Vicki shared her thoughts about Natalie. Then she said, “You didn't tell me what was going on with Cheryl. Is she okay?”
“I don't know how to tell you this and not shock you.” Shelly sighed. “Cheryl's going to have a baby.”
Vicki's mouth dropped. “Are you sure?”
“We gave her a test and it was positive. She was as shocked as anybody.”
“How far along is she?”
“Two, maybe three months.”
Vicki thought about Lenore and her baby, Tolan. The child had been such a bright spot in everyone's life at the schoolhouse. But as cute and cuddly as a new baby would be, Vicki knew Cheryl was in for a rough season. “How's she taking the news?”
“She said if she didn't know that God loves her and forgave her for her sins, she'd probably have an abortion.”
“I want to talk with her.”
“She's resting now, but there's somebody else who says he needs a word.”
“Mark?”
Shelly shook her head. “That cute guy upstairs, Chad. He asked to see if you'd meet with him. He seems really nice.”
“Now?” Vicki scowled. “What's he want to talk about?”
“I think he's concerned about you.”
Vicki got dressed and started upstairs. She stopped outside the door and listened to the believers gathered in the kitchen. They discussed Carpathia, the guillotines, Tsion Ben-Judah, and the kids downstairs.
“We can't keep them here indefinitely,” a man said. “The GC will find out and they'll haul us all in.”
“We've already had neighbors snooping around and asking questions,” a woman said.
Vicki opened the door a crack and looked at the group. With the exception of Chad, they were all older.
Chad held up a hand. “I know we're all worried about what's going to happen, but let's put ourselves in their place. They came out here and risked their lives to save some brothers and sisters. What if it had been us in that GC compound? You think they would have gotten us out?”
The room fell silent as Chad continued. “Of course they would have. I think the least we can do is help them out as long as we can.”
Vicki stepped through the door. Chad introduced her to the rest of the group. “Vicki is the one I told you about who was up on the screen giving kids the gospel in the middle of a Global Community education event.”
Several around the room clapped and Vicki smiled. Chad took her hand and pulled her onto the back porch. “I know you've been through something terrible, but I want you to come with me.”
“Where? I thought we weren't supposed to go outside.”
“Trust me.”
Chad grabbed a basket and took Vicki to a dirt bike parked in the garage. Vicki climbed on the back and held the basket while Chad revved the engine and drove into the moonlit night.
He drove over a narrow path that led into a burnedout thicket of trees and bushes. The cool wind felt good and the air was fresh on Vicki's face. Chad seemed to drive like he had traveled the path a thousand times before. He stopped at the edge of the charred trees and pointed to the crest of a hill. Three deer stood at the top, feeding on grass. They glanced toward the motorcycle, then continued eating.
“The plague of fire destroyed a lot of forests and homes around here, but you can still see the beauty God created if you look hard enough.”
“I'd almost forgotten how pretty things can be.”
Chad leaned the bike against a tree, and the two hiked to the top of the hill. The deer moved across the slope, keeping watch on the two as Chad spread a blanket on the ground. “We got off to a bad start. I didn't mean to upset you when you askedâ”
“It's okay. I was stressed.” Vicki lifted the lid on the basket but couldn't see inside. “Your friends back at the house don't seem too happy about us being here.”
“They're a little worried about their families.”
“I can understand that.”
“I heard about your friend Cheryl. If there's anything we can do, let me know.”
Vicki sighed. “I want her to stay with us, but I don't know how safe she'll be.”
“You think she'll keep the baby?”
“I haven't talked with her yet.”
Chad glanced away. “I also heard about Natalie. I'm sorry.”
Vicki bit her lip and stared at the sky. It had been a long time since she had been outside at night and not on the run. “I can't get her face out of my head. The last time I saw her, I begged her to come with us, but she wouldn't. I feel responsible for her death.”
“I don't think she'd feel that way.”
“Why not?”
