Shaken (31 page)

Judd e-mailed congratulations to Vicki and asked where she was. He explained that all those staying at General Zimmerman's house were preparing for the first day of the GC Gala on Monday.

He sent the message and went back to his Internet search. Judd learned that in the past few weeks Leon Fortunato had visited each of the ten kingdoms to invite their leaders to the Gala in Jerusalem. Judd pulled up a video file of Leon in Africa before a vast, cheering crowd.

“We have endured rough times and much loss of life,” Fortunato said. “But His Excellency is sparing no expense for an international festival like nothing ever seen before. Besides celebrating the halfway mark of the agreement with Israel, and I am so pleased he has given me permission to share this publicly with you, His Excellency is guaranteeing—you heard that right—guaranteeing an end to killer plagues. You ask how can he do this? The potentate is on record that if the two so-called witnesses at the Wailing Wall do not end their torment of Israel and the rest of the world, he will personally deal with them.”

The words gave Judd goose bumps. He knew from Tsion Ben-Judah's writings that Eli and Moishe would be killed. Lionel believed that would happen in the next few days, but Carpathia had threatened them before, and the two had made a fool of him.

Judd pulled up other reports. In the various capital cities, Leon promised better services from the Global Community. “Within a decade, the only memory of the population loss will be sadness for those who have died.”

“Fortunato is doing a PR campaign for Carpathia,” Lionel said as he watched over Judd's shoulder.

When Fortunato kissed babies and held them high, Lionel walked out of the room. “I can't take any more.”

Judd found the schedule of events from the Global Community's own Web site. Monday was the opening of the celebration, the anniversary of the peace treaty Nicolae Carpathia had made with Israel. Tuesday's main event was a party at the Temple Mount. Other lesser events were scheduled throughout the week, and then Friday was the closing ceremony.

Judd sat back and closed his eyes. Mr. Stein had taken them by the huge stage Carpathia would use, praying as they walked. He asked God to “let the truth be revealed even in the midst of a great, sinful gathering.”

Judd thought of the vow his friend Kasim had made. Kasim planned to assassinate Carpathia on the first night of the Gala, and Judd knew he had to stop him.

Vicki followed Conrad down the hill to the riverbank. Charlie was close behind. All three dived into a clump of bushes at the edge of the water and listened. Vicki gasped for air as they slid into the river.

Conrad scanned the bank for any sign of Shelly and Darrion.

“Will there be enough room for all of us?” Vicki whispered.

“We'll make room. First, we have to find them.”

Conrad waded a few feet out into the river and waved. Shelly and Darrion waded toward them pushing the boat, staying low in the water. When they arrived, Shelly gave Conrad a hug and whispered something in his ear.

“Hurry,” Conrad said. “Natalie can't stall much longer.”

“Who's Natalie?” Darrion said.

“We'll tell you later,” Conrad said. “Charlie, you push the back; I'll pull the front. Everybody else in the boat and lie down.”

Vicki shivered as she climbed in with Shelly and Darrion. Charlie and Conrad guided the boat downriver until they came to a curve. Then the two boys got in and pushed away from the bank.

“Nobody talk,” Conrad whispered as the current took the boat.

Everyone had muddy shoes and wet clothes, but they were glad to be away from the GC. Vicki stole a glance behind them and saw the bell tower of the schoolhouse over the trees. She imagined what it was like to be a runaway slave, following the river to find another safe house and people who would help. Then it hit her. They
were
runaways, hiding from people who hated their message. A few minutes later smoke rose through the trees, and Vicki heard the crackle of fire.

Conrad and Charlie kept the boat moving with quick strokes of the oars.

Vicki noticed the current getting faster and the water choppier. “How much further to the bridge?” she whispered.

Conrad shook his head. “It took a couple of hours to walk. I'm not sure how long it will take in the water.”

“So we're not far away?” Darrion said.

Conrad sighed and pointed ahead. “We're coming up on some rough water. If we make it through that, we'll be okay.”

Vicki sat up and strained to see. Ahead the water slapped against jagged rocks.

