Solutions: The Dilemma of Patience by James Gerard (life books to read .TXT) 📕

“Then go ahead Jacqueline; give the word.”

Michael stared into the eyes of the ruthless woman and contemplated if she really would accept imminent death, but embedded in the stare appeared to be a glint of doubt.  He stood there and waited for her to utter the command, but as the seconds passed it became obvious no such order would be given.

“What do you want?” whispered Michael.

“Are you that stupid?  Did I actually do your brain some damage that night?  Hello, can you hear me Michael?  Listen to the screaming and the crying.  I want your help!”

“Then why all this Jacqueline?  Why the charade?”

“Because it was the only way to do this Michael.  I just can’t go prancing off by myself.  They had to come with me.  But don’t you understand Michael?  Can’t you see what’s going on?”

“Considering the circumstances, no I can’t.”

“How in the world did you ever escape?  We had you locked in a room at the interrogation center.  You were strapped in a chair and surrounded by armed security.  So tell me, how did you escape?”

“I….”

“You idiot, I let you escape,” Jacqueline said.  “I cleverly loosened up the straps and had the door left unlocked on purpose.   I had the lights in the hallway turned off so you could clearly see the stupid exit sign at the end of the hall.  I then injected you with a mega-dose of adrenalin and bam; like a bat out of hell you bolted.”

“Why?”

“Ahhhh!” she screamed.  “Isn’t it obvious?  Are you so paranoid that you just can’t see it?   You were the only one who could help me.  You're a believer Michael.  I’m counting on that fact for help.”

Michael grinned.  “You clever little schemer.  This was all planned.”

“Not exactly, but yes,” she shouted.  “The plans changed when you made your escape to of all places the hospital.”  Jacqueline paused.  Her face bare the signs of curiosity.  “Tell me, out of all the places you could have run to, why did you run there?”

“Because Julia was there.”

“Julia?  Who’s Julia?”

“Mary.”

“Mary?  Mary’s the nurse?  Mary is Julia?”   

“Yes, she worked there.   I had complete trust she would come through for me and she did.  Rather remarkable,” whispered Michael, "because your father had her mind erased of the memories of who she really was."

Jacqueline smiled.  “And it was absolutely the perfect place to run to.  Just like that everything was made so easy.  You provided the exact justification that I needed to take my sister and the rest out of there.”

“Then why didn’t you have me taken right there and then?  Why didn’t you ask for my help then? ”

“There were too many witnesses and too many obstacles to get you in a position to talk with you alone.”

Michael pointed to the assault vehicles.  “We’re not exactly alone now are we?”

“Don’t worry about them.”

“How did you find us?  Troy is way too clever and efficient to make this possible.”

Jacqueline laughed.  “I’ve known all this time where you were.  I buried a small tracking device in your thigh.”

“So you didn’t uncover Troy’s little secrets?”

“No,” she shouted.  “I, no one had any clue as to where you all were and what you all were up to.”

“Then you really do want our help?”

“You think!”

Michael stepped away and with a gesture signaled off the first sign and gave a second.  Troy and Philip jumped out and ran towards Michael.

“Stop,” shouted Jacqueline as the armed security force scrambled out of the vehicles in pursuit of the two.

Michael waved towards the dry grass.  An electric hum suddenly filled the air.  Clanking metal erupted from the bottom of a dip at the end of the road.

“Quick, get medical staff up here now,” Michael shouted at a man who emerged from the hidden entrance.

Men and women raced out and ran to the bus.  A piercing scream was heard as the first person entered.

Michael looked to the rifles held up and ready to fire.  “What about them?”

“I’ll kill them myself,” Jacqueline whispered.

“No,” said Michael, “you do that and you might as well kill us all.”

“Hello, are you in there Michael,” she said as she tapped a finger on his head.  “I can’t count on their loyalty.”

“Then let me talk to them.”

“You don’t understand….”

“Please.  I know a good solution to this.”

“Bring up twenty stretchers,” a voice shouted from just inside the door of the bus.

Jacqueline walked alongside Michael as they approached the armed men.

“He has something he wants to discuss with you boys.  Listen up.”

“Yes, you have uncovered our hiding spot,” Michael announced, “and yes, I know all too well that you have each sworn your allegiance to the state, but I ask you this: Join us.”

The men looked at Jacqueline then at each other as if a misunderstanding had taken place.

“Guys, consider it,” Jacqueline said.  “Don’t put me in a position to do something I really don’t want to do.”

“Are you kidding,” whispered Michael, “they’re the ones holding the guns.”

“Just shut up.”

“Look, I’m not asking anyone of you to give up your beliefs.   I’m not asking you to change something you might not care to.  I’m just offering all of you an opportunity to get away from the madness of this constant struggle.”

The men looked at each other again.  One by one the rifles lowered.  The men in the fortified fortress emerged and jumped to the ground.

“If you’re hungry, we can cook you up something to eat,” offered Michael.

