THE AUTHOR (COMPLETED)

PROLOGUE

It was raining non-stop that day but none of that bothered me. I hated the cold breeze storms brought, but I loved when it rained. Perhaps, it’s because when it rains most of us stay at home, and that applies even to the busiest guy I’ve known.

Yes! My dad is indeed the most assiduous man I have ever known in my life and I often tell myself that I do not want to be like him in the future. I hated the fact that he merely spent time with us because a lot of his work needed to be done. My dad was the president and one of the founders of Peak Global Corporation, a company that is involved in electronics. At the moment, we were enjoying a warm meal and were discussing how I and my siblings performed in school when my dad received a call.

“Excuse me for a bit.” Dad stood up and went to an isolated area to discuss matters privately with the person who just called him. I never had any hints of what was happening nor had any bad impressions about anything. I never did… and that makes me feel really bad right now. I never knew of what my father was going through or even what was the reason why we didn’t see him more often. I just wished that somehow I could turn back the time and be more understanding.

After receiving the call, my father bid farewell to us. Dad never got to finish his meal but went straight to the garage to start his car and go somewhere else. I didn’t ask him where he was going, but I never thought that would be the last time I would hear anything from him.

Hours passed and my family didn’t have any clue what was happening until my mother received a call from our landline. After a few moments, my mom features turned blank as she dropped down on her knees. It bothered me because before today, I had never seen my mom expressionless. I approached and asked her what happened but she just stared blankly at me. She reached for my face and caressed my cheeks with her shaking hands. She looked at me intently before taking a deep breath. She quickly blurted out what changed my life- Big time!

“Your dad is dead Jake. He was shot today.”

*

Twelve years have passed but not even the smallest detail of what happened to my father has been forgotten. I can still imagine how the reporters had feasted on my father’s tragic death and how they came to analyze the reason in my father’s death.

My father was shot by an investor of the company. Investigations revealed that the corporation was actually at the brink of bankruptcy and the investor who shot my dad actually had the biggest shares in the company. The man blamed the failure on my father and not long after, decided to take my father’s life. He immediately committed suicide after he had done the crime. It pains me to think that we can never seek justice for my father’s death. It left a big hole in my heart; a wound that I don’t know if it will ever heal.

I do remember I often said that I wouldn’t like to be dead-busy like my father was but look how hard working I am right now. I’m even more active than how he was when he was still alive. I took my father’s position as president and did everything possible to save his company. It was difficult at first but I was so determined to do everything I could. In the end, all the hard work did pay off.

The company was indeed saved and right now we are at the top. People say I am a miracle maker, but I believed the pain of losing my dad made me go an extra mile. Now that I achieved saving what motivated me so much before, I landed back again to the point where I am looking for a reason to live.

“And now what Jake?” I often ask myself what happens next.

     I was hopeless…

I thought I didn’t need hope anyway, but I was wrong. Something happened to me that made me realize that I was actually looking for hope- that I was looking for life. I was looking for comfort and for answers.

My name is Jake Thomas and my story is one you have never heard of. My story will cause one to ask themselves: What is the most important thing I should consider first? Is it my dreams, my future or is it much more eternal than that?

Who knows, you might change your priorities after reading my story. So should I start? Flip the page if you want to continue but if you decide not to, then I pray that you won’t be bothered for not being able to continue reading this book.