Episode #6: The Key: Prologue - The Bottle

The Gatherers
Year One
Episode # 6 - The Key

And I will clothe him with thy robe and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open and none shall shut, and he shall shut and none shall open. And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place, and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house.
- Isaiah 22:21 - 23

I am He that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen, and have the keys of hell and of death.
- Revelation 1:18

And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These things saith He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth: I know thy works. Behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it. For thou hast a little strength, and hast kept My Word, and hast not denied My name.
- Revelation 3:7 - 8

* * * * * * *

“Here am I, Lord…
Where do you want me to go?”
- Hon Li Yun

“America.”
- A still small voice (God)

* * * * * * *

Prologue - The Bottle

Wonson, North Korea

Wonson was a port city in North Korea and it was also the location of one of their naval bases, particularly in the southeastern quarter of the city. In the year 2000, the population was estimated to have been 331,000 people. One of those numbers was now walking fast with determination in his heart to do what he had to do in order to survive.

Since the vanishings, he had been having a hard time coming to terms with the disappearance of his mother and brother. His father had gone away on a mission for the good of North Korea, but he had no way of knowing what had become of him. Even if he had known, he was certain he would not be too bothered by the old man’s vanishing because the relationship between father and son was estranged at best.

Unfortunately, there were questions that needed to be answered.

Finding those answers were becoming extremely difficult. Especially now that the police were searching for him, as well as other members of North Korea’s esteemed government officials. It had come to his attention through contacts of his own that the disappearance of his mother and sister had cast suspicions upon him. It seemed that although no one truly knew what the cause of the vanishings was but some people believed it was because a man who was nailed to a cross some 2,000 years ago had returned to take His people to heaven. He was not certain if he believed that or not, but many did. And the police and military were now suspicious that he was a dissident because of the disappearance of his family. It has even been suggested his own father was a traitor.

He knew that was preposterous. He may not have cared for his father but he knew that his father was extremely loyal to his country.

The unfortunate truth of the matter was that now the young man needed help. He knew he still had some friends who would take him in and hide him. They were friends of his family. They would take him in because they were loyal to his parents. He only hoped they would overlook his past ties to the black market. He had to make a living somehow and had vowed never to go in the same footsteps as his father. It was those thoughts and his lifestyle that had caused him to be rejected by his father.

In spite of the rain, he made his way through the back alleys, heading for a decrepit apartment housing unit in the eastern part of Wonson. The worst part of the city. He decided not to go in through the front of the building. He spotted the fire escape ladder, but it was locked in position and out of his reach. With a running start he moved toward a trash bin, pulled himself up onto it effortlessly and jumped up toward the fire escape. His hand caught a hold of the cold metal of the railing and he pulled himself over it. Once on the fire escape, he climbed up to the third floor. He peered into a window and saw the friends of his family.

However, they were not alone. They were being rounded up by the police.

One of the officers happened to turn at that moment and saw him in the window. He shouted a warning while leveling his weapon toward the window but the young man decided not to wait around. He pulled himself over the railing and dropped toward the alley floor from three stories up. He relaxed his body and allowed himself to roll once his feet hit the ground. When he came out of his roll, he was up and running without skipping a beat.

Shots were fired at him, but they missed. Once he turned the corner and ran across the street, the shots ceased altogether. However, he could hear men yelling and sirens blaring. They were coming for him and he desperately wanted to put distance between him and them.

Somehow he managed to put distance between them and he finally allowed himself to slow down. He looked back, but saw no signs of pursuit. Still, he heard the sirens off in the distance. Soon, the whole city would be looking for him and nowhere would be safe. He had only one other option.

There was a place just outside of town in the Songdowon where his mother and brother had met others like them for something they called church. The Songdowon was a famous sea bathing destination for North Koreans because there, the waters were exceptionally clear. Pine trees were abundant in that surrounding area and it had been designated a national sightseeing point. In that area, however, was a lot of ground to cover and he knew he could hide there for a while. But a church met there often in one of the huts that lined the northern end. That was where he decided to go.

It took him a while to get there. It was well into the night by the time he arrived and even before he saw the hut, he knew the authorities had been there. In spite of the rain, the hut was engulfed with flames. He stayed in the darkness and watched as two men were herded off by government officials. Two military men leveled their rifles at the men whose hands were tied behind them.

A government official ordered them to deny their God and return their loyalty to their country. The two men began to sing Amazing Grace. The young man watching was astounded. In the face of certain death, these two men showed absolutely no fear. And he knew both of them. Not well. But well enough through his own family. He felt for them at that moment, knowing their lives were about to end. These men had called him family even though they knew he had not accepted them or their God…and he was going to witness their execution because of their faith.

When it was clear to the officials present that the men were not going to recant, the government agent gave the order and the two military men fired their weapons. The victims fell to their deaths. To add to this horror, the men left them where they lay as the hut continued to burn. The young man watching had no where else to go. He was lost and remained in the cover of the pine trees as he wept for people he did not really know.

In the cover of the night and the pine trees, he fought a different kind of fight. The war was being raged in his soul. He couldn’t help but recall all of the conversations he had in the past with his mother, his brother, and the men who were just executed. They had wanted him to accept Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, but he had always refused. But now, it was as if this very Lord was present with him, knocking ever so gently on the door of his heart.

The young man wept bitterly. He allowed everything he had faced to pour out of him and the Lord took it from him…accepting it. Accepting him.

By the time the morning came, the rain had stopped. The hut was nothing but a dead husk. The fire had long since died, but the smoke and ashes still rose to the sky.

Hesitantly, the new young man made his way out of the woods. He slowly approached the men who had been executed and understood fully where their faith had come from. He wished he had known them better than he did.

He looked up to the skies. “What do I do now?” he asked softly in the language of his native tongue, for it was the only language he knew. “Where do I go?”

That’s when the wind touched his face and from the ashes of the fire, a small piece of paper drifted right to him. He caught it and puzzled over it as he examined the burnt edges of the paper. He soon discovered it was from a Korean Bible and a bible verse could be read.

He read it out loud.

“‘Upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.’ 1”

He looked at the men lying at his feet and then at the remains of the hut. He could not help but feel as if he was just told a powerful truth. The enemies of God may have ended the lives of two men whose faith had given them hope. But within himself, something had just been unleashed.

“Here am I, Lord…” he whispered, directing his words heavenward. “Where do you want me to go?”

And a still small voice said to him…America.

So Hon Li Yun went to America.

* * * * * * *

Staci Cohen wanted to give into that impulse to cry, but somehow she didn’t. She focused on her task, which at the moment, was to make Hank Sumter as comfortable as possible. She didn’t know if she was doing any good. The man was delirious, in and out of consciousness. When he was conscious, he spoke unintelligibly. Nothing made any sense.

Staci was afraid for him. The only thing she was thankful for at the moment was the smooth ride in the Storm Breaker as they headed for Maine. At the start, the ride hadn’t been smooth at all. One of the Justice’s state-of-the-art Bell ARH’s tried to blow them out of the skies but because of Keith LeBeau’s expertise at flying and Bandjough’s help using the Chief of Justice’s laptop, they were able to escape from Albany unscathed. Staci rode in the back of the Storm Breaker with her patient and David King.

King had placed one hand on Sumter’s forehead and his other hand held Staci’s during the rough part of the flight as he prayed over them. His prayer had a calming affect on Staci. However, she was only human and still had concerns for her patient. She was also concerned over one other thing. She didn’t know what she could do to help Sumter and it made her begin to second guess herself. She was used to working in a hospital where she knew what to expect. This was something totally different. She didn’t know how to help Sumter without being in a facility where technology could be of help.

Then again, with the power outage all across most of the United States of America, what could possibly be done for Sumter‘s serious injuries? What other ailments was he facing? What was causing this state of delirium?

Staci didn’t know and she didn’t even know how to begin to find the answers.

“Oh, I can’t do this,” she muttered under her breath.

King placed a reassuring hand on her arm. “Yes, you can,” he said encouragingly. “Don’t listen to the Devil’s lies. You can help him. God has brought Hank Sumter directly into your life so you can. What God has caused to happen in our lives, Staci, cannot be undone.”

She looked at him, her eyes beginning to fill with tears. “Everything has been happening so fast. Like a roller coaster without any control.” She let out a weary sigh and tried to smile. “It’s been so hard to…to be able to maintain any sense of sanity, David. There hasn’t been much time to even give what has happened any real thought. It…it just happens and we keep moving. I…I haven’t even had time to grieve for my son…and for Sherri. It’s been scary. Aren’t you scared? How can you be so calm?”

King smiled wryly and shrugged. “To be honest, I really haven’t had time to be afraid. I find myself praying more than I have ever prayed before and also trying to be of help when I can. There is plenty of reason to be afraid, but Jesus said in the Word of God, ‘In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer: I have overcome the world.’ 2 This is what we must hold onto because it is all we have. Jesus Christ, Staci, is all we have. The rest of the good things we receive because of Him, but everything we do and everything we have is because of Him. We cannot ever forget that.”

“Then what you’re saying is…tribulation comes to us because of Him.”

He nodded his head. “Yes. But, my sister, tribulation is what every Christian must endure for the sake of Christ because ‘…we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.’ 3 Listen to Romans 5:1-4. ‘Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also, knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope…’” He smiled. “Tribulation helps us to walk as we should. We stand in the grace of God as we learn how to walk through the tribulations we face in His strength…not ours.”

Staci took a deep breath as she considered his words.

“It’s okay to be scared. It’s a very scary world out there. But even so, there is hope and we stand on that hope. We are secure in that hope. That hope is Jesus Christ. There is no other name above that name.” King paused as he looked at Staci, knowing her faith needed strengthening and prayed for her continuously. “We have all rejected Him, spurned Him, ignored Him, blasphemed Him, and we’ve all sought to place Him on the periphery of our lives. Yet time and time again, He is always right there to hear our cries and to save us from ourselves. Tribulation draws us to Him and makes us stronger so that we can endure the next tribulation.”

“Sometimes…I don’t believe I am strong enough.”

He placed a reassuring hand on her arm and smiled wryly. “You are stronger than you realize.”

She returned the smile. “Well…thank you for saying that. If it weren’t for you, I…I wouldn’t even be here. You’ve saved my life and I don’t believe I’ve even had time to thank you for what you did.”

“It was God who led me to you.”

She nodded. “Yes. I believe that. But you followed His leading. If you hadn’t, they would have killed me…like they killed Sherri.” There wasn’t a day that went by where she didn’t remember that frightful day in the rain on the rooftop of the apartment building she had lived in. Two terrorists had her trapped. If King hadn’t shown up when he had, she would have met a horrible death. She reached up and touched the necklace of the cross she was wearing around her neck. “You brought me this…from my sister. The only link I have left to her. There is no way I can ever repay you for this.”

King nodded. “Oh, but there is. You can live for Christ because it was He who has found you and saved you. I didn’t do anything.” He hesitated. “I was nothing but a man who hated Jews and wanted to see them all suffer. I was your enemy.”

“But you’re not now. You’re my friend.”

He took a deep breath. “Oh, Staci…if you knew what I was capable of before we had met, you would not say that now.”

“You’re slipping, David. Haven’t you been saved from your sins? Doesn’t God forgive you and take away your sins?” She shrugged. “Wouldn’t it be like you’ve never sinned?” She waved a finger at him. “You keep bringing those sins up, God is gonna ask you where you got all that baggage from because He had it all tossed into the sea of forgetfulness.”

He let out a chuckle. “Oh, you are a gem, my sister!”

“No. I’m not. I’m your friend. And you are my friend. I love you very much and am so grateful God has brought you into my life.”

Sumter groaned.

Staci leaned over her patient and wiped a cloth against his forehead. “Oh…he’s burning up.”

“He complained about pain in his head,” King told her. “It seemed to bother him more than the wound in his knee.”

She nodded her head with conviction. “Well…I don’t know how we’re going to save him, but if God can save people like us, then He can save Hank Sumter, too.”

“Amen to that, sister.”

Suddenly, there was a series of loud popping sounds from outside the Storm Breaker. Staci and King both found themselves fighting for balance as the helicopter suddenly banked hard.

King moved toward the cockpit. “What’s happening?”

Keith LeBeau concentrated on his flying as he said, “Somebody below is shootin’ at us…and I have to tell ya…saved or not, it makes me plain mad!”

King looked out the window and below them, he saw nothing but trees as they continued on their flight to Maine. Then, he saw movement. There were people down there. He glimpsed them, and then they were passing them. “That popping noise…” he began.

“Yep,” Jeremy Bandjough said with a nod. “Bullets hitting the side of the chopper.” He paused. “I wonder if those guys were terrorists or just people taking shots at us.”

LeBeau snorted. “What difference does it make, ya dope? They still took shots at us whether they were terrorists or not!” He looked below, wondering if there were others somewhere down there who wanted to take shots at them. “Whoever it was, I ain’t going down there to ask questions. But I’d sure be glad to drop you off if yer so inclined!”

“Thanks, but I’ll pass.” Bandjough looked back at King and made a circle around his ear, indicating that LeBeau was out of his mind.

