God's Lions - The Dark Ruin (60 page)

“What’s happening in Tel Aviv?” Ben shouted to his father as he ran beneath the slowing blades of the chopper.

The elder Zamir jumped to the ground and embraced his son. “Acerbi’s forces are everywhere. Except for small arms and shoulder-fired rockets, all of our more sophisticated computer-controlled defense systems are useless.”

“What do you want us to do?”

Danny Zamir stared up into the sky. “The Prime Minister has already surrendered, which means we only have one option left open to us. I want you to make contact with the
Tekuma
and see if they can meet us off the coast.”

“Then what?” Ben looked into his father’s eyes, knowing that the old man had probably begun playing out this scenario in his mind the day they had discovered the quantum computers.

The elder Zamir rapped his knuckles lightly on his son’s forehead and smiled a father’s smile. “We do the opposite of what we have been trained to do. We run and live to fight another day! I’m taking Team 5 to France.”

Zamir continued looking up at the sky, as if he expected some giant bird of prey was preparing to dive down and swoop them all up in its claws. “The last time I spoke with Lev he was preparing to take the Carmela to sea. He had seen the handwriting on the wall and told me that, if Israel was ever attacked, we should join forces in Europe so that we could strike Acerbi where he lives instead of nipping at the heels of an occupying force like our ancestors did two thousand years ago against the Romans. If we would have taken the fight to Rome then things might have worked out differently. I’m a big believer in not letting history repeat itself, and I agree with Lev. The fight is now in Europe and America and the other seats of power around the world. Acerbi only wants the Holy Land to show his power until he abolishes all religion, which is his ultimate goal. Don’t worry, my son. We will return to reclaim our land one day.”

Ben looked up at his father with hardened eyes. “I’ll send a burst transmission to the sub and set up a rendezvous point. We’ll move out after the sun goes down.”

“Good, and while you’re at it I’ll send Gabriella to see if Daniel and Sarah are still at the villa. Lev would never forgive me if we didn’t try to talk them into coming along.”

Hugging the southern coastline of France in small rubber boats, Israeli Team 5 spotted the beach next to the outlet of the Aude River and began paddling furiously through the surf. In all there were twenty-four men plus Gabriella in three separate boats that had just been dropped off by the Israeli sub
Tekuma
after an all-night run under the Mediterranean Sea, and now, with the beach in sight, they all knew that their journey was really just beginning. With no means of communicating with Lev and his group, they would be forced to begin their search armed only with the information they had gained from past missions in the area the year before, and their only means of returning home was now sinking below the surface of the sea as evidenced by the
Tekuma’s
periscope disappearing below the waves behind them.

As soon as they were ashore, they quickly checked their surroundings and began moving inland, following the river through vineyards and forested fields, until finally they came to the site of devastation that marked the spot where Lev’s former castle had once stood. Nothing remained but powered stone and deep gaping holes in the earth that revealed caved-in tunnels. Checking this site off their list of places where Lev and the others might be hiding, they moved on, pushing back into the surrounding forest to avoid detection from any of Acerbi’s forces that might still be in the area.

With twilight approaching, they stopped at the end of a forest trail near a stream that ran from between two large boulders near a cave at the base of a cliff. Their plan was to camp for the night and head for the cabins the next day to see if they could locate Lev and his people there. Right away Ben began assigning duties, moving most of the men inside the cave to get some sleep while others spread out into the forest to keep watch. But they weren’t the only ones doing the watching, for unknown to them the forest had eyes, and they had already been spotted. Team 5’s plans were about to change.

* *

“You say they’re Israeli military?” Gael asked the breathless scout.

“Yes, Gael. I could see the Israeli flag on the shoulders of their uniforms. They’re camping a few miles away ... in the valley, and they have all kinds of weapons. Here ... look!” The scout handed Gael the small digital camera Evita had given him to use on reconnaissance missions.

Gael scratched his chin and squinted at the small screen. “We need to show this to Julian and Lev. These may be the people they were expecting.” A few minutes later, in Julian’s room, Leo and Lev were staring at a close-up picture of Ben Zamir standing among the tall trees in the forest below.

