Dawn's Rising

Dawn's Rising; chapter 5: The Prodigal Son Returns

Within twenty minutes, the three men accompanied by Lt. Charlton entered into a gloomy, sparsely lit corridor lined by metal doors with small barred windows at about face level. In complete silence, Carl and his two employees followed the young lieutenant to a door towards the end of the corridor. In the poorly ventilated atmosphere a reek of old urine and sweat immediately assaulted their nostrils. Finally, Lt. Charlton stopped and drew out his large ring of assorted keys. As he sought forth the right key and proceeded to unlock the door, he peered between the bars into the dimly lit room beyond. In a harsh tone which brooked no argument he called out to the hunched form of the man sitting on the bed within, "You have company, John Arne, so you best be at your finest behavior." As the door swung open with a metal screech of protest the lieutenant stood at attention, allowing the others to file in first. John Arne Midtbust didn't even look up from where he sat on his bunk, the only piece of furniture present in the all too small cell. A few uncomfortable moments passed as each of them waited for one of the others to speak, but the only sound that came forth was the rhythmic dripping of the small dirty sink in the corner. The room and all of its occupants remained unmoving, cloaked in eerie half shadows cast by the dim light of the few gas lamps out in the corridor and the deepening twilight beyond the small round window in the wall at opposite end of the room. With his arms propped on his knees and his head in his hands, John Arne did not even bother looking up to see who his unexpected visitors were. Nothing mattered any more to him because he was now a man who had lost all hope.

Lt. Charlton cleared his voice a bit uncomfortably before he continued on, "John Arne Midtbust, one of the passengers which you robbed has requested this audience with you. You will answer whatever questions that are asked of you. That is an order."

John Arne's shoulders sagged even more in response to the lieutenant's order and Karl watched with growing empathy as the young man took several swallows and worked up the courage needed to lift his head up. Then when John Arne finally looked up into their faces and recognized Petter standing before him, an intense look of pain and shame spread over his features. Several more tears began to slowly roll down his already tear stained face. Without saying a word John Arne lowered his head back into his hands again, his shoulders shaking as he silently sobbed into his hands. Tears also sprang into Karl's eyes at the sight of the tormented young man before him, a man that was no older than his own son. With a deep shuddering sigh, he sat down beside the prisoner and without a warning he gathered him into his arms. John Arne started in surprise at this most unexpected action from one of his own victims. But when Karl Jakobsen did not release him from his embrace the frightened man instead flung his own arms around his surprise comforter and clung to him as if he was on the brink of drowning. Finally the last of his defenses crumbled and he was reduced to a helpless child as he sobbed out his fear and shame into the arms of a man he barely even knew. As Petter witnessed this deeply loving gesture stemming from his father's complete forgiveness, suddenly he too was filled with shame of his own as he was convicted by the hate and anger he had felt for John Arne just a few moments ago. With a sob of his own, Petter sank onto the bunk on the other side of John Arne, and put an arm around his heaving shoulders letting his own tears too finally flow free. Within a few more moments there wasn't one dry eye left in that small cell, as both Thomas Clancy and Lieutenant Charlton also succumbed to their battles over tears.

After several long minutes John Arne's trembling voice finally sounded out as he sobbed in Norwegian to this fellow countryman, "I am so sorry. I feel so ashamed. Please forgive me!"

After several attempts Karl finally answered John Arne, but not in their own language. Instead he chose to use English as an inner urging told him to, "I forgive you my boy. I forgive you. Oh, why? Why did you do it? What caused you to do this?" Releasing John Arne from his arms, Karl took hold of one of his hands and brushed away some of John Arne's tears with the other like he did for his own children when they cried. John Arne looked deep into the kind and gentle eyes of Karl Jakobsen and drank in deep of the love and concern he saw there, letting it bind up some of the bleeding cracks that covered his own hurting heart.