LeBeau ignored Bandjough. “We’ll be fine,” he assured King. “Even if there are terrorists below us, we’ll be over them and gone before they can do any real damage.” He scowled. “Makes me mad though. Those scumbags were coming into our country even before 9 - 11 to prepare for this attack…and we let them! I’m sure there are whole pockets of them all over the place. Makes me hope Knox is on the hunt, ‘cause if he is…” He shook his head. “Well, there just ain’t a better man to go out a huntin’ with, I tell you what!”

King wondered if the pilots had any idea who he was. As far as he knew, only Marc Shiva, Darren Fuller, William Fronk, Albert Barrington and Staci were the only ones who knew about his past. They knew he was a terrorist before he reformed. The President of the United States also knew he was a terrorist. How would the pilots react if they discovered the truth about him?

King took what LeBeau had said to heart. There were radical Muslim terrorists throughout the entire United States and they would not be easily defeated. They had a goal and that goal was to bring the Big Satan down anyway they could. America to them was that Big Satan. They would gladly give their lives in their cause to carry out their holy Jihad. To kill infidels whether they were Americans or Jews only guaranteed their place in Paradise.

He shook his head in sorrow. What poor misguided fools, he thought. Youmud… please come to the truth before it’s too late.

“We’ll be fine, David,” LeBeau assured him. “We’ll be at our destination within the hour so just go on back and pray for us.”

King clapped him on the shoulder. “I will.” He turned and rejoined Staci who was watching him with concern. “We were shot at.”

“Really?” She frowned. “By who?”

He shook his head. “We don’t really know.” He sat down. “We may never know. The important thing for us to do is to get your patient to a safe harbor. We should be at the shelter within the hour. Let‘s pray we get there in one piece.”

* * * * * * *

Chuck McLaughlin did not fully realize what he was doing. He had been taking all of his pent up rage and shoving it into a bottle. This bottle was just about ready to explode. For most of his life, there wasn’t much that could ever get him to react in anger. He performed his duties as a Secret Service agent with distinction. But since the occurrence of what some were calling “the Rapture of the Church”, McLaughlin was beginning to reach that breaking point.

He simply wasn’t yet aware of it.

Craig Moore, however, could tell the man was right on the edge. He tried to warn him. “Son…you need to tell your ole’ pa what’s troubling you because if you don’t, you’re going to end up hurting someone.”

McLaughlin kept his eyes focused on the skies above the Perkins farmland where beneath the barn was a hidden shelter. Several people had been staying there, the agent learned and he couldn’t help but be suspicious of them. They often regarded him as if he were an outsider. They were keeping something from him. He didn’t know what it was, but was willing to find out no matter the cost.

Moore regarded him with concern. “Chuck…? Son, are you listening?”

“I heard you,” McLaughlin responded.

“Well, do you want to talk about it?”

McLaughlin paused as he continued to watch the skies. “There’s nothing to talk about.”

“You’re angry, son. I can tell.” The older black man pointed at McLaughlin’s forehead. “Your temples twitch. Something tells me that’s not good.”

“Our country was attacked and as far as I know, we’re still under attack. I don’t know where the President is. The only suspect I had was taken from me and you say I’m angry?” He shook his head. “You’d make a poor psychiatrist.”

“We’re living in bad times, son.”

“Yes, we are.” He indicated the shelter below them as they remained on the hill overlooking the farm. “There’s people hiding out in a shelter, Pa. Two FBI agents…a couple from Willow Creek…the woman who owns this property and burned her own house down…” He shook his head. “The thing is…they all act like the devil himself is gonna come out and hunt them down.” He narrowed his eyes. “And I’m not liking the way they watch me…like I don’t belong here. Like I’m not one of them.”

“Son, these people have lost a lot…just as you have.”

“You have no idea what I’ve lost.”

Moore regarded him curiously. He was about to respond when a sound reached his ears. It was the sound of rotors turning in the air. He shielded his eyes from the sun and sought out the source. A helicopter in the distance was fast approaching their location. “I’ll get the others,” Moore replied as he started down the hill. “That has to be the chopper Albert’s been waiting for.”

McLaughlin simply nodded as he watched the helicopter approach. The man had a game plan. It wasn’t much of a plan for all it detailed was to simply watch these people and somehow get back to the President so he could continue with his job. If he found a chance to bring the traitorous scumbag who had a hand in compromising the security of the President’s ranch in Penobscot County, he would do it in a New York second. At the moment, all he could do was greet the people from the helicopter.

He watched it set down in a field behind the barn. He headed for it as he became aware of Moore at the mouth of the shelter, calling for the others to come out. McLaughlin made his way toward the helicopter. He would be there before the others would.

The rotors on the helicopter were slowing down as the side door came open. A man and a woman were inside with what appeared to be man who was wounded. McLaughlin decided they might need his help and moved toward them. That’s when he recognized the wounded man as the traitor. The wounded man was Hank Sumter.

But that wasn’t all he recognized.

The man who had opened the door was a terrorist named Darwyn Musad.

The bottle he had been stuffing with rage could be stuffed no more. It exploded with a vengeance.

McLaughlin didn’t hesitate. He withdrew his sidearm and leveled it at the occupants of the helicopter. Without mercy, he pulled the trigger until his weapon clicked empty.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

1 - Matthew 16:18
2 - John 16:33
3 - Acts 14:22

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Episode #2 - The Beginning of Sorrows - Prologue - Aftermath

The Gatherers
Year One
Episode # 2 -
The Beginning Of Sorrows

“For nation shall rise against nation,
and kingdom against kingdom:
and there shall be famines,
and pestilences,
and earthquakes,
in divers places.
All these are the beginning of sorrows.”
-Matthew 24:7 & 8

“It’s a secret…I can’t tell you.”
-William “Crazy Man” Fronk

******* *******

He took a deep breath, sucking in air as if it was the only lifeline he had left to grab onto. The pain was so sharp, he closed his eyes and held onto his left arm as tight as he could. His left shoulder had been dislocated from the accident, but now after he had used the side from the wrecked plane on Interstate 90 to pop it back into place, the pain was intense. He slid down the wall of the plane and knelt on the pavement, waiting for the pain to subside.

Michael Lenox thought an eternity was passing by, yet pain was something he was accustomed to so he rode it out. When it finally began to ease, he opened his eyes and relaxed his breathing. He slowly moved his left arm up and down, testing it. There was still some pain, but mostly an ache, which was the only reminder now his shoulder had been dislocated at all. With the pain as a dull ache, he was aware the rain had begun to fall at a fast pace, like little needles. He narrowed his eyes and rose to his feet.

He turned his head. “Bear…?”

He didn’t see his friend and partner any where. There were vehicles all over the interstate, but not a single one was moving. Some of them were off the road or had crashed into other vehicles. It almost looked like a scene from a smash-up derby race. The only thing that made it worse was the wreckage of a plane lying across both the north bound and south bound lanes of Interstate 90. People were moving about, some helping one another, some sitting or standing in a daze, and one guy in particular was kneeling before the wreckage of the plane, screaming incoherently.

Lenox wiped at his eyes because of the rain. “Bear!” Where could he have gotten to?

They had to get a move on. They had to find a way to reach Bunker Island, especially if they had just been attacked by terrorists. On their way there, his partner wanted to get to his apartment to check on his family. For his partner’s sake, Lenox hoped they were alright.

Lenox moved away from the plane, his eyes searching for his friend. He tried to focus on finding him rather than listening to the screams and cries around him. He turned his head, and there he saw the truck. It was an old, rust bucket if he ever saw one. A ‘67 0r ‘68 Ford, by the look of it. It was the one which had sideswiped him just before he crashed and lost consciousness. The truck was on the side of the road, and someone was sitting in the passenger seat.

It was out of morbid curiosity Lenox headed for it, because he was only dimly aware of a memory that was playing in his mind. He could have sworn there had been no one behind the wheel of that truck when it sideswiped him.

Lenox got to the truck and pulled open the door to the driver’s side and he saw an elderly man sitting on the passenger side. The man didn’t look well. His face was ashen and he was just sitting there, staring off in the distance. What made the scene even worse was the glove compartment was open and a pistol was in the man’s lap. Making the whole thing even more surrealistic were the clothes lying in the drivers seat.

What happened to the driver? Lenox wondered. He looked at the man with the gun. “Hey,” he said. “Sir…can you hear me?”

The man continued to stare.

Lenox tried to consider his options as the rain continued to pour, but he realized he didn’t really have many. He knew he wouldn‘t be able to get to the gun in time, so he had to try to keep the man talking in hopes to buy time for his partner to find him. “Sir, listen to me…I need you to hand me that gun.”

The man continued to stare, but this time he did respond. “What…?” He blinked. “Hmm?” Slowly, he turned his head and looked at Lenox. “Oh, I’m terribly sorry. I must have dozed…” He trailed off as his eyes took in the clothes in the drivers seat. “Oh, my dearest Linda…She was all I had left, but she’s gone now. My precious grand-daughter is gone.”

“We’ll find her,” Lenox promised. “Just hand me the gun and I’ll help you find her.”

The man wasn’t listening. “She just turned 16 and I was teaching her to drive. Oh, she was so excited. Sweet young girl. Wanted to be a teacher…Wanted me to get to know God like she did.” He shook his head. “But I was so stubborn. I didn’t listen.” He looked into Lenox’ eyes. “I’m not the only one. You didn’t listen either.”

Before Lenox could do anything to stop him, the man put the gun under his chin and pulled the trigger.

“No!” Lenox shouted, raising his hand helplessly toward the man.

It was too late. The bullet went through the man’s head and the top corner of the roof of the truck. His body slumped in the corner, against the door, and remained still. Lenox stared in disbelief. He had seen many things in his life time, but people still managed to surprise even him.

“Why did you do it?” Lenox asked the dead man in a hoarse whisper. Then, he looked at the clothes just lying there. Hesitantly, he picked them up. A summer dress, a shawl, and under garments were what he held in his hands. On the floor of the truck were a pair of sandals. There was also a purse in the center of the seat. On the seat where the grand-daughter had been sitting were also a ring, a watch, and a necklace with the initials WWJD. “What the devil is going on?” he asked himself.

“Michael!”

Lenox turned his head and saw Albert Barrington approaching him. He was carrying something in his right hand. “Al, this guy just blew his brains out.”

Barrington moved toward him, slowing his pace, and looked into the truck. When he saw the man and the clothes in Lenox’ hands, he shook his head. “He didn’t have to do that,” he said sadly. “There’s still hope.”

“What are you talking about?”

Barrington turned to him. “The Rapture happened, Michael.” He pointed to the clothes in Lenox’ hands. “This girl was raptured and this man--” he pointed to the man in the truck. “--couldn’t deal with it so he killed himself!”

Lenox saw the Bible in his friend’s hands. “You went back to the SUV…to get Canaan’s Bible?"

“We need it.”

“How do we need it?”

“I don’t know, but we need it. We need a Bible any way, if there’s ever any hope of trying to fully understand what happened here.”

“We were attacked by terrorists,” he said. Then, he held up the clothes. “They must have used some kind of biological weapon for it to do this. That's the only explanation. My only concern is what will happen to those of us who weren’t affected. Or does it affect every one the same way?”

Barrington frowned. “You think people disappeared because of a manufactured chemical released by terrorists?”

Lenox paused. “Al…I’m only aware of two people who vanished. This man’s grand-daughter, and Canaan. What makes you think more disappeared?”

“Because the rapture happened!” he exclaimed. “I’m trying to tell you the Lord has returned to take His people off the earth because the Tribulation has begun. We’re standing at the beginning of sorrows, Michael! This is the beginning of the end.”

Lenox let out a sigh. “Do you really believe that?”

“Yes, I do. Maybe you don’t, but you will. You’ll begin to see it’s true. Especially when the Antichrist begins to try to set himself up as God on this earth and--”

“Wait a minute! Hold on! Where in the world are you coming up with this stuff? Al, you didn’t get raptured? If these people did get raptured, then how is it you’re still here?”

“I’m telling you I thought I was okay, but obviously, I was wrong.”

“If this stuff is true, how did you go wrong?”

Barrington paused. “I didn’t accept Him.”

“You didn’t accept who?”

“Jesus. I didn’t accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.”

Lenox frowned. “Do you know how crazy that sounds?” Then, he thought of something. “Wait…If you’re telling me you’re still here because you didn’t accept Him…then, your wife and daughter are gone because they did?”

Barrington nodded, slowly.

“If they’re gone, Al…why do you need to go home?”

“I…I want to see for myself. I have to know. I have to know for certain that they’re okay.”

Lenox paused. “Then, we’ll go to your apartment. If you need to do this, we’ll go, and I’ll stand beside you on this, but don’t expect me to believe it because you do. We’ll check on your family, and if they’re there, we’ll take them with us to Bunker Island. If they’re not there, we’ll just go.”

Barrington nodded.

“The question is, how do we get there?”

Barrington looked at the truck. Suddenly, he got into it and sat behind the wheel.

Lenox frowned. “What are you doing?”

Barrington silently mouthed a prayer to God as he turned the ignition key. To his joy, it started right up. “Yes! Thank you, Jesus!”

Lenox scowled. “Hey, if we were hit by some kind of Electro Magnetic Pulse, how is it this truck is still running?”

“For one, it doesn’t have any computer chips in it. It’s outdated, Knox.” He forced a grin. “Kind of like you are.” He looked at him. “Come on. What are you waiting for?” He turned on the automatic windshield wipers as the rain continued to fall. Somewhere far ahead, lightning struck the ground and thunder erupted.

