Tiger Moths (21 page)

Jason stood in stunned silence; she was right. They both knew she was right. He had not known she was aware of Jesse. She could see the bewilderment on his face. It was easy to recognize what he was going through. After she had been through it, reading that emotion was easy.

He finally spoke. “Dale, how did you know about Jesse?”

“When I got that phone call from your wife’s father, you know I confronted you. But what you don’t know is your confession was not the end of it. For whatever reason, he told me about everything, including Jesse. Her father hated me. And after I found out all of this, you made me hate you, and myself.”

“I never knew he told you all that. I never knew any of this. I am so sorry. But you have to understand the kind of person he is. Her father is a very well-known businessman and he did not want anyone to know that Julie had an illegitimate child. Jesse is not my son. Julie got pregnant by a date rape before we met. Jesse was only about a year and a half old when we married. He is with his grandfather now. It is for the best; he will have all he needs. Dale, I love you, please just forgive my mistakes. I have regretted not telling you every day.”

“Jason, for what you did to me I forgive you. I do this because I have to, for myself as much as for you. But you need to spend time with your wife. She is your family. You have an obligation, a commitment under God. No matter how hard it is for you.”

“You are right. But Julie died. She lived much longer than anyone expected. The flowers I sent you at your old office were sent about six months after she died. I came to see you soon thereafter and you were gone. No one at your work knew where you went. Dale, I was there for her until the end. Will you be there for me? Will you please, please give us a chance?”

Dale’s anger melted away and her heart went out to Jason. She looked at his beautiful eyes, and thought about all she had learned since they had parted ways. She had never felt more alive than when she was with him.
What am I so afraid of? If I have truly forgiven him, shouldn’t I give him a second chance? Has fate brought us together again? Because, he is right, what are the odds that we would meet here?

She needed to buy time to sort everything out in her own mind. “I have to go now. Laura and Gracie just got here, and I have spent no time with them.” “Then you will think about it. We will talk later?”

“I don’t know, Jason. I just don’t know anything right now. I was never expecting to see you again. This is all a shock for me.”

“Okay, I understand. I will give you all the room and time you need. I’ll be at the concert tonight, and I hope to see you backstage.”

Jason stood and gave her a parting smile. He walked past the bar and out the door. Dale stared after him, as she had always done, despite her desperate desire not to.

The hours passed quickly. As part of the planning committee, Dale’s many concert preparations were intense. Laura had pried only a little about Jason and their conversation. Dale had chosen to volunteer nothing. She did not know what to think or to say. She felt like she was being pulled underwater by her own feelings. They continued to tug her back toward Jason. Had she prejudged him? Had she let her own hurt keep her from understanding what he was going through? No – he was wrong. Wasn’t he? She needed time to pray for clarity.

She looked in the mirror and asked herself, “What are you sure of, Dale Grayson?”

Gracie’s voice jolted her out of the zone she was in. “Aunt Dale, what do you mean when you ask yourself what are you sure of? Don’t you want me and Momma to visit with you anymore?”

Dale leaned over and hugged her affectionately. “Oh, Gracie, my silly love. Whatever are you saying? Come in here and sit on the bed with me. Let’s you and me have some girl talk.”

Dale bent down to Gracie, tickled her tummy, and listened happily to the giggles that ensued. She spun her around and sat her upright, and started tickling her. More giggles.

“Okay, Gracie, I want you to know what I am sure of. I am sure that I love you and your mommy very much. And there is no one else in the whole world that I want to stay with me. I am also sure that you are going to have a great time tonight because you love Johnny Clark. And it looked to me like the two of you became pretty good pals at Barney’s. Am I right?”

“Yea, Johnny said that we were buddies. He is a very nice man, and I think you should love Johnny Clark too. I think he would love you too, if you got to know each other. So I think that you and Johnny should have a date after the concert. No, I am sure you should. That’s what I am sure of.”

“Oh, silly girl, Johnny is a big star; he doesn’t have time to have dates with me. But I do like Johnny very much because he is so good with you. By the way, I have a surprise for you. But we need to get going, because I have to help with the concert, so we have to be there early. Let’s get your mom and hit the road.”

Fifteen minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot to find a big crowd already gathered. The service members had decided that they were going to show the Chamorros a part of their own culture, so they were having some good old-fashioned tail gating parties. The coolers and hibachi stoves were out in force. The aroma was amazing. It reminded her of the times when she and her father would walk through campsites at Myrtle Beach and smell everything being cooked for dinner. Dale and her guests hopped out of the Guam Bomb and walked toward the building. People from all around asked them if they wanted something to eat or drink. Several knew Dale by name, and now that Gracie had learned “hafa adai,” she was talking up a storm to everyone.

“That kid of yours is just like you are, Laura; she has never met a stranger.”

“More like her Aunt Dale - she knows how to work the crowd,” Laura retorted.

Once inside, they toured the building and listened to the band warm up. It was a thrilling time. As they laughed and talked Dale fervently hoped she would not see Jason. This was her time with her dearest friends, and he would only interrupt and distract her.

“Gracie, would you like to help with the gifts we are going to give out to everyone? Come here and I’ll show you what they are. I think you will like it.”

