The good thing, sitting behind my desk, is that I’m keeping my distances to both these persons and I’m not fond of either. The trouble is that they are now sitting close and they are now bonding. I don’t want them to engage in a joined mutiny. This is not how my day was planned.

The pastor sat with both underarms on his desk, hands folded, fingers folded between the next. Maintaining a stoic face, now harvesting the fruit of enduring meetings with endless boredom, he watched the two of them checking for a match. And they found it.

The little shithead is getting away with it. The big shithead too. Bishops office, my ass. What a sorry crapshoot this now turned into. That little shitter was to bow his head in rependance while he did all these boring chores I could find for him. And yet once more, hes wiggling himself out of the consequences of his little act.

Neither persons, on the wrong side of the desk, payed the pastor any attention, which was a kind of dilemma. He should be the natural center of attention and and the other hand, he wanted no part of what the two creeps were conjuring.

And of course. Big creep had a tattoo on his arm, just barely hidden by his sleave. The pastor didn’t think well of people who has chosen to deface their own body with tattoes. Without speaking or letting his eyes say a single, he muttered one undetected word into the room, Scum.

Offering him a job, yeah, letting him off easy after what he has done. No, litl shitheaded punk already had a job. He “voluntered” to work and do chores at the church, so far benieth highly praised Emperor Pastor Higgins. Say what? Mission from God? What kind of sideshow does this Stewart guy run?

- Chris, you are to stay here and carry out what you have agreed upon. Your deeds demand your humble attitude. I’m sorry Mr Stewart, I know what we spoke, I do believe Chris is able to see it serves him best to stay here, at the church, do what he agreed to do and pay his deeds accordingly. Before you decide what’s best, Chris… it’s important you realize you need to take responsibility…

_ What exactly is your job, Mr Stewart, that I am to assist?

Paster Higgins now had a face even redder than before. Eyebrows pulled downwards leaving two small cracks to look thru, not being used to be cut off like this

: I find missing people. I try locate them, rescue them and then return them home. You are to do the boring tasks, Drive, make reservations, help search the internet, do some occasional shopping and Ill be reading dokuments, talking with people and for every 100 hours of research, we go locate and we spend 20 minutes to find the missing person and the case is closed.

_ I’m in, Mr Stewart, when do we begin?

: Pack your bags and we are on our way. I’ll go sit in the church, Come find me when you have packed and departed with Pastor Higgins.

Since Chris only had stayed at the church from the day before, his room with bed and dresser wasn’t unpacked that much. His head turned, viewed the room for forgotten things. Then walked towards the church. On his way he met Pastor Higgins and he thanked for the help of Higgins and added that he will be in touch and both knew that he wasn’t. Pushing the heavy church door, it swung open, Chris carefully entered the chuch, making sure he wasn’t to make noise or attract unwanted attention. An elderly lady was at the back of the church. Stepping to the side, he could continue into the churchroom. Mr Stewart was already coming towards him. Holding his packed duffelbag in his left hand, he moved his right hand in front of him to shake with Mr Stewart. On their way to the door and into the bright daylight, they passed the lady. Her face lighted in a dear smile as Mr Stewart went by, she grapped his one hand with both of hers and he stopped. Raising his other arm, placing his hand on her shoulder and said words so softly and whispering, only she could hear them. Chris noticed how she seemed standing in a praising, humble stance as the two males went outside.

Mr Stewart walked to a bench in the shades of a big old tree. Chris noticed the two bags by the bench. The driveway to the church had a strip of grass on each side and not far from the churchdoor, this sacred retreat of the afternoon sun, called on them. They were alone, sitting in the city with traffic on the streets 40 feet away. There, life went on in its daily cartwheel of chores and pleasures. Two persons on a bench in the shades, bags on each side of said bench. The eager young man and the calm matured man sat in peace, until Chris couldn’t endure the silence and lack of movement and had to use his voice.

- Now what

_ Now we wait

That was the trouble.

_ Breathe. Breathe deep, let the air fill you like a balloon, then let go of thouhgts

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The cab came and picked them up. Mr Stewart put his hand on the door handle to the back seat

- Come sit by me here in the back. We can talk in private

Chris looked at the driver

- That will not be a problem, we are safe

Both men sat on the backseat of the cab, while they were travelling from the chuch to the airport in Charlston, WV. Rasising his arm, turning his palm towards the driver, Mr Steawrt mumbled words, Chris was unfamiliar with.

- We can talk in private now. Ask what ever you have on your chest,

_ What exactly is your job that Im to assist you in doing?

- We find and locate people. The we approach hem and bring them back to where ever they belong.

_ Legal?