“I’m glad to see they made it here,” Lev said, “but I’m afraid their arrival can signal only one thing. Something has happened in Israel.”

“The scouts have reported that there’s been a news blackout in Foix for the past few days,” Julian replied. “They said only Acerbi propaganda messages are being broadcast on television and the internet, along with reruns of old movies.”

Walking in through the open door to Julian’s room, John and Alon rushed over to look at the pictures. “Why don’t we go get them right now?” John asked. “We could have them back here in a few hours.”

“We’ll leave after midnight,” Lev nodded. “Have Gael and some of his men meet us in the courtyard.”

For the next few hours, the small band of men made their way through the forest, stopping every now and then to listen. By now, the sun was peeking over the horizon as the scout stopped and pointed toward a towering cliff in the distance. “They’re camped just below that cliff.”

“Not anymore.” Lev and the others froze as a dozen Israeli commandos stood and walked out from behind the trees. “Lev!” Ben shouted. The two men embraced as Leo and the others looked on.

“Where’s your father?”

“He’s right behind you.”

Turning around, Lev saw Danny Zamir standing with Gabriella in the path behind him and rushed over to greet them. “We heard you were camping by a cave at the base of that cliff up ahead.”

“We moved out after that little guy with the camera took our pictures and ran off into the forest,” Zamir said.

“You saw him?” Gael asked in amazement.

“We see everything,” Danny smiled. “Who are your friends, Lev?”

“Cathars. You’ll see. Come on, we have something to show you.” The two groups merged, the Israelis staring at the strange clothes and crossbows carried by Gael’s men, while the Cathars checked out the rifles and body armor worn by the Israelis.

Reaching into his pocket, Danny Zamir produced a cigar and handed it to Lev.

“I could kiss you right now!” Lev laughed, taking the cigar and lighting it with a match as they moved deeper into the forest.

“I’ll settle for a glass of something strong when we get to wherever it is you’re taking us.”

“Believe me, Danny, even you will be impressed, but I want to save it as a surprise. Words cannot do it justice.”

“Hmmm, must be special. It’s good to see you, old friend.”

“It’s good to see you too, Danny, but I’m afraid your arrival can mean only one thing.”

Zamir’s smile turned to a frown. “Acerbi’s forces attacked Tel Aviv and moved inland after three of his quantum computers were nuked. I guess he blamed us. We didn’t stand a chance. All of our advanced defensive weapons systems were useless.”

“I guess that answers the question about why Acerbi’s forces turned around and left the area so suddenly a few days ago. What about the villa?”

“Gabriella flew there to get Daniel and Sarah but they refused to leave. The villa looked untouched, and Daniel said to tell you that he would keep it that way until you returned.”

Zamir noticed tears forming in Lev’s eyes as they walked. “Daniel’s one of the bravest men I’ve ever met,” Lev almost choked on his words. “He has a quiet kind of bravery that lies just below the surface, and his wife Sarah is just as tough. Maybe I should have stayed there with them.”

“That wouldn’t have been a good idea, my friend.” Zamir continued to frown. “Daniel told Gabriella that men had already come to the villa looking for you. They even asked about your daughter Ariella. You did the right thing by leaving when you did. They have no idea who Daniel is, so he’s safe for now. We left him a burst transmitter to use if he needs to contact us.”

“You have a burst transmitter?” Lev asked in amazement.

“We have to stay in contact with the underground movements in our homeland somehow, and I promised Daniel that we’d come for him and his wife if he asked. He understands that we need to be here. This is where the dragon lives, and we have to strike him in his nest.”

“Live to fight another day ... eh, Danny?” Lev said. “Sounds like that’s going to be the mantra for our cause. At least Acerbi’s forces will be busy for awhile, which means we’ll have a little breathing room for a change.”

Zamir looked up at the mountains surrounding them. “Yeah, but once they regroup they’ll be back. Acerbi won’t stop looking for you and the rest of the Bible Code Team until he’s found you, and we’re going to have to make sure that doesn’t happen. At least the forest around here is a much better place to hide out in ... much better than the open desert, which is another reason we decided to follow you here.”

