The following is a story of gay fiction. If you are offended by the subject matter, or if you are too young, please exit now. This work is the property of the author and may not be reproduced without permission. JETjt@aol.com
EMPIRE
Chapter Forty-one
Sunday, 4:05 PM, the Ratt's Nest, Ron and Matt's home
"A message from Douglas?" Ron asked smiling, wanting desperately to be sure he heard right.
"That's what Mr. Smith said," Parker confirmed.
Ron leapt from his chair and rushed toward Parker who was holding the portable phone. Taking the device from the older man he greeted his friend in New York.
"Jack!" Ron said excitedly. "I'm so pleased to hear from you. How's Lonnie?"
"Hi Ron. He's fine," Jack responded to Ron's greeting. "I'm sorry to hear about Douglas. We both send our condolences."
"Thanks Jack. It's been quite a shock to us. Parker said you had a message from Ted."
"Yes. I wrote it down to make sure I got it right."
"What did he say?" asked Ron anxiously.
"He said to tell you all that Douglas was with Barry and him, and also that Doug had met his mother, who had died."
"That's great!" Ron said enthusiastically, his grief momentarily forgotten as Jack continued.
"I was really surprised to hear from Ted. I didn't even know that Douglas was sick."
"Yes, it happened very fast," Ron reported sadly. "The cancer was discovered mere days ago, and Doug died in surgery for the growth in his neck only yesterday."
"There's more," Jack went on. "Ted relayed a message from Douglas: Douglas said that he was with his mother, who loves him, and with Ted and Barry who are like his big brothers. Douglas asked that you not grieve for him because he's fine and happy, but loves and misses you all. He said not to forget your promises to him. He also asked that you tell someone named Eddie that he loves him and that...let's see, I'd better read this... `He wants Eddie not to be sad, and he hopes that Erik's brownie gets proper attention soon'. I have no idea what that means and he didn't explain it. He also said to tell Eddie that he knows he'll find someone else to love and that doing so will make Douglas very happy. That's the entire message; except that Ted said that he loves me too and is glad I'm happy with Lonnie."
"Jack, you have no idea how much your call means to us all," Ron said gratefully.
"I do know, Ron. I remember my personal nightmare in losing Ted and how I grieved."
"You're right, of course," replied Ron as he remembered how Jack's partner had been killed by a gang of gay-bashers.
"I need to pass on Ted's message," Ron said. "Thank you again my friend and say hello to Lonnie for us."
"You're welcome and I will," Jack promised. "Goodbye."
"Goodbye," Ron said as he stepped over to Parker who had retreated from Ron, and handed him back the phone.
"Would you call the boys here? Ask everyone at Tyler's to come too." he directed the older man.
"Of course, sir. May Mary and I listen in?"
"Please," Ron said smiling.
Parker disappeared into the kitchen as he hit the speed dial for Tyler's nearby home.
"What did Jack say?" Matt asked when Ron again returned to sit beside him.
"I'll tell everyone as soon as we're all gathered," Ron committed. "Just know that Douglas is okay."
Matt smiled and said, "I never doubted it for a minute though I can't help missing him."
Ten minutes later the entire family, including Eddie, was gathering. Mary and Parker stood inside the Family Room near the doorway to the kitchen. The boys began to take seats on the floor in front of Ron.
"What's up? Sorry we're last," Nathan said as he and Carl entered the room and joined the other boys.
Ron held up his hand indicating to them to be seated, waiting for them to get settled. Nathan and Carl quickly sat and the boys turned their attention to Ron.
"Some of you know a bit about this, but for those of you who don't, I need to tell the full story," Ron began. "A couple of years ago, before I met Matt, I had two young friends who worked for Turner Consulting. They were a gay couple and very talented. Their names were Ted Thornton and Jack Smith. Near the time that Matt and I found each other, the couple was attacked coming out of a gay nightclub. Jack was badly injured and Ted was killed."
"Didn't we see Jack Smith at your birthday party?" Ronnie interrupted.
"Yes," answered Ron. "He lives now in New York with his partner Lonnie Austin."
"Anyway," Ron continued, "Jack was devastated at the loss of his partner Ted. He didn't stay that way very long though. Ted appeared to Jack in a vision, giving Jack comfort."
"No. For real?" Carl asked expressing doubt.
