by R. P. Wolff
Lance faced Jeff, and said slowly, “Jeff, we are leaving. Please don’t shoot us.”
Jeff sighed heavily and held his gun hand even further out as if he was getting ready to shoot.
“Jeff, stop it,” Sandy said, as she walked towards the line of fire. “You are not shooting them. Get a hold of yourself.”
“Sandy, get out of the way,” Jeff yelled.
As they were arguing, Lance had opened the door and shuddered. He led his daughter out the door first, again camouflaging her. Lance expected the back door to open again with Jeff firing shots at them, but by the time they reach the wooden gate, Jeff had not come out.
Lance swung opened the gate, and he and Becca sprinted out of the gate holding hands. Lance did not want to let go of Becca.
“Dad, are we going back to the car?” Becca said while breathing heavily.
“Yes, if we can make it.”
They ran down the alley towards his hiding spot for the key. To his horror, he could hear footsteps running behind him. He glanced back while running and could see two cops chasing him.
“Stop,” the cops yelled.
Lance realized that it was hopeless. He might be able to outrun them but not with his daughter with him. Besides, what had he done wrong?
Lance stopped.
“Dad, what are you doing?” his daughter whispered.
“Honey, it’s no use,” he whispered back. “They would eventually catch us.”
“Dad.”
Lance raised his hands and gestured for his daughter to the same.
“Okay, okay,” Lance said, “I’m stopping. What do you want from us?”
The cops approached them and then two more cops came from further down the alley.
“Keep your hands up.”
“Okay, again, what have we done.”
The cops ignored his question and handcuffed him behind his back as well as his daughter.
His daughter cried out, “Dad! Make them stop!”
Lance sighed in frustration. How dare they handcuff him and his daughter.
The shorter of the cops spoke, “We got a call that you broke into someone’s house.”
“No, they let us in,” Becca said.
“That’s not what we heard,” said the cop.
Lance spoke, “Look, look, we know them really well. We would never break into their house. My daughter dances with their daughter. They are our friends. Let’s go back and talk to them. They’ll tell you.”
“They’re the ones that called.” The cop faced Lance, and said, “Come on, you’re coming to the station with us, and your daughter is going to the Mater camp where she belongs.”
Becca started crying, and yelled, “Dad! Please don’t let them take me. Please!”
“No, you are not taking my daughter. There’s no way you are taking my daughter. We have rights.”
“Look, you’re in no position for making demands. We already have you for breaking and entering, so I would keep your mouth shut. Now, you’re coming with us.”
“Please don’t take my daughter. Please. I honestly didn’t break into their house. They were going to help us.”
The cops started leading Lance by his arms away from the cops that were holding Becca, who were moving her away in the opposite direction.
Lance couldn’t believe what was happening. They were taking his daughter away from him and arresting him for a crime he didn’t commit. Lance started wrestling his arms free.
The larger cop said, “Governor, you don’t want to mess with us. If you go peacefully, we won’t take out the billy club.”
He called me Governor, Lance noticed. Jeff already told them that I was the governor. That must be why I attracted so many cops.
Lance knew it was hopeless to escape, so he thought he would reassure his daughter while she was still in hearing distance. “Becca, don’t worry, I’ll come and get you,” he shouted. “I promise.”
Chapter 3
A large black man, in an all-white uniform along with the standard black “Z” Materism insignia on both shoulders, stood towering over Lance in an interrogation room at the downtown Dallas police station. He had no gun but held a billy club which he kept tapping his palm. “Hello, I’m Captain Stone. I’m in charge of this police area. What religion are you?”
“Where have you taken my daughter?” Lance asked, ignoring the cop’s question.
“Don’t worry about your daughter. You’ll see her in due time.”
“How much time?”
“What religion are you?”
It surprised Lance that he wasn’t asking him about the breaking and entering charge that the arresting officers accused him of.
Lance ignored his question, and said, “I want a lawyer.” They had rushed him all the way from Lewisville to the downtown Dallas police station shortly after they had arrested him. They brought him straight into an interrogation room and cuffed his feet and hands to the floor-mounted table. Lance figured that they couldn’t keep him too long because he truly didn’t do anything wrong.
“You’re a lawyer, right?” Captain Stone said. “So you don’t need an attorney.”
“Yeah, but I want to call my own attorney. I want to call my wife. She’s an attorney. She can represent me.”
“Do you want to see your daughter again?”
Lance gritted his teeth. This motherfucker, he thought, using my daughter as leverage. I’m going to get this motherfucker. “Of course, I want to see my daughter again,” he said appearing to cooperate.
“Okay, if you want to see her again, then answer my questions.”
Lance realized that the evil Zelda Mater, the self-proclaimed “Mother of the all the Gods,” was probably behind the repeal of the fifth and six amendments, which took away any rights that he might have. People suspected that her father, the current president, or at least until midnight, was just a puppet president until she obtained the age of thirty-five, so she could become president. The rumors appeared to be correct as she was supposed to be president at midnight.