Lev noticed that Zamir’s face had taken on the same shine he had seen in the past, when he had been planning a covert mission in his head that required him to convince those around him that the risks were minimal, when in fact they were deadly. “We may have an opportunity here, Lev. If you’re willing to be the bait, we’ll be the hunters.” Zamir followed this up with a laugh, but his eyes were as hard as steel.

“I’ll have to think about that one, Danny.”

In the thick morning mist that still clung to the forest floor, Lev stopped in front of a sheer rock wall at the base of the mountain and waited as the wall began to slide open, revealing the tunnel that led deep inside. In all the years since he had first met Danny Zamir, Lev had always been frustrated by the fact that he had never been able to surprise the man with anything, but now, watching the hardened man’s mouth drop open, Lev grinned as he extended his hand. “After you, Danny. We’re home.”

In the Village of the Sun, Leo leaned back against a tree near the lake in front of the castle and sipped his wine as he watched the sun dip behind the nearest mountain peak to the west. Cuddled next to him, Evita yawned as she looked up at his face and nestled her head into the curvature of his shoulder.

“Any news from the Vatican?” she asked. She could feel Leo’s muscles tighten under the hand woven woolen tunic he had exchanged for his cardinal’s robes.

“Zamir said his agents in Rome reported that Vatican City is like a ghost town with all the new travel restrictions being put into place. With Acone as the new pope, the Church has become nothing more than a puppet show designed to give the illusion of a real church while Adrian uses the power of the pulpit to delude the masses with a never-ending stream of falsehoods designed to make him look like their new savior. Apparently, the Holy City has become more like a museum now, with the real believers forced underground like the ancient Christians who had to worship in caves to keep their identities a secret. In fact, he said there are reports of underground churches springing up in hidden locations all over the world. People are traveling in darkness to pray together for deliverance from the Antichrist and his new world order.”

Leo could feel Evita shiver in his arms before she rolled out onto the grass and propped herself up on her elbows. “What about Israel? Any news from there?”

“Tel Aviv got the worst of the attack, but apparently the rest of the country was left relatively unscathed after Acerbi’s forces overwhelmed their defenses and forced the military to stand down and disband. The Israelis really didn’t have much of a choice. Like Lev said, it could have been much worse, but as much as Adrian would have liked to wipe them off the face of the Earth, he’s not ready to expose himself to the world as a mass murderer, at least not yet. He knows that would erode his own forces from within and make it harder for him to win the hearts and minds of those who still have their doubts. The attack against him and his computers actually played right into his hands and made him look like a victim who was only trying to defend the new world order. Besides, estimates are that he has at least a dozen more scattered around the world in hidden locations, with more to come.”

Evita stood and brushed the fresh grass from her clothes. “It’s almost time for Julian’s welcoming ceremony. Let’s get started so we can get a good seat.”

Slowly, Leo lifted himself to his feet, and walking arm-in-arm, the two crossed the stone bridge, stopping for a moment to look at the reflection of the red sunset on the surface of the water before continuing on, walking up a slight incline before passing under the intricately-carved stone archway that framed the entrance to the castle.

Inside the Great Hall, hundreds of candles had been placed in tall iron stands along the aisles and in huge circular chandeliers hanging from the rafters. Their flickering light cast a golden glow over the beautiful tapestries that hung from the stone walls in a medieval tableau straight from the pages of an Arthurian legend. Already most of the seats had been filled in anticipation of the night’s proceedings, for all those who had lived in this magical place for any length of time knew that a speech delivered by Julian Wehling was a treat not to be missed.

Making their way down the aisle next to the wall, they passed the members of Team 5, who, following a new edict from Julian in the wake of their first encounter with Acerbi’s forces, had been allowed to keep their weapons with them, as had Lev’s people and Gael’s men, who were sitting with their families across the aisle.

Further toward the front, they saw Alon and Nava seated next to Moshe and Hadar, and next to Lev, Ariella and John were busy leaning forward and talking to Colette, Abbas, and Colonel Demir, who had all been seated on the front row with their wives and children.