Brother Willy's Traveling Salvation Show (32 page)

William
would present a short biography on each politician before inviting the mayor and the city council member to the stage to make a few remarks. Once each council member was on stage a few pictures were displayed on the giant monitor behind them. The mayor’s pictures showed him in front of city hall, in his office and finally with his family.

With the local politicians recognition completed,
William once again took center stage. “These men all have one thing in common. They all understand the vital role of their dedication to family values and to their lovely wives. They know that public service, honesty, and integrity begin right here at home and travel with them everywhere they go. We can place the same level of trust in these men that each of their wives place in them, because these three men are part of our community family. It now gives me great pleasure to introduce three term congressman, Milton T Snyder.”

Snyder
walked to the stage while receiving enthusiastic applause from the audience. William began to read the notes about Snyder’s accomplishments as Snyder stood next to William at the podium. On the giant monitor behind them, pictures began to show Snyder in his congressional office and standing outside the Capitol building in Washington. William then set the sting operation into its final phase. “My friends, it is my pleasure to turn this microphone over to a man who we can trust because he knows the real meaning of family values.”

The applause continued as
Snyder placed his notes on the podium. At the very moment Snyder started to speak, Hank flashed a picture on the giant monitor of Snyder and Rachel standing on an isolated beach in Saint Lucia. Snyder by any accounts should not have been wearing a Speedo bathing suit given his weight problems. On the other hand, Rachel caught the eye of every man in the tent as she was wearing a thong bathing suit as she stood with her arms around Snyder’s neck. The fact that Snyder had both of his hands on her backside did little to provide him with any type of plausible deniability.

Before
Snyder could say the first three words, Michelle called out in a deep slow southern accent. “Why that ain’t his wife and that picture sure wasn’t taken down at Fishers Pond.”

Nancy
called out from the other side of the tent. “It is too is wife. She’s sitting right down yonder in the front row with him.”

Michelle
called out again. “That ain’t his wife. That girl works for him and is being paid by the taxpayers. His wife ain’t that young.

By this time,
Snyder turned around and looked at the picture with an expression that suggested pure horror. “Where the hell did that picture come from?”

Hank called out from the back row. “We downloaded it from your Facebook page.”

“Well then that picture is a fake some devious misguided liberal has put up trying to make me look bad.”

Scott
spoke next. “My name is Joe Marshal and I’m a freelance reporter. That picture is not a fake. It was taken by a reporter with the Washington Post. My question for you is do you plan to go into rehab to get treatment for your sexual addiction problem?”

Scott
’s one question opened the floodgates to other reporter’s questions as Scott sat down to watch Snyder’s freefall. Rachel started up the aisle trying to leave the tent as quickly as possible. Scott left the tent before Rachel could get out. She was walking quickly toward the SUV Snyder drove to the event.

She had hoped to lock herself in the SUV, but without the keys, she was left standing with
Scott. She turned to him with a snarl, “I have no comment”.

Scott
leaned against the SUV as he replied. “In the news business, we always say a picture is worth a thousand words. I don’t think there really is much you could say that would add to what we just saw.”

With a sense of frustration and resignation, she turned and looked at
Scott. “No, I don’t think there is much I can add to the story. Is that picture really on his Facebook page?”

Scott
took out his cell phone to check. “It looks like it was posted this morning. I would assume the Washington Post will run the story tomorrow.”

She shook her head. “I guess I’ll go back to
work in a bar now.”

Scott
went off script mostly out of his typical curiosity. “Off the record, was it worth it?”

Her answer came with a brief grin as she shook her head. “You saw his fat stomach when he was wearing that Speedo. What do you think?”

Scott put his hand on her back. “Listen, this is America. Get yourself an agent and sell the book rights. Start dropping in on the News shows to promote yourself. Hell, you have a great body, talk to Playboy Magazine. You have fifteen minutes of fame. Make the most money you can out of this because both of you will be history in a few days.”

James
Whitney approached the car muttering under his breath, “I told that jackass not to go with you to Saint Lucia.”

After
Snyder sped away in his SUV, Scott returned to the tent. William managed to bring the crowd back under control and delivered a very moving talk on trust. At the end of the program, the group began to play and sing “We Shall Overcome”.