"Yes, I believe so," Ron asserted. "He appeared to Jack more than once."
"It could have just been his imagination," Carl surmised.
"Yes, I thought so too at the time," Ron agreed. "I really didn't care though, because Jack believed it and it took away his anguish."
"Some time later, after Jack moved to New York," continued Ron, unfolding the story, "we opened the Thornton Center, which was built in Ted's memory. The Recreation Director there was a young man by the name of Barry Young."
"I remember him," Eddie said. "He was killed trying to save Benny Young from being kidnapped. There's a statue of him too, outside the Rec. Center. He was really a neat guy."
"I'm confused," Zack said. "Benny Young and Barry Young?"
"I can see why you might be," Ron agreed. "They were not related, even though they had the same last name. Benny had been cast out of his home by his homophobic father and was one of the first residents of Thornton. Barry was older, not long out of college. Barry met a guy that some of you might remember whose name is Gary Franklin who worked as an agent for the FBI. He and Barry were falling in love when Barry was killed."
"I remember Mr. Franklin too," Ronnie said. "He moved away didn't he?"
"Yes, he works now for Tyler in Atlanta," Ron answered, then moved on. "Gary, like Jack, was grieved and greatly troubled by his lover's death."
"One day, shortly after Barry was killed, I got a call from Jack Smith. He told me that he had heard again from Ted and that Barry was with him and that Barry was fine and happy. He relayed to Gary a message from Barry so that Gary would know the message was real. It was something private that only the two of them knew, and one that Jack had no way of knowing."
"Wow!" Zack said. "That's cool!"
Several of the boys nodded in agreement.
"That's when I became convinced that Jack really had seen Ted," Ron asserted then paused. ... "A few minutes ago, I got another call from Jack with a message from Douglas."
The voices of the boys burst forth in exclamation. Eddie's mouth hung open in surprise. When the excited chatter died down Ron resumed.
"Douglas sent us a message that he was okay and happy. He said that he met his mother who had died and that Ted and Barry were like brothers to him. Then he asked we not be sad."
"I don't believe it," the still doubting Carl asserted. "I really want to, but I just don't."
"Believe it Carl," Ron responded, then explained: "First, Jack didn't even know that Douglas was sick, much less that he had died. I'm not even sure he remembered Doug from my birthday. There were a lot of people at my party and it would be hard to remember everyone's name, even family members. How many of you remember meeting Jack?"
Of the boys, only Ronnie raised his hand.
"Second, Douglas sent a special message for Eddie that only means something to the two of them."
"A special message for me?" Eddie asked in surprise.
"Yes, Eddie. He said that he loves you and that he'll be happy when you find someone else to fall in love with."
Eddie braved a smile through eyes filling with tears.
"Heck, that's nothing," Carl concluded. "Anybody could have said that."
"That proves nothing, not by itself," Ron agreed. "He also said that he `hoped that Erik's brownie' got some attention soon."
Eddie's mouth fell open.
"Huh?" Carl questioned. "That's stupid. It doesn't mean anything."
"Yes it does!" Eddie declared vehemently, recovering from his grief. A grin covered a face that was blushing, and relief was evident as he began to explain:
"Most of you know that I write stories for Nifty on the internet," Eddie reminded them. "I have a new story that I'm writing called A Friend in Need'. The two main characters are two high schoolers named Erik and Sam who are falling in love with each other. I had just written the fourth chapter when Doug got sick. I had brought a copy over for Douglas to read cause he was my editor. When we went to Texas, I took the copy with me since we hadn't had time to look at it here."
"I don't see what that has to do with anything," Carl said impatiently.
"Hold on a minute Carl," Eddie requested, "I'm getting to it."
"In the fourth chapter, Erik and Sam spend the night together. It's the first time they've seen each other's body naked. When Erik gets hard, Sam sees that Erik's dick has a brown birthmark on it, so he names Eric's penis `brownie'. In that chapter, the boys only snuggle and don't really play with each other, but they cum by rubbing their dicks against the other's body," Eddie concluded, blushing anew. "No one... I mean no one, has seen that chapter except Dougie and me!"
"Wow! You've got me convinced!" Carl declared with a smile.
The boys erupted in excited conversation.
"Hey guys!" Ron said over the din, raising his hand for attention.
"You all can go now," he said releasing them from the meeting. "I just wanted you to hear the message. You can believe it or not, but as for me, I believe it."
