The Powers That Be

When the Talk of the Town radio show began, Claire Bell, the producer, greeted the listeners as the opening music played. “Good morning, and welcome to the Talk of the Town featuring What’s-her-name and What’s-his-face and a bunch of people on the telephone.” “Thank you for such a nice introduction, Claire,” Jack said with amused sarcasm. “Remind me why I don’t fire you?” “Because you don’t have the authority to fire me, Jack,” Claire said, grinning broadly. “Oh, that’s right. I knew there was some reason that you were still here.” They often engaged in these mock fights as part of their good-natured banter. “Jack and Claire, you two children need to behave so that we can get on with the show,” Heather said. “As Claire mentioned, there are a bunch of people waiting on the phones to talk to us.” “Yes, Miss Heather,“ Jack said. “Okay. Let’s go to our first caller.” Jack Sanders glanced at his monitor. “Dan from South St. Louis -- talk to me.” “Hey, this is Dan.” “Yeah, we’ve established that. What’s up, dude?” “Listen, a really freaky thing happened last night!” “Well, it’s Friday -- Freaky Friday, I guess.” “Yeah, but this is major league freaky. At about ten o’clock last night, my girlfriend and I were in the pavilion near the boathouse in Carondelet Park.” “A great place in a beautiful park.” “Right. Anyway, we were sitting there talking and whatever when this super weird thing happened.” “I’d like to hear more about that whatever part.” “No, seriously, listen man, this is important. We were looking at the illuminated fountain in the middle of the lake when it went all otherworldly on us. The water began shooting much higher in the air and changing colors and shapes.” “Fountains are design to do that, Dan,” Heather Spears joined the conversation, having returned to the studio after refilling her coffee cup. “Not that fountain and not like this,” Dan countered. “There were colors that I’d never seen until now. And the fountain water became a three-dimensional shape with wings! I got goosebumps up and down my arms.” “Did your girlfriend see all this too?” Heather asked. “Yes! Of course! She is still freaked out!” “Were you two drinking a little something or smoking a little something?” “No! I mean we had a couple of beers earlier, but we weren’t drunk or stoned.” “Of course not.” There was just a hint of sarcasm in Heather’s voice. “Hey, there were five or six other persons near the lake when it happened. They had to see it, too.” “Let’s hope that they’re listening. If you saw the freaky fountain tonight, give us a call, and we’ll put you on the air.” “So tell us more about the winged shape, Dan. Was it like a giant bird?” “Or a spacecraft -- aliens coming through a space portal?” “No. You’ll laugh, but truthfully it made me think of an angel with its wings unfolding. However, my girlfriend sensed that the winged figure was dangerous. She thinks that it was a demon, but I think that it was an angel.” “You might both be right; demons or devils are fallen angels. See what a good Catholic school girl I am.” “So what happened next, Dan?” Jack inquired. “The three-dimensional figure in the fountain seemed to become more substantial, more solid. I could almost make out his facial features. Then, all of a sudden, the figure vanished, and the fountain returned to normal.” “Imagine that.” “Dan, I’ve got to tell you that I don’t know what to make of your story. I can hear the sincerity in your voice, so I know that this isn’t a prank.” “Bright lights on moving waters can play tricks on the eyes,” Heather interjected. “I’m wondering, too, whether you guys might have had more to drink than you remember.” “No, it really happened!” “Okay, man. I just don’t know what to make of your story. We don’t usually talk about paranormal stuff on this show. My old buddy, Mark Tobin, over on a rival station likes to talk about ghosts and UFOs and all that stuff. Maybe you should give him a call. He’ll be on the air tonight.” “Okay. Thanks.” “And call my old friend, Megan Aquilina. She has a good talk show over on that rival station. Megan went to Catholic school with me, so she’ll probably like this whole angel thing.” “I’m sending a bill to the Megan in the Morning show for that commercial,” Jack said with a wide smile. “That’s how we can make a lot of money for this station,” Heather declared gleefully. “We’ll do unrequested promotions of shows and restaurants, then bill them for the promotions.” “Heather, were you out drinking at Carondelet Park with Dan and his girlfriend?” “Hey! Well, maybe that wasn’t my best idea.” “I have three different responses to that, but any of them will get me into trouble.” “You think that you aren’t already in trouble?” “Oh, I know I am,” Jack said. “In any case, we need to take a break and do some commercials that sponsors have actually requested. I’m old-fashioned that way.” “You’re something all right,” Heather grinned. He laughed as they went to a commercial break.