The Testimony of Taliesin Jones (39 page)

'Ye
s!'
Lu
c
shou
ts. ‘Ace!’

'Did
it hit
?'

'
Yes. I think
s
o .
.
.
yes
. .
. we
ll. It m
oved
wh
en
you look
ed
up
,
but
I
think it did
...
d
efinitely
it did. God did
it,
'
Lu
c
decl
ares
zealousl
y, w
ith utm
ost co
nviction,
as
if h
e's
ju
st c
ompleted
a
complex
sc
ientific
ex
periment th
at i
s utt
erly
f
ai
l
-safe
.
'That's ace, that'
s
f
an-bloody-tastic.
I r
eally wa
nted it t
o
hit. Let's do other qu
estions
.
'

Tali
esin
i
sn't
sure
.
The
se a
nswers h
ave
t
oo
man
y
could be'
s
about th
em.
T
he
y're
n
ot
full
o
f th
e ce
rtainty h
e
want
s
from G
od.
The bo
ys
s
wap
round
.
A
s
T
aliesin
t
akes a
im h
e
think
s a
bout deliberatel
y
mi
ssing.
H
e
cl
oses
h
is eyes a
nd l
et's g
o th
e a
rrow which
g
lides int
o t
he
a
pple
a
s if dir
ected
b
y a
fre
ak
wind
.

'Y
ou
hit it! First time
!
That h
as
t
o
b
e a yes
.
' Lu
c
h
as
n
o
doubt
a
bout thi
s.
This is a n
ew a
nd f
oolproof way o
f
co
mmuni
cating w
ith The Almi
ghty
.

T
aliesin
wants to stop pl
aying.
Thi
s
d
oesn't
pr
ove a
nythin
g
. I
t'
s
just Ch
ance's
Arr
ow,
pl
aying w
ith
Go
d. Ther
e
i
s
a mor
e c
ertain way of communi
cating wi
th him
.
It i
s as
If h
e
i
s s
tanding
o
n
a
hill top and
ca
n
see
G
od ove
r th
ere
b
eyond,
in th
e
di
stance.
In b
etween
ther
e
i
s
d
ense fo
liage
a
nd
a
numb
er o
f p
ossible
r
oads
to take
.
Th
ese spec
ulative
s
hots
a
t
a
pples
b
a
lanced
o
n he
ads
ar
e
a di
version
fr
om
th
at pa
th
.
Th
ere
h
as
t
o
b
e a
cl
earer,
more dir
ect
rout
e.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

TI
ME PASS
ES
SLOWLY w
hen
yo
u're waitin
g
f
or
th
e a
mazi
ng
t
o
h
appen.
It
i
s
t
wo
d
ays
n
ow s
ince T
aliesin
t
ook
h
is
w
arts
t
o B
illy.
Two war
t-watching t
enterhooking
d
ays s
pent
wa
iting f
or a
m
iracle,
thinkin
g a
bout the
a
s
ye
t unan
swered
pr
ayer. B
illy
to
ld him
to
b
e
p
atient
,
t
o wa
it
o
n
Go
d -
w
ho i
s goo
d t
o
th
ose w
ho
wait o
n Him. He
sa
id th
at Go
d
was a
m
over o
f
war
ts
and mou
ntains alike
,
that th
ere
w
as
n
o
d
et
a
il
t
oo sma
ll f
or
Him t
o fi
x.
Go
d c
ould
have them d
isappear
in
a
tri
ce i
f H
e wante
d t
o, o
r H
e
mi
ght
decide to bid
e
H
is
t
ime. T
here
was
n
o
t
elling
.
Go
d
w
orked to His own tim
ing,
n
ot
t
o
th
e
pr
earranged
ti
ck-tocking of cloc
ks and cal
endars o
r
eve
n
t
he un
seen c
hanging
of a S
kin
C
lock.
G
od
was
in th
e
p
as
t,
pr
esent
and
f
uture
a
ll
a
t th
e sa
me t
ime a
ccording t
o
Hi
s w
ill, h
e
s
a
id.

