A Walk In The Wilderness (26 page)

      She laughed, and his arm went around her as they went out to the car.

   Will faced them with no small displeasure when he discovered they had  arrived in David’s dressing room.  “David,”  he snapped, “You simply cannot do this, you are playing with fire.”

     “Calm down, Will.  Caitlin has decided to go home.  She’s getting on a plane tomorrow afternoon.”

     “Good. Then help me get you through tonight, will you?  I’ll keep her here in the dressing room, and post the three guards outside.”

     “That won’t be necessary, Will.  Caitlin will be backstage where I can see her at all times.”

    “No, she won’t, David.  We can’t run the risk of a repeat of last night.  Or worse!  Having her there is like waving a red flag in front of Vaughn.  Be reasonable.”

     “The only way I can know that she is safe is to have her where I can see her.”  David insisted.  “And that is where she will be.  That’s how it is, or I will walk out of here.” he said evenly.

     Will put his hands on his hips and glared.  “David, you have always been so reasonable.  So good to work with.  Don’t do this!”

     “Will, I have been ready to walk away from this tour for months. Skyler Vaughn is a pain and I’m tired of walking around on eggshells.  I am sorry if he’s got a fixation on my woman, but it’s just too bad.  She’s not going to sit in my dressing room behind a locked door like a prisoner, because Skyler Vaughn has got a problem.”

     “He says if you ever touch him again, he’ll sue you.”  Will warned.

     “That would suit me just fine.  I’d tell the court about the months of junk I’ve had to go through, and I’ll bet I’d win the case. And just think of all that juicy publicity, Will.”  David goaded sweetly,

      Will sighed.  “David.”  he begged.  “Please.  We can’t run the risk of anything ruining the show.  We can’t afford the risk of that kind of publicity.  There is too much at stake.”

   “You’ve got ‘that kind of publicity’ waiting to pop out at the seams.  You deserve it, for signing someone like Vaughn.  And I can’t run the risk of anyone hurting her.”  David countered.  “I won’t go on if I can’t see her.  It’s that simple.  You will have her in the wings and she will stay there for the entirety of my performance, or I will not go on.  You keep Vaughn away, and everything will be fine.”

     Will sighed harshly.  “All right.  All right, David.  I guess I don’t have any choice.  I’ll go talk to Roland.”

      “Do.”  David said pointedly.

      When Will was gone, he looked at Caitlin.  She was white, and shaking.  He gathered her in his arms and held her tightly, rocking her in an effort to comfort her.  “Caitlin.”  he soothed.

     “It’s so horrible.”  she gasped.

     “I know.  Honey, it will end tomorrow.  I’m sorry.”  he said against her hair.  “I’m very sorry.  I should have known that the conflict would upset you.”

      “I wish it didn’t, David.”  she whispered.

      “You wouldn’t be my Caitlin if it didn’t.”  he chuckled.

      Will came in without knocking.  David turned and glared at him.

    “All right, David.  Roland and I understand one another.  Skyler will not approach Caitlin, and you will not touch Skyler.  Fair enough?”

     “I won’t touch him unless he breaks his promise.  Does he agree, or does Roland?”

      “Roland vouches for him.”

     David laughed.  “I don’t think Roland can in any way control his client.”  he contended.  “But that’s all right.  You make sure he knows that I don’t care.  If Skyler goes near Caitie, I’ll tear him limb from limb.  This time, I won’t stop until he’s out of commission.  Is that clear?”

     Will paled and set his lip in a pout.  “I’ll tell him.” he said, flouncing out.

    “You do that.”  David snapped.  “And have the respect to knock before you barge in here.”

     He sat down and sighed heavily.  Caitlin went to him and put her hands on his shoulders. 

  “David, I wouldn’t mind staying out of the way for the sake of the performance.”  she ventured.

  “No way. I wouldn’t be able to play.”  he denied.  “I would be constantly wondering if you were all right.”

    She sighed and put her arms around his neck from behind.  He patted her hand, and closed his eyes to relax until time to go on.  Caitlin sat next to him in the oversized chair, in comfortable silence.

     Muriel showed up to do David's make up, and made the atmosphere lighter as she prattled on about little things.  She loved Caitlin, and made no bones about complimenting her.  Before it was over, she had Cait blushing and David chuckling.  It was just what they both needed to ease the tension.

