Shaken (21 page)

Judd walked to the meeting in a daze. Now that Kasim had his own apartment, he would be harder to stop. It wasn't that Judd cared for Carpathia. The man was the enemy of their souls. Judd didn't want Kasim to get hurt or bring the GC down on their group.

When Judd entered the small meeting room, he saw his friends surrounded by forty to fifty people. Some were young, others old. A few were Orthodox Jews and stood to the side. People sat in metal folding chairs arranged in a semicircle.

Mr. Stein got everyone's attention. “We have prayed for you,” he began. “As we passed out the flyers, we asked God to draw those open to truth. We praise him for your presence tonight.”

A few of the Orthodox Jews headed for the door. Mr. Stein took a step forward. “Please, my friends, don't go until you have heard our message.”

One man turned. “We are not your friend and we do not serve the same God as you.”

Holding out his hands, Mr. Stein approached the man. “We agree about many things. There is one God. Nicolae Carpathia is not who he claims to be. He is not our ruler and king.”

The man nodded. “You are right. We have watched Carpathia closely and do not believe he is truly a man of peace.”

“God above has given you this wisdom. But many will turn from the true and living God to serve this man of sin.”

“We may agree about this, but we cannot follow your teaching about the one you call the Christ.”

Mr. Stein smiled. “I was once like you. I did not accept the claims of Jesus as the Messiah. When my daughter told me she had turned from my faith, I counted her as dead. I turned my back on her.”

“As well you should,” the man said. Others agreed. Mr. Stein asked for his Bible. Lionel brought it to him.

“I admire your faith and your zeal. But as the Bible predicts, our society will become more and more sinful. Soon, even to this holy city, there will be such great evil and wickedness. And one day in the future, the temple you now worship God in shall be defiled by the Antichrist.”

“How could you know such things?” the man said.

“Are you a prophet?”

“I am a humble follower of the King of kings and Lord of lords. He has given me and others the ability to speak in different languages so that everyone may hear the truth.”

The group grumbled and urged the man to leave. Mr. Stein pleaded, but one by one the Orthodox Jews filed out of the room. Mr. Stein bowed his head. He returned to the front of the room, weeping.

Vicki and the others listened to the chopper pass. Mark peeked out the back window. “It's GC all right, but I don't think they slowed down as they went over the schoolhouse.”

“That was way too close,” Vicki said. “We have to be ready to get out of here fast.”

“Already got that covered,” Conrad said. He took a sheet of paper from Charlie and marked the escape route. Vicki couldn't believe the detail of the plan.

“This is only if the GC find us, right?” Charlie said.

Conrad nodded. “I'd like to remove some equipment from the truck and set it up downstairs. Then we can pull the truck a little farther onto the logging road.”

Vicki nodded. “Let's get the equipment out of here. Charlie, you start on the painting. Choose a room downstairs and make one of the walls as much like the picture we saw on TV as you can.”

“Got it,” Charlie said.

The kids stopped when they heard the
thwock thwock thwock
of the chopper again.

Judd prayed as Mr. Stein composed himself and stood before the group. People turned to each other and talked, many in different languages.

“We want to tell you the best news you could ever hear. We want to tell you how you can have true peace with God and live with him forever.”

The people stopped talking as Mr. Stein read or recited several Bible verses. Something shuffled outside in the shadows, but Judd couldn't make out what or who it was.

Suddenly the door burst open and three Global Community Peacekeepers charged in with rifles drawn. “Hands up! Everyone!”

Everyone obeyed except Mr. Stein. He stepped toward the men. “What is this about? We have no quarrel with you.”

“Hands in the air!” the Peacekeeper shouted. “This is an unlawful assembly. You will all be arrested and questioned.”

Several in the audience started crying. Lionel got Judd's attention and nodded toward a back door. Judd shook his head. He didn't want to risk getting shot by running.

Mr. Stein knelt. “Our Father, we have been faithful to the task you have given. If you desire us to speak about you to those in authority, we will gladly do so. But we ask your divine protection on these who have not yet been able to respond—”

The lead Peacekeeper kicked Mr. Stein in the side. “On your feet, old man!”

Mr. Stein slumped to the ground as Judd rushed to help him. A woman nearby leaned down and whispered, “If we believe what you are saying, what are we to do?”

Mr. Stein closed his eyes. “Lord, give us enough time to show these people how to respond to you.”