With the crowd gone, the lights dim and with most of the equipment shut down, they all gathered in the tent.
William congratulated everyone for the work each member had done. Once he started the group discussion, Scott raised his concern that people were brought to the “revival” under false pretenses. He also shared his ethical concerns about using a religious gathering for political purposes.

Betsy
chose to address his concerns. “William never uses religious words in any of these meetings. He doesn’t even use the word “prayer” when he speaks. We don’t promote this as a religious event. Nevertheless, people leave her with a sense of renewal, not because of what we have said, but because they took something of value away that was created in their own minds.”

Betsy
paused for a moment to think of the best way to phrase her thoughts before she continued. “As I told you at the beach, the word salvation means things other than just something to do with the deliverance from sin. Salvation can also mean the liberation from ignorance or illusion. Alternatively, it can also mean preservation from destruction. These people were liberated tonight from their ignorance or illusion by finding out what their elected leader was really all about.”

William
spoke after Betsy. “I agree with everything Betsy just said, but there is a different reality she didn’t tell you about. All across the world, politics have corrupted religion. This corruption is not limited to any particular faith, as it applies to Muslims, Christians, and Jews. Political leaders and special interest groups have hijacked religion for their own purposes and personal gain. Much to my sadness, the sheep of the world follow right along without questioning any of it.”

Joe
looked at William and then at Scott. “What William just said is true and you saw it tonight. Congressman Snyder came here and brought the press and TV reporters hoping they would show him getting the support of the Christian community. He was exploiting this situation for his personal gain.”

Thinking that part of the conversation had played out
Michelle was the next to speak. “I would like to say that Bessie Lou just looks stunning tonight. I didn’t even notice your foot long eyelashes until the program was almost over. Your neon blue eye shadow with your hot pink lipstick and that blonde wig just scream out the words, classy lady.”

Betsy
took her teasing in stride. “Don’t worry sweetheart. Your aunt Betsy is a woman of many wigs and I know you will look   just as elegant as I when we have our next outing.”

Betsy
pulled the wig off as she stood up. Without warning, she placed in on William’s head. “Come on drag queen. It’s time to go.”

Scott
, William, and Hank worked out a plan where Scott would use Hank’s car to make his trip to Asheville for the interview. He had also been able to reschedule the interview for ten o’clock in the morning.

CHAPTER
XXIII

By eleven o’clock the next morning, the local workers had returned and the trucks,
equipment, and tents were packed and ready to go. Joe and Anna soon left driving the truck to New Bern while pulling the travel trailer behind. Hank and Nancy would leave for their weekend trip to the mountains as soon as Scott returned with their car. William took the opportunity to take Nancy and Hank to lunch while Betsy stayed with Michelle in the motor home.

After they fixed their lunch,
Betsy sat across from Michelle. “We haven’t had a chance to talk in a while and I wanted to see how things worked out for you and Scott at the Beach.”

“It was a dream come true until after you and
William left on Friday and then it turned into a nightmare from hell.”

Betsy
looked shocked. “Tell me about it.”

Michelle
placed her sandwich down and replied, “Do you want the long version or the short story version?”

Betsy
in her typical soft-spoken voice replied, “We do have to get back to New Bern today, so maybe we should stay with the short version.”

Michelle
started her explanation. “Wednesday night we had a truth conference and then got in the hot tub where we made the water boil, if you know what I mean. Thursday, we got up made love to each other, played golf, laid on the beach, went out to dinner, took a romantic sunset walk on the beach, came back went to bed at nine o’clock and made the bedroom widows steamy. Friday you and William came and left. We went to the beach to talk and get some sun. Beth came over to yell at Scott because she thought he had raped her in his tent while they were on the canoe trip.”

Betsy
held up her hands. “Scott raped a girl?”

Michelle
was adamant in her answer. “No, it turns out he wasn’t on the canoe trip because of a stomach virus and it was really Moose in the tent with Beth and Scott’s ex-girlfriend.”

Betsy
stopped her again. “So can I assume Beth was raped by a moose?”

