The door was still open. The last time Brian Yorke and Randy Groh were at apartment #55 in the apartment complex on West Ave, they had kicked the door in and sought for Darwyn Musad, intent on ending his life.
It never happened.
The two Albany policemen didn’t find him, and so they had left. Yorke, however, later returned because he felt he had some unfinished business to take care of. He knew the terrorist had been there and was hopeful to find a clue as to where he was now.
And what of the agent who lived there?
Yorke held a picture in his hand of a smiling little girl in between her parents. The photo was of the Barrington family. They looked like a decent family he decided as he set the picture down onto the stand where he had picked it up from. He couldn’t help but wonder if they were among the missing.
He looked around the living room, hoping to spot something that would help him with his personal quest. He suddenly realized there weren’t any clues left behind that could help him at all. If he was going to take care of the problem, he had to find out where the terrorist and the agent went and there was only one way to do that. One option was all he had.
He had to go to the Federal Building downtown and ask for Albert Barrington.
* * * * * * *
Director Darren T. Fuller ran his hands through his hair and shook his head at the atrocities on the monitor of William Fronk’s computer. He was almost devastated by what he had seen and knew that it was only a small portion of what was going on in his country since the attack. It could only be worst than he ever imagined it to be. It was nearly enough to make him lose hope but he refused to give in to that impulse. He believed his God was bigger than any of this and would continue to cling to the hope He had until he drew his last breath.
Until the day of Armageddon.
But until then, he prayed for his faith to become stronger.
Since America had been attacked, terrorist cells have been activated and innocent Americans were being killed. In some places, the terrorists found ways to film the atrocities and put their evil deeds online for all the world to see. They were in every major city. All branches of the US Military were on the job, risking their necks to restore freedom back to the country, but a few cells were still unchallenged as they continued to reek mayhem while they could.
One clear conclusion was this…America would never be the same again.
Fuller was angry.
For years, many have believed the Islamic terrorists have been infiltrating into the United States with the simple goal of increasing their numbers so they could attack the country from within. Now it only proved that those assumptions were correct. The enemy had accomplished what they set out to do. And the war was still being waged across the entire United States.
But Tristian Salvadori was still at work in Israel, pushing the peace treaty with the Holy Land and with the Islamic nations. Fuller wanted to believe the man couldn’t pull such a thing off, but he also knew that the Bible predicted clearly that the Antichrist would not only pull if off…but he would also later break the treaty. The question was…if the treaty went into effect, how would that affect America?
A question came to his mind about the confrontation he had had with Ed Carr recently. The head of the Justice Department had brought up a name. Judas Hannah. Fuller wondered who Judas Hannah was and he had to remind himself to look into it at a later date. At the moment, he was trying to come to terms with what William Fronk was showing him on the computer.
The atrocities were bad…but then there was the latest.
Just as Fuller had expected, the Treaty was going to be signed. The President of Israel and the Presidents of the terrorist countries were going to join Salvadori in Jerusalem to sign the peace treaty. It was going to happen. Within the next few days, it was going to be done.
William Fronk had already discovered proof of this. He sat in front of the computer, leaning forward. He had on a black t-shirt and on the front of the shirt was this; “Light travels faster than sound.” Then, on the back of his shirt were the words; “That’s why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.” In spite of his odd humor, Fronk was serious when he told Fuller of his discoveries.
“The atrocities perpetrated by the terrorists,” he began as Fuller stared at the computer, “have gone down by eighty percent.” He paused as he looked up at Fuller to watch his reactions. “Evidence of this clearly shows that they’re falling back and the only reason I can see for this is because of the treaty which is going to be signed in a few days.”
“Then, there really is no doubt.” Fuller let out a weary sigh. “Tristian Salvadori is the Antichrist.”
Fronk nodded. “It would seem so.”
Marc Shiva, who had been standing by the door so that no one would enter to disturb them, shook his head and leaned back against it. “But…I don’t get it. Why would the terrorists stop their attacks based on the upcoming treaty signing? It doesn’t make sense to me. How could that affect them?”
