Deceived (29 page)

“You think Fortunato will call down fire like he did yesterday?” Judd said.

Mr. Stein pursed his lips. “I pray no more will die before they have a chance to hear God's man again.”

Carpathia tried to capture his followers' attention. “My brothers and sisters of the Global Community! I will see that you are healed of your sores, and you will again see that it is I who love you and bring you peace!”

A young voice shouted, “You'll not leave here alive, pretender!” It was Sam, halfway up the steps of the temple.

The mob shook their fists and cheered, repeating Sam's words, laughing, screaming more death threats at Global Community leaders.

Leon Fortunato braced himself against a wall and said something to another GC cabinet member. Everyone behind Nicolae looked like they were at a funeral, and Judd wondered it if might be their own.

Piercing the din of the crowd came the voice of the man in the brown robe. Everyone hushed and remained riveted on him. “Yes,” Mr. Stein said softly as Chaim began.

“It is not the due time for the man of sin to face judgment, though it is clear he has been revealed!” Dr. Rosenzweig said to the crowd. People murmured as Chaim walked through the main group of protesters. Out of respect, people took a step back as he ascended the temple steps. Judd thought it amazing that Nicolae had used a microphone and he could barely be heard, while Chaim spoke in a normal tone and everyone understood him.

“As was foretold centuries ago, God has chosen to allow this evil for a time, and impotent as this enemy of your souls may be today, much more evil will be perpetrated upon you under his hand. When he once again gains advantage, he will retaliate against this presumption on his authority, and you would do well to not be here when his anger is poured out.”

Carpathia swung the microphone to his lips. “That is right! You will rue the day when you dared—”

“You!” Chaim roared and pointed at Nicolae. “You shall let God's chosen ones depart before his curse is lifted, lest you face a worse plague in its place.”

“I have always been willing to listen to reasonable men,” Carpathia said. “I will be at the Knesset,
*
available to negotiate or to answer honest inquiries from my subjects.”

Judd stood, amazed, as the crowd parted for Nicolae and his people. As they left, Chaim raised his arms and spoke. “Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.”

“Why should we flee?” a man yelled. “We have exposed the potentate as an impotent pretender!”

“Because God has spoken!” Dr. Rosenzweig said.

“Now we're to believe
you
are God?” the man said.

“The great I Am has told me. Whatsoever he even thinks comes to pass, and as he purposes, so shall it stand.”

“Praise God,” Mr. Stein whispered. “Listen to the people. They are calm.”

“Where shall we go?” someone asked.

“If you are a believer in Jesus Christ as Messiah,” Chaim said, “leave now for Petra by way of Mizpe Ramon. If you have transportation, take as many with you as you can. Volunteers from around the globe are also here to transport you, and from Mizpe Ramon you will be helicoptered in to Petra. The weak, the elderly, the infirm, find your way to the Mount of Olives, and you will be flown in from there.”

“And if we do not believe?”

Chaim paused. “If you have an ear to hear, make your way to Masada, where you will be free to worship God as you once did here at his temple. There I will present the case for Jesus as Messiah. Do not wait! Do not hesitate! Go now, everyone!”

*
Israel's Parliament

27

WHILE
Mark phoned their hideout in Wisconsin, Vicki talked with Manny. He apologized for his mistake and said he wouldn't blame them if they turned around and headed for safety.

“We decided a long time ago that we would do whatever we could to help people understand the message,” Vicki said. “We want to stay away from Peacekeepers and Morale Monitors, but our first priority is reaching people with the truth.”

Manny looked out the window. “I've been practicing what I'll say to Hector and the others. I'm not sure I can speak as well as you.”

“You want me to go with you?”

“I couldn't ask that.”

Mark hung up the cell phone. “Colin is ticked. He wants us to turn around.”

Manny scratched his head. “Which one is Colin?”

“Colin Dial, the guy who owns the house where we're staying. He said we should get out of here and they'd figure out another way to help Claudia.”

Manny sighed and reached for the door handle. “I guess this is where I get out.”

“Stay where you are,” Mark barked. “Some of the others were up and I talked to them on the speakerphone. They all thought after Claudia's latest e-mail that we should—”

“She wrote again?” Vicki said.

Mark nodded. “She said she's leaving her hotel by noon today and wants to know where she should go.”

“Did they write back?”

“Yeah. They said they would send her instructions before noon.”

“Good,” Vicki said. “That makes it sound like we're going to send a message rather than show up.”

“The kids voted to make Claudia our priority,” Mark continued. “If we can help Manny meet with his friends and do it safely, they gave us the thumbs-up.”

Manny smiled and glanced at Vicki. Suddenly his face contorted and he gasped.

“What is it?” Vicki said.

“GC squad car!”

