My First

So here is something a little different for you all. For the next four weeks, every Monday, I will be posting parts of a story that I wrote in anticipation of it being published. However, due to unforeseen lack of taste on the part of the editor of DOOM TOWN (the book I was to be published in) I will not be making my first million via publishing a short story. He stated that the “writing was weak.” Well I and one of my English professors at UNLV don’t think so. In fact, she was the one who told me to submit it for publication to the gentleman. Oooh and did I mention that she is the English professor with the most tenure currently teaching at UNLV??? Well she is, so his loss is now your gain. The story is entitled M.I.A and yes it does stand for Missing In Action… I know what you are thinking…llllaaammmmeee!!! But allow me to illuminate the meaning behind it.


The story, in essence, is a journey surrounded by chaos and disaster. It is told from the vantage point of an omniscient narrator who, at times, explores the inner most thoughts and feelings of the main character. The journey is not only a physical one, but is also introspective. Within the midst of all the chaos, carnage, sadness and misery our hero undergoes a change in the way he views the world and in so doing ends up Missing In Action. However, in what way he is M.I.A I will leave for you to read and interpret.

After I have posted the last part of the story, the post following will give all the particulars regarding the stories conception, style characteristics, detail on the whole concept of M.I.A and address any questions that might have arisen after reading.

I have broken the fifteen page short story up into four sections entitled respectively:

-New Addition
-News from Home
-The Journey back (worse than expected)
-The Search (usual suspects, unusual heros)

I sincerely hope that you find enjoyment in reading this and can take from it something that helps make this world a better place.

Without further adieu…

M.I.A.
Part One:
New Addition

It had been almost three months since he had seen his sister. “I wonder who the baby will look like, Ash or Larry?” His thoughts danced around the idea of being an uncle as he laid stretched out, all six foot one hundred and eighty-five pounds of him, across the last row of seats in the 737 he was riding in. He was on a red eye from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City at the arrival of his sister Ashley’s first baby; a little brown haired, green eyed boy named Crew.


As Jason lay across the seats, his mind drifted from his sister to the briefing he had with the FBI’s Counter Terrorism Unit, Las Vegas branch, earlier in the day. The agent stated they had received reliable information that a few cities in the United States, including Las Vegas, were said to be targets of a forthcoming terrorist attack. The agent didn’t have any information on when the attack was going to be carried out, but he did mention talk of a possible hybrid atom bomb being developed in the UK. The bomb is said to have no toxic after effects-the toxins are converted into energy before the detonation- thus making the bomb two times as powerful. On his way out of the briefing Jason overheard a conversation between two senior agents. One of them was saying to the other, “this bomb represents the most dangerous threat out there, if it’s real. Can you imagine it? You could move right in and take over an area after totally destroying it with no worries about toxins.”


For eight years Jason has been assigned to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Homeland Security team. Now thirty-two, he remembers and cherishes the memories he has of being a regular patrol officer, working a beat on Fremont Street. No work to take home. No thoughts of local sleeper cells. Just go to work, complete your shift and go home.


The landing was not the best he had ever been through, though it certainly wasn’t the worst. The air was cold as he stepped through the doors leading to the passenger pickup and as he exhaled his first breath into the night air he could see it rise like smoke from a burning building.


“How was the flight?” Cindy asked him as he stepped into the car.


“Good enough” Jason replied as he sank into the passenger seat. “The landing was a little rough, but other than that it was ok. There was hardly anyone on the plane so I took the back seats and stretched out.”


Cindy looked over at Jason with an awkward smile, “Brice and The Bear were terrors the entire way up. We had to stop six times to eat and change diapers. If you think I’m ever letting you fly leaving me to drive up alone, you are out of your mind.”


Jason tried to hide a silly grin as his wife elaborated on the trials of driving up to Salt Lake City alone with their two kids; Brice a ten month old boy and Nevaeh a.k.a The Bear, a three year old girl. “Well I’m here now” Jason said proudly, “and the drive home will be better with daddy in the car.”


From the day his children were born, Jason’s outlook on life changed. He realized there were a lot of things he wanted to do, but now could not. He desperately wanted to be a musician, and while he had the talent to be a one man band, the time and opportunity had been stolen away from him; he blamed the kids for his lack of career options.


He never intended to be a cop. In fact, before he became one, he hated police with a passion. He hated the better than you attitude so many cops exude. He hated the fact that even if you didn’t do anything wrong, a cop could stop you on the street and harass you. Well, that’s what he thought they did, but after his many years on the department he decided it was not the cops that were bad, it was everyone else; the cops were just trying to find the bad guys and bring about some type of justice.


As Jason entered the maternity ward of the hospital he could hear the familiar laugh of his sister Ashley; in fact, anyone within a half a mile could hear her laugh. She didn’t just laugh; she would wind up, taking in extraordinary amounts of air, and then belt out a sound that could only be described as something of a human fog horn. Jason had a nice visit with his mom, dad, two sisters and their husbands and even held the newest thief of dreams to enter the family; Crew Nicholas Odom.


“It’s getting late” Jason announced to all in the room, particularly his wife Cindy. “Let’s get out of here, I’m exhausted.” Good nights were exchanged and Jason toted along his little family to their car and headed for the Hamilton Inn.


Sleep came quickly to Jason. While he could not remember dreaming, he knew by the renewed energy he had in the morning, he had spent a good portion of the night in R.E.M sleep. Unknown to him; that was to be the last good night’s rest he would get for a while.