Lenox didn’t know what to do with the clothes so he just dropped them onto the ground. If the girl really was gone, she wouldn’t be back for them anyway. He went to the passenger side and opened the door. “Sorry, ole’ timer,” he said softly as he gently laid the man onto the ground beside the truck. He felt bad about leaving him on the road, but time wasn’t on their side. Whether the Rapture happened or a terrorist threat, they had to move.

He climbed into the truck and closed the door. It felt good to get out of the rain, even if some of the rain drops were coming in through the bullet hole in the roof. “Let’s go,” he said.

Barrington stepped on the clutch and put the old truck into gear. Then, he drove along Interstate 90 on the way to Albany as quickly as he could as people stopped to stare. Some even called out for help. He knew there was no way to help all of them, and he prayed for forgiveness because he felt like he was abandoning them. But he had to know for himself about his own family and what their fate had been.

He knew with his heart…but he just had to know by seeing it for himself. So until he was there in his own apartment, he wouldn’t have any closure at all.

******* *******

At Bunker Island in the Adirondacks of Upstate New York, there was a flurry of activity. Director Darren T. Fuller had ordered groups of armed men to patrol around the farmlands of their hidden facility and protect it at all cost. He was already reacting as if America were at war and under attack, and he didn’t want to take anything for granted. A dazed and confused Keith LeBeau was following different orders from the Director. The Gunship known as Storm Breaker was now the pilot’s number one priority.

Unfortunately for LeBeau, he couldn’t get the special helicopter to operate and began to go through it once more. His mind, however, was still reeling from the vanishing of Kevin Vogel. He now realized his long time friend had been right all along. Now he found himself in a new dilemma. He wanted to get saved, but didn’t know how to, so as he worked, he continued to pray to God for salvation and desperately asked Him to send someone to him to help him understand how to get saved. He kept going over in his mind of all the conversations he and Vogel had had over the years. Having found Vogel’s Bible, he decided to keep it with him at all cost. Whenever he took a break from working on the Gunship, he began to diligently search through the scriptures. He ended up taking more breaks than he should have, but under the circumstances, he didn’t feel as if he had any other choice.

He had to know.

He just had to.

In the living room of the farmhouse, Fuller had folded the clothes which had belonged to the vanished Kevin Vogel and placed them on the coffee stand. Now he and Marc Shiva stood there in silence, and looked at the clothes as if Vogel could reappear in them at any given moment.

This, of course, did not happen.

“Looks like he was right,” Shiva commented softly, “and nobody listened.”

Fuller made no response.

Shiva looked at him. “Did the rapture happen? Is that why Preacher vanished like a thief in the night?”

The Director paused before responding. “There were one hundred and forty-eight members of the agency personally hand-picked by myself and Nichole, Marc, and all of them were assigned here. Now, there’s a hundred and thirty-nine. This leaves nine unaccounted for.” He turned his head to regard him with a look. “Their clothes were found just like Kevin’s. They had been in them, but now…Now they’re just piles of empty clothes.”

“Do you believe it happened?”

“I don’t know…” He frowned in thought. “If it did, then, I’m guilty.”

Shiva was puzzled. “Guilty? Of what?”

Fuller didn’t respond to the question. “Marc, I need you to find Ken. I want both of you to assemble two teams. A few of the Huey’s we have are operational and I’m going to need you guys to go out there and find Michael, Al, and Joseph Canaan. I imagine they should have been on one of the Interstates. Perhaps 90, 87, or 787. Just get your teams and go after them.” He pointed at him. “Arm yourselves. There may be terrorists out there gunning for anything that moves.”

The ex-wrestler nodded, but hesitated before he left off to carry out those orders.

Fuller looked at the clothes on the table once more, and ran his hand through his hair. He was tired. And he felt extreme guilt for not believing in the message of hope earlier. Unfortunately, it was too late for him, and apparently, too late for all of the others who had been left behind with him as well. He personally felt as if he had let them all down. How could they possibly follow him when he didn’t follow the truth?

He looked up toward the ceiling, as if looking up toward God.

He shook his head.

No, he thought. No…I will not turn to You now. It’s already too late for me. I failed You and everybody else already. How could You possibly want me to come to You now? It would take nothing short of a miracle to get him to accept God.

******* *******

Oh God, this can’t be happening!

Cars and trucks had slammed into each other all along West Avenue. It was like a horrible traffic jam that just suddenly happened for no apparent reason. The weather could not be blamed for this, even if the sky was darkening considerably and the rain began to fall harder. People had been going about their day when all up and down the street, traffic stopped with no warning and cars simply crashed into each other.

If Staci Cohen had been completely observant, she would have made notice of the sudden disappearing acts as well. Some people on the sidewalks were jumping out of the way or waving their hands frantically when they saw some of the vehicles swerving toward them…yet some people simply vanished and their clothes and belongings dropped to the sidewalk. Some even vanished while they were in their cars.

However, Staci never noticed any of that.

She only knew that for some strange reason, the foyer to her building had locked down, trapping her inside. She couldn’t get out. The management of her apartment complex had felt the need to ensure security was extremely tight for its tenants, and there was absolutely nothing wrong with security. She had enjoyed it while it was there, but now it was too much. When the power went out, the bolts remained locked inside each door and nothing could budge them.

That was the dilemma.

A huge, trailerless rig with a large cross on the front radiator grill had bounced up the curb on the corner of the street and was suddenly barreling down the sidewalk. There was going to be a collision with the foyer she was trapped in. She was going to die if she didn’t get out of there.

In frustration, she pounded and kicked at the door leading to the outside, but it was futile. That door was not going to budge. She quickly looked about and her eyes spotted the fire extinguisher recessed into the wall beside the entrance of the building. Frantically, she opened the small door and pulled out the fire extinguisher. She turned directly to the locked entrance and slammed it into the glass door. The glass spider-webbed out into several cracks. She hit it again, and the glass made way.

Just as the rig smashed into the foyer, Staci dove through the entrance way she made and hit the floor inside as glass rained down all around and upon her. The rig kept right on going through the foyer, missing her within seconds of where she had been standing.

When the dust settled, Staci raised her head and slowly turned to look out the broken door. She could see there was no more foyer, and heard the rig crash into the side of the building. It was clearly scraping against the side of it. She pulled herself up from off the glass littered floor, amazed she had survived such an ordeal. Hesitantly, she approached the door and peeked out.

The rig had come to a stop, against the building.

Putting aside how close she had come to death herself, she suddenly began to worry about the driver. Perhaps he had had a heart attack or passed out. She didn’t know, but certainly he needed help now. She hurried outside in spite of the rain, careful not to trip in the debris and came to the passenger side of the rig. She reached up for the door, opened it, and then, pulled herself up onto the step to look inside the rig.

The driver wasn’t there.

All she found were a pile of clothes, a wedding ring, and a watch. The man who had driven the rig was simply gone, vanished in the blink of an eye.

It was then that Staci realized what had happened.

She had been left behind.

_______ _______ _______

Ep #1: Epilogue - The Present

Rain was falling at a steady pace, but as the sky darkened with storm clouds, it slowly began to increase. It was the rain falling upon his face that caused him to regain consciousness. He blinked open his eyes and slowly raised his arm up as if in a dream. He shaded his eyes from the rain and looked up. He realized he was lying on his back with his feet extended slightly above him. He was startled to discover he was upside down on a hill, and tried to make sense of what had happened.

For a moment, he lay still as he tried to gather his wits about him. He had no idea how he had come to be in this position. He had no idea why he was lying on the wet ground beneath a stormy sky. Something was wrong. Something was threatening to swallow him whole where he knew he would be lost forever.

That something was Despair.

Something horrible had just happened. He knew it without one shadow of a doubt. As certain as he knew that his name was Albert Barrington, he was just as certain that something tragic had occurred only moments ago. Something so horrible, it meant to him as if hope had just left the world. He couldn’t understand why he was sure of it, but only that he was.

The despair was so powerful, it was threatening to overwhelm him. He knew if he didn’t fight it, he would be lost forever. So Albert Barrington took a deep breath and let his arm fall back beside him on the ground at his side. He allowed the rain to fall on his face, and concentrated on the sounds around him. There was a loud whine somewhere in the distance, like the whine of a buzz saw. At the moment, it was the only consistent sound.

He held his breath.

There were other sounds, he realized.

Someone was screaming. A car horn was blaring non-stop. To his left, he heard a ticking sound. He slowly turned his head and saw a car several feet away from him, the passenger door hanging open. The front end was mashed into a tree. There was someone sitting behind the steering wheel, unmoving.

Barrington realized he must have been thrown from the car, but that would have meant he hadn’t buckled himself up. That couldn’t be right. He had always worn a seatbelt. For him, there was no reason not to wear a seatbelt. His entire life was by the book. To the letter of the law. Always follow the rules and never stray beyond the boundaries. That had been his motto, unlike his partner, Michael Lenox.

Barrington finally forced himself to sit up with a groan. He felt groggy, lethargic. He was suffering from a splitting migraine and hoped he didn’t have a concussion. When he put his hand up to his head, his fingers came away wet with blood. So somewhere along the way, his head had struck something; but everything else seemed to work.

He forced himself to his feet and intended to help his friend who was still in the car. The whine sounded closer, but he was still unable to determine what it was. He couldn’t concern himself with it anyway. Not until he could help his friend.

He made his way to the car as a flash of lightning lit the sky for a split second off in the distance. He moved around to the back end of the car and when he got to the drivers side, he pulled open the front door. Lenox was sitting there, staring ahead of him.

“Michael…?” Barrington said, concern in his voice. The dread he had felt earlier was trying to resurface. He concentrated on helping his friend to keep it at bay. “Michael…Knox, man…are you with me?”

Lenox swallowed. “Al…?”

“Yeah?”

There was a pause. “Why…is there a tree crawling out through the hood of the car?”

“Uhm…It…it’s not crawling out of the hood. You hit it.”

“Huh.” Lenox snorted in disbelief.

“Are you alright?” Barrington noticed his friend was holding onto his left shoulder, seeming to favor it. “What’s wrong with your arm?”

Lenox took a deep breath. “Argh…I think it’s dislocated. I really hate that.” He looked into the rearview mirror. “What the…?” Scowling, he slowly turned to look into the backseat of the car. “Where’s our prisoner?”

Barrington had a good idea where the prisoner was, but he didn’t think Lenox would want to hear it. At least, not yet. Lenox did not appear to notice the pile of clothing in the backseat of the car. “He’s gone,” Barrington responded softly.

Lenox checked the shoulder holster at his right, relieved to find his weapon was still there. He gritted his teeth and pulled himself out of the car with his good hand as he glared at Barrington. “Do you still have your piece?”

Barrington checked his holster, startled by his discovery. “It…it’s gone.”

“That’s just great!” Lenox cursed. Then, he began to head up the hill, holding his wounded shoulder.

“Knox…I don’t think he took it.”

Lenox didn’t seem to hear him. He came to the top of the hill and stopped. Then, he just didn’t move.

Barrington felt the despair all over again. “Michael…?” he inquired.

But Lenox did not respond.

The feeling of dread tightened its grip as Barrington made his way slowly up the hill. He wasn’t certain if his mind was playing tricks on him, but he thought the sky darkened ominously with every step he took. The rain began to fall harder and stung as the wind whipped around him.

When he reached the top, he stood beside Lenox and understood why he had not responded to him. Spread across the north and south bound lanes of Interstate 90, and across the divider that separated them was the wreckage of a plane. Debris and bodies littered the highway around the crash site. Other vehicles were either off the highway, turned over, or crashed into each other. And this was as far as he could see beyond the crash site from either side. A car on the shoulder was burning in spite of the rain, part of the wing of the plane resting atop it.

That was where the whine was coming from, Barrington realized.

There was a man on his knees, facing the wreckage, wailing. He was shaking his fists toward the darkened skies, oblivious to the hard rain falling on his face. It was as if the man were cursing God for the tragic scene around him.

Barrington swallowed and dropped to his knees because somehow, he knew. He knew what had happened; not just here, but all around the world. And the only reason he knew was because he had been warned that this would happen.

He just hadn’t listened.

“I was told this day would come,” he whispered hoarsely, “and I believed it…I just wasn’t ready.”

Lenox turned his head and found himself looking down at his friend. “What…?”

“It happened, Michael…Just like they said it was going to happen. He came for His bride.” He swallowed, suddenly thinking of his family. “I’ve got to get home.”

“You’re not thinking straight. Take it easy.”

“She…she probably won’t even be there. She and April…” He put his face in his hands. “Oh, dear God…why didn’t I listen? I-I’m so sorry.” He sobbed. “Please forgive my unbelief and help me see the truth. Save me, dear Lord. Make me one of Your own!”

Lenox stared in disbelief. “Have you lost your mind?!” He reached down, grabbed his friend with his good hand, and yanked him to his feet. “We’ve got a crisis here! Snap out of it!”

Barrington looked at him, nodding his head. “Okay. I’m okay, Michael, but…you’ve got to do it, too.”

“Do what?” He frowned. “What’s gotten into you?”

“You need to accept Him. I didn’t before. I thought I had, but I was wrong. We need to accept Him.”

