Hidden Thrones (24 page)

         
Dante knew all about the Oslow murders, much more
than he cared to say. He couldn’t let Wellsenburg know about his involvement in
the murders, especially since he chose to clothe himself in a thirty-nine year
old body, so he played along. “The Oslows…” he said in a low tone, a ponderous
look on his face. “I recognize that name. They were members in the society. I
remember reading about them. Such a tragic story. How are you connected with
them?” Dante wanted to see how much Wellsenburg actually knew about that night.

         
Wellsenburg finished his drink and began to pace
from one end of the room to the other, walking between his desk and where Dante
was sitting. His voice had a nervous edge to it.

         
“They introduced me to the society when I was
running for the Senate over thirty years ago. They donated a lot of money to my
campaign and had a great influence on many different political groups. The
Oslows convinced them that I was the right man for the job.  I owed them big
time. He called me and said he needed to see me as soon as possible. The term
he used was
extremely urgent
. I met with him alone that night and he
told me that he and his wife wanted out. He said the society had gone too far
and he didn’t like what was going on. He was really scared. I told him not to
leave, that it would all work out, but I couldn’t persuade him. The very next
night, they were both found dead in their home of unknown causes. I don’t know
what happened to them and I didn’t ask any questions. The elections were only a
few months away and I didn’t want to ruin my chances of winning the senate seat,
so I just kept quiet and moved on. It sounds pretty pathetic, I know. But, I
had my future to think about.”

          Although it was
a long time ago, even the ever-conniving and calculating senator felt a tinge
of guilt about it all. It never lasted very long, but this was a little
different in that this was the first time he had ever verbalized it to anyone.

         
Dante sat in his chair, a slight smirk on his face,
trying his best to hide his delight. If he wasn’t totally convinced before
this, he was now. He knew for certain that he had the right man to do his
bidding. He stood to his feet and put his arm on Wellsenburg’s shoulder.

          With a genuine
look of concern he said, “Not at all. You did the right thing. They made their
decision, and you made yours. You had every right to protect your political
future and the future of this great nation. Don’t you worry about Lederman and
Bennett. We will convince them that it would be better for them and their loved
ones if they were to back off and let this unfortunate incident die. We’ll make
sure it stays buried along with the Oslows.” He really meant that he would, but
he wanted the senator to feel like he was in charge.

         
Wellsenburg walked back to his desk and sat down.
With one fell swoop, Dante had washed away any feeling of guilt the senator
might have been feeling. He thought for a moment, and then looked up at Dante,
“You know Bennett has a girl now and I hear they are getting very close.”

         
Dante grinned, not wanting to address the
senator’s comment. He knew all about Emily and had his own ideas on how to
handle the situation. “My limo is waiting. We will continue this discussion
tomorrow at breakfast. Let’s eat at the hotel restaurant, say at eight o’clock.
I have a meeting I must attend tonight, so I want to get checked in and have a
few moments to collect my thoughts.”

         
He began to walk away, then suddenly turned around
and glanced back at Wellsenburg. “You better chew on a piece of gum, Senator. You
wouldn’t want your staff to think that you drink on the job.”

         
Dante smiled, opened the door, and walked out
closing the door behind him. He felt very good about their little chat. Now it
was time to see how the rest of the world was doing.

* * *

         
Jack and Emily were sitting on Jack’s front porch
glider enjoying the gentle evening breeze, when a car came barreling up the
long, stone driveway that led to Jack’s front porch steps. Emily lifted her
head off Jack’s shoulder. They both recognized the car as Frank’s. They watched
as Frank pulled up in front of the house.

         
“I wonder what’s going on,” Emily said with a
concerned look on her face.

         
Jack laughed. “Nothing probably. That’s just the
FBI in him. He loves to make an entrance.”

         
Frank opened the car door and stepped out. He
stood in the driveway with the open car door resting on his backside, then laid
his elbows on the roof of his car and rested his chin on his hands, just
staring at them. “I hope you weren’t making out or something. I would hate
myself if I disturbed you two love birds.”

         
Emily made a face. “We weren’t making out, at
least not just then.” She smiled at Jack, and then gave Frank a dirty look. “And
there is no something else Frank.”

         
Frank loved to stir the pot. He couldn’t help
himself. It was in his nature. “I stopped by because I think we need to compare
notes and catch up on a few things.  I would have called, but you never know
who’s listening anymore.”

         
He closed the car door, walked up to the front steps
of the porch, and stood there for a moment. The expression on his face changed
from glib to serious. Jack realized that this wasn’t just a visit. He sensed he
had a bomb to drop. “What is it, Frank?”

         
Frank looked at Emily, then back at Jack. “Dante Adal
is back in D.C. and my source tells me he met with Wellsenburg late this
afternoon.”

         
Jack turned to Emily. He could see that just the
mere mention of their names disturbed her. She had hoped to put all the
craziness out of her mind for least a few hours, but that was becoming harder
and harder to do. She wouldn’t mind having a normal life, but she fell in love
with Jack Bennett and no matter what came her way, she was determined to make
it the best life she could.

         
Jack pulled her close, then kissed her on her
forehead as if to say don’t worry. He stood up and looked at Frank. “That makes
sense somehow, considering what took place here yesterday.”

         
Frank looked down and noticed the grooves in the
porch. They were deep and jagged. “What happened to the porch?” He looked
closer, “They look like claw marks.” As the words were coming out of his mouth,
he began to visualize the type of creature that would have made them. His face
said it all. He was shocked and alarmed. “Are you kidding me? They came after you?
Are you alright?”

