the matter, she pressed him on. “Why do you feel this way, Anthony? You've got to know that there is nobody else for me but you. Please, for the love of God, you've got to tell me."
“Fine. You want to know—then I'll tell you. I feel like I'm cheating with another man's wife."
“You mean Henry."
“Yes, meeting him was hard for me. I know how much you love him and how much he loves you. A part of me keeps saying that he's on the other side and that I'm being foolish, but another part of me is having a hard time with the realism of what I saw."
She held his arms gently. “But you said it yourself, Anthony. Henry is on the other side, and he likes you Anthony. For God's sake, he even likes us together."
“I know I'm sounding foolish,” he admitted sheepishly.
“And I love you for it, dear Anthony, and for what you've shown me. Before this, I loathed death for all that it took from me, but through you, I've learned that this is the natural order of the universe, a cycle of life that has meaning and purpose."
“I'm glad you feel that way, Tanya,” he said as began to turn away.
She slapped herself on the head, thinking to herself that in her moment of truth, she'd gone off on some universal truth quest when the real issue was their relationship and her lack of guts to deal with her own problems.
“Enough,” she screamed at him. She grabbed him by the arm and spun him around for the second time, but this time drawing herself close to him. “I want to live, Anthony, and I want to live with you. Yes, I'll always miss Henry, and I'll always love him, but life is for the living and I want to live it with you. Can you understand that?"
The angst that had been building within him seemed to melt away with her words and the intent gaze of her tender eyes. “Yes, I can. I guess I'm just going to have to work my way through this. I'm not all that good at close, personal relationships, if you haven't already noticed."
“Can I ask you for a favor?"
“Sure."
“Let's work through this together. Can you promise me this?"
His face softened. “Yes. Together. But I don't know how to begin."
“You are not the only one who has been conflicted. Dear Anthony, I've been so wrapped up in myself that I haven't been there for you, as I should have. I can see that now. Will you please accept my apology?"
He smiled. “Only if you'll accept mine for being clumsy. I guess I'm no Rudolph Valentino."
“Accepted, but I want you to know that you are the kind of man that Valentino could only have hoped to be in his wildest dreams. I'll be working late tonight, but please promise me that you'll come to my dome at 2100 hours sharp so that we can begin to work this out together. Please tell me you'll come. Please."
He took her hand into his and kissed it gently. “You are God's gift to me Tanya. Wild horses couldn't keep me away."
* * * *
ANTHONY HAD NOT seen Tanya for the rest of that day, not even during dinner, as he usually did. Their conversation had buzzed through his mind like an agile mosquito that defied all logical swats and left him feeling as though he was losing control and for all his own reasons.
As promised, he knocked lightly on the front door to Tanya's dome at 2100 sharp. From the other side of the door, he heard her call out, “Is that you, Anthony?"
“Uh, yes."
Are you alone?"
Puzzled, his eyes crossed back and forth; “Yes."
The door opened just enough for Tanya to slip a folded piece of paper through the crack. He took it, and the door closed.
He opened it and read. There were three lines with large letters that read, “Count to twenty; follow the green highway; and enter heaven.” After having spent most the day working up his mind for a serious, heartfelt conversation, this turn of events was coming from out of nowhere, and he had to find out. He counted down from twenty before opening the door.
Tanya's dome was completely dark, save for a trail of luminescent light sticks leading from the front door to a reddish amber light cutting across the floor from the bathroom. As he closed and locked the door, the distinctive scent of musk and rose incense tantalized his senses. With slow, cautious steps, he followed the light sticks to the bathroom door.
He paused at the sliding door to her extra large bathroom. “Tanya?"
At first, there was no answer as the sound of music began to filter out of the bathroom. He recognized it immediately as being Chances Are by Johnny Mathis. “Are you going to stand out there all night, Anthony?"
“This is getting good,” he whispered to himself as he opened the door and cast his eyes upon Tanya, half-submerged in her large whirlpool bath, languishing in an alluring pose under a thick layer of bubbles. Surrounded by dozens of candles he saw her holding the surgical glove happy face balloon he'd given her over her chest. “Darling, close the door, won't you? I could get a chill."
Speechless, he slid the door behind him with his mouth agape. “Darling,” she purred. “You took me to heaven and back.” She tossed the balloon aside revealing her firm shapely breasts half covered in soap bubbles. “Now, it is my turn."
