Page 25 of Shielding Maya

Reece stepped up to him, "We're about ready to start, Jasiah."

"Thank you."

Reece turned to the gathering crowd. "Let's take a seat, we're about to start."

A bit of commotion ensued as folks sat at the tables, mostly in family groups. Children joined these meetings as well. Families greeted each other, small talk began to halt, and his community turned to face him.

Reece nodded to him and Jasiah stepped to the front and faced his community.

"Thank you all for coming. We'll begin with a prayer. Pastor Richards, will you do us the honor?"

Pastor Richards stood next to Jasiah and said a prayer. Jasiah bowed his head and folded his hands, his stomach twisted as the time neared for his announcement. It was right to do, it wasn't easy though.

‘Amen’ was said by everyone, and Jasiah inhaled a deep breath and his eyes landed on Maya.

"You'll notice we have some of the operatives from Glen Hollow joining us this evening. If you have a cell phone, they are here to check your phone for a virus they've been informed is circulating through the phones. This is not something that is contagious and though it sounds like a virus humans get, it isn't the same. They can remove any virus if one resides on your phone and this is mostly cautionary. So, please bring your phones to their table and they'll take care to scan it and remove any virus that might be present."

A few people moved to their table. There were maybe ten phones up here right now. Those who had gotten jobs had found it necessary to get phones for communication purposes. The idea of a cell phone had not been something everyone easily or readily embraced just yet. And the thought that these phones could contain a virus would likely stave off a rush at this point.

Reece stood once again, "We'll now install Jasiah Weston as our interim president." He turned to Jasiah, "Please raise your right hand."

Jasiah lifted his hand and faced Reece.

"Jasiah Weston, you are hereby bestowed the privilege and responsibility to act as president of our community. You agree to work for the people, to bring about positive change, and to help us integrate with the townspeople in Glen Hollow. You are given this privilege by virtue of your birth, and we honor that privilege and you."

Jasiah responded. "I accept this responsibility."

The people clapped their hands and Jasiah waited for the applause to end.

"Thank you for this privilege." His eyes wandered to Maya who bestowed the most beautiful smile on him. A tingle ran the length of his body.

He sucked in a deep breath. "I have the sad duty to share with you the condition of my father. The doctors have diagnosed him with pancreatic cancer. His diagnosis is terminal. There is nothing they can do to save him."

Gasps were heard, and some of the women cried. He waited for them to calm. Grateful for the moment to gather his own thoughts and emotions.

He lifted his hands to stave off the chatter. "I have another announcement. As we are now in a time of great change, I want our community to be as the townspeople below. Therefore, the office of president will be voted on. I am interim president and will act on our best behalf. But, in two weeks, we will have an election up here. I am announcing now, that I am a candidate for the president's office, but anyone else who may want to run, should tell a council member by tomorrow afternoon. Ballots will be drawn up and on Thanksgiving Day, a vote will be held up here for not only the position of president, but vice president, and the council."

The noise level rose and his eyes floated to Maya's. The soft smile on her face and the nod she gave him gave him strength. He nodded in return.

He then turned to Reece. "Will you please be responsible for taking all names of those who want to run for office and keep them straight for the election?"

"Yes." Reece leaned in. "Are you sure of this Jasiah?"

"I'm sure. I want to be your president, but only if the people want me to be."

16

Wow. Pride spread through her body as she watched Jasiah lay himself aside for what his people wanted. After all they've been through, this made him the best leader they've ever had in her eyes. Of course, she didn't know all of their history, but she'd never known a man like him before. The smile on her face was genuine and she couldn't stop beaming at him. As his eyes met hers over and over, she got chills at the unspoken message between them. Mutual admiration - certainly. And, she had to finally admit, she had a crush on Jasiah Weston.

As people filtered to the front of the meeting area to speak with Jasiah, she tried focusing on the task they were here to perform. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Marni and Zara, sitting at the back table, not moving. A man sat with them, his jaw clenched tightly, his arms crossed over his chest. Marni smiled softly at her, but in a way that hid her smile from both of her parents. Maya slightly nodded to acknowledge Marni but not get her in trouble.

Her teammates spoke to the folks who brought their phones up for scanning, reassured them there was nothing wrong with their phones, and were thanked for worrying about them.

Finally, Adam Jacobs stood and sauntered toward the table, zeroing in on Henry. He stopped at Henry's side and dropped his phone on the table. "I understand my phone was scanned earlier. I'm not sure why this phone was singled out by her." He pointed in her direction. "But, do you need to check it again?"

Henry twisted on the bench to look into Adam Jacobs' eyes. "Your phone was scanned first, because it was the first cabin Maya came to when she was alerted to the possibility of a virus on the phones. After scanning your phone, she felt it would take too long to go from house to house, and Jasiah told us of this meeting and felt that would be the most expedient way to get all the phones scanned. I'm happy to scan this phone again, but Maya is very good at her job and I'm sure she did a great job scanning it."

Adam Jacobs glanced at her, then snatched his phone from the table and turned on his heel. He barely reached the table where Zara and Marni waited for him, when he pointed across the common area to their home. Without word, they both stood and followed Adam home. Maya's tummy tightened as she watched Marni, head down, follow silently.

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