Page 26 of Vespertine

“Maybe, unless you genuinely regret the choice you made andyou want to undo it.”

Jasper laughed softly. “No, I couldn’t ignore God’s call anymore than I could ignore going hungry. The Lord knows I tried. I just wish I’dtold Nicky sooner.”

“You made a mistake. That doesn’t mean you’re responsiblefor every choice he’s made in the seventeen years since. Pray for him, and foryourself, and I’ll pray for you both. Now eat your whoopie pie or I’ll getreally worried.”

When Jasper walked Thomas back to the front door they passedthe storage room with the unpacked boxes of safe sex kits sitting in front ofit. “These,” Thomas softly said, “will have to go.”

“Thomas, these kids—”

“Are underage, above anything else.”

“Some of them come off the streets, Thomas. They’ve seen andbeen through more than you and I combined.”

Thomas was shaking his head. “You know the Church’s stanceon contraceptives, Father.”

Jasper clenched his fists. “Even the Pope acknowledgedbanning condoms in this day and age is madness!”

“He said condoms should be used as a last resort. Thatfidelity should be paramount within a marriage, and abstinence should bepracticed outside of one. The condom represents the dangerous attitude that sexhas nothing to do with love and is just another drug people are using. There isno room for interpretation. They have to go.”

Jasper gritted his teeth. “We set aside so many of what weconsider cultural commands that are now outdated.” He waved a hand at theboxes. “This is maybe the most important one of all. It’s for the kids’protection. I will not get rid of them.”

Thomas rose to his full height, which was stillconsiderable. “You go too far. This is not my choice, nor is it yours. Thereare rules in our world and we obey them, whether we agree with them or not.Tread carefully, son. You’re already on precarious ground.”

Jasper wanted to yell, but he took a deep breath and let itout slowly. “At least let me hand these out. It would be a waste to throw themaway.”

“But you’re not ordering new ones. If the archbishop findsout this is what you spend your money on he’ll shut you down without blinking.”

“All right.” Aggrieved they were about to part ways on suchrocky ground, Jasper reached for Thomas’s hand. He could find other ways toprovide these kids with condoms. “Thank you,” he said sincerely, and Thomas’sfeatures softened.

“You only have these kids’ best interests at heart.” Thomasgave Jasper’s hand an extra squeeze, as if to emphasize his words. “But somebattles you can’t fight, Jasper.”

“I know.”

After Thomas left, Jasper retreated back to the office. Hesat staring at the blank computer screen, mind churning with a dozen differentthings before he pushed all but one of them from his mind. He picked up thephone and dialed.

“Blumfeld and Morgan Corporate Law, this is Lindsay. How mayI help you?”

“Hello Lindsay, this is Father Hendricks. Is Mr. Blumfeldavailable?”

“I’m sorry, Father. He’s not. Is there anything I can helpyou with?”

He chewed his lip. “How about Lucas? Is he around?”

“Yes, he is,” Lindsay said cheerfully. “I’ll put youthrough.”

Jasper listened to a classical tune until it was interruptedby a click. “All right, all right, I’ll come to church on Sunday.”

Jasper laughed. “Can I have that in writing?”

“Uh, probably not. What can I do for you, Father?”

“I really need to talk to Adrian and I thought I stood abetter chance with you telling me where I can get a hold of him.”

“He’s actually working from home today. He told me to callhim if anything urgent came up. What’s going on?”

Jasper thought for a second. On the one hand he knew withouta doubt he could trust Lucas, but on the other hand Lucas held a specialaffinity with Blue Oasis and telling him it might lose the queer identity wouldbe very upsetting to him. “I just need to go over some contractual stuffregarding the lease of the school.” It wasn’t a lie. “It’s not particularlyurgent but I’d like to get it off my plate sooner rather than later.”

“Oh yeah, of course. Let me give him a call and ask if hecan see you later. Maybe meet for lunch?”