The men looked at Jacqueline once again and each other.  Mumbling was heard.

“Hey,” she shouted, “it’s okay.  Go.”

“That would be good,” one of the men said.

Michael motioned down to the door and the men casually began to stroll towards the entrance.

“You might be making a mistake Michael.  If I were you I would reconsider what you’ve just done.”

Michael stared at the back of the last man entering the safe haven and wondered if Jacqueline’s caution would come to fruition, but by the mere expression of relief that had appeared on each man’s face he figured that she was just in a mindset that ruled her former self—he was not worried.

“Listen,” Jacqueline said.

“What?”

“It’s quiet.  They’ve stopped screaming and crying.”

Michael smiled.  “Because they’re okay now Jacqueline.  They’ve been reunited with Julia.”

“Are you talking about the nurse that took care of them?”

“Yes.”

“Mary?”

“Yes.”

Michael watched as her face became alit with excitement, the connection that had been lifted out of the darkness suddenly came to light.  A smile that shone as bright as that of her sister Valerie broke out.  She darted towards the bus but Michael reached out and grabbed her.

“Give them some time together.  You can meet her later.”

“But….”

“I know.  Just give them a little time anyway.”

 Michael caught Jacquelyn staring into the deep dark void.  The sheer blackness extended well beyond the reach of the few overhead lights that illuminated the parking area used for the vehicles.  He wondered if she had been aware that such a place existed.  It had been concluded that it had to have been a place used for those that eventually emerged from beneath the earth, or it had been a complex for the workers who had been busy at work transforming the former world above.

The underground haven had been stumbled upon by a wandering believer who eventually came to the city and found his way to others.  Initially, when Michael heard word of the news, he was simply delighted at the prospect of a more secured sanctuary and dismissed the complex’s secrets as a trivial matter.  However, as a scout team found their way to the hidden fortress for an initial assessment of its offerings, a short lived exploration uncovered that ground water had flooded all but one level of the underground fortress.  The hope that had begun to take root had been crushed by passing years, time having eroded away the foundations of the abandoned shelter.  But upon further exploration the root of hope once again took hold in the one level that remained untouched by the cruelty of time.

As Michael watched Jacqueline fade into the darkness, he remembered how the level, the one lying beneath the massive expanse of the space in which they stood, was expansive enough to meet the future needs of a flourishing community of believers.  The tenuous dwellings that would be abandoned in favor of the safe haven, however, offered all the usual amenities; the hidden haven was in lack of everything vital to sustain the proposed population.  While there was ample room to accommodate as many as they could find, power was lacking.  Whatever source of power had been used to sustain the occupiers had to have been buried by the water.

But all was not lost.  Michael knew it was just a matter of putting out a call for any who fulfilled their duties to the state as electricians, plumbers, carpenters, and mechanics so that the renewal of all the dwelling’s dead systems could be restored.  Soon after, to his surprise, many answered his plea and came forth.  With many a trucker providing their services, all manner of tools and equipment and supplies were delivered to the ancient site.  The men and women worked at a furious pace to raise the underground fortress from its decrepit state to a sanctuary more than able to accommodate the needs of any believer who sought to escape the danger of the state.

“Wow” echoed in the vacuous chamber.

Michael chuckled in reaction to what she may have been thinking in examining the seemingly endless space.  He figured that even she was in awe by its sheer volume.  It was an engineering feat in which she lacked both the imagination and expertise to carry out such a titanic scheme.

Jacqueline walked back into the lighted space shaking her head.  “What is this place?”

“We’re not sure.  I thought you might know.”

“Well,” she said, “I’ve skimmed through a lot of the documents stored in the archives, but apparently I missed any information about this place.”

Michael motioned a hand towards a flight of stairs.  “Let me show you the rest.”

As they stood at the bottom of the stairs Michael observed the curiosity glinting in her eyes.  It was a stare that indicated a fascination over how such a place could have come into existence.  From where they stood there were hallways branching off in all directions.  All the hallways were well lit and the soft murmurs of voices drifted about each.  And although he had grown use to the mild, musty smell, she seemed to be taken aback by the feeling of warm and sticky air clinging to the body.

“This way,” said Michael.

They walked to the right.  Up ahead people were popping in and out view from one room to another.  And although there was much indistinctive chattering about, it mostly came from calm voices.

They approached an open door to the right.  A soft light was casting shadows of those that passed by from inside.

“Where’s my sister?”

“Let’s find out.  Hey,” shouted Michael.

A woman turned around.

“Where’s Valerie?”

Jacqueline smiled.  “Wait, I’ve seen her before,” she whispered.  “I know her.”

Julia came walking towards them.

“You’re the one I saw in front of the Council offices.”

Michael could see Julia’s perplexing expression but it quickly faded.  “Yeah.  I was sitting on the bench….”

“Yeah, and I came walking up to you.”

“We looked familiar to each other but we couldn’t remember where we had met before.”

“Yeah….”  Jacqueline suddenly screamed.   What sounded