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    Gene Therapy
    Gene Therapy
    Gene Therapy
    Ebook105 pages1 hour

    Gene Therapy

    By Lanny Smith

    ()

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    About this ebook

    "Who says God doesn't have a sense of humor?"

    When a young wife finds her husband in a compromising situation with another woman, she leaves him—that night! Against her better judgment, she and her female cousin visit a...(wait for it)...comedy club. There they meet a strange and somewhat quirky comedian named Gene.
    After watching Gene's "incredibly unique" act, the women invite him to their table. What happens next is a continuation of unusual events bordering on the supernatural that rock their world!
    Gene has a profound effect on the women. He challenges them to face up to some dark, hidden truths. Will this woman give love a second chance or will she continue along her present—and potentially dangerous—path?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherLanny Smith
    Release dateSep 19, 2015
    ISBN9781310523922
    Gene Therapy
    Author

    Lanny Smith

    Lanny Smith is a Christian high school teacher, a former "Class B+" surfer and a veteran of the U. S. Air Force. He lives with his wife and one of his three children in Jacksonville, Florida.

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      Book preview

      Gene Therapy - Lanny Smith

      G E N E

      T H E R A P Y

      Who says God doesn’t have a sense of humor?

      L A N N Y S M I T H

      ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

      Smashwords Edition

      Gene Therapy

      Copyright 2015 by Lanny Smith

      Cover Design by Laura Shinn Designs

      http://LauraShinn.yolasite.com

      All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the publisher except as provided by USA copyright law.

      Library of Congress Control Number:

      ISBN: 9781310523922

      This novella is a work of fiction. Names, descriptions, entities, businesses, organizations and incidents included in the story are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, entities and events is entirely coincidental.

      DEDICATION

      This novella is for Him. I hope He approves of it.

      Secondly, I want to thank my wife and my family for putting up with me as I worked on this story. I truly appreciate your patience and support!

      Raves to the wonderful people who helped me get this completed, published and into the hands of those who might benefit from it. I would specifically like to acknowledge Emily Carmain. Her proofreading and editorial skills are awesome! Thanks also to Laura Shinn for her wonderful cover and advice.

      This story is for marrieds and couples who have struggled and are struggling in their relationships. This story might bring to light any explosive issues before they go nuclear.

      If you and your significant other should ever find yourself in a similar situation, please give love a second chance—because you were never made to quit!

      LANNY SMITH

      — Jacksonville, Florida

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      Prologue

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      Chapter 9

      Chapter 10

      Epilogue

      About the Author

      Prologue

      The Mendez Home (1990)

      Another battle zone at the Mendez home—tonight they were at it again! Verbal bombs flew all over the place. Eight-year-old Ali Mendez jumped up from her place at the table and scurried to her hideaway behind the stairs. Her parents were bickering fiercely and she couldn’t take it anymore. She covered her ears to block out the yelling. She didn’t want to hear any of it. Hearing would lead to listening. Listening might get her thinking: Thinking about choosing—one over the other—something she could never bring herself to do. Tears trickled down her cheeks. She wiped them away with her sleeve.

      "Please, please stop," she whispered repeatedly. Ali hoped that saying it might actually cause them to stop. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. She would chant this over and over when she was in her safe place but she could never ask this directly of her parents.

      Ali didn’t really know why they were arguing. She only heard lots of mean words and phrases such as, liar, or you’re a loser, just stop it or it’s your fault!

      These conflicts were a nightly ritual at the Mendez home. It generally started just before dinner. Ali knew the routine well. She could always sense when another bout was coming on. Their words started off pleasant enough, then changed in tone, frequency, and eventually became cruel. The conversation would inevitably devolve into a shouting match. This steady back and forth usually didn’t last very long, but the pattern was the same—and the shouts always escalated. Ultimately, one or both parents would leave the room.

      Ali did her best to endure these skirmishes, waiting for that walk away moment. But on most occasions, she didn’t walk away—she ran from the dining room. She figured that if she stayed hidden at her safe place behind the stairs or in her room for a spell, then the end would be in sight. They’d get tired and that would be her cue. The challenge was to find something to do to pass the time, and to drown out the noise. If they kept at it, she would abandon her safe place and sneak up to her room. She would monitor the sounds of the arguments from there. If things died down, she would sneak back down to the living room and turn on the television set.

      Television shows were welcome distractions. She preferred comedies and family shows. Sometimes the programs she watched had characters who argued. These characters, for the most part, eventually worked things out, especially as the show came to a close. It seemed amazing that many disputes could be ironed out in a half-hour or hour time period. The arguments between the television characters never mattered to Ali. She knew what to expect by the end of the show.

      Ali especially enjoyed slapstick comedy. When someone stumbled or accidentally bumped into someone else, it never failed to make her laugh. And when she heard someone drag out some really dumb phrase like "one…more…time," that always tickled her funny bone.

      Sometimes one parent would join her—sometimes both. At times, she feared that her mom and dad would pick up tips from the television characters as they argued. If the living room remained quiet, that would be a good sign. The longer the silence, the better—for all of them. It would be as if nothing had ever happened earlier that evening. Television show arguments were acceptable; a live performance in their home was not!

      Tonight, she noticed that the shouts had diminished. Her parents were winding down for the evening. She got up from the safety of her hideaway. Ali’s plan was to creep up to her bedroom to give them just a few extra moments for good measure. She would check on them from her room by leaving her door ajar and when the time was right, she’d come back down. She knew how to play this game well.

      She wiped her eyes again. As she headed to her room, she heard one more round of hurtful words that caused her to freeze. Tonight was different. These were different words bandied about—words she had never heard before.

      "I’m tired of living like this!"

      "Whaatt? What do you mean—what are you trying to say?"

      There was another lull in the shouting. Ali could always expect to hear one final jab from either of them after a lull. This time there were no follow-up shouts. She

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