Lenox stepped back from Barrington. “You can accept whatever you want! We’ve got to help.”

Barrington nodded. “Alright…Let me just call the Director.” He took out his cell phone and tried to call Fuller, but there was nothing but silence. He thought about it, and wondered why his phone was dead. Then, he looked down the highway and as far as he could see were vehicles and people. The people were moving, but the vehicles were not.

He turned to Lenox. “It’s happened.”

“What now?” Lenox demanded, concerned his friend would go off the deep end again.

Barrington paused. “The attack.”

Lenox looked at him closely and realized he was dead serious. “We’ve been attacked?”

He nodded. “If what I fear is true, yes.” He sighed. “We can’t stay here. We have to get to Bunker Island…now. As soon as we can.”

“What about these people?”

“Help will come to them…or they’ll have to help themselves, but, Knox…I have to see my family.”

Lenox looked around. “Alright. Let’s get moving.”

As Lenox moved away, someone reached out and touched Barrington’s arm. He spun around and discovered a tall man standing beside him. The man had not been there before.

Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
-- Hebrews 13:2

“Excuse me,” the man said, handing him his weapon. “You dropped this when you fell.”

Barrington took it, startled. “Oh, uhm…thank you. I…” He slowly put his gun in its holster. “How did you know I dropped it?”

“Al,” Lenox shouted, “let’s go!”

Barrington looked toward him. “I’m coming.” He turned to the man beside him, and stared. There was no one there. Whoever the man was, he was gone now. “Did you see someone here a second ago?” he asked Lenox as he rejoined him.

Lenox shook his head. “No.” Great! Now he's seeing people who aren't there.

“I must be losing it.”

“Yeah. You and me both.”

They turned together and faced the wreck of the plane and knew they had to keep going. But if they were under attack, what would they find facing them as they made their way to the Bunker? Barrington was more concerned what he would find at home…if he found anything at all.

******* *******

To Be Continued in Episode #2!
Episode #2-The Beginning Of Sorrows

The agents of the ATD must face
the aftermath of the Rapture and terrorist attack.
Will they come to know Him, or will their hearts be hardened?

To Be Continued...
_______ _______ _______

Ep #1: Chapter 5 - The Shout

Everything happened at once. It took a while for the missile to reach its target, but only a tenth of a second for the aftermath to occur after it struck. The satellite in space just over the northern part of the United States of America exploded. Within that tenth of a second, an electro magnetic pulse spread out, emitting short but high energy pulses reaching 10 gigawatts. The pulses then spread out like energy waves and millions of tendrils of that energy had nowhere to go…but across the United States of America.

It was in that second when America fell silent.

******* *******

“Come forth!”

******* *******

Night had fallen, and Lenox and Barrington found themselves still deep in the hills with their prisoner. The SUV was parked amongst a cluster of trees which should have made it difficult to spot, especially at night. Barrington stayed with Canaan as Lenox walked a short distance away toward the rumbling of engines echoing through the forest. He kept his .357 at his side, ready to snap it up and fire at any given moment.

On top of a hill, Lenox stood and peered down toward lower ground. A sedan and a jeep were making their way through the woods below, searching for their prey. They drove right past him and the trail Lenox, Barrington, and Canaan had taken earlier. Lenox frowned, curious about that. The enemy had received a few more reinforcements to help in their hunt, but still, none of them even appeared to notice that trail.

Lenox peered toward it, wondering why that was so.

What he couldn’t see were two very large angels standing on the trail. He had no idea that they were concealing it from his enemies.

Meanwhile, Barrington and Canaan waited for Lenox in the SUV.

“I’m sorry about your loss,” Barrington replied softly, glancing back at Canaan. “I can’t even begin to imagine what you must be going through.”

Canaan nodded his head. “Thank you.” He paused. “It’s okay. I’ll see them again.”

Barrington looked out the window, hoping Lenox would take his time but also hoping he wouldn’t do anything crazy like taking target practice with the enemy. “You mean…you’ll see them in heaven?”

He nodded. “I believe they’re in a much better place than this.”

“Hey, why don’t I take those handcuffs off?” he began as he turned around, digging for the keys at the same time from in his pocket. “They’ve got to be uncomfortable.”

“No. No, it’s alright. I understand the need for them.”

“There isn’t a need for them. I’m supposed to bring you in for protective custody. Not as a suspect.”

“But your partner doesn’t trust me. I don’t want to antagonize him. He…he seems like he could go right off the deep end within seconds.”

Barrington let out a chuckle. “Yeah. That much is true. I’ve seen his temper. And, man, you don’t want to make him your enemy.” He sat back. “He’s just one stubborn guy, that’s all. If anyone can be accused of having a thick skull, it’s Michael Lenox.”

“He’s just lost.”

“Yeah…aren’t we all?”

“No. Not if you have Jesus Christ, you're not.” Canaan sat up and looked at Barrington. “It seems to me that you yourself are just as lost as your friend is. I’m just going to blunt with you. If you don't accept Jesus as your Savior, you'll die in your sin and be separated from God in the Lake of Fire, which cannot be quenched.”

Barrington stared at him before he could regain his composure. Then, he cleared his throat. “Wow. That is being blunt.”

“I don’t mean to give any offense, but in this day, it's better to offend by giving the message of Christ than to condemn souls to Hell by not offending at all.”

He shook his head. “I’m not offended.”

“You have heard the message before.”

“Yes. Plenty of times. My wife and I…well, my wife is a member of a church which preaches the Gospel.”

Canaan pursed his lips in thought. “So you have plenty of exposure to His Word, yet you hold yourself back from His blessings. Why? What keeps you from accepting Him as He accepts you?”

Barrington sighed. “I don’t know. I…I guess I’m just not ready. I know it’s good for some people. I just try to live my life and help people. Isn’t that what He wants?”

“It’s good for all people. And what He wants is you, just as you are.”

“And why does He want me?”

“’The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.’ 1 To paraphrase, ‘not willing that Albert Barrington should perish’. He doesn’t want you to suffer eternal punishment for your sin. That is the reason Christ came to the earth, to give us a way out from under the bondage of sin.”

“I believe what you’re saying.”

“But do you accept it?”

Barrington thought about it. “Well, sure, I accept it, in a manner of speaking. It’s just that I believe in living to the best of your ability, and doing what you can with what you have.”

“Do you believe you’re going to heaven when you die?”

“I’d like to think that I am.”

“But you don’t know for certain?”

He hesitated. “I’m certain.”

“Where does your certainty come from? How do you know?”

Barrington let out a nervous chuckle. “You certainly do keep up with the questions, don’t you? Joe, don’t worry about me. Believe me. I’m fine. I know all I need to know, and what I don’t know I hear about it from Kate. She talks non-stop about every service and fills me in on every message she hears. If anyone is covered, it’s me.” He shook his head. “And then there’s April, who talks just as much - if not more - and even faster than her mother does. She tells me all about her day in Sunday School every chance she gets. And then, she tells me again.” He smiled. “Kids are wonderful.”

Canaan fell silent, thinking about his.

Barrington looked at him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to --”

“No,” Canaan assured him with a shake of his head. “It’s wonderful how you feel about your daughter, and your wife. You do love them, that is plain to me in the way you talk about them. You only have one daughter, then?”

He nodded. “Yes. Just the one.”

“How old is she?”

“She’s five. Going into the kindergarten class very soon.”

Canaan smiled wistfully. “I remember those kindergarten days with my own children. Joshua hated it and gave us such a hard time every day throughout the school year, but Melody simply loved it. She was always ready to go to school. Always quick to…to hug me around my neck and promised to tell me all about her day. She would tell us all throughout supper, too. Still excited. Still ready for the next day. But that was Melody. She couldn’t wait to get out of that bed and face the day. It was always new and exciting to her. Everything was fresh. But then they became teenagers and it got harder to get them both to go to High School. That was a miracle in and of itself.” He sighed. “But even so, there were those days I just wished I could have seen the world through Melody's eyes, just to know what it was that she saw.”

“Your family sounds wonderful, Joe.”

“They are. Thank you for saying that.”

Barrington paused. “Did you have any other children?”

He shook his head. “No. I…Jamie and I only had the two.”

Barrington nodded his head as he thought about it. Something was troubling him, however, and then, it hit him. “Wait a minute…Wait…You had two children, and your wife living in the house?”

Canaan looked at him and nodded. “That’s right.” He paused, regarding Barrington and his reaction. “Why?”

“There were four bodies recovered from the fire, Joe. I’m…I’m sorry to bring you through this, but if three of them was your family, who was the fourth victim?”

Canaan looked completely baffled. He shook his head. “I…I don’t know.”

“I wonder…Maybe it could be the arsonists who really did start the fire. I’m sure the autopsy’s will show us something.” He paused. “When we get to the safe-house, I’m sure you and the Director will have quite a talk.”

“If I don’t get there and you do…I want you to give him my Bible and tell him--”

“Whoa, Joe. Nothing is going to happen to you. We’re going to get out of this. These terrorists haven’t beaten us yet.”

“It doesn’t matter. Just take it to him and tell him, ‘The truth shall make you free.’ 2 Can you please do that?”

Barrington nodded. “Yeah. Of course, I can, but I assure you, you’ll be able to do that yourself.”

“Maybe…”

At that point, Lenox returned. He reported that the enemy was in the area and for some unexplainable reason, they were completely ignoring the area they were in. A decision was then made to wait a bit longer to see if they would be discovered or if the enemy would leave. If they themselves attempted to leave, they would be discovered for certain and a firefight they might not win would follow.

Their odds, after all, weren’t good. They were outnumbered and outgunned. As much as Lenox hated to play the waiting game, they had no other choice.

It wasn’t until the sun began to rise - while the missile was yet underway toward its target - when the break they were waiting for finally came. With the sun rising, clouds also began to form in the sky. A little weary from keeping watch all night, Lenox and Barrington stepped out onto the hill and looked down. They were greeted by silence. They waited one more hour, and when they saw no signs of movement or heard nothing but the sounds of nature, they decided to make their move.

Lenox was anxious and needed to do something, so he climbed in behind the wheel and buckled up. Barrington took the passenger seat and sighed when he remembered the seatbelt didn’t work.

They tore out of there with the tires spinning. Lenox didn’t waste any time as he drove out the way they had come.

“Take it easy,” Barrington warned. “We’d like to reach our destination while we’re still alive.” He didn’t mention anything about heading to Bunker Island to him because he wanted to get to Albany first and pick up his wife and daughter. The talk he had with Canaan had him thinking about them all night, and if anything was going to happen, he wanted to be near them.

“Relax,” Lenox told him as he turned onto the main road, squealing the tires on the pavement. “Leave the driving to me.” He sped along the road and headed back toward the highway. Within a few short moments, he began to keep at a steady pace of eighty miles per hour once he was on Interstate 90.

Barrington glanced back at Canaan, who just gave him a nod and a smile of encouragement. He wondered how the man could be trying to encourage him when it wasn’t he who had lost his family. Barrington turned to look back out through the front window…and something just suddenly felt wrong.

“What the…?” Lenox began, but he didn’t finish as he began to struggle with the steering wheel.

“What’s wrong?” Barrington asked.

“The wheel just locked!” Lenox looked at the vehicles control panel. “The engine’s not running.” He reached for the keys and tried to turn it. He began to apply pressure to the brakes to slow down. “This is nuts!”

“Knox, watch out!”

A truck beside them sideswiped them hard and shoved the SUV toward the shoulder of the road. Lenox looked over and prepared to yell, but stopped when the sight before him seemed too unreal to believe. There was a man on the passenger side of the truck…but no one was sitting behind the wheel.

Lenox slammed on the brakes, but that’s when everything got out of control. Since the steering wheel had locked tight and he couldn't turn the SUV, it began to veer off the road. Then, it drove off the shoulder and down a steep decline. The last thing Lenox remembered before he lost consciousness was Barrington falling out of the vehicle…and a dark shape fell from the sky with a loud roar.

******* *******

“Director, can I have a word with you?”

Fuller looked up from the kitchen table where he sat with Fronk going over plans for their new location. He saw Shiva in the doorway. “Marc, why don’t you join us for breakfast?”

Shiva came in hesitantly. He noticed the man cooking at the stove top, but he also knew the stove wasn’t run by electricity. Neither was the refrigerator. In fact, everything was powered by solar energy and generators. The smell of bacon and eggs, however, made him realize how hungry he was.

“Sure,” he said with a grin. “I’m starving. That coffee smells good.”

Fuller picked up a pitcher and poured coffee into an empty mug. He smiled and pushed it across the table toward Shiva. “Have a seat.”

Shiva did, gratefully accepting the coffee. “Thanks.” He nodded toward the man cooking. “Good morning.”

The man waved at him with a spatula.

“That’s our head of security,” Fuller said. “Kenneth Willon, otherwise known as Ricochet.”

Shiva rose briefly to shake the man’s hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Marc Shiva.”

Willon nodded. “I know who you are. Fury. A shame you were forced out of wrestling. You had what it takes.”

Shiva let out a chuckle. “I still do.”

Willon grinned.

“So why do they call you Ricochet?”

He shrugged. “I’m good at throwing things and bouncing them off from surfaces to hit what I'm aiming to hit.”

“We should call you Bullseye, because you’re an expert marksman, too,” Fuller commented. He looked at Shiva. “Did you sleep good, Marc?”

