Chapter 24
Sally placed one of Salvation II’s Lenox china bowls filled with sirloin down on the deck for Frisco and gave him a good head-tussle before he dove into the gourmet dinner selection. “Goodness, I forgot just how lovable you are Frisco. Guess you won’t mind sirloin and pate while you’re onboard. We don’t carry dog food, so you’ll just have to suffer.”
Frisco looked up with a dog grin dripping with gravy.
Sally’s sat and watched Frisco enjoy his first good meal since the tragedy. She never had a dog, and didn’t know Frisco all that well, so she wasn’t sure if he missed Drake at all. I suppose with Drake travelling so much all the time, I’m just another ex-girlfriend taking care of you for a while. Frisco finished up, took a drink from a crystal bowl, then came up to Sally to thank her, nuzzling her under her forearm. Her cell phone was on a table nearby when it rang and Shawn’s face popped into the screen. She excused herself from Frisco, walked over and hit talk. “Shawn, how are you? I’ve tried a dozen times to call you but you never picked up. Have you gotten any rest?”
“Yeah, Sally, no I mean, I haven’t rested. Sorry I haven’t answered but I turned my cell off. I’ve been busy, really busy. You’re going to be amazed when I tell you what I figured out. Are you sitting down? And don’t be pissed.”
Sally listened as she picked up Frisco’s bowl and was surprised when he trotted over following her to the fridge. “Wow, you want more little guy? No, not you Shawn, Frisco thinks he’s in canine heaven with the food I’ve feeding him.” She paused. “Why do I need to sit down, someone else hasn’t died have they? What is it? Why haven’t you slept?”
“Sally, I told you about the hologram memorial I wanted to make for Drake. And yeah, I did promise you that it would be toned down with no more come-back-to-life crap, but I figured something out: why my Sentient images bring people back, or at least Drake back. Well, I didn’t lie to you, or mean to. Things changed so I had to try. So I used what I learned, incorporated the adjustment Ben showed me by adding more power and upgrading my computer to handle the load and then I brought it all together. And it worked! Sally, Drake, he spoke to me. No shit, he really did! It was unreal and also so sad, all at the same time. He knew he was alive in the hologram and he wanted me to get him out.”
“Shawn, slow down, this is nuts. Drake can’t be alive. What we saw at Ben’s must have been an anomaly. What you’re probably witnessing is a moving version or video of sorts of Drake on his last wave. Sure, maybe even it looks like it’s talking, but alive? It’s not possible. You’re so exhausted; your eyes are playing tricks on you.”
“Bullshit Sally, wow, sorry, yeah, I know so very hard to believe. But you’re right, it’s the eyes. That’s what I haven’t told you. Here’s something you’ll understand. It’s a verse from the Bible. The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. That’s the key: his eyes, our eyes. Our eyes really are the windows to our soul. And I’ve found out even more like the scientific stuff you like to know about. When I photograph someone, I always look to the eyes before I shoot. I look for the person within, and then I take the picture. I’ve been doing it this way my whole life, just never had the Sentient, so when I put together this new layered composite image file, my primary focus was what I saw in their eyes. Can you come over? I need to show you this in person.”
“Shawn, I can, but not right away. The TV thing with Daniel is finished, very boring actually, and I figured since I’d be spending time here in the islands, I’d offer my expertise where it might be needed. I’ve always had a standing invite to speak at a number of learning institutions around the country and the University of Hawaii is one of them. I’m speaking as a guest lecturer on the Manoa campus and then it’s on the way back to Kauai. After the lecture, I’ll direct Daniel’s helicopter pilot to bring me over straight-away. Can it wait till then?”
Shawn responded, “Yes, I guess it can. I’m beat anyway and have to take a break before I collapse. When do you think you’ll land? You can come in on a bud’s open lawn about a half mile away.”
“Be there about two-thirty. They’re having a small lunch reception for me afterwards, but I’ll only stay long enough to shake a few hands. In the meantime, no more open calls about this over the phone, only in person, you never know who might be listening. And for goodness sake, get some sleep and stay away from the computer. See you tomorrow, oh, and I’ll have Frisco with me. Did you know he loves to fly in helicopters?”
“Yeah, loves it. When we’re in the air, we call him Captain Frisk! Drake and I used to joke he only needed a few more hours and he’d qualify for his pilot’s license — helicopter of course. Sally, I can’t wait to see you again. I know you have your own plans now, but having you around makes me feel a whole lot better. And now that I’ve figured out the missing piece, with my images, and your brains, Drake is gone, but we might be able to bring him back!”
“Shawn, what are you suggesting? That’s ridiculous, and besides, even if you could it would be against the laws of nature and, more importantly, God’s intention. I mean, we both saw the look of sadness in Drake’s face. Do you really think this is something he would want? It was his time to be called back to his maker. For you, me, or anyone to bring him back — it would be for purely selfish reasons.”
But before Sally could object further, Shawn had hung up.
Sally picked up her iPad to look over her notes for tomorrow’s lecture while Frisco created a racket above, chasing the first mate back and forth on the upper deck. There was simply no way Sally was going to allow Shawn to proceed any further, he was defying God’s will and the natural laws of science and nature.