Fuller paused as he considered Shiva’s question. “Marc, all I can tell you is there is some connection between the Islamic nation and the Antichrist. I haven’t a clue as to how it is tied together according to prophecy, but just the fact that the attacks are beginning to cease is an indication of a clear connection. According to David, covenant breaking is nothing new in Islam. Muhammed, the prophet of Islam, even said, ‘There is no covenant with unbelievers.’ And also according to David, the Antichrist is known as Mahdi to the Islamic people. All we can be sure of is that the treaty in Israel will not be honored for Tristian Salvadori will break it himself.”
“So he’s making a covenant he doesn’t intend to keep.”
“That’s the truth of it.”
Shiva shook his head again but didn’t make another comment.
Fronk turned to look at Fuller. “What’s your plan, Skipper?”
Fuller let out a sigh. “Well, the three of us are going on a trip to Corinth.”
Fronk pursed his lips and made a humming noise. Then, he said, “Ah, no. I don’t think so.”
Fuller and Shiva exchanged looks. “Excuse me?” Fuller responded. “Do you want me to make it an order?”
“I like jalapeno’s and Nestlé’s chocolate chips on my pizza if that’s what you’re going to order.” Fronk regarded him suspiciously. “Hey…the city is still without power, Skipper. There aren’t any pizza shops anywhere out there that are open unless they’re just giving out uncooked pizza.”
Fuller shook his head. “William…no one is ordering pizza. But I will order you to accompany myself and Marc to Corinth. We have some unfinished business to attend to.”
Fronk swiveled about in his chair to look up at Fuller. “No can do, Skipper. Really. I must remain, for I am in the midst of a mighty relentless project, to which if I leave it now could prove to be disastrous. Therefore, I must sadly and boldly decline your order to take this little field trip to Corinth.” He winked up at him. “Though I really do appreciate your efforts.”
Shiva shook his head at Fronk’s tenacity. No one spoke to the Director like Fronk did and got away with it…except for Fronk.
Fuller paused as he regarded the Crazy Man. “What project are you working on, William?”
Fronk paused for affect. “It’s a surprise.”
“You know I don’t like surprises.”
“You’ll like this one.”
“What makes you so sure I’ll like this one?”
Fronk suddenly grinned like a mad man as he leaned forward for affect. He winked conspiratorially. “Because it will make Ed Carr very mad.” He rubbed his hands and mimicked the Popeye laugh.
Fuller and Shiva exchanged glances.
Shiva shrugged. “Hey, if what Crazy Man is up to ticks off Carr, how bad can it be, right?”
Fuller looked at Fronk. “You’d better be careful. Whatever it is you’re up to had better be good, because Ed Carr will not stand still for your pranks.”
Fronk shook his head. “Oh, it isn’t a prank, Skipper. Not really.” He suddenly chuckled. “Okay…there are some prank-like qualities in the end result, but still… Ultimately it will benefit a lot of people.” He shook his head. “It just won’t benefit the Kissing Bandit.”
Shiva frowned. “The…Kissing Bandit?”
“Oh, the man who likes to think he leads the Justice Department has a reputation of being a ladies man…At least in his mind, he does. You know, some people like that have to lead some type of a delusional kind of life. And Carr fits that bill to the decimal. The truth of the matter is if you see him with a woman on his arm, chances are he‘s blackmailing her to be there by his side. Whoever the unlucky lady may be.” Fronk twirled a finger around his right ear. “Looney toons if you ask me.”
“Are you serious?”
Fuller nodded. “He is.”
“Well, how does a man like that get to be in power over a government agency?”
“He has friends.”
Shiva shook his head. “What is this world coming to?”
Fronk looked up as Fuller and Shiva headed for the door. “I thought we had established that this world is coming to an end in favor of a new one.”
* * * * * * *
It had all happened so sudden and so fast. No one saw it coming. The man who was one of the President’s top secret service agents simply snapped and went ballistic. The helicopter door was open and there was a woman with two of America’s enemies. Therefore it was only fair to assume she was also the enemy.
