Salvation - 51. Chapter 50

I made a few trips to Europe, but mostly I was involved in litigation on issues between Mexico, the US, and Canada. I did get involved with some business negotiations in South America, usual agriculture in nature. The UN had a few issues that they sent me to resolve or investigate. But to say I was busy would be an understatement. I didn’t mind. It allowed me to spend more time at home.

I would have expected the movie theater to supplant the reading. But it didn’t. We still read books in the evening. On a few occasions, Peter and Maria joined us. I bought a few sofas to place around the room, but I still sat on my cushion on the floor.

Life seemed to settle into a routine, but I knew it couldn’t last, and it didn’t. One evening just before dinner, the guard at the gate called. He had two boys who tried to enter the grounds. I sent Mo to investigate.

“Dad, these are the boys, and they need help.”

One look and you knew they needed help badly. Their clothes were torn. It looked like they had multiple sores on their back, what you could see through the rags they wore. I looked at Jon. He stood up; I needn’t say anything more. Steven followed him and the boys.

I looked at Alex, “I need a doctor on call that makes house calls. Find me one.”

Jon came out of his bedroom crying. “Dad, you need to see this.”

Alex, Sal, and Mo followed me into Jon’s room. The boys were wrapped in towels. But what I could see, they had welts on their backs and the backs of their legs. Cigarette burns on their front and arms. “Dad, the worst is their buttocks, blisters, scars of beatings, and signs of abuse.”

“Jon, I have some cream for them. It will numb the effects until I get them to a doctor.” I went to my bathroom and got a bottle of antiseptic cream.

I watched Jon spread it on their arms and legs. I had given him a different kind for the sores on their back and front. It was an antiseptic with an antibiotic addition.

Mo stayed. I had to leave. I called Dr. James and told him I had an emergency, I would prefer he came to my home, but I could bring the boys to him. He said he was on his way home from the hospital and would stop. I alerted the guards.

Steven had sweats for the boys and a blanket to wrap them in. I had Maria to heat some soup. I needn’t know how long they had gone without eating. I watched David and Jon feed them the soup. There were tears in their eyes.

The guards called and said the doctor arrived and should be at the door. Mo went and waited with the door open. Jon took the boys to his room, Mo and the doctor followed. The doc was with them a good hour.

“Mr. Jeffries, we need to take these boys to the hospital to get photos, X-rays, and to take samples for a rape kit.”

I called Peter, and he had the car out front. We bundled the two boys, along with Jon and David, and Mo, he wasn’t going to let them go anywhere without protection.

At the hospital, Dr. James took charge. I went and made arrangements to pay for everything and then sit in the waiting room. Jon went with the boys. David stayed with us.

I looked at David; he was crying. I put my arm around him and let him cry. Mo just sat there. His mind was far away.

After three hours, Dr. James came with a policeman. Alex arrived with passports, how he did it, I’ll never know. A report was filed, the names of the men who did this to the boys recorded, not only by the police but also by my Mo. I now feared for the men who did this. The look on Mo’s face scared me, and I wasn’t the men who did this. The police officer assured us they would find these men and see that they got what they deserved. I knew Mo would find them first, and they surely will get what they deserved.

“Mr. Jeffries, I would like the boys to stay overnight here where we can monitor their infections. I’ll check them in the morning, and we can then determine what’s best for them.”

I looked at Jon, “I’ll stay with them.” I nodded. I looked at Mo. He picked up a chair and sat it outside of the boys’ room and sat in it. He wasn’t going to leave them either.

Alex and I went home. As soon as we entered the house, we were surrounded by the boys. Sitting in the living room, I told them what the doctor said.

Instead of reading a book, we talked about what happened tonight and specifically what happened to these boys. Alex and I looked at each other, the locked memories of the boys came open, and now we heard their stories, none as bad as these two boys but still bad. As they talked among themselves, you can see some of the pain of the past go away.

The boys slowly became silent, “I think we should all go to bed. Maybe we can say a prayer for those boys tonight.”

I went and stood in front of Michael’s picture. I didn’t voice my thoughts. He would hear me without needing a voice. He lived in my head.

Slowly, I went to each boy, hugged them, not wanting to let go. A kiss on the head, wiping away tears and past remembering, softly saying I love you. I tucked each boy in for the night.

That night, as I lay in bed, I asked God why there was so much cruelty on this earth. It was a prayer of desperation, trying to find answers, and knowing I’d never find an answer but would need to continue to place my faith in that someday this will go, as well.