The boys stood up, several of them hugging each other and the adults before departing.
"That's an amazing story," Tyler remarked after the boys had left. "I'm not sure I'd heard it all before."
"Every word is true," Matt asserted. "I was with Ron for most of it."
"You won't find us doubting," Dan declared. "I'm sure we'll all feel much better now."
"I know I do," Ron agreed. "Matt, I'm sorry I've been so hard on you and the boys today."
"It's okay my lover," Matt said with a reassuring smile. "My love for you is much, much stronger than a bad mood after troubling times."
"I think we'd better go," Tyler said grinning, pulling Dan to his feet. "I detect a prelude to some lovemaking."
"We not only have a ghost in the family," agreed Ron with a grin, "but a mind-reader too!"
Monday morning, the Wildman Casino jobsite
Carl climbed out of his car then picked up his lunch cooler and headed for the job trailer. As he approached the long portable building, he saw his friend David waiting. He waved when he recognized his work buddy and David waved back and started moving toward him.
"Welcome back, I've missed you," David began. "How's Douglas?"
"He died in surgery," Carl answered sadly.
"I'm so sorry my friend," David said first in shock, then expressing genuine sympathy, wrapped his arms around his friend, giving Carl a comforting hug. "When is the funeral? I'd like to go."
"I think it's Wednesday at 10 AM. If you can't get off work you could come to the visitation Tuesday night instead."
"I'll ask Terry," David promised.
"You might want to ask him about getting off Friday and Monday too," Carl suggested.
"Why? What's happening then?"
"We're going to San Diego after the funeral for a long weekend. Ron told me I could invite you along."
"Thanks for the invitation. That sounds like fun," David responded. "I'm not sure I can go yet, but I'll call you tonight and let you know. I'd really like to ask Ron for a favor too, so that would be a good time to do it."
"What kind of favor?" Carl asked.
"I've gotten real interested in construction," David replied, only slightly bending the whole truth. "I'd like to go through the Stratosphere Tower. I know that Ron knows everybody who's anybody in this town and I thought maybe he could arrange it for me."
"Yeah, I'd like to see it too," responded Carl. "Try hard to go with us this weekend and we'll ask him."
"How is the family taking Douglas' death?" David asked reverting back to the previous subject.
"Far better than you'd expect," answered Carl. "It's too long and complicated to tell you all about it now, but if you'll wait until lunch, I'll tell you about the whole week, capped off with a story that you'll find too fantastic to believe."
"I'd like that," David said looking at his watch. "Wow, we're late! We'd better get hoofin'."
"You're right. Let's go stamp-in our timecards," Carl said heading toward the trailer at a fast pace.
11 AM, Ron's office in the RET Building
Around the conference table in Ron's office the meeting was about to begin. Ron, Matt, Tyler, Dan, as well as Margaret, Ron's trusted secretary, Will, the Executive Vice President of Turner Holdings, Jan, the company's internal operations guru, the Presidents of the family's companies, and George Bowles, the Director of the Turner Art's Charities were all in attendance. Ron called the meeting to order.
"I've spent the morning going over the company reports," Ron began. "I'm pleased that you've all jumped in and done such a fine job during our family's troubles. I wish to thank you from all of us for your expressions of condolences. For those of you who wish to attend, Doug's visitation will be tomorrow night at the Palms Mortuary on West Cheyenne from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. The funeral will be Wednesday at 10 AM at the Summerlin Community Church. After the service there will be a casual reception and luncheon at our home until 1 PM. When everyone has departed, the family will leave for the Thanksgiving holiday in San Diego, returning Monday night. If you need to contact us during that time, please see Margaret. Now let's get down to business."
"As I'm sure you read in your report," Will said, "We closed on the Tegano purchase. It was a push, but we got it done faster than planned."
"Excellent! We even made the land swaps? Ron asked, clearly pleased.
"We have fully transferred the piece near San Antonio, and have set aside the land we're swapping for the one near Dallas," Will revealed. "That transaction should be complete week after next. We do have a contract signed though, so it should come off without a hitch. We've got engineers and architects already on-site in both locations ready to start the preliminary design as soon as the surveying is done."
"Let's not let up on those projects," Ron advised. "I'd sure hate to disappoint Tony and Jake. They gave us the deal of the century."
