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Circle of Wholes
Length:
Other Books in Series:
Synopsis: Amanda McGee lives alone but she is not looking nor is she lonely. Her gift shop on well-traveled U.S. 1 along the coast of Maine, plus the family business managed by her son Jed, are distractions from being a divorced woman in her 50s. She is on the masthead of that business, the weekly Narraguagus Pilot community newspaper, as its president and publisher. The family name has been respected for decades.
A man traveling alone in a motor home stops at Amanda’s shop. In the morning, he promises to return. To Amanda’s distress, she realizes after they part that she doesn’t know the name of the widower who had spent the night in her king-sized bed. Over the next few days, Amanda recalls the hours she spent with the 50-something stranger – the dinner, the conversations, the dancing by the fireplace, the lovemaking – and we learn through the chapters that this is not an ordinary man, that the meeting is not a coincidence. And, in the days ahead, Amanda becomes aware that an arthritic hip joint is no longer causing her pain.
At the same time, Pilot reporter Erin Blanchet discovers that the local hospital has experienced a mysterious healing, the third miracle cure in about a year. An accident victim deemed near death awakes from his coma and asks for a Diet Pepsi on the rocks. The Pilot news story brings national media attention. As Erin continues to dig, trying through sources and investigation to discover the cause of the miracles, the leads point to a blood donor with the same type as the three miracle patients and to a group called the Circle of Wholes, which conducted meetings with a guest discussion leader named B.C. Nelson near the time of each miracle.
The Pilot’s staffers begin to examine their responsibilities in reporting “facts” about miracles and faith and religion, introducing the conflict that will come to a head later in the novel.
As promised, the man returns. His name is Benjamin. Their passion and emotion is more powerful than their first night. Amanda is reluctant to tell Ben that she loves him, but he surprises her in the morning by speaking the words she wanted to say. Amanda finds out more details about Ben and his life, but in musing about how to share the news of him with her family she realizes that her version of Ben’s resume would be inadequate for her son’s tough-reporter questions.
Erin’s digging involves one of her city sources, Paul Natale, who helps her with some computer software advice. Normally abrasive, Natale changes demeanor and Erin responds to his candor and his interest in developing a fresh-start type of relationship with her. As compensation for his help, Erin agrees to a long-standing invitation to go out. She combines the dinner date with an interview of the couple sponsoring the Circle of Wholes meetings, where it is confirmed that the group’s purpose is to present justification about spiritual healing and that Nelson, the discussion leader, is coming back to Maine. Natale pleads with Erin for the opportunity to attend a meeting. He shocks Erin with the announcement that he has prostate cancer. A life-altering operation is scheduled a few days hence. He seeks more options, more hope.
When Amanda gets involved with the Pilot investigation and she sees the facts assembled by the staff, she realizes the man they’re looking for is Ben. She fears what the revelation in the newspaper might mean to her reputation, and that of the Pilot. Her father had always preached full disclosure, to ensure the public’s trust. Jed would be obligated to acknowledge the intimate relationship in print. When Ben returns to Amanda’s house from a meeting in Rhode Island, he proposes marriage before their planned discussion – for which Amanda believes she already has the critical answers to all her questions.
Nevertheless, she accepts Ben’s proposal. Jed arrives at the house, interrupting an intimate scene in Ben’s motor home. When Jed is introduced to Ben, he is faced with two shocking revelations: His mother is engaged to someone he’s never met; and it is the man sought by the Pilot. His initial delight turns to suspicion, and he accuses Ben of trying to quash the story or to plant one with Amanda’s help.
Later, in Amanda’s den by the fireplace, Ben explains his role and motivation for being involved with the Circle of Wholes, the purpose of the group being enlightenment about the innate spiritual powers possessed by every human. Ben also airs his concern about the newspaper’s plan to publish the facts collected about the case. While the facts may be accurate, the story does not provide the readers an answer. Yes, Ben was a blood donor. But, he proclaims, he doesn’t know why transfusions of his blood might have effected miraculous healing. The medical establishment would scorn the story. Their lives would be a media circus, he predicts.