         
“I’m fine. Pull up a chair. We have a lot to talk
about.”

         
Emily stood up, took a deep breath, and looked
straight at the both of them, her finger pointed right at Frank. She insisted,
“Jack can tell you about yesterday while I go to the bathroom. But I want to
hear about this too, so don’t start without me.”

         
Frank smiled. “Okay, okay. I promise.” 

         
She had heard all about the demons on the porch
and the spiritual battle that took place, but as for Dante Adal, part of her
wanted to hear all about it while the other part of her would rather not.
However, she was part of all this now and she wanted to know what was going on,
no matter how disturbing.

         
Frank gave a look of concern as he watched Emily
walk back into the house. He waited a few seconds until she was out of earshot,
then asked, “Is she all right?

         
Jack tilted his head and let out a concerned sigh.
“She’s a tough girl, but these are not your run of the mill life problems. I’m
concerned that I could be putting her in real danger.”

         
“I’m afraid I agree,” he said, looking back into
the house. “I have some news that confirms your suspicions, but first, tell me
what happened here yesterday.”

         
“I’m not really sure. I mean, obviously by the
looks of things, there was a battle on my front porch, but I didn’t see
anything. I was lying in bed staring at the ceiling most of the night. I
couldn’t sleep. My spirit was restless and I felt a real heaviness and feelings
of depression creeping over me in waves trying to pull me down.

          “At one point, I
felt like I was fighting for my life. Like I was drowning in it all. I got up
and began to pace back and forth. I started to cry out to God for help. I knew
I was in a battle of some kind, so I finally knelt down by my bed and began to
pray like I’ve rarely prayed before.

          “I prayed for an
hour or so with no real release. I still felt like I had a dark cloud hanging
over my head. I couldn’t get rid of it. Then all of a sudden out of nowhere, it
lifted.

          “I can’t explain
it, but it was like God put his hand under me and lifted me up. It gave me a
whole new perspective. I could feel my faith getting stronger as my prayers
went from crying out for help to praise and worship. It was amazing.

          “When I came
outside, I realized what was going on. From the evidence, all I can figure is
that while I was praying, God must have sent an angel down to do battle with
the forces of evil that were trying to destroy my faith and crush my spirit.
When I saw these marks, I knew right away just like you did, that God had
delivered me from some evil attack.”

         
Frank was spellbound. Even though he had been with
Jack on several occasions and had seen things that few had ever witnessed,
hearing Jack’s story reminded him that he would never get used to the sensation
of awe and amazement that was now his new life.

         
“I can’t,” Frank stopped and shook his head in
disbelief. “Jack, what the heck is going on with you? Nobody has the
experiences you do. I don’t know what to say. I feel like I’m Neo and I’ve been
in the Matrix all this time, not realizing that there was a whole other world
out there. What did Emily think when you told her?”

         
“It freaked her out a little, but she is pretty cool.
I keep thinking she’s going to stand up one day and say
I love you, but have
a nice life
and walk out of here. And by the way, I’m sure I’m not the only
one this is happening to. The days are becoming more and more supernatural as
we approach the coming of the Lord.”

         
“You’ve got a good one there. Emily is a keeper
for sure. I guess I was right about her, huh?” he remarked with a measure of
pride. “I don’t know anyone else who would hang with you through all this,
except maybe for me, but don’t get any ideas. I don’t love you.”

         
“Although I am greatly disappointed, I’ll get over
it,” he played along.

         
“I’m getting a bottle of water. You guys want
one?” Emily shouted from the kitchen.

         
“Yeah, sure! Bring a couple out here. Oh, and
could you turn on the porch light, please? It’s getting dark out here.”

         
Frank stood to his feet and looked around. “Maybe
it’s just the FBI in me, but I don’t think we should put ourselves on display
by sitting out here with the light on.”

         
Emily came out and handed them their bottles of
water. She could tell something was up. “What’s going on?”

         
“Frank thinks it’s a better idea for us to talk
inside,” Jack explained.

         
Emily’s face went blank then turned to concern.
She knew it wasn’t the night that they were afraid of. A feeling of uneasiness
slowly crept over her.

         
Frank saw the look on her face and quickly made an
effort to downplay it, “Don’t worry. There is no reason to suspect anything. I
just don’t feel comfortable in the spotlight.” 

         
Jack put his arm around Emily. “It’s just a
precaution. We just need to be wise about things, that’s all.” 

          With that, they
turned and walked through the living room and into the kitchen. It was a good-sized
kitchen with a counter big enough for four with a six-foot, dark oak table off
to the side. Kitchens, for some reason, always seemed a great place to hang
out. They each pulled up a chair and got comfortable around the table.

         
“So what did you find out?” Jack started.

          “
Well, I had dinner with Jeff
Callaport the other night after we got back from
Hardon’s Inn. He read me a secret police report that was never officially filed,
detailing a meeting between Mr. Oslow and Senator Wellsenburg the night before
the Oslows were found dead.”

         
Jack shook his head. “I knew he
was involved in this somehow.”

         
Frank paused for a moment. He
didn’t want Jack to jump to any conclusions. “Involved for sure, but from what
I heard, I don’t think he had anything to do with their deaths.  I mean, from
what Jeff read me, it sounded like he knew who was threatening them and who
might have been involved, but that’s it.”