Compass Call: Survival & Awakening (The Gatekeeper Book 3) (3 page)

“It sounds complicated, but logical . . . sort of like faith,” replied John.

“It is, in a way, but the conditions of remembrance are much more complicated than faith. The veil that separates us is very thin. It’s the thinnest it’s been since the beginning,” said Eli with a pause. He looked to Jenna, then back at John. “There are others like you, Papa. Some have been awakened to call, and others are waiting to be called. Many are searching and waiting for their awakening. Like you, all have sought answers to their questions. You were called, and will call. You were awakened, and will awaken.”

“Will Jenna awaken?” asked John.

Eli looked up as if studying the stars, and he held that position for a moment before returning his angelic gaze back to John. “Nana’s awakening is predicated on conditions, and those conditions are closed to me at this time.”

“Were you just talking to someone when you looked up . . . someone in heaven?” asked John.

“I was,” responded Eli. “I was gaining permission and taking direction from Father. Everything concerning you, and your awakening, is of great interest to Him. He says to tell you not to worry. That everything has its appointed time.”

“But she will awaken?” persisted John.

Eli smiled and said, “At a time and place of her own choosing, which is true for all those who penetrate the veil. You cannot bring her into something she’s not ready for. And you know she is not ready for her awakening,” said Eli, as he waved his arms around the room as if presenting the bedroom to John for the first time.

John knew Eli was talking about the spirit side of the physical world. He nodded and looked down to study Jenna again. He took in the beauty and relaxed posture of her sleeping form as if admiring a fine marble sculpture. “How do I wake her up?”

“Take her hand and call her by name,” answered Eli.

“Will it scare her? I really don’t want to scare her,” said John.

“It will not,” said Eli. “Her spirit will recognize you.”

John placed his hand under Jenna’s physical hand and lifted it. Intuitively he knew what to expect, but it was strange to see her spirit hand lift up out of her body.

“Speak to her, John. Call her name,” said Sarrif.

John glanced at Sarrif and nodded. He said, “Jenna, my love. Jenna, do you hear me?” in a soft and gentle voice.

Jenna sat up holding on to John’s hand. She looked at John and smiled, but her physical body remained in its reclined, sleeping position. John pulled her to a standing position and took her other hand in his. He embraced his wife, and was immediately filled with so much
love for her that he began to weep. The spiritual contact with Jenna revealed her true and full love for him, and it was a powerful and pure love. “Jenna, do you know where we are?” asked John.

Jenna looked around and said, “Yes. We’re in our bedroom.” She turned, and upon seeing her body asleep on the bed, she pointed and said, “I sleep there, and you sleep next to me.”

“Yes,” said John. He turned to look at Eli, concerned that Jenna’s demeanor was clouded and unaware. He was also curious about how to continue. Eli gave him an encouraging nod, so John continued. “Jenna, I want you to know that I love you very much. You may not remember this conversation, but that’s OK because I know everything has it’s time and place. There’s a lot more going on with me than you know, but I need you to trust me. Eli and Sarrif are guiding me, and I will guide us.”

Jenna turned to recognize Eli and Sarrif, and her bright and loving smile filled the room with joy. They smiled in return, replying with equal love and radiance. She looked up and was silent for a moment. John knew what was happening, she was communicating with Father, so he held her hands and waited for her to finish.

John longed for her to look upon him again, to see him without earthly filters. There was something special about her, and when their eyes met he was filled with unexplained feelings, deep feelings of a love that transcended space and time. She felt like a completion of himself, of a merging of two parts to make something greater than their sum.

After what seemed like a very long time, Jenna looked at John and said, “I have seen your heart and your work, John, and I am open to both. Please don’t give up on me. I know I’ve been spiritually closed to you, but it won’t stay that way much longer. Love me and be patient with me,” she asked, as tears ran freely down her cheeks.

“I will do that and more, and without reservation even, for I love you with all my heart” said John, and he embraced her again.

“You must both return to your bodies and rest,” said Eli, as he approached and put a gentle hand on each of their shoulders. “There is
much work to be done on your side tomorrow, and you do not want to be exhausted upon your morning rise.”

Jenna said goodbye and asked John to help return her to her body. She smiled up at him as he slowly laid her down. When she was set, John bent and kissed her tenderly on the forehead. As he reclined back into his own body, asked Eli, “I take it I should plan for a long road trip?”

“You will be given more information tomorrow, Papa. But for now, know that you will not be able to drive your entire journey. There will come a point in time where you, and everyone in your company, will be walking,” answered Eli.

John nodded and said, “Farewell then. Until our next meeting, adieu.” Eli and Sarrif replied in kind and John lowered himself into his body.

Despite the troubling news about walking, he considered all he saw and heard before allowing sleep to overtake his conscious mind. Being able to speak to Jenna’s spirit was the highlight, and it seemed to wash away all the worries and troubles he had about the other things he saw. He didn’t know if she would remember their encounter, but he would wait for her to approach him about it. If she did, then he would share his understanding with her. If she didn’t, then he would wait patiently for something to change. Change, he realized, is not such a bad thing after all.

Paul woke John for his morning shift with a gentle shake, and returned to his post without saying a word. John sat up and rubbed his eyes. He didn’t know if Paul was being quiet out of courtesy, or apathy, but it worked either way. He sensed Paul’s frustration, and reasoned it had everything to do with the change - a change that far exceeded his own. John doubted he’d be acting much differently if he found himself in Paul’s situation, though he knew it would never have come to that. He would have shot Darrel the minute he stepped through the door,
and Luanne too for that matter. He wondered if Paul was still upset about the new observation post.

