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slammed down his glass. “I
want to know how your friend knows this.”
    Hearing that, I nearly fell from
my stool. “You .. you see him.”
    “I see him.”
    “See who?” asked the bartender.
    Craig quickly looked at me.
    “Hey …” the bartender nearly sang
her words. “I know you.” She said. ‘You’re that woman who died for eighteen
hours. Yeah, that’s you.”
    Suddenly and manically Craig
laughed, finished off his drink and stood. “Oh, I get it now. Meg, I’ll be
back.” He walked by me abruptly.
    “Wait!” I called to him and
hurriedly followed. “Wait.”
    Outside he kept walking.
    “Wait.” I called out again.
    He stopped. “What do you want
from me.”
    “How did you see him? No one
does.” I said.
    He smiled and shook his head. “I
knew this was coming. Bill, right? He likes that name Bill for some reason.” He
looked beyond me and to Bill. “So you’re taking the form of aging rock stars
these days. Quite a switch from political figures.”
    “It depends on the person,” Bill
said.
    “Wait. Wait.” I held up my hand.
“What is going on?”
    “You died.” Craig said. “Bill is
with you. He wants you to find people to give a wonderful gift to. They can
meet someone on the other side they lost. Right? He sent you to me for help.”
    “Yeah, but …”
    “That bourbon and soda you
ordered?” Craig asked. “It’ll turn to straight bourbon. It won’t be enough. It
will never be enough. I am so sorry for you. I am.”
    “I am so lost,” I said. “How can
you say this? How can you see Bill.”
    “I was there. I guess you can say
…” Bill said. “I am you. Only I was you, ten years ago.”
    I stood for a moment, under a
clear sky staring up to this priest. I was shocked at first then all I could
say was, “Then if that’s the case, all the more reason not to walk away.”
     
     
    <><><><> 
     
    I had him convinced to come with
me. It did, however take me telling him I had bourbon in my RV. A bribe. I
brought him to the RV. I thought about just bringing him back to the suite but
that was just plain weird.
    “Where are you staying?” I asked
him.
    “At the Chevy,” Craig replied.
    “Where’s that at?”
    “Parked in this lot. I was
staying at a bed and breakfast but I was thinking it was time to move on, so I
checked out this morning.” He glanced at Bill.
    I turned to Bill. “Did you know
he was moving on?”
    “Of course he did,” Craig
answered.
    “Do I get to talk?” Bill asked.
    “No you’ve said enough.”
    “Okay,” I blurted out, trying to break
the tension. I stood. “Let’s take the RV back to the hotel. You are more than
welcome to sleep in the suite or here.”
    “This is cozy, and I think I’ll
take you up on that. Where’s that bottle?”
    Before taking the driver’s seat,
I retrieved him a bottle and a glass, then proceeded to drive the RV the short
distance back to the motel.
    I parked, made him a sandwich,
and we weren’t settled only a few minutes when Brad showed up.
    Before Craig could ask, I said,
“This is Brad. In case you’re wondering he’s not my son. He’s ..”
    “Your help. Not your kid. The
chosen don’t have a family,” Craig finished my sentence. “He’ll travel with you
until it gets too much too fast. He’ll never be the same. There’s another
person, too, more than likely a woman. An organizer. It’s the way it works.”
    Brad slipped into the table with
him. “How do you know this?”
    “Like I told her …” Craig downed
his drink. “What is your name anyway?”
    “Natalie.”
    “Like I told Natalie. Ten years
ago, I was her. Only Bill didn’t look like Bon Jovi, he looked like a young
Ronald Reagan.”
    “Wait. Wait.” Brad held up his
hand. “You see Bill?”
    “I know Bill. He was Ronald
Reagan for me, Was Churchill for the poor sucker before me, who was it before
that …”
    “Enough.” Bill stood.
    “Yeah,” Craig snapped. “It is enough.
Enough of this. But for you it won’t