If_the_Spirit_Is_Willing_by_HD_Nels

Chapter 1-3

Anthony Carsen was restless, despite having spent the whole day unpacking and organizing. He still had a lot of work ahead of him, but his aim was to go until he was so exhausted, he would have to fall asleep. As he worked, he reflected on how quickly things can change in life. He had managed to sell his house within a week, and a few days later made an offer on the place he was now setting up to be his new home. He happened to find it as he was driving aimlessly. He felt he had to keep moving, so stumbling upon this place was serendipitous.

The real estate agent was willing to drop everything to show him the property. “There were a few people who looked at it already. One gentleman was particularly interested in the unique design inside, and I have a feeling he may be ready to make an offer soon. I’d be happy to show it now, if you can wait until I get there.”

Anthony loved the old hardwood floors, the large windows, and fireplaces, but what really caught his attention was a superbly crafted deacon’s bench in the main hallway. Unlike any others he had seen, this one was actually built in as part of the hallway wall, as was a knick-knack table beside it. Those were the selling features for him. He made an offer and it was accepted the next day. Once the deal was finalized, he went to his former home and made an inventory of what he would keep, what to donate, and what to sell with the house. He couldn’t bring himself to go into the garage. That was where he found his partner of eight years, hanging lifeless from a strut of the garage door runner.

Jason Rennie was a man who was always pushing boundaries in just about all aspects of life. That was part of what Anthony loved so much about him. He lived hard, loved hard, played hard, and f****d hard. He went all-in on some sure fire investment scheme and, according to the note he left, he lost almost everything they had. Everything they had built over eight years. The house had been Anthony’s, and was owned outright. Jason said he regretted not discussing it with his partner, but hoped the life insurance payout would keep Anthony on his feet.

He missed three important points. The first was that I loved him, and would have weathered the setback with him. The second was that his life insurance policy had a suicide rider, which meant it would only pay out the value of the premiums paid in. The third point was that he forgot about the tidy sum that my grandmother left me, which was just sitting in an account, growing with compound interest.

Jason’s parents wanted him buried in their family plot, so Anthony made all the arrangements, attended his funeral, and kissed Jason’s family before he went back to the house. He knew he had to leave that place. Every time he walked in, he would remember the ghastly expression on Jason’s face as he dangled there limp and lost. He hated him, loved him, and missed him so much. He wished they would have talked, instead of him planning his death to be as hard as he lived his life.

He had just finished the living room unpacking, when he heard a screech of brakes and a horrible crunching sound from the highway. He grabbed his cell phone and jacket, and ran down the driveway as he called 9-1-1. He relayed what he heard, and where, but told the dispatcher that he wasn’t quite on scene yet. They stayed connected until he got there. There was a pickup truck on the wrong side of the road, and a car that suffered a head-on collision.

“There is one man in the car. I think he’s alive. He’s bleeding from head injuries. The rescue crew will need equipment to cut him out of the vehicle.”

He was surprised at how calm he was, talking with the 911 dispatcher. It was the same calm he had when he called about Jason. Anthony walked over to the truck. The lone occupant was apparently unhurt, but there was a strong smell of alcohol. He passed this information along to the operator. He heard the sirens and ended the call to wait for the first vehicle to arrive. He noticed that although he was in bad shape from his injuries, the man in the car appeared to be around his own age. It broke his heart to think that another young life might be ending needlessly. The police, fire, and EMS secured the scene and, after taking Anthony’s statement, allowed him to return to his home. Well, at least it wasn’t in my garage.