Post # 38
City Air
Bruce and Linda were in the front seats, and Rob was in the back seat with Jenny as they started out. The first few minutes were spent carefully threading their way through a mile or two of forest on the way to a county road to the west of their camp. At first the ground was higher on the south and slightly lower to their left. About half way to the road it leveled out, mostly. Rob was watching intently considering more carefully about this property they were passing through now being the land they would be trying to buy. Bruce was also focused, but his attention was on watching the path that was meandering through the trees. Linda and Jenny were somewhat in sync with their husbands' focus but their considerations were filtered and tinted by considering what it was going to be like living in this space and maintaining a household here, rather than where a house might fit and how they were going to build one.
Joann and Pete were following behind talking about their new neighbor. “Tell me more about what you thought about Brother Issac, Pete.”
“That's hard to do, Darlin'. I have to be careful how I look at him and his situation not to slip into judging little things about him and others. Part of me is saddened, that he seems so alone and forgotten by his brothers. But, then, again I remember the story of Joseph. He was thrown away by his own brothers. It was only a last minute change of heart that they sold him into slavery rather than letting him die. Yet, if that had not happened, how could he have eventually become the de facto ruler of Egypt?, Years later thousands, including his own family, might have died in a seven year famine. His father set that place up as a haven for what he thought would be an imminent time of tribulation and Issac has continued holding on to that expectation. Now, nearly a hundred years later, we are trying to do the same thing all over again.”
“I understand we have to be careful jumping to conclusions, Pete. But, tell me more about what you think about him, as a neighbor.”
Pete pondered a minute. “Hold on. We are almost to the county road, and Bruce doesn't want us following too close.” Pete was slowing down and stayed back inside the tree line when he stopped. “Okay. I think he is a strong willed brother that needs some good neighbors and, who will be a good neighbor in return. I think he has a good heart, that he has learned to guard, wisely holding his cards close to the vest, so to speak. All of us are flawed and let our emotions cause confusion in our thinking from time to time. I think he has been careful about exposing his intentions there to avoid the problems that would come if some more impetuously inclined brothers and sisters decided to rush to that haven too soon for their own good.”
“Ah. Now I see what you are thinking. Well, do you think we are too impetuous for our own good?”
“Absolutely not. As a matter of fact, unless we get some powerful help, I am concerned about our ability to get prepared in time.”
Joann spoke softly. “But isn't that always the real truth? No matter when or what happens. We could never be adequately prepared without some powerful help from our Creator. “ She reached over and touched Pete's arm.
Pete smiled at Joann and nodded his head in total agreement. He then pulled out of the trees and started down the road to the south.
It was after ten o'clock in the morning when Bruce noticed the traffic getting heavier in both directions nearing the state capital. The inbound traffic was slowing. He had laid out a plan for the day with the others before leaving that morning. The plan was to arrive at their three destinations by eleven o'clock. Pete and Joann were going to a residential area in one of the suburbs. He was going to drop Rob and Jenny off near the downtown area where his attorney had found an office building address connected to the P.O. Box listed for the property owner's address. Bruce and Linda would then drive to a nearby commercial area where another property owner's address was located. The hope was that the downtown and commercial area were close enough together that their hand held radio and the base station in the truck could allow them to stay in touch.
The six travelers connected by radio on the fringe of town one more time and signed off. Soon after that Pete and Joann exited the highway and began making their way to their destination. Bruce and his companions were proceeding toward the downtown area but as they were coming over a small rise in the highway, they saw brake lights coming on ahead of them. The highway was being narrowed down to two lanes inbound toward the city leaving empty lanes on either side of the two lane corridor. Up ahead there were State law enforcement vehicles with various markings and designations scattered along the sides of this corridor with their lights flashing in variety of patterns and color combinations.
“Would you look at that?” Linda almost laughed. “I have never seen such a random bunch of emergency lights. What ever happened to just Highway Patrol and State Troopers that you can barely tell apart. How many different kinds of state police can they have. Oh, oh, oh. This reminds me of some of the scenes in … what was the name of that? Close Encounters! You know where they had so many different agencies involved that no one knew who had authority over what.”
“Yeah, I see what you mean, Linda, but that was fiction and a movie production. These are real. What in the world is going on?” Jenny asked. About that time the traffic slowed to a halt.