"We've also transferred $5 million apiece to the development account for each of the properties per your instructions," Will concluded.
Ron was obviously pleased, realizing that Tony and Jake had not mentioned it while they were in Houston, but instead had let Ron and Matt concentrate on what they knew meant most to their friends from Las Vegas, the well-being of their son.
"Is there any other good news to report?" Ron asked the group, his mind returning to the meeting.
"Yes," Dan responded. "I just talked to our New York headquarters of Construction Leasing a while ago. Richard has made an offer to buy out the largest construction equipment leasing franchise in the west. Since it's tied to a major equipment manufacturer we have no choice but to take over the franchise business. I know it's not the preferred way we do things, but it's far cheaper than trying to gain a majority of the market by direct competition."
"Richard knows what he's doing," Ron responded confidently. "That's why he's Construction Leasing's President. I trust him."
"The makes us the largest equipment leasing company in the West as well as in the East and South," Dan added. "With it goes a large share of stock in the equipment manufacturer and a seat on their board."
"Margaret, make a note that I'd like Dan to have that seat. Richard deserves it, but I'd like to have a family member on it. If the deal goes through, and is as good as I hope, Richard will be handsomely rewarded in bonuses."
Dan smiled in acceptance of Ron's wishes.
"Anything else?" Ron asked.
"Our offer on the new Arts Center land has been accepted," Matt revealed.
"Is it the piece we were looking at earlier in the week?" Ron asked.
"Yes, and we're lucky to get it."
"I agree," Ron concurred. "Matt, if you need any help with the closing, just ask. ...Next?"
"I guess I should have said something when we were talking about the Tegano Constructors purchase," Will began. "We have a team of Turner Construction's management people and accountants meeting with the Tegano people as we speak. Jeff Davis and Phil Thompson are there too. I sent our young whiz kid staffer, Robert Cantwell there also to work with them and to learn."
"Good move Will. I really like that young man. How is our cross-communications program working out?"
"Well I think," Will reported. "Our management people are getting out amongst the troops like you wanted and meeting with each other too. We're starting to reap the benefits of that program already. About 12 of our managers' bonuses this year will make them millionaires and 7 that already are millionaires will join the `multi' ranks."
"That really pleases me," Ron said, applauding the group of company Presidents. "You guys are doing a fine job. When we push the responsibility and rewards downward, you have time to see the big picture. It's important that you support your winners though, and help those that are struggling. Good people are our most important asset. .... Next?"
"Our new Boeing executive jet is being delivered tomorrow," Jan stated. "We have two full crews already trained. I've scheduled it to take you guys to San Diego. The first of the new smaller jets has been delivered and the leased one it replaces returned. The second small jet will be delivered the second week in December. I recommend that we keep the leased jet that one was supposed to replace, however. Our air traffic has multiplied with your cross communication program. Too many of our people are having to fly commercial."
"You know what we need Jan. I accept your recommendation. I'm anxious to see the new jet too. I only wish Matt and I had had more time to be involved with the interior."
"Don't worry about that Ron," Jan assured her boss. "Brucie has done a beautiful job. It makes the two Grumman G-V's look pale in comparison."
"Is there any more business to discuss?" Ron asked looking around.
There were no replies so Ron wrapped up the meeting with, "Okay, thanks. Let's have lunch."
Wednesday Morning, Ron and Matt's home.
"What time is it?" Matt said opening his eyes and seeing Ron sitting up in bed.
"It's 7:30 lover," Ron replied. "I thought I'd let you sleep in a little this morning. We've got a full day to face today."
"Yes," Matt agreed. "I thought the visitation last night went well though, didn't you?"
"Yes, it was very nice but tiring for us all, especially the boys."
"They handled themselves well though, I thought."
"I agree. I'm sure that it was the first time most of them had ever seen a dead person," Ron guessed.
"Douglas' body looked so peaceful and natural," Matt said complimenting the excellent skills of whoever had prepared the body. "I'm sure that helped the boys cope with their emotions."
"Agreed," Ron remarked. "Eddie was a real trooper too. We've got to decide about him, you know."
"Yes, we promised Douglas," Matt remembered aloud.
"What do you think we should do?" asked Ron.
Matt thought a moment before answering. "I'd like to take him in as a foster son, if his mother will permit it."