Amanda is determined to find a compromise between Ben’s drastic prognosis and the newspaper’s responsibility. And, she assures Ben, “we could always hit the road.” The next morning, Amanda informs Jed that the Pilot shall not publish a hard-news story unless Erin can prove a direct link between Ben’s donations and the patient’s transfusions. Ben agrees to a cell-phone interview with Erin while he and Amanda drive to eastern Maine to announce at his daughter’s home the engagement. On behalf of Erin, Jed asks if Ben will have time to conduct a Circle of Wholes meeting. Ben declines, citing his need to be in Delaware in a few days. Amanda decides to go with him.
In a fast-paced conclusion, Erin and Natale plan to intercept Ben on the way back through Narraguagus, a desperate plot based on what she has found out about B.C. Nelson, his motor home and his itinerary. Aided by a friend who can track cell-phone signals, Erin and Natale are frustrated by conflicting reports from the spotter. The confusion is caused by Ben being in Amanda’s car, not the motor home, and by their turning off the main road while Erin and Natale pass by. Ben and Amanda pick up his motor home and head out of state. Using deduction and the location-finder, Erin and Natale eventually catch up to the RV at a gas station. Erin pleads with Ben to share with Natale – riding in the motor home while Amanda drives the RV and she follows them on the interstate in Natale’s car – the Circle of Wholes presentation, so that Natale might make a better decision about whether he should undergo drastic surgery the next day. The plea implies that Erin and Natale wish to share a normal life together. Ben agrees; and, 90 miles later, Natale decides to postpone the surgery.
Jed proposes a new direction for the Pilot, acknowledging the inability of facts to explain the process of faith and miracles. With some help, Jed writes in the draft of an editorial, the newspaper will enlighten its readers on a ‘Page of Miracles.’ And, Jed discloses the pending marriage of his mother to Benjamin C. Nelson, the first contributor of an article for the page.
In Delaware, Amanda and Ben decide they can help Jed and the Pilot, and overcome whatever consequences they might face. In the night, lying close to each other, Amanda is aware of Ben’s hand on her hip. The warmth evokes a vague memory of their first night, his fingertips tucked inside the elastic of her panties, the heat of his palm.
“Ben," she says, muffled by the pillow. “You cured my hip.”
"Umhhh, no. I just prayed for you.”
“But that healed it. Without my having to think about it. You are a healer.”
“We all
are. If we want to be.”
After being mentored in the 1980s by a professional, whose credits included scripts for a prime-time television show, Warner enjoyed some attention from two agents and a Broadway producer. An award-winning screenplay was pitched to the major TV networks, but his big breakthrough was elusive and he accepted two more journalism gigs before deciding that a full-time effort was needed to write and to market his work. Since giving away all his neckties and unstrapping his wristwatch in August 2001, Warner has completed a novel (Circle of Wholes) and a feature-length screenplay (John Again). He has also updated and revised an earlier novel (Yours, Forever), and he is more than halfway finished with a new novel.
Earlier manuscripts scheduled to be dusted off, reviewed, and revised include four screenplays (Dove Creek, Yours, Forever, Fourth Quarter, and True Soldier) and two novels (Hotel Texas and Fort Mackenzie).
Warner’s metamorphosis from suits to shorts included some major down-sizing – from a three-bedroom house to a 33-foot RV motor home, from two closets to 15 hangers, from shoe tree to two pairs of Minnetonka loafers, from three walls of books to one cupboard shelf, and from an over-crowded computer desk to carry-along laptop. The RV’s navigator has been married to Warner for 39 years and continues to provide him inspiration for adaptability, perseverance, and love scenes.
Over cocktail chatter, Warner might be goaded into admitting his fondness for a few of life's necessities. Football. Beachcombing. Fiction writing. Grilled salmon filets. Sunsets at Cape May Point. Tanqueray and tonics on the rocks, stirred. Hammocks. Newspapers with two crossword puzzles. Jeopardy. Actresses named Hepburn. Celine Dion or Shania Twain. Mark Twain or Elmer Kelton. New-age gurus Dyer, Chopra and Wilde.
Since Dr. Chopra, Dr. Dyer, and Wilde are mentioned in the book’s acknowledgments, they might be interested in reading a first proof from the publisher or from my literary agent.
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NOTE: All material is copyright protected. No portion of this material may be copied or reproduced, either electronically, mechanically, or by any other means, for resale or distribution without the written consent of the author. All copy has been dated and registered with the American Society of Authors and Writers. Copyright 2007 by The Swetky Agency |