     When her job was done, Muriel expressed regret that she wouldn’t be seeing Caitlin again.  Then, Will called over the intercom, and they climbed the stairs. 

    David looked grim, and Caitlin was a bit afraid, the truth be known.  She wasn’t certain that her nerves could endure another showdown.  But the stage area was clear when they arrived, and Will informed them that Skyler had already left the building.  They had waited until he was gone before introducing David. 

     David nodded his satisfaction and listened as the announcer talked about him.  He squeezed Caitlin’s hand and winked at her.  He looked at the three guards, as if to assure himself that all was well, and the area was secure for Caitlin.  Then he went on stage.          

      And things went very well.  Caitlin listened to the sound of David’s voice, and marveled at the fluency of his French.  David had created a very sweet, tender passion in the music that filled the atmosphere.  There was an indescribable thickness to the air;  a haunting longing that certainly was expressed in his voice as it filled the theatre; but it went far beyond that. 

     “I’ve got to know you better. I’ve got to feel your touch.  I’ve got to find a way to share you, the glory of your presence.  The tender love I know.  Show yourself, make yourself known.  To everyone.  Come, Lord and claim your own.” he sang, impassioned.

    Then suddenly, Caitlin began to feel strange.  She felt someone, or something near her.  She looked around, but the guards were all relaxed and steps away.  And then, she knew. 

    She sucked in her breath and shook her head, as though to clear it.  There was a powerful, wonderful Presence around her, reaching out to her, permeating her being.  She closed her eyes.  She knew that it was Jesus.  And suddenly, she realized that she could understand every word that David was speaking, though he continued to sing in French.

     “He is the one, the only one who can save.  He alone can make the darkness flee.  He is the only one who can set you free.  He shed His blood for you, He gave His life up willingly.  And after death was conquered, he rose again.  Lord of Lords, and King of Kings.  He’s come here for you tonight because He loves you eternally.”

    Caitlin began to tremble.  What was happening was simply incredible.  She could understand David’s beautiful words.  It was Jesus, and it was miraculous.

     “Will you receive Him?”  David was asking softly.  “You have only to make the choice.  He will never force you, but He longs to hear your voice.  Say, ‘Jesus, won’t you come in, come into my heart?  Be my Lord and Savior, I’ll set myself apart.  To you I offer all that I am.  And I will love you forever, my Lord’.”

     “Now, Holy Spirit.  Go deep into these hearts that cry out for you.” He urged, in a raw whisper.

  Caitlin shrugged, and shook herself as if to be certain it was real.  It was happening to her personally, even as David spoke it.  She could feel Him coming into her spirit.  She could feel herself yielding.  She knew that her heart had answered the call, and though she was a bit afraid, she knew that she had to.  It was her time, now.

     This was what David had been waiting for.  This, of course, had kept him from her.  She hadn’t become a Christian until now, and he couldn’t join himself to her and love her, unless she did.  Anything less would undermine the ministry he had chosen as his life's work.fs

   This presence so sweet, was melting her heart from the inside out.  She smiled as she knew for certain that she now wanted Jesus, with or without David.  She covered her face with her hands and sighed.  Tears poured and she shook with emotion.  Joy filled her heart like nothing she’d ever felt before.  It was indescribable.  She sank to her knees, where she was, and lifted her hands in worship and surrender, and supplication.

     She heard David chuckle, and felt his eyes on her.  She opened her eyes and looked at him.  He was watching her, with a smile and the glint of gladness in his eyes.  He clearly knew that she had just accepted Jesus.

    “Oh, my God.” he sighed.  “Thank you, Lord.  Thank you, so much.”  He closed his eyes and went on playing.  He had to.  But his eyes kept straying to the girl in the wings.  He could feel the Holy Spirit brooding over her.  Still, the exultation that he felt over Caitlin’s salvation spilled into the music, and a dynamic power flooded the hall as David played like he’d never played in his life.

     When it was over, the musical tones drifted slowly away into silence.  The crowd was stunned by the power and majesty of David’s work.  Then, they erupted into shouts and applause.  David stood up, and bowed.