Maybe they all were.
They were all traitors to the country and McLaughlin intended to make them pay.
Staci was about to help King with getting Sumter out of the Storm Breaker. Bandjough was ready to exit the cockpit also intending to offer assistance as LeBeau shut the engines down. None of them expected the hailstorm of bullets that suddenly and abruptly came their way.
Staci reflexively lowered herself over her patient, shielding him with her body. King was about to do the same in an attempt to shield her but he suddenly fell and disappeared from her view.
“David!” Staci exclaimed, fearing for his life.
Bullets sailed over her and thunked hard into the interior of the helicopter where she was standing only seconds before. She stayed low over Sumter, praying for God to intervene and save them.
LeBeau and Bandjough ducked low in the cockpit.
“I am sick and tired of people shootin’ at me!” LeBeau exclaimed as he looked out toward the shooter. He knew the windows were bullet proof but that was not always comforting when the bullets struck. This time, however, the bullets were not even hitting the windows for the man who was shooting at them was aiming for the inside where Staci, King and Sumter were unprotected.
With determination, he withdrew his own weapon from the holster at his hip. “That man is goin’ down!” he shouted as he made a move toward the cockpit exit. He poked his head around the corner and leveled his gun toward the shooter.
McLaughlin ejected the empty clip and reached for another one.
LeBeau leveled his gun right for the man, intending to take him down as he reloaded. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, Albert Barrington came out of nowhere and slammed hard into the man. LeBeau let out a deep breath and quickly lowered his gun, realizing how close he came to putting a bullet into a friend.
“This job is not good for my nerves!” he shouted at no one in particular.
Barrington managed to tackle the big secret service agent to the ground, but the struggle only just began. McLaughlin slammed his elbow right into the side of Barrington’s head and used his weight to force him face first into the ground. Barrington struggled to get back up on top but was finding it difficult as grass and dirt met his face.
McLaughlin was a powerhouse. The man was not only trained to do his job well, but he was also angry. That rage was what fed the man more determination to kill his enemies. Barrington was beginning to find it difficult to breathe and time seemed to drag on as he realized McLaughlin had the upper hand. The secret service agent was having no trouble at all pinning him face first into the ground. Barrington tried to push the man and even tried to dig at his face, but he had no leverage whatsoever.
Just when he thought he was going to pass out from lack of oxygen, the weight was suddenly shifted off from him and he found he could breathe again. He pulled himself up off the ground and as he gasped for air, he looked for McLaughlin. He found him with his back up against the front of the cockpit. John Saint and Moore were having a hard time holding him there. They did, however, have help. Erin Greye was right in front of McLaughlin, yelling into his face.
“Stop it!” the blonde-haired ATD agent shouted, her face inches in front of McLaughlin’s own.
McLaughlin glared at her as he flexed his muscles and prepared to toss both Moore and Saint to the ground. He could do it, too, and everyone knew it.
Erin slapped him hard in the face. “I said stop it! Now!”
Whether it was the slap in the face or something else, McLaughlin stopped moving and took a deep breath. “Get off of me,” he growled.
Moore, who was trying to keep his breath, patted him on the shoulder. “Now, son…we’re just trying…to help.”
McLaughlin glared at him.
Moore let go and stepped back. Saint did the same.
Erin, however, remained where she was, glaring back at the secret service agent. “Are you going to behave?” she demanded.
McLaughlin looked behind here where he saw Barrington slowly approaching. Barrington had his gun in his hand, but it was pointed at the ground.
“Hey!” Erin shouted. “I just asked you a question.”
McLaughlin turned to look at her. “Is the traitor going to shoot me?”
Barrington stopped. “I’m not a traitor.”
“There are no traitor’s here,” Erin tried to assure McLaughlin. “There are only people who have chosen sides.” She pointed at him. “You just haven’t decided yet.”
McLaughlin scowled. “You’re all traitors.” He turned his head, trying to look into the Storm Breaker. “I just hope I killed the terrorists you brought here.”