Laura stopped short. “Hey Dale, since you guys are going to do that, I think I will wander back out to the parking lot. I’d like to find myself some of that dessert we saw when we were coming in. I’ll meet you guys at our seats before the show. Cool?”

“Sure. You are on vacation; I’ll be mommy for a while. Come on, my little buddy.”

Dale was assigned to the south entrance. She was responsible for checking the tickets and giving each attendee a glow stick. Each stick was attached to a lanyard so that it could be hung around the neck. The glow sticks had been her idea, and the committee had loved it. They had ordered only two colors, orange and white, the University of Tennessee colors. Dale did not know much about Johnny Clark, but someone had done some research and found out that he was a big fan of the Tennessee football team. Based on this, she knew these two colors would be a hit.

Dale took her pocket knife out and opened the box. A cool breeze blew through the corridor, bringing sweet relief to the humid night. The lights were dim in the hall, so there was an amazing blast of glowing orange and white lights when she flipped the box flaps back and activated the contents.

“WOW! These are so cool.” Gracie’s eyes widened.

Dale picked up one of each color and waved them through the air. The glow trailed behind the sticks. They reminded her of a simpler time and place, when she was Gracie’s age. She fondly recalled walking through the campsite with her dad. She had not really been homesick during her entire tour, but in that moment she longed to be back in Tennessee. She loved laughing with her dad and telling her mom what a good cook she was. And her mom loved it when Dale volunteered to do the dishes.

“See, Gracie, we give these to everyone who comes in, and they wear them around their necks. Watch, they go like this. Then they turn all of the house lights down. After that, all you see is the lights on the stage where Johnny is and all the glow sticks throughout the audience.”

“Neat! And you know what? Johnny will really love it, and it will be perfect for Smoky Sunset. Did you know he promised me that was going to be the first song he sang tonight? He will be so surprised when he sees the glow sticks. It will be like the checker board end zone at Neyland Stadium. I can’t wait to see his face.”

“My, my, Gracie, I am impressed by your knowledge of the football tradition. Your mom has taught you well.”

“Yea, Mom and Dad always go to the games, or we watch it on TV. I like the games, but I like Johnny Clark more.”

“Yes, well I think it is well-established that you like Johnny. Okay, sweetie, you can put those two glow sticks around your neck, and I will put these two on. Your mom should get one when she comes back in, but I will give her one of mine if she doesn’t. All right, looks like they are opening up the gates. Are you ready to hand out the glow sticks?”

“Ready, willing and able.” Gracie gave Dale a smart salute.

“Okay, then here we go.”

They had been there about twenty minutes, and like that, the glow sticks were gone. The crowd was excited and ready to hear Johnny. This was a rare concert event for the island. And everyone, no matter where they sat, would be close to the star. With no front band booked, this show was all about Johnny. Given the excitement in the air, there was no doubt he had a faithful following.

Dale had heard only a few of his songs, and including the one performed by Gracie. Consequently, she was more than a little curious to hear how good he really was. She had liked him from the first time they met way back in Nashville, and was glad that the polite kid from those days had made it. More impressive to her was the fact that the fame had not seemed to change him much. When they had met at Barney’s it was as if she was at the Cafe in Nashville all over again. And JC, now Johnny Clark, was still behind the bar, politely waiting on customers. Yep, there was Johnny, making the best iced mocha lattes, with whipped cream, in the business.

“Well, Gracie, looks like we’re out of glow sticks and it’s almost show time. Are you ready to go find our front row seats?”

“Captain Grayson, Captain Grayson. Oh, thank goodness I found you.” A young man in uniform ran up to them. “I’m General Jones’ assistant. Listen, something has come up. He will not be able to introduce the performer tonight, and gave me orders to find you. I am to direct you to act in his stead. So you are to report backstage right now. You have five minutes before show time.”

“Not something I was prepared to do, but when you put it like that, sure. Gracie, let’s get you to your seat.”

With Gracie safely dispatched to Laura in their VIP seats, Dale moved the curtain and climbed the steep stairs. She navigated stealthily through the maze of people and equipment. Apparently she made it to the stage entrance just in time. The stage director grabbed her by the arm and gave her directions. Simultaneously, he handed her a hand-held microphone and practically pushed her on stage. It was fly-by-the-seat-of -your-pants time, but Dale was very good at impromptu.

Johnny took a long drink of Gatorade and winked at his band members. They had had a good time over the past week, and Johnny was beginning to feel like his old self again. The island had done wonders for his morale. He was much more relaxed, and ready to be the entertainer again. There seemed to be a peace slowly settling in his soul, but he knew he was not there yet. Somehow, in the weeks leading up to the incident in Dallas, he had let his love for the music begin to drift. He could not put his finger on why, but he had allowed something to get between him and what was important. Quiet reflection had helped, but he was not the type who would dwell on such things. It was time to move on. It was past time for him to look up. Tonight he would perform again, not for fame or money, but for the people. Performing, from now on, would be for the love of just being free to play. He laughed and flipped a towel at his drummer, Harley. He was back to form, and the band happily knew it. They had been suffering with him.