Rob was looking at the array of emergency vehicles and thinking. “These are all state cops. I don't see any city police or sheriff's department vehicles. No federal signage either.”
“Whatever it is I don't like it .” Bruce was overtly tense. “Something is up and we don't know what, but whatever it is it can't be helpful for our schedule or our goals.” Then he got quieter and said almost under his breath, “Maybe we should have remembered to get Pete to say a prayer before we started this morning.”
“Not every prayer has to be out loud, Bruce. I'm sure Dad said a prayer this morning, even if we didn't ask him to.” Rob found himself trying to stay calm in spite of his own growing concerns. Occasionally, one of the law enforcement vehicles would move and draw closer to seemingly random vehicle in two lane corridor either from the right or left side depending on which lane of the corridor the vehicle was sitting in. When this happened two officers would step out and one would approach the nearby civilian vehicle and begin speaking to the driver. Some times the officers would withdraw after a couple of minutes and return to a watchful position farther off to the side of corridor. Sometimes, however, the conversation seemed to persist for quite some time. Once they saw a car being signaled to pull out from within the corridor and directed over to the shoulder of the pavement. There the official vehicle followed and parked somewhat blocking the selected vehicle from leaving.
Bruce was getting more tense by the minute checking his watch frequently. He almost missed the State Trooper patrol car pulling up slightly behind and to the right of his truck. Linda jumped and gasped with a squeak when a Trooper gently tapped on her window with one knuckle. He took a couple of short steps back and motioned for her to wind her window down. Rob, who was behind Linda, made a point of lowering his window in the back seat lifted his hands just enough to show he wasn't hiding anything as he nodded to the officer with a friendly smile. The officer nodded in reply and looked through the cab to Bruce.
“May I see your license, please?” The question was not spoken so much as a question as it was an instruction that fully expected cooperation.
Bruce pulled out his wallet and then his Texas driver license which he handed to Linda to pass to the officer.
The officer opened a note pad and looked at the license along with whatever was written in his notepad. He seemed to consider his next step. “Would you mind telling me about your reason or purpose for coming to the capital today?” His eyes were scanning all four occupants of the truck as he asked the question.
Bruce got very tense. He did not know why they had been singled out, or what was happening to prompt this large law enforcement presence. He remembered seeing streaming videos posted on line of people being illegally stopped or harassed by cops and the person in question standing their ground about the legality of the stop and the officer's demands. He was sure that this stop violated several laws regarding allowable actions by a law officer but the last thing he wanted was to cause a scene and get into a legal tug-of-war. Still he was concerned about what was happening nd how it might affect their plans.
“Officer, I do not mean any disrespect, but did we do something wrong? With hundreds of cars and trucks stuck here in this blockade, there has to be a reason you decided to question us instead of someone else.”
The officer's face tensed up. He had been well trained about the microphone and camera he was now required to wear. He replied very carefully and very deliberately. ”
“Please, just answer the question, sir. I am only doing my job.”
Rob sensed something strange about the demeanor of the officer who answered. He kept using the word 'please', yet it was clear that he intend for Bruce to comply. Rob also noticed the other officer shifting his position. Rob wanted to diffuse the tension immediately. He spoke in a voice he hoped was both respectful and amiable.
“Officer, if I may, we are here together on vacation. We have no intention of causing any kind of trouble. It's just that this situation and process is very different from anything we have seen before back in Texas. We are a little uneasy about not understanding something that looks very … intimidating.” During this he was gesturing at the road blockage and and the numerous emergency vehicles.
The officer pursed his lips for a moment. “Yes, I can see now from Mister...Cooper's license that he is from out of state.” He oddly emphasized the word 'now' as he was speaking to Rob as if he wanted to make sure that was heard. We have received information that there may be groups of people coming to the capital from out of state today to cause disruptions. Now, will you please state your reason for coming to the capital today.” He seemed to emphasize the words 'please' and 'today'.
Bruce paused a second, considering what he had been hearing, and then spoke quickly. “As my friend told you officer,we are here on vacation. You have a beautiful state and we saw some land that was just amazing. We came here today to contact the owner to see if they might consider selling us some of it so we could have a permanent place to come to on vacations. If you could direct us out of here, we would be glad to try meeting with the owners on a different day.”
The trooper stared at Bruce, then the others. “Who is this land owner you are meeting? What is their address?”
