As he removed his garments and collar upon return to his office after accomplishing his daily duties, including the receiving of confessions, Father Dominguez received his three visitors who sat down tired from their excursion. Somewhat sweaty, dusty, and confused, they kept their composure relatively intact. Father Hernandez and Sister Justine sat in the two large leather chairs in front of the desk. Father Hernandez pondered the stark contrast of the adornments and furnishings in Father Dominguez’s office compared with those in the guest quarters. He imagined Michael’s and Sister Justine’s rooms were also well furnished.
Michael sat on a simple wood chair in the back of the room, rocking it back and forth on the two rear legs, his back propping his body weight against the adjacent wall. Knowing the chair to be somewhat aged and not well made, Father Dominguez wasn’t sure if it might lose its integrity and cause Michael to fall to the floor. Instead of warning Michael, he thought the fall might humble him a bit.
“Sorry it took me so long. Today’s confessions took a little longer than I anticipated. How’d your trip go?” Father Dominguez asked.
“The church itself didn’t yield anything. There was one interesting thing though,” Father Hernandez replied.
“What’s that?” Father Dominguez responded while sitting down in his chair.
“We came across a strange character today. Her name was Ashere.”
“Who?”
“Ashere.”
“What happened?”
“We met her in the park across from the church. She mentioned something about her father knowing about our visit. She also knew we were there investigating the presence of angels.”
Michael jumped into the conversation. “Ever think that she could have been a manifestation of an angel? I mean come on, one minute she's there, and then she's not.”
The other three turned to face Michael, who was still rocking on the two rear legs of the chair. He rested the front legs of the chair on the ground, leaned forward, and placed his forearms on his legs. “Whether it’s biblical history or in other religious mythos, angels, gods, demigods many times manifest themselves as human in brief encounters, usually resulting in those experiencing what we experienced.”
“Then what do you think the purpose of the visit was?” Father Hernandez inquired skeptically.
“I think the answer is simple. She told us we would find what we’re looking for, although not here in town.”
“And what about her father, she mentioned her father knew us. What would that be about?”
Michael paused a minute before answering. “Haven’t figured that one out yet. I don’t remember meeting anybody interesting last time we were down here.”
“I don’t either,” Sister Justine added.
“Well, I have some information for you,” Father Dominguez commented. “Lucinda began working with a couple of volunteers and started sorting the boxes of paperwork from the archives of Our Lady of Hope. We're having them begin with what they could find from ten years ago. They came across the church records, journals, baptismal and confirmation logs, and other administrative documents generated during the tenure of Father Ynez.”
“Father Ynez?” Father Hernandez probed.
“He was the senior Father both here and for our sister church, Our Lady of Hope.”
Father Dominguez guided the three to an office area that had varying sized filing boxes stacked along the wall. In the center stood a large, rectangular, light-colored wood table with four chairs, one on each side. “We haven’t done a full sort yet. Everything near the time frame you’re looking for is already on the table.”
“Much of the information is still here? It wasn’t sent to Los Angeles or Rome after the initial events?” Sister Justine quizzed.
“Many of them were packed and ready to be shipped, and remember, shortly after you left the first time, the worldwide missing event happened. With the follow-on panic and chaos in the world, the Church probably forgot all about them. Lucky for you.”
Father Hernandez, Sister Justine, and Michael skimmed the notepads, papers, and parchments. Michael approached reviewing the information apathetically, thinking they wouldn’t find anything pertinent thinking much of the research process was turning out to be a waste of time. Father Hernandez and Sister Justine on the other hand, attacked examining the paperwork with intensity and vigor. All three worked late into the night and didn’t find anything confirming Michael's supposition about an angelic visit. They decided to call it an evening with the heaviness of sleep encroaching.