Lionel moved along with Sam and the crowd making its way from the Temple Mount. He kept looking for Judd but couldn't find him. Many who had Carpathia's mark were trying to leave for Masada, and Lionel felt sorry for them. Though they didn't realize it, these people had decided their eternal fate when they had taken Nicolae's mark.

As they followed the crowd, Lionel turned to Sam. “You told me about Petra, but what's Masada?”

“It is an ancient site revered by the Jews,” Sam said. “It looks like a huge boat in the middle of the desert.”

“And it's made out of rock?”

“Exactly. In the first century, a Jewish uprising threw out the Romans who occupied the fort. Later, the Romans came back and attacked. After a long battle, the Jews realized they would be defeated, so they killed themselves rather than be captured by the Romans.”

“Now I remember,” Lionel said, still scanning the crowd for any sign of Judd. “What are you going to do?”

“I will eventually go to Petra, I think,” Sam said, “but I have to go to Masada and see if I can help my fellow countrymen become followers of Messiah.”

Lionel walked close to Sam, wishing he had stayed with Judd. Now there was no turning back.

Judd remained with Mr. Stein as the Temple Mount quickly emptied, leaving bodies, splintered wood, and trash. Judd even spotted a few Global Community issued handguns thrown on the ground.

Judd's cell phone rang.

“Where are you?” Chang Wong said.

Judd told him.

“I have just communicated to the rest of the Tribulation Force that I'll be able to let everyone hear exactly what happens between Carpathia and Dr. Rosenzweig at the Knesset.”

“How did you manage that?” Judd said.

“Buck Williams is with Chaim and he's going to keep his cell phone on during the meeting. The sound won't be perfect, but we'll be able to hear most of what happens. Would you like to be included?”

“Yeah, but I don't have a computer right now—”

“That's okay. I'll patch your phone into the system. I'll call when they arrive. Would you like to hear my good news?”

Mr. Stein motioned to Judd that he was going to speak with one of the rabbis and Judd nodded. “Sure.”

“You know how concerned I was over my dual marks,” Chang said. “When I heard there was a plague of boils, I even felt an itch on my leg and was afraid I was being affected. Now I know for sure what happened to me the morning I received Carpathia's mark.”

Vicki whirled and noticed a GC squad car moving slowly toward them, less than a block away. Using its sidemounted searchlight, it illuminated parked cars and checked license plates.

“Quick decision,” Mark said. “Do we stay or risk pulling out?”

“It looks like a routine canvas,” Manny said.

“But if we stay, they'll see us,” Vicki said.

“Keep your lights off and ease out,” Manny said. “Don't touch your brake or the lights will tip them off.”

Mark started the car and slowly pulled forward, angling toward the street. Vicki rolled down her window slightly and studied the squad car behind them. “I don't think he's seen us yet,” she said. Mark leaned over the steering wheel and peered into the dark.

“Another few blocks and I'll show you a place you can hide,” Manny said.

Vicki heard a metal clinking and something darted across the road. “Mark, watch out!”

Mark slammed on the brakes, narrowly missing a small white dog that rushed in front of them. The dog scampered safely into the night, its tags tinkling as it ran.

“Move fast,” Manny said. “They saw your brake lights.”

The squad car turned its searchlight forward. Mark hit the accelerator and sped into the darkness, swerving wildly to miss a giant pothole. Flashing lights swirled and the car raced toward them, its siren blaring.

“Turn here!” Manny yelled.

Mark turned sharply and sped down a dark alley. “I have to turn on my lights!”

“Keep them off. I'll tell you where to go.”

They passed a fenced-in area and several crumpled buildings. Vicki's heart raced as the squad car shot past the entrance to the alley. “They didn't see us turn!”

“Keep your lights off. They might be—”

The swirling lights returned as the squad car backed up and entered the alley.

“Turn left here,” Manny said. “No brakes!”

Mark careened around the corner, barely missing a telephone pole and smashing into several trash cans. They were on gravel now, and the tires crunched bits of rock as they flew along the darkened side street. Manny leaned forward, struggling to see the next turn.

“They passed us again,” Vicki said. “Wait, they're backing up!”

“Okay, a right turn coming up after an apartment building,” Manny said. “Almost there, but we have to put some distance between us and them.”

Mark pushed the car faster until Manny screamed. Mark had to hit the brakes and slid within a few inches of a concrete wall. A few yards more and they were back on a paved road. “Where are you taking us?”

“Just keep going,” Manny said, looking behind them. “If they catch us, we'll lose our heads.”

Mark strangled the steering wheel. “You two get out and hide, and I'll—”

“No, we're close,” Manny said. “Keep going.”

There were no working streetlights, and Vicki couldn't imagine how Mark drove without hitting something. The road was bumpy and at these speeds there was a chance of blowing a tire. Vicki closed her eyes and prayed. “God, help us get out of this without getting caught.”