“Actually officer there are two different owners of two different properties. If I may? I have that information right here in my notebook.” Bruce pointed to a notebook on top of the console between the two front seats in his truck.
The officer nodded and Bruce began pulling some sheets out of his notebook. As that was going on he asked Rob, “If you don't mind, may I see some identification from you, sir?”
Rob complied, carefully pulling his driver's license out of his wallet. The officer looked at it a moment then scrunched his eyebrows. He looked again at Bruce's license. So it looks like you are close neighbors.”
Linda in the front seat sputtered and chuckled. “Officer after fifteen years of livin' next door to each other, it works a whole lot better to be close neighbors than to be distant neighbors, if you get my meanin'.”
“Yes, ma'am. I can see your point there, for sure.” The officer chuckled. He handed Rob's license back and took the papers Bruce was handing out the window. He looked and saw that they were copies of county records from a county about a hundred miles away, but not in the direction of Texas. He also noted the owner addresses were indeed near downtown. “Mister Cooper, I am sorry for the disruption for you and your friends. I would strongly recommend, however, that at least for today you avoid the area of town indicated for their addresses. We hope for the best, but there seem to be some demonstrations and the threat of clashes today between groups with differing political opinions. We are just trying to keep everyone safe.” He handed Bruce's driver's license back through the window with the papers Bruce had presented.
“We understand, officer. How long are we going to have to sit here, or is there any way we can reroute to get out of this jammed up area?” Bruce was polite but worried.
“You all seem to be in order. I will clear you to exit. If you will slowly pull out of line with your hazard flashers on, take the next exit about a hundred yards up, then take the turnaround to head back out the way you came in.” He touched the brim of his hat, then headed back to his cruiser.
Bruce followed the officer's directions which took some time. Once they were headed back north, he began to vent his frustration. “This is so messed up! We made the right decision, and it was just in time. Rob, thank you, buddy, for reading that the way you did. What is going on here anyway, with only state cops out?”
“All cops have to answer to and follow the directions of their bosses in order to keep their jobs, Bruce. You know how that works, same as any other business. It isn't a hard and fast rule, but generally rural and small town voters don't see things quite like most city folks do. This state has more rural and small town folks than there are in the few cities here. So the mayor and city officials in the capital city are less likely to be directing the local LEOs in the same way the governor of the state is directing the state LEOs for how to control the trouble. That trooper knew he was dancing outside the lines, but he also wanted to keep his job, so he can still do his job when he is given the chance.”
Bruce was a both cynical and sarcastic at the same time. “Well that sounds like a formula for successfully keeping things peaceful. Two opposing groups of politicians directing different bodies of law enforcement professionals to use different tactics and strategies to further opposing agendas within the same city.”
“So what do we do now?” asked Linda.
“I think we should follow the advice of that officer. He seemed to know something troublesome was going on in the area we need to go, so we need to come back in a couple of days when, hopefully, things have quieted down. Why don't we go find my dad and see how he is doing out in the suburbs.”
“I don't know which owner holds first which properties nearby, but what harm is there in looking at them one at at time to see what kind of deal we can make.” Jenny was eager to get away from whatever was going on near the capital today. So she was acting enthused about shifting their focus to the 'third' landowner. “Where exactly is the parcel that Joann and Pete are trying to pursue?”
Bruce suggested Rob take the notebook, and find out since he was driving and the two ladies had not yet been as involved in looking at maps and documents he had collected regarding the nearby land parcels. Rob studied the documents for a minute and said, “Well that is a good place to start. It is just north of Dad's place. The creek to the north of us really gets started there. On the west side, it butts up against the east end of the Hallelujah Trust property, just like Dad's property does. It would be nice to have that flowing water. It looks like there is a relatively level space on the other side of that creek before the slope begins to rise a little farther to the north. It's a little larger than Dad's property and extends farther towards the road to the east than Dad's place does.”
“Oooh, that sounds nice!” Linda cooed. “I can just picture it; a group of the cows that Colleen likes so much grazing in a meadow between a flowing creek and the forest in the background. Is that what you were picturing in your mind, Bruce?”
“I have to admit, that is a much more peaceful and soothing picture than a news clip of a police barricade trying to hold back a rowdy crowd of demonstrators.” Bruce conceded. “Let's go with Rob's idea and see what we can do there.”