“Let's say you went into that GC compound to help your friends and the GC caught you. Would you blame the others?”
“Of course not. It was my choice to go in there.”
“Then why is Natalie any different? She chose to risk her life and she got caught. She wanted to risk it for you and your friends. Don't take that away from her by punishing yourself for her death.”
“I hadn't thought about it like that.”
“If there's one thing I know, it's that God has a purpose for things. Everything fits together like a puzzle, but we're looking at it from a human angle. All we can see are missing pieces. He sees the big picture and knows how it all fits.”
Vicki wiped away a tear. “It doesn't make her death any easier to live with.” “You'd have to be a robot for it not to hurt.” Chad opened the basket and dumped the contents on the blanket. He unwrapped a hot loaf of homemade cinnamon bread and pulled off a piece. “I forgot the knife. This is how they used to do it back in Bible times.”
“I'm sure they had cinnamon bread back then.” Vicki laughed as she took the bread. It almost melted in her mouth. “So tell me your story.”
Chad leaned back on an elbow. “It's pretty boring. My parents were Christians and took my brothers and me to church. I was the oldest and had pretty much decided I was going to have some fun before I got serious about God. I figured I had plenty of time.”
“Where were you on the night of the disappearances?”
“I was out late with some guys from my baseball team. We'd have a few beers and drive to Des Moines to see a movie or go to a club that wouldn't kick us out. Our third baseman, Kyle Eastman, never drank with us, but we asked him to come along sometimes because we knew he'd be the only one sober enough to drive home.”
“He was a Christian?”
Chad smiled. “We called him the hot-corner preacher. He didn't really preach at us. We just knew he didn't do the same stuff we did.”
“Had you ever prayed before?”
Chad took another piece of bread. “When I was a kid, I'd go to church and listen. Every time the preacher would ask people if they wanted to pray and ask God into their lives, I'd almost do it. Sometimes they'd have you come forward, and a couple of times I almost got up and went, but something held me back. I was embarrassed and didn't want anybody to think I was weak.”
“It's not weak to admit you need God.”
“I know that now. I wish I could go back and change all that, but the way I look at it, if I had, I wouldn't have met you. Don't blush.”
Vicki smiled. “Finish your story.”
“Kyle had told his parents where he was going and when he was coming home. When a couple of the guys went off by themselves, he called home and told them he'd be late. It took a couple hours to catch up with our friends, but we finally headed home.
“I was in the front seat next to Kyle, and there were three others in the back, asleep. Kyle started talking to me about spiritual stuff. He asked if I knew where I'd go if I died. I got paranoid and asked if he was going to drive off the road on purpose. He just grinned.
“I told him I believed all the stuff about Jesus, but I wasn't ready to leave my friends and fun yet.”
“What did he say?”
“He tried to convince me that I wouldn't be giving up anything if I asked God to forgive me. He said I'd be gaining all of heaven if I just gave God control and let him do what he wanted.”
“And?”
“I pretended to pass out. I didn't want to hear it. I knew what he said was true, but I didn't want to face it. As I was sitting there with my head against the seat, I heard Kyle whispering. He was praying for us, asking God to show us the truth and to use him in some way. Then he got quiet. He had the radio tuned to a Christian station and it was on really low.
“That's when the car ran off the road. I looked over and Kyle was gone. There was nothing in the seat except his clothes, his watch, and his baseball jacket.”
“Did you wreck?” Vicki said.
“He had the car on cruise control. It drifted off the interstate, and we almost hit a guardrail before I jerked it back onto the road and hit the brake. The guys in back woke up and didn't believe me when I said Kyle had disappeared. They jumped out of the car and looked for him along the road. I knew what had happened and I was scared.
“We were freaking out when another car behind us plowed into the same guardrail we'd almost hit. The car was smashed really bad, and we all ran to see if we could help. The other guys got there first and started screaming. There was nobody inside.”
“How long after that was it before you prayed?”