Someone gasped and another man cried out. Judd looked up as all three Peacekeepers fell backward. Two darted outside and ran away. The third landed on the floor, his gun clattering against a metal chair. The man pulled his knees to his chest and shook with fear. “Please, don't hurt me!”

Judd picked up the gun and walked to the man. “I'm not going to hurt you.”

“Not you.” The man's eyes were as big as saucers as he pointed toward Mr. Stein. “Them.”

Judd turned. The room looked the same as it had all night. “Who are you talking about?”

“Those two beside the guy with the beard.”

Judd looked again. The Peacekeeper was clearly pointing toward Mr. Stein, but there was no one beside him.

“What do they look like?” Judd said.

“Big. Shiny. It hurts to look at them. And they have weapons! Please, tell them not to hurt me.”

“It's okay,” Judd said, trying to figure out what the man had seen. “Leave now and you won't be hurt.”

The Peacekeeper stood and ran out the door.

Judd turned to Mr. Stein. “What was that all about?”

Mr. Stein smiled. “God has protected us again. We asked for his help and he has given it.”

20

WHEN
the helicopter was gone, Vicki and the others helped Conrad remove equipment from the satellite truck. Though some of the gear was permanently attached, Conrad took enough inside for the kids to watch the satellite school transmissions and make their own recording.

Mark called Carl to find out how they could uplink Vicki's video. Since Janie was the newest believer, Vicki asked her to help craft an explanation of the truth.

“Carl says you'll probably have about five minutes, tops, before the GC figure out how to jam the signal,” Mark said. “We'll record ten to fifteen minutes just in case, but make sure you get the important stuff up front.”

“How do we get the video to Carl?”

“Still working on it,” Mark said. “Hopefully we can align the dish and let Carl take care of the rest.”

Vicki scribbled notes of things she wanted to say. Janie and Melinda told her what had helped most in changing their minds about God. Vicki had written several pages when Conrad asked them to come into the new control room.

The basement had been transformed into a television studio. Conrad had the camera set up near the wall Charlie was painting. A huge monitor sat in the corner.

“It'll take some time to figure out how to link up with Carl,” Conrad said, “but we can record as soon as you guys are ready.”

Charlie had draped a sheet over two ladders to keep his painting private. Vicki asked if she could come in, but Charlie said he wanted to wait until he was finished.

“How much longer?”

“I'll work through the night. Should be ready by tomorrow afternoon.”

Vicki typed her notes into the computer so she could read them from the monitor. She wanted everything about the recording to be perfect. “Can we put any kinds of graphics or messages across the bottom?”

Conrad smiled. “Just tell me what you want me to put on the screen.”

After the Peacekeepers had run from the room, many people stood to leave. Mr. Stein tried to stop them.

“We don't want them to come back and shoot us!” one man said.

“Stay and hear the message!” Mr. Stein said.

“If we leave, will you kill us?” another asked.

“Of course not.”

Mr. Stein talked about Jesus to the few who remained. When he was through, several prayed. One man who had just prayed approached Judd. He was older with a square jaw and piercing eyes. He had a powerful handshake and towered over Judd. “You are American. Do you have a place to stay?”

“Yes, but there are others passing through who might need somewhere to sleep.”

The man handed Judd a card. “I have many rooms in my house. One as big as this. Tell your friends. I will be back tomorrow night with my neighbors.”

When they returned to Yitzhak's house, Judd asked Mr. Stein why the Peacekeepers had run.

“This also happened during my trip to Africa. The Bible shows many examples of angels helping people. I fear tonight we were in very serious trouble, but the Almighty protected us.”

Lionel nodded. “If that's true, maybe we shouldn't go back to the same place two nights in a row. The GC could be waiting for us.”

Mr. Stein scratched his beard. “You're right. But where do we go? And how do we let people know we've moved the meeting?”

Judd pulled out the man's card from earlier that night. “This man said he has a lot of room at his house.”

Yitzhak squinted as he read the man's name.

“What is it?” Lionel said.

“This man is one of Israel's leading military planners. They call him the General. He lives near Chaim Rosenzweig's estate.”

One of the witnesses said, “Who is Chaim Rosenzweig?”

Sam stood. “Only one of the most famous men in all of Israel. He discovered a formula that makes the desert bloom like a garden.”

Judd said, “Some in the Tribulation Force are talking to him about God.”

Mr. Stein took the paper. “General Solomon Zimmerman. We must go and see this man.”