Pete had a map sketched out by Bruce to get to the landowner's address. It was a person named Harry Billings that they were supposed to find and talk to about his land. Their route would be taking them along the side of a large shopping mall up ahead and the traffic seemed to be getting heavier as they got closer. There seemed to be some kind of demonstration going on in a large parking lot that was only half full of cars. The demonstrators were waving placards at the passing traffic driving past the mall's parking lot. The traffic seemed to slow considerably as it passed the demonstrators. Pete and Joann were discussing how that was probably from the drivers trying to see what the signs were about. Joann was looking as Pete kept his eyes on the traffic around him. She could not make much sense out of the signs, because they were amateurishly done and the lettering was not distinct enough to be easily read.
Joann did notice a few placards with dollar signs and others with “JOBS” scribbled on them. She did not try to speculate about the 'message' the demonstrators were trying to send. She noticed that Pete had stopped and turned to look ahead at the traffic. Up ahead at the next intersection there was a red light. A minute later the light changed, but the traffic did not move. After seeing the traffic light go through several cycles without moving, they realized something was very wrong. Since the traffic wasn't moving, Pete put the truck in park and stepped out. He then climbed into the truck bed and stood up so he could see over the tops of the cars ahead.
Down the street he could see demonstrator placards waving about where the crosswalk was in front of the wall of cars. He looked around in a number of directions to asses their situation. Pete climbed down and got back in the truck. He turned his wheel all the way to the right and drove up over the curb, across the sidewalk and into the parking lot. From there he drove across the parking lot toward the mall building. There were demonstrators around the doors trying to intimidate shoppers from entering. Rather than getting too close to the building, he threaded his way around the lot crossing the parking lanes where he found several unoccupied parking spaces at some distance from both the building and from the surrounding streets. Finally he found the “backside” of the mall where the merchandise was delivered by trucks to a set of loading docks. From there he made his way out to a paved lane that emptied onto a street with less traffic.
He was now off the map that Bruce had drawn, but he knew the general direction he needed to go to reconnect to one of the streets on Bruce's sketch. He and Joann found their destination fairly soon after that delay and it was about ten minutes before eleven o'clock when they pulled up to a modest brick home in an older but well kept neighborhood.
“This looks like the address, Joann. Are you ready?”
“Sure. Let's see what our next adventure today is like.” Joann grinned at Pete.
They walked up the walkway and onto the small porch where Pete looked for a door bell button. Not finding one he lightly rapped on the door with an old style metal knocker placed about shoulder level in the center of the wooden door front door. They waited patiently and less than a minute later the door was opened a few inches. They could partially see a man's face peeking out of the gap.
“Hullo?” The man spoke making the greeting sound more like a query.
Pete cleared his throat. “Mister Billings? Harry Billings?”
The man still holding the door almost closed responded. “I don't think I know you. Who are you?”
“You are right. We've never met before. My name is Pete Smith.” He gestured to Joann. “This is my wife, Joann Smith. I apologize for showing up unannounced. We are interested in talking with you for a few minutes if you have just a little time. “
The man leaned over and peered passed them to look at Pete's well used mini-truck. Then he looked back at Pete and Joann again. He looked at the manila folder Pete had in his hand. “Are you a process server?”
Pete grinned and half chuckled. “No, Mister Billings. Neither I nor Joann are here to serve you with any papers or summons. We are honestly wanting to see if we can interest you in selling us a piece of property that we understand you own.”
The man tipped his head to the side and waited. “You two like coffee?”
Pete laughed now. “Harry, it's a good thing my wife and I have decided not to argue with each other. Otherwise we'd be arguing from time to time about which one of us likes coffee more than the other.”
“I didn't tell you my name.”
“That's okay, sir. We'd still like to share a pot of coffee with you.”
The man behind the door stepped back with a smile on his face and opened the door further. “come on in. I'll see if I can get one started. Come on back to the kitchen.”
They stepped in and he shut and latched the dead bolt behind them. Then he motioned for them to follow him as he headed through the front room to the kitchen which was apparently on the back side of the house. He seated them at a table in the breakfast area of the kitchen/breakfast room. There was sunlight coming through a window with cafe style curtains next to the table and they had a view looking into a neatly trimmed back yard which included a small well kept vegetable garden. While the coffee was percolating in an old style electric percolator. Mister Billings sat down and stared at Pete and Joann.
