October 27th, 1956. Fred Turner has just finished his shift at his new job at McDonalds. He sits down and sips from his orange drink. A door opens and Ray Kroc walks in. Fred gets up and says, “Good evening, Mr. Kroc.”
Ray smiles at him, then says, “Can I talk to you, Fred?”
Fred nervously says, “Yes, sure. In the basement?”
Ray shakes his head, “No, Fred. Let’s take a walk.”
They walk out into the parking lot. One of the employees waves at them as he picks up trash. Ray walks in silence. Fred’s stomach is turning summer saults. He thinks to himself, “Am I going to be fired? And if so, why doesn’t he just come right out and tell me?” Fred tries to make small talk but every time, Ray just smiles at him and shakes his head. Then Ray starts to whistle as he turns on to a side road that leads into a park.
They walk deep into the woods. The sun has set. Fred wishes that he’d brought his jacket; it’s a cold Autumn night. Ray turns around and says, “You’re probably wondering why I brought you out here, Fred. It’s because I like ya. But I need people who I can trust. Can I trust you, Fred?”
Fred says, “Sure, Mr. Kroc. You can trust me.”
All of a sudden Ray Kroc’s face loses all expression. There’s an emptiness to it as if one was made of a marble tomb. Ray takes his hand, grabs his head and yanks really hard. He pulls his skin and clothes off and standing before Fred Turner, is a being made of golden light. Ray doesn’t talk anymore, at least not in the normal sense. When he says something to Fred, a little bit of golden light flows from him and touches Fred on the forehead. Everything Ray says to him is overwhelming. It’s like as if someone forced you to read an entire library in one hour.
Fred falls to the ground. And when he looks up, Ray looks the same in his suit and skin. He strokes Fred’s hair and cheek and then asks, “Can I trust you?”Fred bursts into tears and falls to his hands and knees before Ray Kroc. “Yes, Sri Kroc. You can trust me forever.”