Anthony's mouth tried to work, but no words could come out. He swallowed and tried, yet all he could do was to gaze upon her with deep longing such as he had never felt before.
“Do you like what you see?"
He nodded, and licking his dry lips, he said meekly, “I'm afraid that if I pinch myself I'll wake up, and this dream is too good."
Tanya smiled approvingly and stood up in the tub as sheets of soapy bubbles cascaded down her shapely and curvaceous body. Stepping out of the tub, she walked up to him as his heart began to hammer like a steam locomotive engine. “You're a goddess, and this has got to be a dream,” he sighed.
She reached up and pinched his nose till he winced. “Ouch!"
“Well, you've been pinched, and I'm still here. So much for your dream theory."
“You are so incredibly beautiful,” he whispered aloud.
She smiled and began to unbutton his tunic. “I'm glad you approve.” He leaned forward to kiss her and she put a finger to his lips. “First, I will wash your back.” She turned and stepped back in to the tub and slid down into the water. “I love you, darling, but you're not getting into my bath with your pants and boots on."
“Uh right.” He hurriedly removed the rest of his clothing and boots and tossed them into the corner as Tanya sang along with the Johnny Mathis song, like a purring kitten.
Fully undressed, he stepped into the warm soapy water as she admired his engorged manhood. “You are most admirably endowed,” she noted playfully as he sat down with his back to her. The tub was even larger than he first had thought and he found it easy to nestle between her long, slender, outstretched legs. “Relax, dear,” Tanya cooed invitingly.
She immersed a large loofah sponge into the soapy water and gently stroked it along the center of his back, as she worked her other hand over his back. Her touch sent a shudder through his lean, muscular body.
“Relax and enjoy."
“Oh God, that feels so good,” he sighed as his essence swirled with ecstasy.
It was a timeless moment, and he closed his eyes as her touch caressed him with passion. As she slowly ran the loofah sponge down along his neck and shoulders, another Mathis classic, It's Not for Me to Say, began to play.
“You know, Tanya, I came here tonight with a thousand things on my mind that I wanted to say, and I'll be damned if I can remember a single one of them."
“I suspected so,” she purred. “I thought about it as well, and I've come to the conclusion that we do have one really difficult problem to work out."
His breathing froze with the word, “problem.” He cleared his throat. “And what is that
?"
She leaned forward, wrapped her arms around his chest and nibbled his ear. “Sometimes, we just talk too much."
“Oh, well, yeah. I see what you mean,” he mumbled.
She dropped the loofah sponge in the water, worked her arms under his and began to massage her hands down along his chest and past his abdomen before wrapping them around his throbbing manhood. “I want you inside me, Anthony! I want you so much! Now, Anthony, now!"
He turned around in the tub and kneeled before her, excited beyond belief on one hand and wondering how to maneuver himself in the tub on the other. Before he could gather his thoughts, though, she pushed him backward and, jumping into his lap, her lips found his with a fiery, insatiable hunger.
As they immersed into a deep kiss that that made Anthony feel as though the universe was melting away, she guided herself upon him as her body began to undulate with primal craving.
Her moans grew with quick intensity as she dug her fingers into his back sending electrical bolts through his body that defied restraint. As he strained to hold back, her rhythm increased with pounding intensity until he felt as though her body were screaming. “Now. Now! NOW!” Like a comet feeling the heat of the sun for the first time, they glowed together and exploded with a body-wracking release that took his breath away.
She collapsed upon him like a limp rag doll and began kissing his neck as their breathing returned to simultaneous deep drawing pants timed to the throbbing of their hearts. After several breaths, he whispered in her ear, “Tanya, I love you so much. Promise me we'll never be apart"
“I promise, my love; I'm yours forever,” she answered with slow passionate kisses. “I've lost so much already. If I were to lose you, it would break my heart more than I could bear."
He held her close and could feel her heart beating in unison with his. “You'll never lose me, my love,” he whispered into her ear.
They quietly held on to each other, melting into one another's arms, as the next song on Tanya's music CD cued up. It was Mathis singing, Children will listen/Our children. The lyrics resonated with Anthony, especially when Mathis sang, “Careful the path you take; wishes come true, not free.” The words dove deep into his soul. They were soul mates, and there was so much to tell her, but when and how?
Godschild Covenant: Return of Nibiru Page 48
