Modesto?”
“It’s his home court. As to what he wants, I’m not certain, but he must have discovered I’ve been given the assignment to draft a constitution. He knows my stance because we debated the issue during the election-well, sort of debated. We were on the same podium, and questions were thrown at both of us.”
“Dan, if he doesn’t already know who I am or what I do, I’d prefer to keep it that way.”
“Understood. At least he’s chosen to meet us on relatively neutral ground. Modesto has this wonderful tradition of summer concerts in the park. They have a completely amateur band, usually about a hundred members or so, and every Thursday for six weeks in the summer they provide an open-air concert. When I was a young boy, my father lived in Modesto, and each year when I went to spend the summer with him we’d attend these concerts, although I was more interested in the playground equipment and snow cones than the music.”
“Boston Pops comes to Modesto,” Nicole said.
“You could say that, but maybe not quite so formal.”
About forty-five minutes past Stockton, Dan pulled off Highway 99 and headed for downtown Modesto, where he found parking more difficult than he’d anticipated. They ended up parking about two blocks away and walking to the amphitheater. They passed hundreds of people who were already lying on blankets on the grass, their small hibachis smoking and picnics in process, ranging from buckets of KFC to barbecued ribs. The semicircular stands had blankets draped over whole sections of seats in a sort of honor system for reservations.
Dan spotted Senator Turner center left, down front, and led Nicole to the politician. Turner saw him approaching across the crowd and stood, smiling broadly as he shook hands with people who were filtering through his row toward their own seats.
“Assemblyman Daniel Rawlings,” Turner said, somewhat officially, “welcome to Modesto. Let me introduce you to our esteemed mayor. Steve La Barbera, meet Daniel Rawlings, one of our newest state legislators, from Yolo County, and, of course, one of California’s newest authors.”
“Of course.” Mayor La Barbera smiled. “A great read, Mr. Rawlings. But as you well know, Stanislaus County offers all the wonderful benefits you extol for Yolo County in
Mayor La Barbera was a tall, trim man with a full beard and thick hair, both of which were fully gray. He was quite distinguished-looking and from initial impressions, cordial. To be expected, Dan thought, in a political role.
“I’m sure it does, Mayor. Perhaps I’ll have to broaden my horizons for my next effort. Let me introduce Nicole Bentley. Ms. Bentley graciously accepted my invitation to come down to hear the famous summer concert series in the park. Coming from New England, she’s looking forward to a West Coast Boston Pops special.”
Turner and the mayor greeted Nicole, who remained silent, but smiled pleasantly.
“Well, when you start your next novel, you come on down, son,” the mayor said, “and we’ll convert you to the merits of our lovely valley. I understand you and the senator have some light business. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll just go greet a few of the guests we’ve invited tonight.”
“Certainly, Mayor,” Dan replied. “It was a great pleasure meeting you, sir.”
“Thank you, Mr. Rawlings. Malcolm, I’ll see you in a few minutes. You’ve got your fire and brimstone ready for the crowd, I presume?”
“Just a little hometown talk, Steve, nothing more,” Turner said, at which La Barbera laughed.
“Malcolm, if John Phillip Sousa can’t stir ’em up tonight, I know I can count on you. I’ll see you later, Mr. Rawlings. Very nice to meet you, Ms. Bentley.”
Turner gestured to the bench, and Dan and Nicole joined the senator as he resumed his seat.
“It was good of you to invite us tonight, Senator. I’ve had the pleasure of attending these concerts before, some years ago, but Nicole hasn’t. I hope you don’t mind my extending the invitation to her this evening.”
Turner glanced admiringly at Nicole. “Mr. Rawlings, I’d have been disappointed in you if you hadn’t taken the opportunity to promote our central California traditions. Ms. Bentley, you’re most welcome.”
“Thank you, Senator,” Nicole replied. “It really is lovely outside this evening.”
“Senator,” Dan said, “how can I be of assistance?”
“All in good time, my boy, all in good time. This is an evening for enjoyment, and I merely wanted you to catch the flavor, or perhaps the fervor, of our local residents. We’re all staunchly supportive of the movement, you know,” Turner said, glancing around the rapidly filling stadium. “Notice anything unusual, Dan?”
Upon entering the circular amphitheater, Dan had immediately noticed the presence of hundreds of California bear flags, as opposed to the American flags the concert attendees had traditionally carried over the years.
“A bit more nationalism perhaps, Senator.”
“Exactly, son. Exactly my point. Now, you’ve got a wonderful opportunity in front of you for such a young assemblyman. Would that I could start my career over again with such a promising future.”
“Senator, it’s not really-”
“Don’t make light of it, son,” Turner interrupted. “Your name will go down in history. Your family has played a significant part in the formation of both the nation and the state. If my sources are right, that illustrious group of ancestors includes the William Whipple you wrote about in your novel. He’s actually your sixth or seventh great- grandfather, isn’t he? And an original signer of the Declaration of Independence? They were traitors, you know, all those folk who signed that document. But once they had succeeded in their objective, they became patriots. And now you, Mr. Rawlings, have the opportunity to take your place among your family lineage at the forefront of history. Quite a privilege.”
Dan glanced briefly at Nicole, for whom Turner’s revelation that Dan was related to a signer of the Declaration of Independence was news.
They were joined again by Mayor La Barbera, and all sat watching the band, which was assembling on stage. The conductor appeared on stage, eliciting a large ovation from the crowd, who assembled to enjoy not only an evening of music but also gathered in anticipation of some political fireworks-something Senator Malcolm Turner had promised in the news releases he had made available to the local media for several days prior to the concert.
For the next forty-five minutes, the band played a number of light classical selections, march music, and show tunes, with an emphasis on California history. The entire program had the effect of heightening the mood of the crowd. Following a moving rendition of “Goin’ Home,” from Dvorak’s New World Symphony, the conductor announced that immediately following the next number, the band would pause for intermission and Mayor La Barbera would say a few words. A rousing Sousa march brought the first half of the concert to an end, at which point Steve La Barbera took the stand as the band departed the stage.
“Evening all,” La Barbera said in a casual, down-home manner, to a smattering of applause. “Earlier this afternoon, I took some time to stroll the downtown area, ‘kicking tires,’ so to speak, and who do you think I discovered? Well, I had thought that our national interests were being protected by our esteemed congressional representatives on the job back East, but I bumped into none other than Senator Malcolm Turner. Yep, right here in Modesto. Now for those of you who don’t know Senator Turner-” La Barbera paused, smiled at Turner, and scanned the audience. “Well, maybe there’re none of those here tonight,” he said to a round of laughter. “He does come home once in awhile to check in and get his marching orders before we send him back to the jungle in Washington. But we’ve got him tonight, and given the developing events in our great new nation, I think we ought to hear a few words from him. What do you think?” he said, raising his arms toward the sky to elicit response from the crowd.
A section of the audience, comprised mostly of men seemingly unified in their intention, immediately rose to their feet, applauding loudly and whistling.
Nicole took Dan’s hand and leaning into him, whispered, “Well orchestrated, as any good concert should be.” Dan just smiled and squeezed her hand.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” La Barbera announced, “I give you Senator Malcolm Turner.”
As Turner waited for the applause to die down, he smiled and shook the mayor’s hand, gesturing to the audience to please hold down their accolades. As the noise finally subsided, Turner moved to the microphone.
“Fellow Modestans, Stanislaus County residents, and guests, I didn’t come here to speak to you tonight in any formal manner, but given the import of events in which we find ourselves, I just want you to know how proud I am to be from Modesto. How proud I am of my heritage and the values my father taught me as I was raised on a