Shiva shrugged as he sat back down. “Yeah, I guess I did. Somewhat.” He glanced over at Fronk, who so far, hadn’t said a word. “I’ve been thinking about this place…” He sighed. “Truthfully, my thoughts have kept me up most of the night.”

Fuller placed his own coffee cup before him after taking a sip. “What thoughts?”

He glanced at Fronk and Willon.

Fuller noticed. “You can be frank with them present. After all, we’re in the same boat. What’s on your mind?”

Shiva didn’t hesitate. “Is America about to face a terrorist attack?”

Fuller sat back, exchanging looks with Fronk. Willon continued with cooking up breakfast on the stove, and seemed to pay no more attention to the others. Fuller knew the man was paying close attention to them, as he paid attention to everything around him.

The Director looked across the table at Shiva who waited for an answer. “There is a possibility of an attack.”

“But will there be one?”

“Marc--”

“Director, I need to know if you think there will be an attack, or not. I don’t care about the possibility of one. There’s always a possibility. I have to know of the certainty of one.” Shiva sighed. “I had a long talk with Preacher, and what he’s talking about is starting to make sense. Every one around this make believe farmland is walking around as if they’re a secret army, ready to pull out hidden weapons, and gas masks. I feel like I’m about to be in a bad science fiction movie with zombies rising out of the ground and Stephen King leading the band. So just tell me truthfully. Will there be an attack?”

Fuller paused. “Our intelligence confirms an attack is imminent. We just don’t know when.”

Shiva regarded him closely. “But you think it’s soon, or else we wouldn’t be here.”

“Yeah.”

Fronk let out a weary sigh. “Well, Fury…if there ever was a time to be voted off the island, it would be now, wouldn’t it?”

Shiva just looked at him. Then, he turned to Fuller. “How will this attack take place?”

“That’s just what we were discussing,” Fuller replied. “You know about the nuclear smart bombs that were found in New York City and Washington.”

Shiva nodded, confirming the answer.

“We know there were five others, but were unable to locate them.”

“Are you saying we could be under a nuclear attack?”

“That is one likely scenario but there are others. We believe it's also likely we could be hit with an electro magnetic pulse. That is more difficult to explain, but--”

“Electro Magnetic Pulse," Fronk began as if he were beginning a lecture, “or EMP has this definition.” He cleared his throat loudly. “’The electromagnetic radiation from a nuclear explosion caused by Compton-recoil electrons and photoelectrons from photons scattered in the materials of the nuclear device or in a surrounding medium. The resulting electric and magnetic fields may couple with electrical or electronic systems to produce damaging current and voltage surges. May also be caused by nonnuclear means.’ Let’s look at a second definition to this thing called electro magnetic pulse. ‘A broadband, high intensity, short duration burst of electromagnetic energy. In the case of a nuclear detonation, the electro magnetic pulse consists of a continuous frequency spectrum.’” He took a deep breath and turned to Shiva. “Does that explain it for you?”

Shiva sighed. “I have no idea what you just said. I’m not a rocket scientist.”

“To put it simply, Marc…“ Fuller began, glancing at Fronk, “we could be hit by this pulse which would affect every source of electronic systems throughout the country. We would become blind, and extremely vulnerable to outright attack from every single terrorist cell hiding in America.”

Shiva was dumbfounded. “Well, this is crazy. We’re just gonna sit here and do nothing to stop this?”

“We still have people out there doing everything they can to stop this from happening, but we need to take other measures as well.”

“Like what? Hide?” He shook his head. “This is wrong. We need to be out there fighting.”

“We will be fighting, but we’re to remain here until I receive official orders from the President.”

“The President? Where is the President?”

“In another remote area.”

“Director, I understand the need to keep him hidden, but why us?”

“Because we're not the only ‘cells’ in hiding either. As our enemy has cells in our country, so do we. We have other areas across the country where men and women are prepared to defend her if this scenario plays out. If the smart bombs are set off, then it’s over. If we’re hit by an EMP burst, then it would make those bombs inactive.”

Shiva frowned. “I don’t like this. I want to do something other than sit here.”

Fuller got up from the table. “I’m sorry, Marc. But we’re here until told otherwise.” He turned to Fronk. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to give Nichole another call.” He took out his cell phone and pressed the speed dial which would connect him directly to Nichole’s cell phone. He had been worried about her since she had failed to arrive at Bunker Island from the Federal Building in Albany. As he stepped into the living room, he saw Vogel and LeBeau.

The two men seemed to be arguing.

Fuller heard the phone ringing on the other end, but he headed for the two men.

“Just shut up!” LeBeau exclaimed. “I’ve heard enough! If I hear ya preach one more time about the comin’ of the Lord, I’m gonna give you the comin’ of a knuckle sandwich!” He waved a fist at Vogel. “And I’m serious!”

Vogel shook his head. “Keith, I wasn’t preaching at you.”

“You liar! Every word out of your mouth is somethin’ about God, or Jesus and how He died for all. Don’t ya ever think people get tired of hearin’ that kind of talk? I’d rather you were your old self, or just leave me alone before I have it out with you once and for all!”

“Guys,” Fuller began, listening to the ringing in his ear, “could you--” Suddenly, he cried out as a high pitched whistle came through his phone, bringing pain to his ear.

LeBeau turned to face him, concerned. “Sir, are you okay?”

Fuller rubbed at his ear and glared at his phone. “Yeah. I’m fine, I…” He slowly brought the phone back to his ear and listened. There was now nothing but silence. “That’s odd. There doesn’t seem to be any signal.” He tried the speed dial.

But there was nothing.

“Director…?”

Fuller turned to LeBeau. “My cell phone is dead.” He looked around, puzzled. “Wasn’t Kevin just standing here with us?”

LeBeau frowned, turning around. “Yeah, the big mouth was just here, but now…” He stopped when his foot touched something on the floor. He looked down, and for a moment, he couldn’t make his mind comprehend what he was seeing. He shook his head in disbelief.

Fuller looked down as well. “Keith…”

“Yeah…?” LeBeau’s voice was soft.

“Is that a pile of clothes?”

LeBeau swallowed. “Yeah. Uh huh. It sure is…and-and look, a pair of sneaker’s, too. Director, Preacher was in those clothes…And those are his Nike‘s!” He looked up, his eyes wide open in fear. “…but he’s not in them now! Director…was he right? Everythin’ he said about prophecy, and…and gettin‘ caught up in the air…Was he right?”

Fuller didn’t know how to answer, so he remained silent as he stared at the pile of clothes on the floor where Kevin Vogel had been standing only seconds before.

******* *******

Before the sun rose, Staci woke up and prepared for the day. She was exhausted because for the most part, all she did was toss and turn. Every half hour or on the hour, she found herself turning her head to look at the digital alarm clock on the stand beside her bed. Sleep was something that simply escaped her. It was her own fault. She couldn’t get her mind to stop thinking about work.

It was one reason why she didn’t call Sherri to cancel the babysitting hours. Staci could have taken Kate’s advice and Dr. Richard Manning’s suggestion and not go in to work but she couldn’t do it. She might cry like a baby when she found herself alone after a hard day like the one she recently had but she was not about to throw in the towel and call it quits either. So fifteen minutes before her alarm sounded, she let out a sigh of resignation, and forced herself out of bed.

A cold shower woke her up even more, and it also took her mind off of her problems for just a brief moment. When she was dressed and ready for the day, she checked in on David, who was still sound asleep. She kissed him on the forehead and smiled at his sleeping form. He was the only light in her dark, little world, as far as she was concerned.

The buzzer sounded.

She hurried to the door and pressed the button, not even checking to see who it was. She assumed it was Sherri. A few minutes later, her assumption proved to be true as she opened the door to let in her babysitter. Taking a travel mug of coffee with her, Staci said her good-byes and headed for work. It was earlier than usual, but she intended to get there early and make the most of her day.

By the time she arrived at Albany Medical, the sun was just beginning to rise, although some clouds were also beginning to appear. She tried not to let the weather make her day any more depressing than yesterday.

But it was worse than she thought.

No one made eye contact with her as she came onto the floor. Some greeted her, but they quickly busied themselves with something so they didn’t have to talk to her. She didn’t like it one bit, but forced herself to keep going. She made it to her office and found another sign about her day…the door was locked. She tried her key, but it remained locked. Looking closely at the lock, she was startled to discover it was a new lock. Her old lock had been changed.

“Dr. Cohen,” said a voice behind her.

Startled, she turned and found a nurse looking at her. She didn’t recognize the nurse. “Yes…I’m sorry…? Can I help you?”

The nurse hesitated. She acted as if she were standing on eggs and didn’t want to break them. “I…was instructed to tell you to wait in Dr. Manning’s office…if you came in today.”

That didn’t sound good. “Oh.” Staci paused, frustrated that she couldn’t get into her office. “Thank you. Is he in?”

“Oh, yes. He’s in a Board meeting.”

Staci frowned. “In a Board meeting? This early?”

She nodded. “Yes. That’s right. The members of the Board came in early today.”

Staci almost paled visibly. She was a medical doctor on staff at the hospital, which made her a member of the Board. She should have been called into the meeting…unless it was about her. She swallowed. “Thank you. I’ll…go wait in his office.”

As if walking through water, Staci made her way to the CEO’s office. The secretary coldly admitted her entrance and sternly told her to remain seated until Dr. Manning arrived. As Staci sat down in front of the large, mahogany desk that belonged to her mentor, the secretary closed the door.

There was a click.

Staci frowned. She looked toward the door. Did she just lock me in here? Completely baffled, she rose and slowly approached the door. She put her hand around the door knob and tried it. To her astonishment, the door was indeed locked. She stood there and tried to process this new development. This was starting to become a living nightmare. This was like a bad dream that had no end. She didn’t know if she should start banging on the door while screaming, or if she should just wait for the CEO.

Finally, she decided to sit back down and wait.

The wait wasn’t long. Dr. Manning unlocked the door and stepped in. Staci rose to greet him, but he walked right past her and sat behind his desk, shuffling papers as he did. Staci looked at him, until she heard the door close behind her. She turned and saw a man she never saw before, regarding her with the coldest, darkest eyes she had ever seen. They seemed to bore right into her. He had no expression on his face as he took a position beside the door, folded his arms across his chest, and leaned against the wall.

Staci didn’t like the way he watched her. Slowly, she turned to face Manning. “Sir, I--”

Manning finally focused his attention upon her. “The Board convened earlier this morning, and the decision is unanimous. Effective immediately, your license is hereby suspended and you are no longer residing in this hospital as a medical doctor. In fact, you will not be able to practice any where within the United States ever again.”

Staci was stunned. Her eyes began to tear up as she saw her life come apart around her. “What…?” she whispered.

“I don’t believe I need to repeat myself. You may leave. Don’t bother with claiming your belongings. I will have them sent to you.”

“Dr. Manning, I--”

He took off his glasses and glared at her. “I am not interested in hearing anything you have to say. If you do not leave now, I will call security and have them physically remove you from the premises. Is that clear?”

She blinked. “Yes. Yes, th-that’s clear.”

“Thank you. Oh, there is one more thing.” He rose and put his glasses back on. “A full investigation is being conducted into the death of Ishmael Musad. I would suggest to you that you do not leave the city as the authorities may want to question you. You will be hearing from them, I'm sure.”

Staci’s mind was reeling with shock. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her. “What…? Am I-I…a suspect?”

“Yes, you are.” He shook his head sadly. “Quite frankly, I am appalled I had mistakenly thought you were once a promising young woman who could take up a career in this hospital under my tutelage. I did not realize until recently how manipulative and calculating you truly are. Your racial tendencies are not welcome in this hospital.” He sat back down. “Good day, Miss Cohen.”

She was dismissed. She wanted to say something in her defense, but had no idea what to say. To make matters worse, and even more extreme in her mind, the man at the door moved to stand directly in front of her, as if barring her from Dr. Manning. In fact, he even took a step forward into her personal space, forcing her to back up. The message was loud and clear. He wanted her to leave.

So she left. Staci hurried out of that office as if the devil himself were at her heels. She left the hospital, blurring her vision as the tears once again came out from her anguish. She hated her weakness, but couldn’t stop them. When she got outside, she just ran. She put that hospital as far behind her as fast as she could, as if the more distance she put between her and it, the better things would be. But those hateful words from a man she had looked up to as a father for years just kept stabbing her like a knife to her heart. Finally, she fell to her knees at the side of a building and wept bitterly, not even caring who saw her.

People around her went about their business. Some looked her way, but no one came to her to see if she was alright. She wondered if anyone even cared any more.

She finally staggered to her feet and somehow managed to get to the entrance of her apartment building. She found her card key and activated the lock to the first door. She gained entrance to the glass foyer and walked over to the second door where her day suddenly became a lot worse.

There was suddenly a loud hum, and then a snap, crackle, pop. For one brief second, Staci actually could imagine she was inside a Rice Krispies commercial. Then, there was silence, and she swiped her card through the lock that would let her enter the building.

The lock didn’t work.

“Oh, come on!” she hissed, clenching her teeth.

She frowned and absently wiped at her eyes so she could better see what she was doing. Maybe she had swiped the card through backwards. She tried again and pulled on the door.

It still remained locked.