"My thoughts exactly," Ron replied. "I'll call her next week."
"Do you think we should tell Eddie now?"
"My first inclination is to say no because we don't know what his mother will say," Ron admitted, "but since he's going with us this weekend, I'm sure if we tell him he'll feel more secure knowing that we want him to be a part of our family."
"Let's call his mother now," Matt prodded.
"Good idea," Ron agreed quickly giving in to Matt's wishes. "That way we'll know right away."
10:20 AM, Summerlin Community church
The beautiful casket containing Douglas' body stood open in front of the church overflowing with personal and family friends. In spite of Ron and Matt's request that contributions to the Douglas Matthew Turner Memorial Cancer Fund be given instead of flowers, the front of the sanctuary was ablaze with color from arrangements. Not that their request had been ignored. At the registration desk, the basket where people who wished could deposit their gifts, had been augmented with a second basket when the first became too full.
The service had started nearly on time, with the minister greeting the guests and reading scriptural verses of comfort and offering a prayer. Afterward an octet of singers accompanied by a string quartet sang a beautiful arrangement of a funeral piece originally written by Mozart.
At the conclusion of the moving piece of music, the minister nodded to Matt who stood and climbed up to the podium. Placing a single page of notes, consisting of four sentences, on the lectern Matt quickly looked at the page, then looked out over the gathering and began speaking:
"Nearly a year ago, there was a day when Ron was out of the office. While he was absent, I received a call from our receptionist. Apparently a young crippled boy had dragged his dirty and exhausted body into our lobby asking for Ron. He was gone, as I said, so the receptionist asked for me to come up and handle the problem. That was the first time I ever saw Douglas."
"Douglas had been born with severe birth defects that caused his back, legs and feet to be so badly deformed that he could never walk. To add insult to injury this poor misshapen infant had been abandoned by his parents. He was placed in an orphanage where he had no chance of ever being adopted. As he began to get bigger, a kindly retired orthopedic surgeon took him under his wing and started a series of operations that gave him some limited mobility. His surgical needs were much greater than could be paid for by the state, even if they had been willing, and beyond the capability of the kindly doctor to take on by himself. He told Douglas who by this time was in his early teens that in Las Vegas lived a benefactor who often helped children in need. The name of the benefactor was Ron Turner."
"Over the next few months the doctor gave the youth $200 to save, telling him that when he had enough money put away he could travel to Las Vegas to enlist the help of this man. Unfortunately the doctor died, and with him went Douglas' hopes. During this time and even earlier, the other children made fun of the boy, denying him their friendship. In his entire life up to this time, he only had one friend, and that friend got transferred elsewhere. Douglas was alone and lonely."
"Doug did not give up however. One night in desperation, he ran away. A con man at the bus station, offered to buy a ticket to Las Vegas for him since Douglas was a minor, and after giving the man $100 to purchase it, the man ran away with the money. Douglas could barely walk and had no possibility of stopping him. Half his money was gone. The youth sank down in tears, his heart smashed by the thief's cruel act. A young man in his 20's saw the weeping youth and asked if he could help. Douglas told him what had happened and the young man offered to purchase the ticket for Douglas. The youth was afraid to give the kindly stranger his money though, since he'd been robbed just minutes before. The young man understood and offered to buy the ticket with his own money, and then trade the ticket to Douglas for its cost. Doug accepted the offer and shortly thereafter was on his cross-country trip to our city."
"Upon arrival in Las Vegas late at night, he looked at his meager resources. It was only a small bit of change. He went to the phone book to see if he could locate Mr. Turner. After much looking, he found an address for the Turner Charitable Trust. He properly surmised that it was the organization that was run by Ron Turner. He had no money for a cab or even a bus and it was late at night so he couldn't call. He decided to walk from the downtown bus station to the Turner offices on Town Center Drive in Summerlin, a distance of around 7 miles. He tore the map out of the phone book so he wouldn't get lost. It took him all night to drag his poor body to our offices where we first met."
"The rest is history. Ron and I took him into our little family. Through months of surgery and longer physical therapy, his body became whole. He was loved both by us and by his brothers. As his body healed he found friends too. Yes, and best of all he found a boy he could love, a boy who came to love Douglas for the wonderful boy he was, both inside and later, outside. It was this boy of beauty that had blossomed from that pitiful creature that I first met."