Saint and Erin moved toward the opening of the helicopter while Barrington and Moore remained where they were. They exchanged worried looks.
McLaughlin glared at Barrington. “You’d better be prepared to shoot me because if you don’t, I’ll kill you.”
“Now, son,” Moore began cautiously, “you don’t know what’s going on here yet to make any rash decisions.”
“Rash decisions?!” McLaughlin looked at Moore as if he were insane. “There is a terrorist and a man who tried to kill the President of the United States of America in this chopper and you’re telling me not to make rash decisions? Are you out of your mind? Am I the only one seeing this?”
“No. I just happen to know there is more going on between the lines than you realize.”
“You used to be one of the best, Pa. You used to be one of the President’s men. A secret service agent! What happened to you? You have to know that these people are the enemy of our country.”
Moore shook his head. “No, they’re not.”
Barrington also shook his head. He understood that McLaughlin was angry but he didn‘t like anyone calling him a traitor to his country. “I’m sorry you can’t understand what’s really going on here, but I’m not going to stand here and listen to you call me a traitor. This is my country, too.” He paused. “And Pa is right. You should listen to him. There really is more at stake than you know.” He leveled his gun at McLaughlin’s head. “But I’m not taking any chances with you. Turn around and put your hands behind your back.” With his free hand, he removed a pair of handcuffs from his belt.
Moore frowned. “Now I really don’t believe those are necessary.”
Barrington ignored him.
McLaughlin shrugged. “It’s alright, Pa. For the moment.” Slowly he turned around.
Barrington didn’t feel any better once he had McLaughlin in handcuffs. There were two problems he still had to deal with. He had to know that King, Staci and Sumter were alright…And he had to do something about Charles McLaughlin.
* * * * * * *
Donna Perkins and Chris Saint had wisely kept their distance throughout the entire incident, but when they saw that Barrington and Moore had McLaughlin in custody, they began to make their approach. They headed for the open door of the Storm Breaker where Saint and Erin were.
Staci straightened as she looked over Sumter to where King was before the shooting began. “David!” she called.
A hand raised up. “I’m here.”
Saint grabbed a hold of King’s hand and helped him up. “Are you hit?”
King let out a sigh of relief. “Praise Jesus…no, I am not.” He looked over Sumter at Staci. “Are you alright, my sister?”
Staci swallowed. Then, she nodded. “My nerves are right at the edge…b-but I’m fine. I…I didn’t get hit either.”
“Oh, praise the Lord!”
Saint clapped King on the back. “Amen, brother.” He looked around. “You know, there’s no doubt in my mind that there must have been angels in here with you because otherwise… how could Chuck have missed? You had absolutely no cover in here at all.”
King nodded in agreement. “It is indeed a miracle. Now who is this Chuck?”
“Don’t worry about him,” Erin assured them. “You don’t need to go after him. Bear has him and he won’t let him try anything like this again.”
“That is not my concern, and I assure you, I have no intention of going after him at all.”
Erin regarded him. “What is your concern?”
He pointed at McLaughlin as he watched Barrington and Moore lead him away. “That man’s very soul is my concern. He needs to be saved. He needs Jesus the Christ to redeem him.”
Staci shook her head. “You really are amazing, David. That man just tried to kill us and you’ve already forgiven him.”
King turned to look at her. “He has done nothing toward me that needs any forgiveness on my part, Staci. He is lost. All lost men do not realize what it is that they are doing because they are moving blindly through the dark. We are here to help shine the light of the Gospel to them and we all know who that Light is. Don’t we?” Without waiting for an answer, he said, “How is Hank? Was he hit?”
Staci checked her patient and shook her head. “No…I don’t believe so.” She put a hand to the man’s forehead. “But, David…he’s getting worst. I‘m afraid if we don‘t help him soon, he-he‘s not going to make it.”
“There is a hospital in town,” Donna told them. “It’s in Belgrade, about twenty miles from here past the Wolfneck Farm.” She paused. “I don’t know what kind of condition the town is in, but if we get your friend there, he might stand a better chance. There’s nothing here that can help him.”