Puzzled, she turned and figured she would go back outside and ring the buzzer to her apartment. Perhaps Sherri would be able to buzz her in from the apartment. That was her hope at least. She then discovered that the first door was also locked. She sighed in exasperation. The only time this ever happened was when the power went out. Why did she have to live in a building that was so tight on security? In frustration, she tried to shake the door, but that, of course, was futile as the door didn’t even budge.

Then, there was a crash, and Staci looked out toward the street for the first time. Most of the vehicles on the street had come to a stop, but one in particular suddenly caught her attention. It was a big rig, which had just side-swiped a parked car. The huge truck wasn’t pulling any trailer, but that didn’t make it any less ominous as she stared at it. Across the radiator, she couldn’t avoid seeing the huge cross that was there, and her mind didn’t yet process that she couldn’t see the driver either. All she knew was one thing…

The big truck was barreling out of control on a collision course straight for the foyer she was in…And Staci was trapped inside with nowhere else to go.

******* *******

Darwyn had no idea what the dream was about, but he was determined not to let it disturb what should be a victorious day. As he came out into the large area where his men were more than prepared, he knew that by now, the missile fired from the submarine in the Pacific would be on its way. Time was now of the essence. He ordered his men to the tasks assigned them.

As the men began to file out with their weapons, he began to notice something new. His younger brother Youmud remained before him, along with two other men, and they appeared to be waiting with great expectation on their faces. He soon discovered why when he noticed the woman.

A short distance behind Youmud, she was standing between two beams with ropes tied tightly around her wrists. Her arms were spread apart and the ropes around the beams kept them that way. For one split second, his mind saw another woman in the same position…An older woman who looked at him with love and forgiveness. He angrily dismissed the memory and moved toward the woman.

“Who is this?” he demanded.

“A gift,” said a voice to his right.

He turned his head and was surprised to see Bollinger. “You should not be here,” he growled menacingly.

“Like that’s going to matter,” Bollinger replied as he came to stand beside him. He indicated the woman tied between the beams. “I brought you a present.”

Darwyn glared at the woman. “Who is she?”

“An agent. She works for the ATD.”

Nichole was exhausted from being forced to stand all night with tight ropes around her wrists. She could no longer feel her hands because of the tightness. Blood circulation was not in her favor within her hands. Unable to do anything, she had spent the entire night praying to God and asking Him to reveal why she was being put through this.

When her eyes met Darwyn’s, she suddenly understood why. She didn’t know how she knew, only that she did. Perhaps it was the Spirit assuring her she was doing what God had intended for her to do. In spite of her current situation, she suddenly smiled.

Bollinger looked at her as if she had lost her mind.

Darwyn just glared harder. “Why do you smile? Do you not know you are about to die?”

Nichole nodded. “I know, and am ready to die.”

“Then, you are a fool.”

Youmud leaned toward his brother. “Darwyn, let me throw the first stone. I want to see her suffer.”

Darwyn turned to him. “Be silent! You and the others, leave! Go and do what you are here to do, and leave this Jew to me!”

“But, brother, she is the sister to--”

“I do not care who she is. Leave. Now!”

Youmud frowned, and hesitated, but knowing his brother would not change his mind, he nodded to the others. He led them toward the exit, but stopped before they went up the corridor, which led to the warehouse above. “Go to the sister’s apartment complex,” he told them. “You know of whom I speak. The Jewish doctor. Find her and hold her there until I meet up with you.”

The two men nodded and left in haste. Youmud turned back around and keeping himself hidden from view, he watched his brother, Bollinger, and the woman prisoner.

“You leave, too,” Darwyn told Bollinger.

The double agent pretended to be disappointed. “Aw, can’t I stay and watch the execution? I promise not to make any noise.”

Darwyn glared at him. “I grow weary of your presence, and I am losing my patience. Leave or die. It is up to you.”

“Gee, let’s see…Eeny, meany, miny, moe…” Bollinger shrugged. “I guess I’ll just leave. But, hey…you’re welcome for the gift.” He winked at Nichole. “See you around, darling. Oh, wait…No, I won’t.” He waved at her. “Tudeloo!” With that, he walked away. He went past Youmud, noticed him there, and chuckled on his way up the corridor.

Darwyn thought he was now alone with the prisoner. Slowly, he reached down and picked up a rock about the size of a baseball. He hefted it in his palm. Then, he looked at her. “You will die. America will fall. And all will be in ruin.”

Nichole didn’t even flinch. “I know why I’m here. I’m here for you.”

He looked at her, baffled. “What nonsense is this?”

“I can see it in your eyes. You’re struggling with the truth!”

From his hiding spot, Youmud frowned. The woman was clearly babbling to try to save herself.

Darwyn snorted. “You are mad, woman! I have no struggles.”

“You know there is only One Way, but you’re fighting against it,” Nichole pressed. “Stop fighting. Let Him open your eyes to the truth, and you will struggle no more.”

“You’re not making any sense.” He tightened his grip on the rock, but he was struggling with the truth and it showed in his eyes. He remembered his dream clearly and saw the Man telling him that He was the Way. “The truth you talk of is nothing but a lie. How can one man be the Way?”

She regarded him closely. “Deep in your heart, you know this to be true. You’ve been through this before.”

He closed his eyes, fighting to maintain control. “Shut up.”

A verse of scripture suddenly came to her. She didn’t know why it was this particular verse, but took the leading of the Holy Spirit and quoted it quickly, “’Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.’3”

Darwyn screamed in rage as the dream came into his mind, searing his conscious. He fought desperately to keep his control, but his heart was being seared by the Word of God. In one desperate last grab for everything he once held dear to him, he fought back the only way he knew how.

He threw the rock.

Nichole knew she could never dodge the rock. It was heading right for her face. She could tilt her head to the side, but it was going to hit her anyway. It was as if everything suddenly happened in slow motion, and she saw the rock with such clarity.

Then, she heard it.

“Nichole, come forth!”

In the blink of an eye, a split second before the rock would have struck her, Nichole Parkhurst vanished. Her clothes and the ropes that had bound her dropped to the ground.

That was all Darwyn could take. He dropped onto his knees, begging for forgiveness and asking Jesus Christ to save him. In the darkness, Youmud glared at his brother with hatred in his eyes.

******* *******

1 - II Peter 3:9
2 - John 8:32
3 - Matthew 7:13, 14
_______ _______ _______

Ep #1: Chapter 4 - The Message

“Anything you tell us now will help us do our jobs more effectively,” Lenox replied casually as he glanced at the scenery going past his window. “But no matter what you say, you’re still going to pay for the crimes you’ve committed against this country and against your own family.”

Canaan, who sat in the back seat of the SUV with his hands handcuffed behind his back, remained silent. Beside him was his Bible, a gesture of kindness from Barrington who had placed it there.

Lenox glanced at Barrington. “What gets me is how you could have become a terrorist when you're an American," he said to Canaan. "Your parents are full-blooded Americans. You’ve never been overseas...as far as our resources tell us anyway. There's been no record of you being held and brainwashed by terrorists…So what happened? How did you change your ways and become an enemy of the country?”

“I’m not a terrorist,” Canaan said. He paused as he swallowed back the pain of losing his loved ones. Softly, he said, “I didn’t kill my family.”

Lenox turned his head. “A denial? Is that what you’re giving us? You deny the charges against you?”

“There’s no point in this. You’ll see what you want to see. At least I know my family may be absent from their bodies, but they are present with my Lord.”

Lenox turned fully around to glare at him. “Oh, I get it. This is a religious war you’re waging. The sinners must die and judgment must come to all! You’re using that book to hide behind your own guilt.” He shook his head in disgust. “You’re lucky my friend here is driving, because if I was, I would have pulled over and given you a taste of your own judgment.”

Barrington glanced in the rearview mirror. “That’s good to know, because I’m not pulling over any time soon.”

“Tell us about the terrorists you’ve been meeting with, Canaan. Tell us your sad story and how you became a threat to an entire nation.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” Canaan told him, “but you are right about one thing. In the eyes of the people, this is a religious war. It’s a Holy War which has been going on since the beginning of time. This war has been going on since Adam and Eve walked the earth. It began at Creation when Eve was beguiled by the serpent.”

“I’m not interested in your pointless drivel. I want names, places, and plots. I want them before we get you locked up.”

Barrington hesitated. “Knox, I don’t believe anything in the Bible is pointless drivel.”

Lenox glared at him. “I’m not talking about the Bible.”

“Well, the Creation account--”

“What are you talking about? I’m not interested in stories from the Bible, Bear. All I want is information. Would you stop going all preacher on me, and just stick to the driving?”

Barrington sighed. “I want the same thing, Knox, but there are things going on you know nothing about.”

“Is that right?”

Barrington paused, realizing he may have spoken up too soon. “Just take it easy. Let’s wait until we get back to HQ, and then, we’ll go from there.”

“You know, you need to tell your wife to get out of that church she goes to because this stuff is beginning to rub off on you. It interferes with your job.”

“Okay, we’re not going there again. That’s my business. Not yours.”

“What the two of you need is Jesus,” Canaan said. “It is He who will make your burden light. He’ll take it upon Himself, if you let Him.”

Barrington nodded thoughtfully. “That’s what my wife says.”

“Do you believe her?”

He thought about it. “I do know that she believes it.”

“I don’t believe any of this.” Lenox pointed to the side of the road. “Can you pull over so I can knock sense into both of you?”

“There's nothing wrong with soul searching, as your friend appears to be doing,” Canaan said to Lenox. “Perhaps you should do the same. After all, it isn’t the body which should concern you, but your eternal soul. ‘For what is a man profited, If he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?’1”

Lenox shook his head in disbelief. “You didn’t just quote scripture to me, did you?”

“’For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.’2”

Lenox sighed. “Yeah…here we go.”

“Why do you resist the truth when you know it can set you free?”

“Pull over, Al. I’ve had it with this guy, and he’s going to tell us what we need to know without the voice of one crying from the wilderness, or he’s going to need CPR when I’m through with him.” He turned his attention to his partner and scowled when he saw the look on his face. “What’s your problem?”

Barrington glanced into the rearview mirror. “I’ve been altering our route a little bit from time to time to test out a theory.”

“Which is…?”

“To see if we’re being followed.”

Lenox sat back. “And are we?”

“Well, we had one black sedan following us when we left the scene, but now…we have three.”

“Three,” Lenox repeated.

“It doesn’t matter,” Canaan replied from the back seat. “God’s Will will be done no matter what we do.”

Lenox turned to glare at him. “Shut up. No one was speaking to you.” He took that moment to look behind them, and sure enough, there were three dark sedan’s following them from a few car lengths away. He sat back, withdrew his gun from its holster and made certain it was fully loaded. “We don’t have many options. We can either keep going and wait for them to make a move, or we can strike before they do.”

Barrington shrugged. “Yeah, okay, Macgyver, but I don’t see how you can make any rockets or explosives using anything in this vehicle, and we certainly don‘t have time to stop and pick up pine cones and syrup from trees to plant land mines!”

“Other than the vehicle itself.”

“We need transportation, and there are three of them.”

Lenox nodded. “We need high ground and reinforcements.” He took out his cell phone and tried to call the ATD HQ. Unfortunately, he ran into a snag. “I’m not getting any service. How convenient.”

Barrington handed him his phone. “What about mine?”

Lenox flipped it open and held it up. “No service…and your battery is dying, Al. Don’t you ever charge this?”

Barrington saw a turn coming up and decided to take it. One advantage he did have was that he knew the area simply by knowing maps. If the maps of the area he was in had not drastically changed, he was fairly certain he could find the high ground they needed. He had also been living in the area for most of his life and had at one point or another covered most of Upstate New York personally. So had Lenox.

“Hang on, guys,” he said.

Once he made the turn, he floored it. The SUV shot forward, taking the turn with a squeal of tires on the pavement. The road ahead of them, however, became suddenly filled with sharp curves and the woods became thicker. Behind them, the three sedans gave pursuit.

“There’s a dirt road about a mile or so ahead of us if I recall,” Barrington said as he took the sharp curves as fast as he was able to without going off the road. “It heads up into some hills where we can get to and hide.” The hills he was referring to were loaded with dirt trails over miles of land. If they could lose their pursuers, they could easily find another route and keep moving. Or just lay low and wait.

“Just let me out,” Lenox growled. “I’ll slow them down.”

Barrington shook his head, grinning at his partner’s enthusiasm, but not slowing down for a second.

Behind him, one of the sedans swerved too sharply and the rear fishtailed off the road. Before the driver could correct his error, one of the sedans behind him swerved to avoid a collision. The move was successful, but the sedan still managed to clip the very front end of the first sedan, pushing it completely off the road. The driver began to raise his fists in anger, swearing vehemently when he realized the vehicle was now stuck in a ditch.

The two remaining sedans continued after their targets.

Barrington poured on as much speed as he could. When the dirt road came up on the left, he turned the wheel expertly and bounced the SUV over the bumpy ground. He sped up the dirt road and glanced in the rearview mirror. By the time the dust settled, the two sedans sped on past the dirt road, having not noticed their prey had taken it. Barrington used the advantage to turn off one dirt road, only to get onto another. By the time he was deep into the hills, he was fairly confident it would be harder to find them than before.

Lenox, however, voiced another concern. “They could get reinforcements and come looking for us.”

“Depends on how many men they have,” Barrington said with a shrug.