"The boy that Douglas loved with all his heart has a name. It's Eddie. He's with us here today. Eddie himself ran away from abusive parents who couldn't accept his sexuality. He now is a resident of the Thornton Center here in Las Vegas. He and Douglas were kindred spirits. Their greatest joy was in being together. I know you might think that they were both too young to know what love really is, but I assure you that it's not the case. Both of these youths had maturity that belied their lack of years. Yes, they had youth, but they also had the fearlessness to turn a background of pain into a possible future of love."
"It has only been two weeks since we discovered that Douglas had cancer. We wanted to take him immediately to the MD Anderson hospital in Houston for treatment. He would only go willingly however if we agreed to two promises: The first promise was that we complete his adoption before we left while he was still healthy. The day following that promise Ron and I adopted him as our own son. He took the name of Douglas Matthew Turner. He could have given us no greater honor. The second promise was that we would take care of Eddie, his love. I'd like to announce that earlier this morning we obtained permission from his mother to take Eddie as our foster son."
Eddie jumped up from his seat and into Ron's lap, giving him a great hug as those gathered beamed. Matt paused and looked down smiling at the exchange between his partner in life and their new son.
"Douglas. Son." Matt said shifting his gaze to the coffin. "We've kept our promise."
"In closing I'd like to say one further thing. Douglas knew before his surgery that his chances were poor. In fact he was the only one who really believed that he was going to die. He asked our boys to be strong and to comfort Ron and me. They have kept their promise to him too. Douglas died a happy boy. He told us before the surgery that he had received more than he had ever hoped for in life and that we should not be saddened by his passing. He told us he was at peace with God and was not afraid...what a wonderful son. We loved him so and we'll miss him." Matt looked down and over at the coffin containing Douglas' earthly body before concluding with, "Go with God, Douglas our son."
Matt stepped down from the podium, stopping for a moment and looking again at the casket containing the earthly remains of the boy they had loved so deeply. He then looked up through tears and smiled at the family and friends who had gathered, before again taking his place beside Ron, receiving a loving hug from Eddie.
The minister stood, then thanked Matt for his loving words before informing the gatherers of the order of the recessional by the casket after the benediction. Bowing his head and raising his arms, the Minister offered a blessing for those in attendance. The small choir and ensemble began performing a soft ancient hymn as the six Turner boys stood and took their places behind the casket. The mourners began to file past and exit down the center aisle, gathering outside the door where a black Cadillac hearse waited.
When the last non-family member had passed, a suited man from the funeral home appeared, closed and sealed the beautiful container, then draped the blanket of yellow roses over its top. Stepping away he followed the last of the mourners out of the sanctuary. Eddie and Zack stepped to the leading handles of the casket followed by Jerry and Ronnie in the center with Carl and Nathan following. Together they rolled the casket on its wheeled dolly up the aisle. Matt and Ron, Tyler and Dan followed the boys as they exited the church. As they neared the doors suited workers from the funeral parlor gathered the floral arrangements, placing them in another vehicle and drove ahead to the cemetery.
After arriving at the rear of the hearse, the boys stepped back while the driver and another man from the funeral home loaded the casket into the large vehicle. The family men and boys then turned and entered the limo parked behind the hearse as the mourners went to their cars to follow the family to the final resting place for Douglas' body.
30 minutes later the mourners again gathered at the gravesite. The family was seated in chairs under a green canopy, surrounded by standing friends.
The minister stood and offered a prayer: "Dear Lord, now we offer the body of your child Douglas to the earth. We know his soul has risen to your side. Comfort those who love him still and keep his memory warm in their hearts. Amen."
Ron rose from his chair. "Our family would like to thank you all for coming. Matt's words spoke for us all, the words of love for our brave and precious son. In closing, I'd like to quote a hymn written over a hundred years ago. It's called `Lift Up, Lift Up Your Voices Now':
"Lift up, lift up your voices now: The whole world rejoices now: The Lord hath triumphed gloriously, The Lord shall reign victoriously."
"O Victor, aid us in the fight, And lead through death to realms of light; We safely pass where Thou hast trod; In thee we die to rise to God. Amen."
"Go with God, Douglas, our son, brother and friend."
Ron returned to his seat.
The minister again stepped forward and pronounced the final benediction:
"Now unto Him who is able to keep you from falling, and present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen."
It was over.