Michelle
shook her head. No. Moose only had sex with Scott’s ex-girlfriend and he didn’t do anything to Beth except take her shirt off because she had been given a date rape drug. Moose has ethics and he didn’t want to be kicked out of graduate school.”

Michelle
took a moment to catch her breath. “Scott had Beth call his ex-girlfriend to confirm he was not in the tent, which she was able to confirm. When we were all in the hot tub, Beth still thought Moose might have raped her so Scott said he would make some calls. He called Moose and Moose told Scott he was only having sex with Scott’s ex-girlfriend, Carlie.”

Betsy
took a long deep breath. “So Beth wasn’t raped by Scott or the Moose. I guess she was very relieved with that news.”

Michelle
continued. “She was very relieved and I think she was very attracted to Scott even with her history of being in an abusive relationship. She invited me to her party but Scott could not go so he went fishing instead while I went to the party. Beth left the party to hold the shark’s tail while he got the hook from the shark’s mouth.”

Betsy
once again held up her hands to stop Michelle but upon further deliberation changed her mind. “Never mind, just go on with the story.”

Michelle
nodded. “When Amie cut her arm, I called Scott to help us because I was afraid she was going to hurt somebody or herself. Scott took her to the hospital and told them he would file a lawsuit if they didn’t get Amie into a treatment program. As fate would have it, Beth and I went shopping on Saturday morning leavening Scott at the house. While we were gone, Amie came to the house and Scott took her to lunch and then out to the Fort to talk about her life.”

Betsy
rubbed her face lightly with her hand. “Who is Amie and why did Scott need to file a lawsuit on her behalf?”

“She is a friend of
Beth’s and I think he got involved with Amie because of some longstanding guilt issues related to Ashley that stem from her accident when she was in high school. Oddly enough, he had nothing to do with her accident yet he still feels guilty about it.”

Betsy
sat calmly before she spoke. “If I am following this story correctly, we should be around noon on Saturday. What happened next?”

“I got jealous of
Scott and Amie so Beth, Scott, and I went swimming. Next, we all went out to dinner and after we went to bed, Beth got in bed with us because she was terrified over the storm. Scott, Beth, and I went to sleep once the storm was over.”

Betsy
placed her hand over her ears. “Stop right there! Are you telling me Scott was in bed with two women?”

Michelle
looked at Betsy. “Beth was afraid and had no where else to go.”

William
was standing in the parking lot talking to Hank and Nancy when Scott returned with their car. After a brief conversation, Hank and Nancy left for their weekend trip and Scott followed William into the motor home. As Scott and William were standing next to the table, William casually asked Scott about his beach trip with Michelle.

Before
Scott could answer, Betsy smacked at William. “For God’s sake, don’t ask. You really don’t want to know.”

William
sat next to Betsy while Scott fixed William a drink. Betsy looked at William. “From what I can tell, Beth was not actually raped by a moose so Scott was able to take Amie to the hospital before Beth and Michelle went shopping.”

William
understood Betsy’s message. “Let’s just get to the bottom line. What plans have the two of you made?”

Michelle
looked at Scott expecting him to answer a few questions after her long explanation to Betsy. “We have decided that if we were really meant to be together, we would have been together long before now. Michelle is going to Washington and I may be coming back to Asheville.”

William
directed his question to Scott. “How did you personally reach this decision?”

“I think
Beth started me thinking about our situation. She asked me if I was in love with Michelle or if I just love Michelle. As Beth points out, those are two very different things.”

William
addressed the same question to Michelle. Her reply was somewhat similar to Scott’s answer. “Beth asked me one night if we were taking our relationship to the next level just to save the friendship.”

William
looked back at Scott. “So you may move to Asheville. Did you ask Michelle to go with you? Michelle, did you ask Scott to go with you to Washington?”

Michelle
was ready to defend their decision. “We had a truth conference last night and decided that we need time to find out if we really are right for each other. We think being apart from each other will help us make that decision.”

Betsy
became far more serious when she responded. “You went to separate schools for four years. If you didn’t find out what you needed to know then, you won’t find out in the next six months. Let me ask you both a question. What are you expecting the other person to do that would help you make your decision about where you go from here. Your time together is running out.”