“Please forgive my manners, but in times like these I think it is wise to take precautions. Pete, I'm remembering that correctly, I hope. You appear to know more about me than I know about you, so first tell me about yourselves.”
Pete paused and thought a moment as he looked at Harry. “Joann and I have only been married a few weeks. We met a couple of years ago in a small town north of here called Beaver Creek. I was actually renting a room that was under the same roof as her house but with no connection between them. The rental arrangement was made with me for her by a trusted friend. We met shortly after I started renting as we began working together on a vegetable garden and raising chickens. We also regularly attended bible study meetings at the same congregation in Beaver Creek.” He paused again.
“H.B.,” He carefully said those initials then proceeded, “Before, I moved to Beaver Creek, I, and several generations before me, had lived in Texas. You mentioned times like these. That is why I chose to move up here, but Beaver Creek was not my intended destination. While I was transitioning in Beaver Creek I found some property in the forest up here where I plan to live with Joann. Now about our reason for coming to you. Just about the same time Joan and I decided to get married, my son and his best friend/next door neighbor decided to abandon their previous lives and bring their family up here to live in the forest, too. So, we need a little more land. And it just so happens that the person I am looking for,” Pete nodded to Harry, “owns a piece of property right next to the property I got for myself and my bride.” He reached over and squeezed Joan's hand.
Harry hung his head a moment and sighed. “So now that you have enough recruits, you're going to set up camp in the woods to hide from the corrupted usurper government, and you need a larger buffer zone so you can create a defensible perimeter. Then you'll need to get your preparations in order to be ready for when they come to try and take your land from you.”
“That's where you are wrong, Harry. I mentioned the congregation Joann and I attend. We are members of the Bible Study Brotherhood. To us the message is very clear in the Bible that the governments will turn on those who are faithful to the Creator, BUT, and this is critical, it is Jehovah's fight not ours when that happens. Think about it. Do we really think that a bunch of angry people with small weapons can fight off all the armies of the world? When the final battle comes it is going to be the Creator of the universe versus the foolish rulers of this tiny planet. Our expression of genuine faith at that point will be to stand and watch rather than taking matters into our own puny hands.”
Harry looked at Pete and Joann. “So, that's how they see that. I wasn't sure their take on things. I've seen a few of those 'brothers' and I actually thought for a moment at the door that you might be two of them when I first answered the door. Humph. … But you didn't come here to convert me did you? You came here about a business proposition. Your son and his friend. Are they 'brothers' too or do they have different ideas about this retreat to the woods thing?”
Just then Pete heard his radio pop twice. He waited and a few seconds later it popped again. “Harry, can you excuse me a moment. I think my son is trying to call me.” Pete stood up and went into the front room where he adjusted the volume on his hand held radio. “Rob? Are y'all okay?”
“Yeah, Dad. We're okay but we had to go to plan B. We're heading your way. How are you doing?”
“Joann and I are talking with Mr. B. to establish a trust level at the moment. He is asking questions about you and Bruce, now. Hold on.”
“Harry,” Pete walked back in the kitchen. “Instead of me speaking for them maybe you would feel better talking with them yourself. I would think you'd be more confident with that than getting just my version of what they are thinking. They are heading this way if that is okay with you.”
“Yes, I would like to hear directly from them. Tell them to come on. I'd better get some more coffee ready. Please, turn that thing off so they can't hear what we discuss before they get here.”
“They should not be able to hear anything unless I am pressing on the <Mic> key, but I will turn it off if that makes you more comfortable. Just let me tell them to come on, then I 'll turn it off completely.”
“I would be more comfortable, thank you.”
“Rob, He said to come on. You know the way. Oh, yeah! Dodge around the Mall. Some kind of demonstration going on there, today. I am turning off my unit. I suggest you you do the same. Over.”
“Will do. Over.”
Pete turned off the unit with an audible click. Then he removed the batteries and placed the unit with the batteries on the table in plain sight.
Harry, who had still not identified himself, waved to get Pete's attention. He then mimed like he was punching numbers into a phone and then holding it to his ear. He then pointed to Pete and Joan and made questioning gestures.
They both gave him surprised looks followed by emphatic negative gestures.
