The Illegals - Ep. 3
The Meeting
First encounter? Click here for episode 1
The warm embrace with Maria was a lifeline, pulling Elias from the suffocating grip of isolation. He could feel the tremor in her hands, a shared acknowledgment of the impossible world outside their sanctuary. As they separated, he looked around the circle of faces, now a little clearer in the weak light. Some were familiar from decades past, etched with the passage of time and worry; others were new, their eyes holding the same haunted look he knew was in his own.
Maria gently guided him to an empty folding chair, which scraped loudly against the concrete floor, the sound echoing in the stillness. A man, thin and gaunt with a long beard that Elias didn’t recognize, closed the meeting with the familiar 12-step closing. The old voice raspy but firm and sounded familiar. “Let’s hold hands.”
As the circle linked, Elias felt a warm and welcomed flow of connection, a current of shared humanity passing between them. Their hands were rough, calloused, some trembling slightly, but together they formed an unbroken chain.
“Keep coming back,” the man concluded, and a murmur of “It works if you work it” rippled through the group as they pumped their clasped hands in unison.
The formal part of the meeting ended, but no one moved to leave. Instead, a low hum of individual conversations began, hushed and cautious, like whispers in a library. Maria squeezed Elias’s arm, her eyes full of a quiet understanding.
“It’s been a long time, Elias,” she said, her voice barely audible over the murmur. “We worried about you. About everyone.”
He managed a weak smile. “I worried about all of you too. About what’s happening out there. It’s… it’s like nothing we’ve ever seen.” His voice cracked, the carefully constructed facade of composure beginning to crumble. “The silence. The cruelty. And now… martial law declared this morning.”
A collective gasp went through the small circle of people closest to them. Even in this sanctuary, the news hit like a physical blow. Some clearly hadn’t heard. A woman, her face pale, whispered, “It’s begun then.” They knew it was coming. Only a matter of time.
Maria nodded grimly. “We’ve been piecing things together from what we hear, what little news gets through all the BS. But martial law… that changes everything.” She looked at Elias, her gaze steady. “What made you come back tonight, Elias? Out of all times?”
He took a deep breath, the stale air of the basement suddenly heavy in his lungs. “Leo,” he confessed, the words a raw ache in his voice. “My son. He asked why we can’t play outside anymore. And I told him a lie, about a new flu going around. But then… then they announced martial law. And I looked at him, sleeping, and I realized. The “illegals” they’ve been bounty hunting… it’s not just who they say it is. It’s anyone who believes in real freedom, like this meeting. It’s you and me and anyone who hopes for it. And I knew I couldn’t fight that alone. It’s something that’s just too big, like addiction, or COVID. I remembered this place, and you. I remembered the fellowship.” He paused, his eyes glistening. “I needed to find people. I needed to remember what it felt like to be free of that angst, even if just for an hour, in a room like this. I wanted relief.”
Maria reached out, covering his hand with hers. “You’re not alone, Elias. None of us are. We’ve been trying to keep this going, in secret. It’s more than just the fellowship and loving your neighbor now. It’s… it’s a lifeline of authentic humanity in a world full of confusing lies.” She gestured around the room. “We’ve adapted. We help each other, not just with our personal struggles, but with navigating this. Like we’ve always done. Remember? It’s just like being in our various effed-up dysfunctional families. Her voice dropped to a near whisper. “The principles still apply, you know? Acceptance of what we cannot change. The courage to change what we can. And the wisdom to know the difference. It’s just that “what we can change” looks a little different these days.”
It was all too surreal for Elias.
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Episode 4 COMING SOON!