In t
wo
d
ays
T
aliesin's
d
oubt
h
as s
pread lik
e
pin
s a
nd n
eed
l
es
th
rough
hi
s
b
ody, n
umbing hi
s
belief th
at
so
mething i
s go
ing
to h
appen. Las
t n
ight, as
h
e
r
ead
and fini
shed
h
is
b
ook
hi
s
eyes
k
ept
m
oving
t
o
hi
s
h
ands,
hop
ing
to find cl
ean s
kin. Th
e
E
leven l
ooked
b
ack
a
t him
,
rude with health
,
ch
alleng
in
g
hi
s
b
elief.
Th
e
l
arge sta
nd fir
st
wa
rt
a
t the
e
nd
o
f hi
s
ind
e
x
fin
ger
tr
ansfigured
t
o s
pokes w
art
a
nd
v
oiced th
e
d
oubts. 'Go
d
's
got
m
ore i
mportant th
ings
t
o
d
o:
the uni
verse
t
o s
ustain
,
th
e ea
rth's
t
urning t
o
m
aintain
,
wars
t
o
s
ort o
ut, th
e wea
ther t
o
o
rganize
,
m
ore ser
ious illn
esses
t
o
h
eal.
Wh
at
m
ake
s
you
thi
nk
H
e's go
t t
ime
fo
r us
?
You
'll
ju
st
h
ave
t
o
l
et
n
ature
t
ake
it
s co
urse.
A
nd
a
nyway,
i
t'll h
ardly co
unt
as
a mi
racle. I
t's
h
ardly
w
ater i
nto
w
ine
is
it? Mir
acles
h
ave
t
o
b
e ins
t
ant
don
't
th
ey?
 
If we go n
ow
it
w
ill b
e a
p
erfectly
n
atural
thin
g.
It
'll
b
e
b
ecause
of
t
he
vin
egar
yo
u
a
pplied, n
ot
th
e praye
r.
Go
d had His chanc
e
t
o
r
emove
u
s
in
o
ne
s
upernatural P
o
but H
e's
a
voided
Hi
s
opportunit
y
.
H
e
h
asn't a
nswered
you
, h
as
H
e?'

But
Ta
liesin pray
s
again
a
nd
gi
ves
God a secon
d
c
hance t
o
r
edeem
him
self.
Th
e
miracle
co
uld
s
till h
appen
but f
or
him t
o
b
e s
ure
Go
d w
ould
have to mak
e
i
t clea
r
,
n
o
h
alf
h
ealing
.
N
ot
on
e o
r tw
o wa
rts
.
All of them
.
C
ategorically,
irr
efutably, i
nstantly. T
aliesin
li
es
in bed and d
oes
d
eals w
ith
Go
d.
'
I
wo
n't k
eep
it
a sec
ret if
yo
u h
eal
them
.
N
o way
.
I'll t
ell
th
e wo
rld
a
bout it
.
I'll t
ell
th
em a
t
s
chool. I'll t
ell
H
oop
Th
e
M
ental.
I'll m
ake s
ure m
y
p
arents
kno
w
.
I'll tr
y a
nd he
al
p
eople myself.
I'll f
orm a ga
ng
o
f h
ealers
-
we
'
ll l
ay
h
ands o
n p
eople.
I
f yo
u
co
uld ju
st
he
al
them to night, pl
ease!
Comeo
n
Go
d,1
k
now you'r
e
th
ere,
d
o i
t now!

It
is a
S
aturday
morning
.
Still
g
loved
,
T
aliesin
is
a
bsently
re
a
din
g
th
e
b
ack
of
a
pack
et of oa
ts
.
It
says
h
ow
f
ood is
our
me
dicine,
a
nd th
at
food
s ca
n
c
ure
a va
riety
o
f
ai
lments.
E
s
p
ec
i
a
ll
y
th
e oa
t
.
He help
s
him
self
t
o a
n
ex
tra b
owlful.
J
o
n
a
th
a
n i
s
m
aking
him
self sc
rambled
eggs, si
nging
a
s
ong
t
ha
t h
e
l
ikes
.
N
ow
that h
e
h
as a gi
rlfriend h
e
h
as s
tarted
ge
llin
g
h
is
h
air
back in an att
empt to
l
ook o
lder.