Harry moved over to the kitchen counter and Joann noticed he seemed very tired. He was a good bit older looking than Pete and she got up to help. “You made the last pot. I was watching. You sit down and I can make this one.”
He didn't make even a small protest. He simply thanked her and took a seat. “I heard what you said to your son while in my den. I am starting to trust you two. But I still have to be careful. I don't like being like this, but it is necessary. My Father got that piece of land from the government after the war. He was in the army late in WW2 and also Korea. For him Korea was the bad one. My son heard some of his tales, toned down for a child of course, and really romanticized those stories in his head. My Dad would never talk to him about the really bad stuff.”
“My son … He is bitter about what has happened in the last several decades. He worked hard like he was taught to and could not swallow a lot of injustices he saw happening to friends and to himself. He has gotten caught up with some friends that are making covert plans to defend what they see being destroyed. I've tried to talk reasonably with him, but he has too much anger he is holding inside.” Harry was shaking his head sadly.
Joann changed the subject carefully and began talking about his garden and some of the things she and Pete had done with theirs. They passed the time as friends sitting down for coffee until they heard a knock on the door. Harry asked Pete to get the door for him. Rob, Jenny, Bruce, and Linda followed Pete into the kitchen where Pete started to Introduce them, but Harry stopped Pete and pointed to the radio unit and batteries on the table. Pete signaled them to silently put their batteries out like he had. He also indicated to Harry that they too, had no cell phones. Then they were introduced to Harry. Rob and Pete went into the Den and came back with some more chairs so everyone could sit.
“Gentlemen, ladies,” Harry began. “As I told Pete and Joann earlier, in times like this I see a need to be cautious. They told me their story. I am ready to hear your story. Why are you here?”
Rob started out. “Pete is my Dad. A few years ago he left Texas and started settling in up here. I thought, well truthfully I was concerned about his thinking because he was telling me about things I just wasn't seeing, yet, about the troubles we've been having.”
Harry interrupted, “By 'we' you mean your family was having troubles?”
“Well, not exactly. There have been a lot of troubles in our world. The epidemics, political troubles, threats of war,”
Again Harry interrupted. “So, what is new about that? You realize you're talking about things that have been happening for all of man's history, don't you?”
Now Jenny stepped in. “Mister, err , Mister B. think of it like a complex symphony that starts out with one or two simple musical patterns or themes. The composer starts with that and builds on it. There are patterns that repeat, but as things progress, those themes become more embellished, and the music's harmonies, progressions, and sometimes discords become more elaborate and intense. If you look at it one way the same theme has been there from the beginning, but if you are paying attention, you realize that there is a lot more happening than simply repeating a simple pattern over and over.”
“Aha. So you think you see something developing that you do not like?”
“You could say that.” Rob was ready to move ahead. “What we saw was a developing pattern that we believe would threaten not only all the work we had done to provide for our family, but perhaps threaten our ability to function as a family.”
“So what did you decide to do about that?” Harry wanted to get to some key elements that worried him.
“We sold everything we could, but in ways that we hope left very little trail where we could be followed or tracked. Sometimes that meant taking less for what we sold, but we saw that as less important than our disappearing and staying out of sight as a family.”
“Some people might call that paranoid behavior.” Harry raised an eyebrow.
Rob grinned and said, “Some people might call your precautions with us paranoid behavior, too. But you and I don't share that opinion with 'some people'. Do we?”
Harry let a slight smile sneak onto his face and he turned to Bruce. Suddenly his voice became darker and more demanding. “So what are you going to do when they track you down and find you hiding out in the forest, Bruce? How are you going to protect your family, then?”
Linda was suddenly wide eyed and startled. She suddenly looked worried. Bruce scowled back at Harry for some time before he spoke. “We are doing all we can to avoid that possibility. We are going to continue trying our best to do nothing that would raise any suspicion from … the powers that be. If they find us and try to take us away, I guess we will try to hide deeper in the forest with a smaller footprint. In the mean time we will do the best we can to stay out of sight and live as happily and simply as we can as a family.”
Harry turned to Linda now and spoke more gently. “Who exactly to you consider family?”
Linda started to reply and stopped herself. “Call me paranoid, too. Why should I tell you that? You haven't even told me your name.” She gave Harry a coy look.
Harry paused and turned to Jenny. “Just how long do you honestly think you can keep hiding and running from one rabbit hole to another?”
