Moments for the Heart

Hey Weekend Writing Warriors. I am leaning on my deep held belief I have always held that God never gives us more than we can handle. It seems I have ridden a roller coaster of emotions lately. I’m sorry to take you on this ride, buy you are family to me and I thank you for listening. This last week I got a call from my Nevada son’s mom that he was in the hospital. He had a couple of seizures. Long story short, he was diagnosed with Epilepsy. The same illness I have. As I type he is still hospitalized. They were about to release him but he was having hydration issues and did not want to release him until his kidneys were properly hydrated. Please keep him in your prayers.

As for writing, I keep plugging away at work and this novel’s edits as I can. It has been a busy week with work writing, but this is a good thing. I also have been chatting with Dylan via Messenger while he sits in a bed and answering Epilepsy questions. The distance is difficult. But thank God for social means of communication.


The Five Barred Gate is a Dystopian Suspense novel that takes place about 20 years after the events after the first novel. It surrounds the life of Michael, Jacob’s son. He faces the same, but different challenges his father faced. Times are much more difficult. I am excited to revisit this world. I love my characters and getting to revisit the Dystopian genre. You can catch up with past entries here.

SYNOPSIS:

Still working on a full synopsis:

Michael Andrews is Jacob’s son. He is now the main character. His wife has been arrested for talking to someone on her trip to the store about God. Now he must find a way to fight for her release and raise their twins. He has the help of Rachel’s grandfather Frank Dunham, his parents, and a supportive attorney that will do their best to protect Rachel. But they must fight Federal and local laws that are even more strict than what his father had to deal with. They must also struggle with a corrupt accuser and an old family adversary to ensure justice is served and Rachel is able to come home to her family.

>>>If you are curious about the first novels snippets, I have them archived: Here is a link to them if you want to read up on The Fiver Barred Gate <<<

SNIPPET:

Summary:
In last week’s snippet we left off with Michael finding out his dad was not so crazy as he had seemed. Both he and his grandfather-in-law has seen these mysterious vehicles. You can catch up with last weeks snippet here.

—First, here is a the tail end of last week:

Michael just watched as the two confirmed their past confrontations with Officials and the hidden plants that everyone seems to know about that everyone else seems to say don’t exist. Jacob repeated his encounter with the two Denali’s, which appeared to interest Frank; now, Michael wasn’t sure, but the tone of the voice changed when Jacob mentioned it. Michael’s head turned as his father’s head continued to bob.

Jacob ended his call and released a long exhale, then swung in his chair toward his son. “Frank says he’s seen the two Denali’s as well.”

This week we pick up right were we left off. Jacob had gotten off the phone with Frank Dunham and confirmed that they both had seen the mysterious SUVs. The same type that had haunted them 20 years earlier.

“Wait. What?” Michael asked, almost slipping out of his chair.

“Yeah. He said he was at The Original Dunham’s about a week ago. He was closing up and heard the humming of engines. He turned around and saw two pickups sitting in the next lot. They were far away so he can’t be sure. He’s eighty now. He said with his poor eyesight and they were gone before he could get a better look, he didn’t say anything. But with me saying something and seeing them up close, now he not so sure.”

“That is insane….”

“No kidding. “

::There is your ten (or so). Here is a bit more to complete the thought.::

Michael sat, considering what his father had been saying. Could there be some reality to it? What if these trucks were in the area? What if both he and Frank have seen them? What if… “Rachel!!!” Michael said, standing.

“Relax, Michael.” Jacob stood and held his son back. “We don’t know for sure if they have anything to do with this.”

“But you said—”

“All I said was that it was possible,” Jacob said, pointing back to the chairs. “We need to do some research before we jump to conclusions. We just confirmed we’ve seen Denali’s in multiple places. That’s a step.”

“We need to do something for Rachel.”

“And we will. We have to go about this the right way. If we go off half-cocked, all that will happen is get people hurt or imprisoned like she is. This isn’t like it was back then. You can’t get away with opening your mouth and saying she is innocent without solid proof. You can’t call out an arresting officer, much less an Official. Trust me, I know.” Jacob said, rubbing the scar on his cheek.

Michael exhaled, lowering his shoulders. “Okay, what’s our next step?”

It would be easy for them to start pointing fingers. Everything seems to be going that direction. But caution must be taken. Jacob knows all about it. His previous encounter with the SUVs still haunt him. It was the reason Michael doubted his father’s encounter in the first place. But now, things are different. But now, Jacob was the one expressing caution. We shall see if it is warranted. Stay tuned, friends.

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Monday is Memory Monday
We remember an important event that occurred on that Monday or sometime that week.

Tuesday is Two Twenty-Two Tuesday
A weekly vlog where I talk about writing or something that’s been on my heart, all in two minutes and twenty-two seconds. — I am way behind on this… sorry.
This is posted on my YouTube channel.

Wednesday is when I post my blog for the week.
I speak from my heart on various topics from writing to faith.

Thursday is This or That Thursday
A weekly two-option poll that raises the question, do you like this, or do you prefer that?
I host this on this on Twitter, IG, and Facebook.

Friday is Fun Fact Friday
I find and share interesting or obscure facts on my pages.

Saturday is for Weekend Writing Warriors
Saturday is for Snippets from a current piece or past work.

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THIS WEEK’S WRAP-UP

THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT:
Thanks for reading this week. And for your continued support.

What a busy writing week. Been writing jobs back to back. It feels good to be busy. Now to dive back into it all. Until next week, y’all.

Catch up with everything. My latest blog written, and a recent vlog. They are a bit outdated, but if you haven’t seen them, they are good to go for you.

Here’s to living the dream. God bless Writing Warriors!!

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In His Exciting Service,

Jeff S. Bray

Check out amazing established and emerging writers at Weekend Writing Warriors. Each week we post new snippets from either published works or works in progress for each other to comment on. Gain insight into how the mind of a writer works and a behind-the-scenes look at works before they hit bookstands everywhere.

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