   “If you just received Jesus, or if you want to do so, raise your hand now.  Someone will come to pray with you.  For this reason, I won’t be doing an encore tonight.  Please minister to one another. Let’s put the salvation of those the Lord wishes to touch tonight above our enjoyment of the traditional encore.  God bless you all.”  he said softly.

    There was more applause, and then there was a hum of activity.  Caitlin looked out at the audience from behind the curtain and saw a sea of hands go up.  She gasped in disbelief and turned to greet David as he came into the wings.  “David, look.”  she urged.

     David looked out over the audience, and smiled.  Then he turned to look down at Caitlin.  “And you.”  he added with great satisfaction.

      She smiled shyly.  “Yes.  And me.”

     He looked up and shook his head, as with wonder.  “Thank you, Lord.”  he sighed.  Then he pulled Caitlin into his arms, and held her while he prayed. 

      And he did pray!  My, how he prayed over the girl!  Caitlin was shocked by the depth and passion of his prayers for her.  Others came and stood there with him, as time went by.  It was awesome, and beautiful.  Caitlin was in amazement and wonder at it.

     Before long, David took her hand and smiled at her.  “Ready to go?” he asked gently.

     “Yes.”  she agreed.

     He said goodnight to those around them, and led Caitlin out by the hand. 

    Once they were in the limo, she felt strangely shy next to David.  He continued to hold her hand.  Things were different now.  She could feel it.  Barriers that had been there were gone, and yet there was a newness in the air that would take some adapting to.  Every time she looked at David, his eyes were already on her, drinking in the glow on her face, with gladness and a deep intentness in his eyes. 

     When they arrived back at the motel, David lost no time getting to his room.  He returned with a lovely, white leather Bible in his hands.  Caitlin looked up at him in surprise.  “This is for you.”  he said with gentle eyes.

     “Me?”  she repeated slowly.  She opened the Bible and found that in fact, her name was written inside the cover.  Her eyes misted as she read the beautiful script written there: 

    “To Caitlin Nicole.  With all my love, David.”  She looked up at him with puzzled eyes.

      “I’ve been waiting.”  he advised with a wise, sideways look.

      She giggled despite herself.  “David,”  she objected.  “You bought this for me, before?  Knowing?” she asked incredulously.

     “Absolutely.  I knew without a shadow of a doubt that you would one day soon be ready for this.  And you see, I was right.”

     She sighed.  “I can’t argue.  Thank you, very much.”  she said, choking back tears. 

     David chuckled, and pulled her into a hug.  “Thank you.  You made me very, very happy tonight.”  he told her.

      “Me?”

     “Yes, me.”  he teased.  “Now, you get some sleep.  You’ve got a plane to catch tomorrow.”

      She nodded in docile agreement, and turned to walk away.  His hands on her arm stopped her cold. 

     “Caitlin, wait.”  he whispered.  He hugged her soundly and kissed her temple with a tenderness that brought tears to her eyes.  “Sleep well, love.”  he said gently.

     She smiled up at him, and nodded.  He let her go.

     Caitlin was awake for many long hours, listening to David’s whispered prayers and recalling the remarkable night.  She was enthralled to think of all that had happened, and how this night had possibly opened the door for her future.  With David.  He’d said he’d been waiting.  And he’d called her ‘his woman’ when he was arguing with Will.  Could it be? she wondered. 

     David woke her up at ten with a kiss on the cheek.  She stirred and then her eyes flew open as she saw David above her.  “Hey, it’s just me.”  he soothed her.  “You need to get up and pack, sweetheart.  Then it’s breakfast, and the airport.”

     She sighed.  “Oh, my.”

     “I know.  I don’t like it, either.”  he agreed.  “But I suppose it’s best, to keep you safe.  Mother’s done without you longer than she likes already, I suspect.”

      “David,”  she asked hesitantly,  “What do I do, now?” 

     He sat on the bed beside her, and smoothed her hair back from her face.  “About what?” he asked lightly.

     “About Jesus.  And praying.  That kind of thing.”

    He smiled and let his eyes enjoy the sweetness of her face.  “You just talk to Him, honey.  He wants a relationship with you.  Build it just as you would with me.  Talk to Him, ask Him questions.  Share the desires of your heart with Him.  Pray when you feel you should, about the things that you feel are important.  Ask him for solutions to every situation.”