Captain Stone glared at Lance, waiting for a response.
Lance decided to see if he could reason with him again. “Look,” Lance began, “I’m not going to say anything to you until I have a lawyer present. You should do the right thing and let me go because I have done nothing wrong.”
“Okay, then you’re going to have to spend the night if you don’t answer my simple questions.”
“What do you mean? What are you arresting me for?”
“Well, for one …”
“Wait, am I even under arrest?”
“Yes, you are.”
“What for? What are the charges?”
“Breaking and entering—”
“I told you I didn’t break in.”
“Okay, breaking and entering, and you haven’t registered yet for the Freedom Chip.”
Lance sighed. He had to convince the captain to let him go, so he could find his daughter. This was starting to get very alarming. He needed to defuse the situation, but he wouldn’t sacrifice his values.
Lance replied, “I don’t want the Freedom Chip. I’m fine using credit cards and cash.”
“You don’t understand, Governor. There is no more cash or credit cards. Did you not hear what the president said today?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s just a Freedom Chip. You can’t do anything without it. The Freedom Chip gives you freedom. You don’t have to have cash or credit cards. You don’t have to have a driver’s license. You don’t have to have an insurance card. Everything’s on the Freedom Chip, which makes you free and that’s why it’s called that.”
“Believe me it’s anything but freedom,” Lance said. “It takes away everyone’s freedom because the government knows everything about the people that have it.”
“Okay, let’s get back to the question of your religion.”
“Captain Stone, please just let me go. I haven’t done anything wrong. Let me go pick up my daughter.�
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“Hey, we’re not going to let you pick up your daughter. We need to know what religion you are.”
Lance realized that he needed to start answering the guy’s questions because he didn’t seem to be playing around. Lance said, “Well, you know I’m not a Mater.”
“Okay, now we’re getting somewhere. What religion are you?”
Lance hesitated. How much should he tell him about his religion? Because Lance was the former governor of Texas, the public knew that he was a Christian, and he ran against Materism. He felt that he had nothing to gain or lose by telling Captain Stone his beliefs, since they were already well known.
Lance said, “Okay, I guess I’m a non-practicing Christian.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I don’t go to church anymore.”
“What church did you go to? What religion was it: Protestant, Catholic, Baptist?”
“No, it was non-denomination. I went to the Almighty Christian Church in Flower Mound. I don’t know. I stopped going shortly after I lost the governorship. I lost interest in religion, period.”
“So, do you believe that Zelda Mater is the mother of all the Gods?”
Lance sighed again. He thought it was a ridiculous question. No, she wasn’t the mother of all the Gods because there was only one God.
“Governor, answer the question.”
Lance thought it was interesting and perplexing that he kept referring to him as Governor as if he had any remaining power. Lance responded, “No, absolutely not. I don’t believe that. I would never convert to Materism. My daughter’s never going to convert to Materism.”
“Do you believe that the three Gods are the Sun, the Land, and the Sea?”
“No, I don’t believe in multiple Gods. I believe in one God, and I barely believe in that anymore.” Captain Stone remained calm during Lance’s responses. He didn’t seem mad. He even seemed to agree with Lance. This encouraged Lance to continue. Perhaps if he was honest, they might let him go and just encourage him to convert but not demand that he convert.
“Do you believe in the eight commandments of Materism?”
“No, I don’t. I’m not a Mater.”
“Do you know what the eight commandments are?”
“Yeah, I know some of them because I hear them all the time. There are plaques of the commandments at almost all the businesses now. They started going up shortly after I lost the governorship. You know, I might even know all of them because they’ve been shoving them down my throat for a while.”
“Okay, can you recite them for me?”
Lance shook his head. He had taken part as an attorney in many police interrogations, but this one was one of the strangest.
The captain raised his eyebrows and nodded for Lance to give it a try.
“There’s one for thou shall not commit adultery.”
“Go on.”
“There’s one that thou shall not steal.” Lance paused and stared at the ceiling trying to remember the specific language. “I don’t remember,” Lance finally conceded.
Captain Stone tapped the billy club a little harder.
Lance said, “Can I go now? I answered your questions like you asked.”
Captain Stone slammed the club against the table making Lance jump in surprise.
“No, you cannot go!”
Oh no, Lance thought. He’s serious.
Captain Stone continued, “And you won’t be going for a while.” He paused. “You have admitted that you’re a disgusting infidel.”
Shit, I knew I shouldn’t have said anything about my religious beliefs, thought Lance. Lance wondered what they could actually do to him. Surely, they couldn’t lock him up just because he wasn’t a Mater.
Lance responded, “I’m sorry that you don’t agree with my religious beliefs, but I wouldn’t call me an infidel.”
“The punishment for infidels is one year in prison.”