“About a hundred,” Canaan said softly.

Barrington continued to drive, but Lenox turned to glare at their prisoner. “What?” he demanded. “You know this to be true? Or are you making this up to stall us?”

“This cell has a hundred men. If there are any more than that, then they have already had reinforcements.” Canaan paused. “It also means that they're ready.”

“For what?”

“For the attack.”

Lenox and Barrington exchanged glances.

“We’ve got to make this quick,” Lenox finally said. “Find a way out of here and let’s get to HQ before this day is out.”

Barrington only nodded.

Lenox turned back to Canaan. “And while my friend is doing the driving, you’ll be doing all the talking…Starting right now.” The look he gave Canaan promised nothing but sorrow if he didn’t get the answers he was looking for.

******* *******

“You seem to know a lot more about what’s going on here than anyone else does,” Shiva said as he and Vogel headed out of the warehouse and into the sun.

Vogel took a drink from a water bottle as he looked out toward the sunset. In a few hours, it would be dark. A feeling of foreboding almost overcame him. If he wasn’t a Christian holding onto his faith, it would have. “I don’t really know all that much, Fury.” He shrugged. “Who does?”

“Come on, man!” Shiva replied, frustration in his voice. “This place has obviously been here for a long while, and it looks like it’s here for a reason. There are bunkers in the ground, man. You guys are told to remove computer components from the choppers that have them. There are food rations here that could feed an army…and you don’t know what’s going on? You keep preaching about the end of days and yet you don’t know what’s going on?!” He shook his head. “Preacher, you seem to have a look of calm about you, but you also have a sense of…a sense of resignation. Like you know it‘s coming and have resigned yourself to it.”

“I just know that no one can change what is about to take place.”

“What is about to take place, man?”

Vogel regarded him. “Fury, it doesn’t matter.”

“What are you talking about? If you’re talking about the end of the world, how can it not matter? If this is the end, man, I need to know what I’m dying for.” He paused. “Is it the end? Are we going to be attacked?”

“I don’t know. I told you, it doesn’t matter. None of it matters. None of it makes a bit of difference for the bad or for the good. The only thing that does matter is what you do with Christ.”

Shiva looked at him, startled by his words. “I don’t get it. Look, I understand you have your religion, and you stand by it…And I respect that. But what does Christ have to do with what's happening today? He’s dead, man. I mean, the man died over a few thousand years ago, so how can He possibly have anything to do with the end of the world?”

“He has everything to do with it, and your decision on what to do about Him has everything to do with the rest of your life. One encounter with Jesus Christ is enough to change you, instantly, forever.” Vogel turned to look at Shiva. “Jesus Christ died a few thousand years ago. Yes, that’s true, but He also rose again so that others who believe in Him can do the same.”

Shiva let out a sigh. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to hear it, but it was more that he didn’t yet understand it. “That’s what I don’t follow, man. I’ve spent a lot of time in Sunday school when I was a kid, and that resurrection stuff just doesn’t make sense.”

“What do you mean?”

“First of all, you weren’t there. How do you know He resurrected? How do you know Jesus came out of the tomb? You didn’t see it happen. And secondly, how do you explain that there hasn’t been any resurrections from any one who has died since the supposed resurrection of Jesus Christ?”

Vogel nodded his head thoughtfully. “Those are very good questions, Marc.”

“Can you answer them?”

“I can answer them, but what you do with those answers are, of course, up to you. We both know I wasn’t there. You weren’t there. Those who live today were not there to witness the ministry of Christ. We weren’t there to witness the last three years of His life and the impact He made in the world at that time. We didn’t witness how He was betrayed, nor did we see Him with our own eyes how He was mocked, how He was beaten, and whipped with a cat of nine tails that tore into his flesh, and forced to wear a crown of thorns. We weren’t standing there on Golgotha when He was crucified. We didn’t see them pierce His side to let the water and blood flow freely. We didn't see them take Him down and place Him inside a dark tomb. We were not witness to that day when the stone was rolled away and He arose victorious. All of it was prophesied before it happened.” He paused. “No, Marc. We weren’t there. But it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. There were men in that day, I’m sure, who were there and yet refused to believe. Just as that is true, it is also true that there are men and women today who weren’t there, but do believe.

“Marc, I believe this because the Bible tells me these things have happened. I have experienced many things in my Christian walk which only show me that God is real and what God has said in His Word is true. I have had specific prayers answered. I have learned to walk by faith and not by sight, which means I trust in things I can’t see more than I do in things I can see. So I can’t make you believe. You have to listen to what your heart says and determine for yourself if what I say is true. All I can tell you is what has been written is true.

“’Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form or comeliness, and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes are we healed.’ I have been healed, Marc. You can be, too. ‘All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.’ Pilate could find no fault in Him when he brought Him before the crowds. ‘Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death, and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors.’”

Shiva shook his head in wonder. “Wow.”

“Yeah. That’s what I say every time I read the scriptures.”

“All that is a quote from the Bible?”

He nodded. “Isaiah 53. All twelve verses of it.”

“How do you know so much?”

Vogel shrugged. “Marc, I just read the Bible, pray, and live to the best of the ability God has given me. I’m just telling you what is on my heart to tell you. The bottom line is that you have a need. That need is Jesus Christ. He is the One you need. He is the One who can give you life, and life more abundantly. He holds the keys to death and hell, Marc. He took them from Satan so you don’t have to go there. You see, right now, you're standing at a crossroad. You’re searching, but you have to know if you choose the wrong road, it will lead you to destruction and to an eternity of torment.”

Shiva hesitated. “You’re talking about Hell.”

He nodded. “Yes, I am. Now about the resurrection. All I can tell you is that physical death does not end human existence. When we die, it isn’t over, but our chance to choose life must be made before death. I’m now talking about everlasting life. The life that only Christ can give to those who ask Him of it. He knows you, Marc. He wants you to come to Him, and if you do, the troubles this world is facing will not change, but the way you live your life will if you let it.”

“How does a person simply come to Christ and ask Him? You still can’t see Him.”

“He’s there. You just have to believe. Call out to Him in prayer…in your heart. Do you recognize that you are a sinner? It is written, ‘For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.’3 Do you believe that?”

Shiva grinned like a man who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “I was a wrestler once, Kevin. I’ve done things I’m not proud of, and to this day, wished I hadn’t. Yes. I believe I’m a sinner.”

Vogel nodded. “Good. That’s the first step. You know that you’re a sinner. So the next question would be…as a sinner, can you save yourself from your sin?”

Shiva frowned. “Well…I would have to say no. I can’t take my sin away. I mean…I can’t change my own nature.” He paused in thought. “As a wrestler, my nature was to win. I wanted to win anyway I could, even to the point where I didn’t care how. Nor did I care if it hurt anyone. I just knew I had to get to the top at all costs.” He hesitated. “It almost destroyed me. If it hadn’t of been for Knox, man…I’d probably be dead right now…or worst.” He looked at Vogel. “So, yeah, I guess the answer to that question would be ‘no’. I can’t save myself.”

“It is written, ‘Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.’4 Sin leads to death. ‘For the wages of sin is death…’5 So we know we're sinners, and we know we cannot save ourselves. Now we're told through His Word that sin brings judgment. Because of our sin, it isn’t possible for us to come before a Holy God. Our sin leads us to death and to Hell where it is cast out of His presence. In other words, we become separated from God.”

“So we can’t save ourselves. I get it. It’s hopeless and we’re all condemned to Hell because our sin keeps us from God.”

“But there is hope. ‘…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’ Now that's the good news of the Gospel. We’re all sinners. We cannot save ourselves. But we can come to the One who can save us. ‘But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.’6 Now I have to give you the most important verse you will ever hear. John 3:16 says, ‘For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ Believe in His name, Marc. Call on Him and accept Him, and you will be saved.”

Shiva paused. “So that’s it?”

Vogel grinned. “Are you kidding? After you get saved, it’s only the beginning of a brand new life.” He regarded him. “So what do you think? Are you ready for that life?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know, Kevin. I really have to give it some thought, you know? I mean, there’s a lot of stuff coming down about an attack and…I just don’t know what’s going to happen.”

“There’s some comfort in standing in the grace of God through troubling times. You don’t want to be outside of His grace when things get worst.”

“Maybe not…but I have to think about what we’ve talked about.”

Vogel nodded. “Sure. I understand. I’m gonna pray for you, though.”

“I appreciate that.”

Vogel saw LeBeau approaching from the warehouse. He looked miserable. “What’s up?”

“I can’t get things done if I keep gettin’ interrupted!” LeBeau complained loudly. “Gotta run and pick up the Director. You comin’, or are ya gonna do some work.”

“I’ll do some more work.”

“Great! I hope that means actual work and not blabbin’ on about yer Jesus, and the End of Days preachin’! Don’t you think we’ve heard enough?”

Shiva came to Vogel’s defense. “Hey, relax. I asked a couple of questions. It wasn’t Preacher who--”

“I don’t really care. I’m sick of it, Kevin! Just do some work and quit yer preachin’ for once! You know, come to think of it, I’d rather go and pick up the Director without you. That way, I won’t have to hear any of it!” With that, he turned and stormed off toward the warehouse.

“I’m sorry about that,” Shiva said. “I’m the one who dragged you out here to talk, man.”

Vogel shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. He’s just concerned.” The Preacher was concerned, too. He prayed for both Shiva and LeBeau, that they would see their need for Christ before it was too late.

******* *******

At the Federal Building in Albany, Director Fuller was making preparations in leaving as he waited for LeBeau to pick him up by chopper. He intended to see to it that Nichole left with him, but when he went to her office to see her, he soon discovered she wasn’t there. The fact that she had left the building without telling him concerned him because it was so unlike her to do so. An inquiry about her missing made him aware she had already left as he suspected, but no one knew why.

He tried to reach her by her cell number, but all he was able to get was her voice mail. He was suddenly very concerned. This wasn’t like her at all, and it was beginning to scare him for her sake.

“Nichole, it’s me,” he said, leaving her a message. “I don’t know where you are, nor why you left in such a hurry, but if this has anything to do with James Bollinger, I intend to do something about it. You need to get to Bunker Island as soon as you can. If you're heading to your sister’s, then…bring her along. Just get there.” He paused. “I know Bollinger was in to see you earlier. I’m beginning to think he’s a bigger problem than I had originally thought. Just call me.”

Worried, he put his cell phone away, and carried his briefcase with him into the chopper where a solemn-faced LeBeau waited. As he took his seat in the co-pilot’s chair, he gave the pilot the signal to take off and up they went. Fuller glanced down at the city of Albany below him and wondered where Nichole was.

******* *******

Staci was glad the day was over at long last. She had prayed with Kate about her situation…or at least Kate had done the praying. Staci simply couldn’t bring herself to utter one word to God in supplication of any kind. She had always been uncomfortable praying in front of people. Nor was she the type to spend hours or even minutes at a time upon her knees at the altar of God.

When the visit with Kate had ended, and her son had finally awakened from his nap, she took David home. She spent the rest of the afternoon with him, and they watched Scooby Doo together as Scooby Doo was David’s favorite cartoon character. When it came time to put him to bed, she did so.

Then, she curled up on the sofa with her sherbert ice cream, rented “Just Like Heaven” with Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo from Movies On Demand, and settled in to forget the day she had somehow lived through. Just as the movie started, a buzzer sounded. Someone was at the entrance outside the apartment complex and wanted to come in. She couldn’t think of who it might be, but she went to the intercom on the wall and pressed it.

“Hello…?” she said.

But there was no response.

She pressed it again. “Hello. Hi, can I help you?”

She stood by and waited for a reply to come back through the speaker, but none came.

She pressed the button one last time. “If-if this is a prank, it’s not very funny! You either say who you are, or…or…or I’m just gonna go back to my movie!”

She waited.

Again, there was no response.

Scowling, Staci turned and went back to her sofa. She looked back once toward the kitchen, but still heard nothing more from the intercom. Maybe someone hit the wrong buzzer. Even so, they should have still been polite enough to apologize for their error. Sighing forlornly, she picked up her sherbert and the remote, and pushed play so she could continue with her movie.

Outside the apartment complex, Nichole was confronted by Bollinger. She had intended to see her sister and warn her about him. It was when she had pressed the buzzer that he revealed his presence to her, making it clear he had been following her. Concerned he would make trouble, she didn’t respond when her sister called out through the intercom.

When the intercom was finally silent, Bollinger shook his head. “For a doctor, she’s not at all that bright, is she?”

“What do you want?” Nichole demanded.

“I see you were going to warn your sister about what we discussed. Didn’t I imply there could be repercussions you would want to avoid?”

“I'll not be blackmailed while my sister is being toyed with! Leave her alone and play your games with me. She’s been through enough. She…” She stopped when she realized she was about to reveal some of her sister’s secrets.

“Don’t stop on my account.”

Nichole remained silent.

“Okay…I’ll make a deal with you.” He reached into the coat of his pocket and took out something which made him smile. He tossed it to her and watched as she caught them. “Put those on and come with me.”

Nichole looked at what she had caught. They were a pair of handcuffs. She fixed her eyes on him. “If you think I’m putting these on, you’re crazy.”