Mark and the others tried to move the log, but it was too heavy. Finally, Janie found a chain inside a tool compartment, and Mark attached it to the front bumper. After a few minutes, they pulled the tree back far enough to get the truck around.

Mark listened for reports on the GC radio. A girl broke the silence. “This is Bishop. I've lost them.”

Another Morale Monitor broke in. “The house is on fire and nobody's coming out. But we did find the snake from the satellite truck and tire tracks by an old road on the west side of the hideout.”

A GC Peacekeeper barked orders and names. “Follow them in the four-wheel drive.”

Mark stopped as they neared a paved road. A couple of cars passed before he turned left and picked up speed.

“We've got a good head start,” Janie said.

Mark looked in the side mirror and frowned. “Yeah, but all that mud we picked up is leaving a trail. If Vicki and the others made it to the river, we have to hope they're waiting for us at the bridge.”

Carl threw a few of his things in a small computer bag, grabbed his laptop, and walked toward the front gate of the GC Communications compound. He signed a Jeep out at the guard desk and said he was following a lead on the Judah-ites.

The guard saluted and handed him the keys. As Carl drove away, he wondered how long it would take for the GC to realize he was their man.

28

VICKI
grabbed the boat and held on. She had never been white-water rafting. That was something rich kids did with their families. But Vicki had been on her share of roller coasters, and this felt even scarier. No seat belt. No life jacket. She couldn't even scream.

As they drew close to the rough water, Conrad wedged the laptop under one of the seats, and Charlie steered the boat to the middle of the river.

“Stay calm,” Conrad said.

Darrion glanced at Vicki. “Are we going to make it?”

Vicki patted her on the back. “Just wait. We'll be at the bridge in no time.”

“Brace yourselves,” Conrad said.

The boat plunged over the first rocks. Conrad worked the oar furiously, but he couldn't keep the boat from turning. Charlie put out his oar, grabbed a rock, and held it there until the front came around.

Vicki tried to see what was coming next. The wrath of the Lamb earthquake had changed the direction and speed of the river. The farther they went, the more rocks jutted out of the water. In several places whole groves of trees had fallen into the river and created an underwater forest.

The boat rocked from side to side as they continued. “Worst part is coming up,” Conrad said. “We get through this, we're home free.”

Vicki closed her eyes as the water roared around them. She had heard the same sound the day Mrs. Jenness, the principal of Nicolae High, had died.

Mark drove the satellite truck as fast as he dared. He heard the driver of the GC Jeep radio that they had reached the end of the logging road.

“How could they have done it that fast?” Janie said.

“They can go twice as fast as we can,” Mark said. “If Vicki and the others are waiting, we'll probably have to ditch this truck.”

Carl drove like a madman through the Florida back-country. He headed north, hoping to hook up with the underground church in South Carolina, but he had no way of telling them he was coming. He had to connect with the kids in Illinois so they could get a message to Luke and Tom Gowin, who lived near Beaufort, South Carolina.

The radio crackled, and Carl's boss spoke without much emotion. Carl knew the man had to be furious. “Carl, I know you're listening. I've had a long talk with a worker who explained what he found in the control room. We've found the wiring and know how you did it. I have to admit, I don't know why. It'll go a lot better for you if you turn around and head back in.”

Carl took a deep breath and held his tongue.

“I'm giving you this one chance before we send the troops out with roadblocks. You know we'll catch you. If you give yourself up now, I'll put in a good word.”

You'll be part of the firing squad at my execution,
Carl thought.

“You've been under a lot of pressure. Maybe you just went nuts and decided to help these people.”

The only people who are nuts are people who believe Carpathia is God
.

“Why did you do it, Carl? You owe your life to the Global Community. You were one of our best and brightest, and you threw your career away.”

I helped a lot of people know God
.

“Carl, you'd better talk now, or I'm going to assume the worst. We've heard about your friends in Illinois. The net's closing. We'll have them before nightfall. If we have to hunt you down, well, you know things won't go well for you.”