“Then, I must take him there,” Staci replied, concern in her voice. “He needs a hospital.”
Saint smiled reassuringly at her. “I’ll go tell Brother Bear. Just hang tight. I’ll be right back.” He turned and headed back toward the shelter with his wife.
King allowed a small smile to touch his lips. “Interesting. He calls our good brother Albert Barrington…Brother Bear. I will have to remember that and try it out for myself. I wonder what he thinks of it.”
Throughout it all, introductions had not been shared. LeBeau and Bandjough remained quiet as Staci, King, Erin and Donna remained by the open door with the unconscious Sumter.
“There doesn’t seem to be a dull moment being a Christian, does there?” Donna suddenly asked, breaking the silence.
Everyone suddenly broke out into laughter. It was just what they needed to do to release the tension they had all been feeling since McLaughlin’s outburst. Then, Erin introduced Donna to her colleagues and friends. With the tension out of the way, a new fellowship was created.
King took the opportunity and said, “My brothers and sisters, it brings me nothing but great joy to be in the midst of family. And I mean the family of God. We are all of us here today saved by the mighty grace of God…but one of us is not. I would like us all to hold hands and pray over Hank Sumter that God may spare his life and allow him to have the very same privileges God has given us. So may we…?” He held his hands out.
Staci took his left hand and held her right hand out. Donna took Staci’s hand and with her other, she held Erin’s. Erin waved for the two pilots to join them. Bandjough hesitantly took her hand and then held his other hand out to LeBeau.
LeBeau let out a sigh.
Bandjough couldn’t help it. He grinned. “I won’t tell if you won’t.”
This brought another round of laughter. LeBeau took his hand and then King’s.
King bowed his head and prayed. “Almighty God, we are in awe of You right now, at this moment, as we come to You in prayer. We lift our voices to You. We come seeking Your presence because we love You and want to be with You. Father, You have spared our lives today. We thank You for allowing us to continue with what You have set aside for us to do and we ask You to continue bestowing upon us Your strength and Your power. For we know we can never hope to walk this earth without You leading us forward. You walk before us, shielding us from dangers ahead, even when we can see those dangers. You walk behind us, shielding us again from those dangers that we can’t even see. You walk on our left and on our right, always shielding us from every side, whether we see trouble coming or don’t. You are forever amazing. You are forever all powerful. There is none like You. You are the Great I Am. The Alpha and Omega. The Beginning and The End. You are why we are here and we cannot ever hope to love You enough for all that You do for us. We can never thank You enough, oh, God.
“Now we thank You once more that we are able to come to You whenever we can…whenever we desire to. Our hearts are burdened today for Hank Sumter and for the man who just tried to kill us in a fit of rage.”
“Charles McLaughlin,” Erin said softly, telling King the man’s name.
“We lift Charles McLaughlin and Hank Sumter to You, Almighty God,” King continued, “knowing and believing that You alone are able to save them as You have saved us. They do not know You as we do. It is our heart’s desire to see these two men come to You. Please protect them from danger. Keep them safe. Pour out Your mercy to them and shower them with Your light so that they will come to see You. We do not know what motives drive these two men. We don’t know what troubles they face. Every man, every woman faces their own battle that will drive them away from You or cause them to seek You. It is our deepest hope that they will come to You and You will be victorious in helping them overcome their battle. Please heal Hank Sumter. Let him hear Your Word. Let him live for You. Reveal to us his need so we can be used of You to do a mighty work in his life. Please soften Charles’ heart so that he can also be attentive to Your Word. Heal his anger. Shine Your light into the darkness, which has blinded him.
“For my brothers and sisters here with me now, praying to You, I ask that You embrace them with Your love and lift them to Your work, which You have given to them. May they be strong and not fall. And when they are at their weakest, strengthen them. In the mighty name of Jesus, our risen Lord and Savior…Amen.”
And God’s people said, “Amen.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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