Since Pete and Bonnie’s arrival, the guest room was no longer suitable as an observation post, especially at night. So John started looking for a new location. He wanted a dedicated, twenty-four hour, OP, and began walking around the house to consider their options. The last thing he wanted to do was remove the plywood from any one of the lower windows, but it looked like that was going to be their only option. John called a meeting with the guys.

While the three men stood in the entryway, brainstorming their various OP options, Abby happened to walk by. She stopped to listen for a moment, and then quietly asked, “Why don’t you use that window up there, daddy?” as she pointed a long, slender finger at the alcove above their heads.

John turned to stare where his daughter was pointing, and immediately shook his head. He had totally forgotten about the dead space above the front door. The six-foot square of open floor space was more than enough for two people to sit a watch, which would be a much better mission for it than serving as a final resting place for three artificial plants, and a large, ornate, metal birdcage.

He smiled and said, “It’s perfect, baby.” And it was, too, for the dead space above the front door was centered on the front of the house, was elevated, and served no other purpose. It was as if it was meant to be an OP. John was surprised he didn’t think of it himself, and he turned to kiss Abby on the forehead.

After fetching a stepladder from the garage, John climbed up and passed the decorations down. As soon as he stepped onto the ledge he knew it would work. Normally he would have removed his shoes to not scuff the paint, but those days were long gone. The cosmetic cares of the house all but forgotten with the onset of the disaster. John looked up to find more than two feet of head clearance, and then he pulled the blanket aside to look out the window. “We’ve found our new OP. It’s a bit exposed, but I think we can remedy that easy enough,” said John.

He invited Pete and Paul to join him on the ledge, but Paul hesitated, saying that he’d rather wait till it wasn’t so crowded. John wondered if he was afraid of heights, but didn’t say anything. The last thing Paul needed was more emotional scrutiny. Pete either didn’t hear the comment, or was too engrossed in the alcove to care. He immediately began to appraise the space, and offered his services to reinforce it. He laid out a sandbag fortification plan that included ample observation and ballistic protection, and mentioned something about turning the alcove into a watch-tower, but John barely listened. He was tired, and finished the alcove by cutting a flap in the heavy blanket. He knew Pete had it under control, but until they could fill sandbags, two folding chairs would have to do.

John had to secure the stepladder to the wall after it was knocked over several times, because the alcove OP quickly became the place to be for the older kids. It was all the adults could do to keep the two youngest Hernandez kids from climbing the ladder and joining the bigger kids in the, “fort.” John fixed that problem by covering the first three rungs of the ladder with plywood secured with zip-ties. From that point forward, access to the alcove required a bit of a stretch, but it prevented the little kids from climbing up and hurting themselves.

The drop from the ledge was about twelve feet, which was more than enough to hurt an adult, let alone a kid. Such a fall wouldn’t necessarily be fatal, but if someone fell on John’s heavy door brace, it could very well cause a life-threatening injury. But all in all, the alcove OP was a great idea, and everyone started calling it “OP Abby,” in honor of the person who made such an excellent recommendation.

When John finished dressing, he made a quick stop at the pee bucket and signaled Paul that he was ready to assume his watch. Paul looked down, paused for a moment, and then slowly climbed down the ladder. He hopped the remaining three feet to the floor and yawned. “Did you see anything of significance?” asked John, as Paul started to walk away.

“It’s much easier to see from up there, that’s for sure. It’s better than the guest room. But if you call a few neighbors walking around on the street significant, then yes,” answered Paul.

“Really?” asked John, with new interest. “You’re the only neighbor I’ve seen since the disaster started. Did you see anyone you recognized?”

“Nope. It was too dark,” answered Paul, with another yawn.

“How many people?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe three different groups,” replied Paul, as he scratched behind his ear.

“Groups! What do you mean, groups?” asked John.

“OK, well maybe not groups, groups, but one group had two people, and the other two had about three or four. It was hard to tell for sure in the dark. I only counted the people I saw carrying flashlights,” finished Paul.

John noticed Paul was beginning to sound defensive and irritated at being questioned, so he decided to drop it. It wasn’t an interrogation, he just wanted to know what Paul saw. John realized that if he wanted a better report, he would have to provide the guards with a log book. Written information was much more reliable than a verbal report, especially when dealing with civilians. All he wanted to know was the time the groups passed his house, what direction they were heading, and what equipment they were carrying, if any, other than their flashlights. John knew he couldn’t get upset with Paul because it was his responsibility to set the watch conditions, but it wouldn’t happen again.

John also had to remind himself that Pete was the only other soldier in the house. The closest thing he had for a real soldier before Pete arrived was Adam. John considered Paul the least soldierly male in the house, but he knew he couldn’t hold that against him. Paul had shown his mettle when he boldly gunned down Darrel for raping his wife, and he would have shot Luanne, Darrel’s biker girlfriend, if John hadn’t quickly intervened.

But Paul was quick to question John’s every decision, and he got moody whenever someone questioned him back. It made for a very
emotional relationship, and one that John hoped wouldn’t last forever. If they were to work together as a team, everyone needed to trust each other. Wanting to change the subject, John glanced up at the alcove and asked, “How’s Marissa doing?”

“She’s doing as well as she can considering . . . do you have any more questions for me, because I’m really tired and want to get some sleep before the kids wake up?” asked Paul.

“No. Go ahead. I’ve got watch now. Thanks and sleep well. I’ll see you in the morning,” said John, as he turned to climb up the ladder. Before sitting, he peeked through the blanket flap. After turning off his flashlight, he pinned the flap up and looked out into the dark yard beyond. The darkness was near complete, and the absence of buzzing and chirping insects seemed to thicken it.