Bollinger chuckled. “Here’s what I know, Nichole. If you don’t throw your purse away from you and put those on with your hands behind your back, I'll have my friends pay your sister a visit.” He knew she had a gun in her purse and didn’t want her to reach for it. He held up a small, metallic box and showed her it had a single switch. “All I have to do is flick this, and my boys get the signal. Then,” he shrugged, “you can visit your sister’s grave site and wonder why you didn’t listen to me.”

“Your boys can’t get into the building.”

“How do you know they’re not in there already?”

She nearly paled. Whether he was lying to her or not, she couldn’t tell, but she wasn’t willing to put Staci in the line of fire. With silent resignation, she angrily tossed her purse aside and put her hands behind her back.

“I want to hear those cuffs click.”

She didn’t say anything, but locked the handcuffs in place. The clicks were clearly audible.

“Now turn around.”

Slowly, she did. As he came to her to inspect the handcuffs, she said, “Don’t you think we look unusually suspicious out here in public like this?”

He made a tsking sound as he took her by the arm. “It’s late, people are getting out of work…What do they care about two people chatting amicably on the street?” He began to lead her to his car at the curb, just behind hers. “Besides, I’ve found that people are extremely gullible. Well, mostly, people are just stupid. You can hide the truth right in front of their eyes and they would never see it. For example, the box with the switch I threatened to use is simply that. A useless box with a useless switch...but you fell for it anyway, didn't you?” He opened the door for her, helped her in, and even reached across her to fasten her seat belt. He smiled. “We must abide by the law, you know.”

He closed the door, whistling a tune as he moved around the car to get in behind the wheel. As he started the car, he winked at Nichole. “Having fun?”

“Oh, yes,” she replied sarcastically. “A wonderful time.”

Bollinger checked for traffic before turning onto the main road. For a while, he drove in silence. He was waiting to see if his passenger would begin demanding to be released or inquiring about what his intentions were. When neither came and she remained silent, he said, “Aren’t you dying to know where we’re going?”

“I’ll know when we get there,” she replied.

“But I really want to tell you.”

She shrugged. “Then, tell me. I refuse to play your games.”

He laughed. “Oh, that’s so good. Sweetheart, you’re playing the game whether you want to or not.”

She glared at him. “Don’t call me any of your ridiculous pet names.”

“Well, I was only trying to be nice.” His smile assured her that he was lying. “We’re going to a place where the action is. Right into the den of lions itself. You know, I feel sorry for you because you did bring this upon yourself. I thought I made it loud and clear. Make no attempt to warn your sister or anyone about our conversation, and all would be well. But noooo. You had to come out here and make me stop you. Now you have to pay the price.”

“What price?”

He looked at her as he stopped at a red light. “Your life.”

She swallowed. “Are you saying you’re going to kill me?”

He paused. “No. Not I, my dear. Not I.” The light changed green and he continued on their drive. “Remember what I said about the lions den.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Think of it this way. You’re doing what Jesus did, aren’t you? I mean, well…He sacrificed His all on the cross for the entire world, but you…” He winked again. “You’re only sacrificing yourself for your sister’s life. Isn’t that sweet of you?”

She glared at him. “What you’re telling me is you don’t have the guts to kill me, so you’re bringing me to some of your pawns to do your dirty work for you. How noble of you…and pathetic.”

He shrugged as if some things were beyond his control. “Yeah…well, I do get that a lot.”

“You won’t get away with this.”

He chuckled. “I get a lot of that, too, but somehow, I didn’t expect that from you.”

“I mean it. You may witness my murder, and you may even enjoy several years after it, but in the end, you will stand before God and you will be judged for your actions against His people. And I will be there!”

“Really?”

“’Be sure your sin will find you out.’7”

“I do love it when you talk scripture to me.” He pulled into the lot of a seemingly deserted warehouse and drove up to the closed doors. Then, he got out and walked around the car once more. He opened the door, unfastened her seatbelt and helped her out. “Ah, such a lovely night, isn’t it? Hey, let’s go meet some friends of mine. They’re just dying to know you.”

All she could do was pray as he led her to a side door and they entered into the darkened interior of the warehouse. There was no point in trying to run. Where could she run to? And for some compelling reason, she felt she needed to be right where she was. It was as if the very presence of God was upon her and she was in His Will, so fighting against it was not what she intended to do. She trusted that no matter what happened, His Will would be done.

So she prayed for her sister to be saved and for God to strengthen her.

Bollinger led her through the warehouse, through a set of doors, and down a long corridor. They stopped at a corner where Bollinger made a show of opening a secret doorway. “Tada!” he exclaimed theatrically. “Ooh, let’s see what’s behind door number one.”

Nichole remained silent.

“Aw, come on! Any last words before we enjoy the last night you have on this earth?”

“I have no last words.”

“Why not?”

“What’s the point? You have already said to me you’ve passed the point of no return. If that is true, there’s nothing I can say to help you find your way, and I can’t pray for a man whom God cannot save.”

“But God can save everyone.”

“God saves those who come to Him. He’s not going to make you come to Him. You have to come to Him on your own." She hesitated. "Will you come to Him?”

He actually hesitated. Then, he forced a chuckle. “Wowee! You actually struck a nerve for a second there, precious. Kudos for you. But, no…I can’t and won’t come to Him. Can’t say the same for you. You may be going to Him a lot sooner than you think.”

She sighed. “One can only hope.”

“Come on! Aren’t you even a little bit scared? You hide it so well.”

“I am in His hands.”

He laughed as he tightened his grip on her arm. “Wrong. You’re in my hands, and soon…you’ll be in the hands of those who hate everything about you. Kind of wish you weren’t Jewish, now, don’t you?”

“I’m proud of being a Jew.”

“Maybe you’ll change your mind.” He led her down the secret passage and into the lair of the enemy.

Nichole was led into a large area where men were under preparations for an attack. It was all she could understand for their presence under the warehouse. She saw them and was frightened by their hatred as the work they were doing ceased. They fixed her with cold, hate-filled eyes. Some of them gnashed their teeth and formed grimaces of rage.

There was another scene before her which she was unable to see. If her spiritual eyes were open, she would have seen a room filled of demonic creatures, vile and horrid. They were cringing back away from her because they saw the light she possessed. They saw the tall, angelic beings on either side of her, keeping a vigilant watch over her in the midst of her enemies.

Nichole was led into the center of a circle of men who hated her. Bollinger smiled at the men. “Get Darwyn. I’ve got a present for him.”

Youmud stepped forward from the group of terrorists. “My brother is sleeping.”

“Sleeping?” Bollinger snorted. “How can he be sleeping at a time like this? Wake him. I’ve brought him a Jew who also happens to be a member of the agency trying to stop you.”

Youmud slowly moved forward until he came to stand before their prisoner. Without warning, he spit in her face.

Nichole closed her eyes, thanking God for the strength He was giving her because she could not fathom why she wasn’t in hysterics by now. She blinked her eyes as she felt the spittle roll down her cheeks. She forced herself to look into the eyes of her enemy, but she didn’t speak.

“You will die,” he told her. He glanced at Bollinger. “But in the morning. My brother is sleeping and will not be awakened.” He snapped his fingers. “Secure the prisoner, but bring no harm to her. My brother will decide her fate.”

He turned to go.

“Oh, Youmud…”

Youmud scowled. He hated Bollinger with a passion, but understood his brother’s need to ally himself with him. He glared.

“The prisoner has a sister, you know.” Bollinger smiled.

Youmud frowned. “A sister? Why should that concern me?”

Bollinger stepped forward. “Her sister was the doctor who, ah, shall we say was responsible for your father’s death.”

Youmud froze as his rage grew. He turned his head to glare at Nichole as she was being led away. He changed his mind. Somehow he personally would be responsible for executing the prisoner…and then against his brother’s wishes, he intended to kill Dr. Staci Cohen as well.

******* *******

Darwyn Musad was asleep, but he had fully intended not to be. It was as if something so overpowering fell over him when he was finally alone with his thoughts and he was suddenly fast asleep. Nothing could wake him. Nothing could stir him from the deep slumber he had fallen into, and nothing could disturb the dream he was thrown into.

He knew he was dreaming.

He was standing in the middle of a road in the middle of absolutely nowhere. As far as the eye could see in every direction, the ground was completely flat. The sky was hazy, and cloudy as if the sky wanted to drop rain but the heat was preventing it from doing so.

Slowly, he looked around but no matter what he did, the scenery wouldn’t change. And for his own life, he couldn’t understand anything about his surroundings. So he took a few steps down the road in one direction. After all, how could he easily decide which way to go when he didn’t know where the road led to? He simply looked one way and began to walk.

The heat, however, was oppressively hot and nearly weakened him with every step he took. As he walked, he began to notice how broad the road was, and it was broken up in places. It was filled with ruts and holes, making the ground uneven. He stumbled along, sometimes watching the ground below him, and at other times looking ahead in hopes his eyes would catch sight of something which would unlock the mystery of his dream.

Suddenly, he heard a shout.

“’He that hath ears to hear, let him hear!’8”

Darwyn stopped and looked around, but he could see no one there. “Hello!” he shouted. “Show yourself!”

But no one did as he demanded.

Sighing in frustration, he turned as if to continue his walk, but he stood still as he saw what was on the road before him. The road had been empty before, but now there were people traveling along it. Throngs of people. Thousands of people, as far as he could tell. They were all ahead of him and he could see that the road stretched on for miles ahead, filled with people.

“Who are you people?” he demanded as he moved toward them.

But they ignored him, or perhaps they were all simply so caught up in their own woes that they were unaware of him. Some of them were throwing their hands up into the air and ranting without purpose. Others were screaming incoherently. Some were laughing hysterically, and some were wailing in anguish. Some were just walking forward with no expression on their faces at all, as if they had just stopped caring.

Darwyn grabbed one of them passing by, and he gave the man a shake. “Who are you? Where are you going?”

The man just screamed and pulled away from him.

Darwyn was baffled and disturbed by the way the people moved forward. It was as if they were on their way to something they couldn’t avoid and didn’t know how to stop. As they continued on, he could do nothing else but follow.

“’He that hath ears to hear, let him hear!’”

Darwyn stood up on his toes, straining to see above the crowds and find the one who was shouting. He couldn’t locate the man, but he saw something else disturbing. Far ahead of the crowds, there was what appeared to be a large gap and darkness hovered above the gap. The closer he came to it, he began to notice the crowds ahead of him were simply falling into it. He then noticed there was a wide, open gateway before this gap the people were falling into. They were falling into it by the hundreds and the thousands. And from this wide gap came the sounds of weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth.

It made Darwyn freeze in fear where he stood.

“’He that hath ears to hear, let him hear!’”

The voice was closer this time, and Darwyn whipped his head around, hoping to catch a glimpse of who it was. There, some distance from him was a man standing at the entrance of another road. A smaller road. A road that was not broad, but narrow. Behind this man, a few people turned off the broad road and grasped the man warmly, their faces happy and relieved. Then, they went onto the narrow road where only a few more walked.

Darwyn stepped toward the man and the road and wondered.

Suddenly, he was standing directly before the man, and he searched his face for some sign of recognition, for surely he thought he must know this man.

The man smiled at Darwyn, and said, “’He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.’”

“What do you mean?” Darwyn asked, trying to understand. “Who are you?”

“’I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’9”

“What?” Darwyn stared. And then, behind him, on that narrow road was the woman which haunted him from his past. “No,” he croaked.

The woman smiled at him, her face filled with deep compassion.

“No,” he said. “No!! This is a dream! It isn’t real!”

Darwyn sat up on his cot, soaked with sweat. He swallowed a dry lump in his throat and tried to forget the dream. Yet he remembered every bit of it…even if he could not understand it. He reached for the water bottle from the floor beside his cot and took a large swallow. Then, he wiped his brow and determined to rid himself of his dreams and his past by concentrating on what had to be done.

“We will not be stopped,” he said to himself, gathering his strength. “I will not be stopped. For you, father. And for all of my brothers, America will fall.”

He laid back on his cot and waited for the morning.

******* *******

Somewhere out in the deep Pacific off the coast of California was a lone sub with no markings of any kind. It was insignificant by appearance and small enough to get by without detection. It had been in the position it was now for over a month, waiting for the dawn of this new day. A day terror would strike the enemy and bring a world to the brink of death.

How the al Qaeda managed to get a sub was insignificant. All that mattered was they did and were ready to use it. How they managed to get positioned deep in the Pacific was also unimportant. All that mattered was that they were there. And there they waited. No contact would be made with the outside world. It was only nine members of the terrorist organization, and their orders were quite clear. In the name of Allah, they would play a large part in bringing down their enemies. They were confident in the task ahead, and nothing could stop them because no one knew where they were…not even their own.

They were where they were supposed to be, and as the morning came, they did what they were there to do.

A solitary missile was launched from the submarine, and precisely sixty seconds later, the terrorists each held their breath in anticipation. One of them confirmed the missile would strike its target. With that assurance, the automatic destruct sequence aboard their vessel was initiated…and the submarine carrying nine terrorists was destroyed.

The missile sailed onward into the morning, and out toward space, heading for a target somewhere over America.

******* *******

- Matthew 16:26
- Matthew 16:25
- Romans 3:23
- Romans 5:12
- Romans 6:23
- Romans 5:8, 9
- Numbers 32:23
- Matthew 11:15
- John 14:6
_______ _______ _______