“I didn't waste any time. I prayed right there and told God I was sorry I had waited. I tried to get my friends to pray, but they were scared out of their minds. The Christian radio station Kyle was listening to played a few more songs, and then it went dead. I didn't know whether God would forgive me or if I'd missed my chance. It wasn't until I read a guy's Web site a while later that I knew the truth that God did forgive me and had made me a tribulation saint.”
“Did any of your friends pray?”
“Nobody in the car that night. I found some relatives who weren't believers and told them. That's how we all came to the house.”
Vicki loved hearing these kinds of stories. She told what had happened to her family and Chad listened closely. When Vicki yawned an hour later, Chad scooted closer.
“I'll get you back to the house, but I need to say something. I know I'm being bold, but the way I see it, we only have about three and a half years before Christ comes back. I'd like to get to know you better.”
“I don't know what to say.”
“Shelly said you had a boyfriend but that he's away.”
“He's not really my boyfriend. We've known each other since the disappearances, but I don't know where our relationship is going.”
Chad packed their things in the basket, and they walked down the hill to the dirt bike. Vicki put a hand on his shoulder. “Thanks for talking about Natalie. I feel a lot better.”
Chad smiled. “I don't know what you're planning, but I'd be more than glad if you guys want to stay with us.”
JUDD
knelt by Lionel in front of the tiny camera mounted on the computer on Z-Van's plane. They were only a couple of days away from Nicolae's appearance in Israel, and Judd knew from the Bible and Tsion Ben-Judah's writings that things would get very bad very quickly. They both smiled when Darrion appeared on the screen, wiping her eyes and yawning. Charlie sat in the background petting Phoenix.
Darrion told them what the kids had been through. Judd gasped when he heard about what had happened in Iowa. He put his head in his hands when Darrion broke the news about Natalie. Though he had never met the girl, she had been part of the Young Trib Force. Darrion told Judd that they hadn't heard any more about Jim Dekker and Pete Davidson.
Judd ran a hand through his hair. “Where are Vicki and the others?”
Darrion told him and gave him the number in Iowa. “I know they're trying to get back here, but I think they should stay where they are if they're safe.”
Lionel waved at Charlie, and the boy moved to the camera. “I heard you had a pretty close shave with the GC.”
Charlie smiled. “Vicki came to get me. But if it wasn't for Natalie, I'd probably be in the head chopper right now.”
“Well, we're glad you didn't have to face the head chopper,” Lionel said.
Darrion asked where Judd and Lionel were and Judd told her. Darrion shook her head. “At least you guys know how to ride in style.”
“We're headed to Israel in the next couple of days with Z-Van and his crew,” Judd said. “We're going to join Sam and Mr. Stein, watch the festivities, and try to get back home from there.”
“Be careful,” Darrion said. “The GC is really cracking down here. When the public starts taking the mark, things will get ugly.”
Judd and Lionel prayed with Darrion and Charlie a few minutes, then said good-bye. Judd moved to the back of the plane. He knew it was still early in the Midwest, but he felt like he had to talk to Vicki.
The phone rang twice before Shelly picked up. She seemed thrilled that Judd had called and told him Vicki was still sleeping. “She had a late night with the guy we're staying with. He's really cute.”
“She was on a date?” Judd yelled.
“It wasn't like that. Vicki's been torn up about Natalie for days, and Chad took her back on his farm. She told me about it when she came in.”
“Fine. I just wanted to make sure you guys were all right and hear your plan.”
“We want to get back to Wisconsin, but we don't know when it will be safe. We're trying to decide if we should take some of the people we rescued from the reeducation facility.”
“Why would you take them with you?”
“Well, one of them is pregnant and has just become a believer, so we thought sheâ”
“I don't believe this. ⦔
Shelly paused. “I thought you called because you cared about us. It sounds like you're mad that you can't boss us around.”
“Let me talk with Mark.”
A few seconds later Mark came to the phone. “What was that all about?”