Scott
thought for a moment before he replied. “If I made a decision that caused Michelle to get hurt, I would not be able to live with it. Going to Washington is what she feels like she needs to do and I won’t argue with her. There is nothing wrong with Michelle. The problem is with me.”

Michelle
turned and faced Scott. “Damn it Scott, she made a choice to get in the car with a drunken driver. It wasn’t your fault. I am sorry for her and I know how you feel, but you can’t fix all the broken girls. Sometimes people have to understand that their actions have consequences. I am truly sorry for Ashley, but you didn’t cause that problem and you can’t fix it.”

Betsy
chose not to enter that discussion as she turned to Michelle. “What is your reservation about being with Scott?”

She thought for a moment. “I’m afraid I won’t meet his expectations. I’m afraid I will
lose him as my friend and end up with nothing. Just like Amie and Beth, I am also a broken girl, but Scott has never understood that.”

Scott
looked at her with a sense of surprise. “You are the standard I use to measure by. If you are broken, it doesn’t matter because I love you just the way you are.”

William
stood up and motioned for Betsy to come with him. “I am going to make you one last offer. The two of you can take the motor home and drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway for a few days. Stop at a campground and walk to the top of Mount Mitchell. You can see four different states from the observation tower. But of greater importance, maybe you will be able to see each other for who you really are.”

Betsy
stood up as she spoke. “I’m going to sweeten his offer. When you come back on Sunday, I will throw a party at which time you can tell the world you are getting married or you can call it a farewell party. I can promise you that with Scott in Asheville and Michelle in Washington it will only be a matter of time until your relationship fades away. Time and distance are very difficult for any couple to overcome no matter how much you love each other.”

Michelle
looked at Scott. “We should talk about their offer because it does make sense.”

Scott
nodded his head. “I agree, because it is something we should consider.”

With his patience nearly
gone, William pounded his fist on the table. “Get in the driver's seat and start the motor. When you get to Interstate 40, go west if you want to drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway. If you want to go back to New Bern, drive east. For God’s sake, just do one or the other without spending the next six weeks talking about it. The two of you are pathetic. I’ve always heard a blind squirrel can eventually find an acorn. The two of you can’t even find the forest.”

He started for the
door. “I can bring down a United States Congressman and I can’t even get these two on a date. I’m getting too old for this.”

Betsy
was following close behind. “I think the two of you would drive to Pope to drink.”

As
Betsy and William got in their car, Michelle looked at Scott. “I guess we’ve been told.”

Scott
drove out to the interstate before he began to slow down. “Do we go east or west?”

Michelle
replied. “I’ll trust your decision.”

Scott
turned on the entrance ramp heading east toward the New Bern on Interstate 40 having made a choice he was sure Michelle agreed with. “Two days on the Parkway isn’t going to fix us.”

“Maybe a few months in
Washington will.” Michelle replied.

William
and Betsy had pulled over at a service station near the I40 interchange to watch and see what choice Scott and Michelle would make. As soon as Scott got on the I40 East ramp, William reached in his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He then handed Betsy a five-dollar bill. “You were right.”

Betsy
looked at him and smiled. “Keep your wallet out so you can pay me the other five dollars when they announce her trip to Washington on Sunday night.”

William
put the car in gear and drove off from the parking lot. “That’s when I will earn my five dollars back. They will have to talk about it some more and then move away from each other. Then they will find some excuse to come back to New Bern and start all over. They will be in their late eighties before they decide to do something, but they will get married.”

Betsy
sat quietly for a while before she spoke. “Well if you are so sure, then let’s make it a fifty dollar bet.”

William
was not inclined to rush into another bet with Betsy. “What makes you so sure they won’t get married?”

Betsy
smiled as she stared ahead at the highway. “They have been having truth conferences for years, but today they finally told each other the truth. Scott is afraid he might do something to hurt Michelle and Michelle is afraid Scott might discover that she wasn’t perfect.”

William
put his wallet in the glove compartment. “I should have learned long ago not to bet against you. Now I’m down five dollars and have no way to get it back.”

Betsy
smiled. “You’re learning William, you’re learning.”