Lance gulped, “Are you kidding me? Just because I don’t believe in Materism, I have to go to prison? This is absurd. I need a lawyer. Come on, let me go.” Lance pulled on his cuffs trying to break loose to no avail. Lance started panting and suddenly felt lightheaded. He held back tears. What was going to happen to his daughter or his wife? The thought of them brainwashing them horrified him.
“We taped this interview,” Captain Stone said, “and it has you admitting that you are an infidel.”
“You didn’t tell me that you were taping this.”
“Well, it’s being taped, and you’re in a lot of trouble.”
“This is crazy. Get me out of here.”
“You’re just going to have to realize that holy Zelda Mater, our soon-to-be-new president, wants everyone to be Maters. Either you’re going to be a Mater or not.”
“Okay, I’ll be a Mater,” Lance said, realizing that was his only hope out of his predicament. “I’ll start practicing it.”
“No, it’s not that easy. You’ve already admitted that you don’t believe in Materism. And that is just for the infidel charge. You may get extra time for the breaking and entering charge as well.”
Lance shook his head in disbelief.
“While in prison, Maters will teach you the scriptures,” Captain Stone continued. “You will learn and live the eight commandments.”
“Please, is there any bail I can post?”
Captain Stone chuckled. “No.” He paused and smirked. “And now we must mark you.”
“What do you mean?”
“We can’t have you going around and saying you’re a Mater when you’re not. We have to mark you to tell the world who you really are.”
Lance violently jerked his hands and feet trying to break loose. “How are you going to mark me?”
“We’ll show you.”
“Can’t you just give me the Freedom Chip? Won’t the whole world know who I am with the Freedom Chip?”
“Yes, but we need something more visible.”
Lance gasped. He hoped that it wouldn’t be painful whatever they were deciding to do.
Captain Stone nodded to the mirror, which obviously was a two-way mirror, Lance figured. After a short while, two guards in the standard white police uniforms with the black “Z” insignia on their shoulders came in. They both faced the captain, made the sign of the “Z” while saying: “In the name of Sun, the Land, and the Sea,” and bowed to the Captain, who also made the sign of the “Z” and bowed to them. They all looked to the ceiling and said, “bless to you, Zelda Mater, mother of all the Gods.”
After this long ordeal, one the guards held what look like a pan and a metal rod resting in it, with smoke rising from it. Lance smelled burnt metal and could hear it sizzling.
“Time to get branded. You filthy infidel,” Captain Stone scoffed. The two guards held Lance’s arms down. Captain Stone grabbed the metal object which at the opposite end was flaming red “C.”
Lance shivered. “No! Please don’t do this. I’ll convert. I promise. Please.”
“Hold him steady,” Captain Stone directed his men. “I’m going to mark your forehead.”
“No, please don’t.” Lance shook his forehead trying not to make an easy target.
“If you don’t hold still, it will be a lot more painful.”
By now the burning red “C” was sizzling inches from his face. He inhaled the burnt metal fumes and coughed.
“Your choice. You have three seconds to remain still; otherwise, this is going to be more painful than it needs to be.”
Lance exhaled and stopped moving his head. He sniffled. Were they going to do this to his daughter and his wife? he feared. He had failed them. He didn’t know where they were, but he was not there to protect them.
“Okay, good,” said Captain Stone. “Now, I would close your eyes and stay absolutely still.”
Captain Stone pressed the burnt metal against Lance’s forehead.
Lance screamed. His skin sizzled, and the pain was unbearable, almost as bad as when a swarm of bees
stung his face when he was five. It was like accidently touching a stove but not releasing the grip. Only instead of a hand, it was his forehead.
The guards release their grips and the three men studied Lance and smiled.
“Now, look at the good little Christian,” Captain Stone mocked.
Chapter 4
Zelda Mater sat alone at the desk of the Oval Office dressed in an all-white cotton dress that rested over her knees. The Chief Justice had just sworn her in as the new President of the United States at midnight. She wanted a moment to herself to relish her new position. Her chief of staff, General Arnold Chandler, waited outside the office.
Zelda smiled to herself. She outmaneuvered her own dad in obtaining the presidency. The plan all along was for her to become president after her father served two terms. But she grew impatient and noticed, as did the whole country, that he was working on repealing the twenty-second amendment, which limited presidential terms to two terms. He wasn’t going to relinquish his power to her until he died, and she couldn’t wait that long.
She finally realized in her late twenties that her dad, her adopted dad, had been using her and her special powers to his benefit her whole life. Now it was time to use it for her benefit.
She also questioned if she really was the mother of all the Gods, but she would never dare reveal her doubts to anyone but herself or someone she could control. Her power stemmed from people believing that she was truly the mother of all the Gods, and her special power to inflict extreme pain on men. Unfortunately, it didn’t work on women, but few people knew this limitation, and that was the way she wanted to keep it.
Her adopted father and mother told her that the Gods sent her down and that she didn’t have any biological parents because she was a goddess. She believed this story her whole life because why not. People worshipped her and treated her like a goddess, so she went along with it and relished the attention—and power.