- Totally legal. OK, the easy story. Imagine a person from the government of North Korea. This person is send back data and info about life in the US. No, it’s not about North Korea, it’s a way for me to explain somewhat in detail what we are doing. Ok, this spy also has to remain faithful to the mother country. Sometimes, after a while, such person can lose track of the true goal. Kind of blend in, kind of ease into the society himself. Some persons want to disappear and have a life his own here, going dark, leaving the radar. It’s our job to find and locate and bring these into the light again.

_So we are spy-hunters.

-Ahh, no. Kind of, we only seek souls that are good and got lost. By coincidence, by loss of faith or deliberately wanna go of the radar.

_ Am I a field agnet now

- Kind a. You are with your team, me, in the field. How ever I do the finding and locating and confrontation and you… you are the one doing the chores that I dont want to do myself. Paperwork, papers, paying our expenses.

_ I dont wanna screw it up

- You wont. Believe in yourself Christopher. I’ll do my best in guiding and mentor and train you. You will get the hang of it. And you wil screw up. And it wont be that big a deal. Maybe, I don’t know. Don’t expect you to. At first your weapons are gonna be credit cards, I got a cell phone for you and a lap top.

The cab has left the church and the town surrounding it. Chris left his honmetown, not really realizing he did, while his mind was roaring with thoughts. Good because he has left the dreaded situation of his. Bad, because leaving the town and life he knew also was scary. Would be do good. would it be dull and boring, would he screw up, would he, would would would

They drove thru fields on empty roads, high blue sky with no clouds givinh shade, the inside of the cab was hot. Chris felt a snip of claustrophobia, locked in the car. Heart start pounding a bit harder and faster than before, droplets on his forhead, arms and legs. The cab being too small for him, wanting expanding space to be able to capture the sudden chance from being a humble clerk to a manhunter. He felt physically kept in a too litl space and he wanted out, wanted to breathe

_ I didn’t do what they said I did

- I trust you, Chris

_ You said souls. You mentioned “good souls” what happened to “ persons”?

Thoughts narrowed down, Chris cirkle of focus quickly rendered to smaller and smaller size and then microscoped one pin head big single object: Mr Stewarts mentioning, the Soul. Everything now didnt matter, sweat rolled down Chris forearm, he didnt notice. His mind had cut the connection to his physical body.

- I did. Yes. I did. OK. Chris, do you believe in God?

_ Yes, I believe in God.

- Do you believe in angels?

_ No, I don’t

- Angels are mentioned in the holy book

_ So are Noahs Ark and the wives of Kain and Abel

Mr Stewart gave a litl chuckle in surprise.

_ I’ll tell you a litl lullaby story, Chris.

Angels exist and they walk the earth. They can have many different assignments and they are experts/specialists within certain areas. Some are guardian angels. They are to protect and help individuals. Others are to be around and soothe individuals when they experience difficult times in their lives. Angels work on the command of God. Sometimes an angel feel the connection is broken, maybe lost the focus and start making decisions on their own, using the angel powers that is issued by God. These angels are now freelancers. Maybe they start working as healers. Others envy life of mortalts and hide themself to act like they are human. They go dark and need to be found. Some even start doing bad deeds, pointing themself towards evil deeds. When an angel start using its powers doing things on its own, then they make decisions on their own and do not longer follow “the big script”, the scripts that God has prepared and written for each soul.

_ I don’t belive your story.

- You don’t have to. You will recognize it all when we contact our first soul, who’s on the run.

_ Am I to have a gun too?

- First, earn your wings, Chris. Then we see how high you can fly.

They neared a larger city, the void of signs of life, now being overtaken by people in cars, on the sidewalk, they were among the living again. Chris felt better, his breath eased and he still wanted out of the closure of the cab. Red light, green light, the cab drove a head, turned, drove and and turned in a dance that Chris didnt know the steps to. Just follow the rythm, his heart told him. The cab stopped in front of the airport terminal. Raindrops started to hit and explode on the windshield. Not many, but they were there. All three men exited the cab, gathered at the trunk and while the driver passed bags to Mr Stewart and Chris, raindrops targeted and landed in ther hair

_ Christ, is it now gonna rain?

- Do you really want to bother Christ, Our Lord, because you dont feel like getting your hair wet?

Chris didnt have a proper answer and instead went towards the automatic doors to the terminal. They walked side by side and during the walk, Mr Stewart gave his first instructions to his newly hired assistant

- We are to go to the luggage storage. I have a bag for you. Lap top, cell phone, a little wallet with credit cards. These are your beginners weapons. Oh, and when we are in public, among others, you will now be known as Mr Hendrix. Jaxon Hendrix. You are now living the life of a field agent, Mr Hendrix

Chris felt crampened in body and mind after the ride, he had drops of water in his hair and now he also got himself a new name. That is not how he envisioned begin “living life”

They went into the terminal and voices of humans and voices announcing thru speakers, made him a litl tumbly at first, then his vision cleared and so did his mind.