Jenny looked at Harry intensely and spoke slowly but gently. “Until the Creator helps us find a place of rest, or perhaps He puts an end to the chase itself.” Her gaze did not soften.
Harry pursed his lips. “My Father got this piece of land that I have a long time ago, but he never broke free to do what he wanted to do with it. I followed in his footsteps and failed to break free, too. Now my son wants to break free, but I haven't told him about it because his idea of breaking free is to repeat history and start a new attempt at creating a better government. That is doomed to fail, just like the attempts that have been tried over thousands of years to create a government that will be fair and remain fair. They are all fatally flawed and eventually fail. I'm afraid you are going to fail as well, because if you buy this land, someone is bound to track you down, eventually.”
Now Pete was the one to reply. “Maybe so, but maybe not, Harry. There are a lot of examples in the Bible of people who in the face of all 'reasonable' advice to the contrary chose a path that was directed by the Creator rather than by man's cleverness. The results for them cannot be explained except to say that there must have been a divine intervention on their behalf. We cannot count on those results just because we would like a good outcome. But, there are promises in the Bible about the loyal or unwavering love of the Creator for those who show their love and obedience to Him.”
- - - - -
It was nearly three o'clock before the land acquisition team headed home. At one point the three ladies had followed Harry's directions to a nearby non-chain burger joint and brought lunch back to Harry's place so the discussions over his breakfast table could continue. Now, hours later, Linda was asking to Bruce for some clarification about points she had not quite understood about the price they paid and the discussions that took place before the papers were signed.
Bruce was trying to fill in some gaps for her. “Linda there is an odd quirk in the property deed laws in this state. When a title deed for land is sold, the deed does not have to specify the exact sale price, so to indicate that an actual sale took place rather than the land being a gift from one person to another, they use a standard wording on the title deed indicating the sale price of 'ten dollars plus other unspecified considerations'. I know it is weird but that's the way it is here. If the property is sold through a real estate agent, the agent reports the price to other agents to help establish market information. But the buyer and seller are not required by law to report the sale price to the government. It goes back to a time when it was considered no one's business, other than the buyer and seller, what kind of deal was struck. The good news is that we can file the title transfer out in Polk County where the property is located. They do not have their county records computerized there, so with no real estate agents involved it is unlikely to ring any bells in a massive database somewhere.”
Linda was still confused about what kind of deal they had struck with Harry Billings, even though she had signed the papers for the purchase as a trustee. “So what was all that talk about gift taxes, capital gains tax, tax rate tiers, and the camping agreement?”
“The camping agreement is one of those 'other considerations' mentioned in the title deed. Henry never got around to getting things set up so he could move out there. I think he has concerns similar to ours about how bad things might get in the cities. He simply got permission in writing from us that if it really hits the fan, he can bug out to what is now our neck of the woods. To protect us he added the provision that we could kick him out if he made a nuisances of himself. Pardon the pun but that helped make Harry a happy camper about the price we paid for his land. As for those ramblings about capital gains and gift taxes, That was Harry contemplating his tax 'obligations'. He is required to report to the IRS how much he receives from a sale of property above what that property cost him. He was concerned about this sale pushing him into a higher income level and having to pay taxes at a higher rate. The tax laws are complicated and full of caveats. He was thinking out loud about things he remembered about various tax rules and trying to keep his tax obligation down. That is his business, not ours so don't worry about that.”
Linda thought a minute. “Was that a good price that we agreed to or was it just 'an okay' price?”
Bruce glanced quickly over to Linda then back to the road. “For us it was a good price. For Harry it was a good price. You saw that he was clearly happy about the agreement.”
“Good. What's next?”
“The first thing we need to do is to get home. I'm glad you got a good deal on that land, but that city gives me the creeps.” Jenny was very somber and intense.
Rob reached over and took her hand, which was surprisingly cold. “What is it Jenny? What's bothering you?”
“Something just feels off there. It wasn't anything I could put my finger on. Linda, you remember how Joann was feeling after her dealings with her old principal and the bank in Barnsville. It's kind of like what I think she was describing. The longer I was in that town the worse it got. I'm not talking about Mister Billings. He was okay. But there must be an awful lot of bad stuff going on in that city for the air to feel that … dark and suffocating. Besides, it's going to be late before we get home and the kids will need something to eat for supper.”