Frantic (11 page)

“Your dad could have kicked you out when he recognized you,” Judd said. “It was Woodruff who caused the problem.”

“God can still get through to your dad,” Lionel said. “Just because he was stung doesn't mean there's no hope.”

Late one afternoon Judd climbed to Yitzhak's attic to spend some time alone. He took Yitzhak's laptop and logged on to Tsion's Web site. Tsion included many of the stories of the 144,000 witnesses who had gone to remote places. He searched for Mr. Stein's name but couldn't find it.

Judd clicked on
theunderground-online.com
icon and was surprised to see how much material was already on the Web. He recognized many of the questions and answers. He and Mr. Stein had worked on them a few weeks earlier. Just looking at the material made him long for home and his friends. He wondered if Vicki had gone on the trip and what was happening at the schoolhouse.

He jotted a quick note to Mark and asked for an update, then checked his own e-mail. He found hundreds of messages from kids who wanted answers. He composed a reply and told everyone to check out Tsion's Web site and
theunderground-online.com
.

As Judd went through rows of messages, one caught his eye. It was from Pavel, his friend in New Babylon. Judd hadn't talked with him in a long time. Pavel's father was a worker with the Global Community, and Judd had been thrilled when the boy had responded to the message of the gospel.

Judd opened the message. It read:
I know where you are. Please e-mail me as quickly as you can. I have some wonderful news. Better yet, let's talk by computer link. Pavel
.

Judd set up the laptop's camera and sent a message to Pavel. As he waited, he heard a noise on the stairs. It was Nada.

“Am I disturbing you?”

“Not at all,” Judd said. He looked around for a chair.

“I'll sit on the floor with you,” Nada said.

Judd explained who Pavel was and that he lived in New Babylon. “Perhaps he knew my brother?” Nada said, scooting closer. She sighed. “Judd, I want to talk about what happened back at my house. My mother says I should move on, but I can't pretend I don't have feelings.”

Judd stared at the computer as Nada continued. “I've seen how much you care for your friends. You're willing to risk your life. You've done the same for me. You don't know how hard it was at home, being cooped up, hiding, and taking people in. Then you came. The talks we had were wonderful. I feel like I've known you all my life.”

“I enjoyed talking too,” Judd said. “We have a lot in common, with our faith and wanting to work against the GC.”

Nada grew quiet. Finally she said, “I don't know if I should tell you this. I have prayed about it and I think God wants me to . . .”

“Go ahead,” Judd said.

“I think you're running.”

Judd laughed. “Yeah, we're all running from the GC.”

“No, I mean on the inside. I see it in your eyes. You've told me bits and pieces about your life, and it seems you're always on the move. Always flying here or moving around with your friends.”

“We've had to stay on the run from the GC—”

“I'm not explaining it well,” Nada said.

Judd looked at the floor and nodded. “If you'd have known me before, you wouldn't have liked me. I guess there's still a part of me that's restless.”

“I'm wondering if you could ever . . . if before the Lord's return you could be interested . . . in someone like me?”

Judd looked into Nada's eyes. She glanced down but

Judd touched her chin and lifted it. “I told you I care a great deal about you. But there are things you don't know. Things even I don't understand.”

Judd scooted closer. “God put us together for a reason. I don't know why. Maybe he wants us to . . . to get more serious. Or maybe he just wants us to stay friends.”

“I'm twenty and I know that we have almost five years before Jesus will return. I want us to be more than friends during those years.”

Judd nodded. “I understand. I just need some time.”

Nada turned away. “That means I'll never hear from you again. You'll go off on some—”

“Stop,” Judd said. “It means I need some time. That's all.”

Nada stood to leave. A message popped up on Judd's computer. It was Pavel. “Stay,” Judd said. “I want you to meet him.”

Pavel pushed his wheelchair close to the computer. His voice seemed weak. “Is it really you, Judd?”

Judd introduced Nada and briefly told Pavel what had happened to them since coming to Israel. Pavel couldn't believe all of Judd's travels. “I found out you were in Israel from some of your friends back in the States.”

“What's the exciting news?” Judd said.

“My father has become a tribulation saint!” Pavel said, beaming.

“What happened?” Judd said.

“It's a long story. But reading Tsion Ben-Judah's Web site was an important part of him coming to the truth.”

“Did he pray before the locusts came?” Judd said.

“Yes, but as you know, he works for the Global Community and nearly everyone has been stung there. He has had to fake a locust sting in order to not appear suspicious. We also have a safeguard on our e-mail and computer transmissions. He met a believer named David who also works for the Global Community. David helped my father set up this system so it could not be traced.”

“What's the word about Nicolae and the ten rulers?” Judd said.

“They're keeping everything a huge secret,” Pavel said. “Carpathia and his right-hand man, Leon Fortunato, are in an underground shelter for protection.”

“The locusts wouldn't bite Nicolae,” Judd said.

“Why not?”

“Too afraid they'd be poisoned.”

Pavel laughed, then coughed. His face seemed pale but when Judd mentioned it, Pavel shook his head and continued. “The ten kings and even Peter the Second have been stung. They're suffering terribly.”

“With every judgment, Nicolae has turned it into something good for himself,” Judd said. “I don't see that happening with the locusts.”

“He will try,” Pavel said. “My father says Nicolae is preparing a televised message for the entire world. He will say the stories of poisonous bites are exaggerated.”

Judd laughed. “With everyone suffering? He can't possibly—”

“To convince people, he will conduct his speech with a locust sitting on his shoulder.”

“What?!?”

“My father says Nicolae wants to convince people these things can be tamed like pets. But don't believe it. The locust was created with trick photography. Make sure you watch the telecast.”

“What a liar,” Judd said. “With all the suffering, he's playing games.”

“He's not the only crafty one,” Pavel said, scooting closer to the camera. “Have you heard about the Christian literature that is flooding the globe?”

Judd nodded. “Lionel told me they helped pack some of it for delivery.”

“Nicolae Carpathia has sent his pilots to deliver food and supplies to some of the rulers where people are suffering most. What he doesn't know is that his very plane is carrying shipments of the rabbi's studies in different languages.”

“Incredible,” Judd said.

“That is the other exciting news.”

“You want us to help pack more pamphlets?” Judd said.

“It's not that. It's better. Have you read how Tsion believes this is the time for believers to travel?”

“Sure,” Judd said.

“I want you to come here.”

“To New Babylon?” Judd said. “How?”

“The pilot of Carpathia's plane, who is also faking a locust sting, is picking up a shipment from Israel in a few days. My father talked with him and explained your situation. The way is clear for you to fly with him and stay at my house. You could possibly get a transport back to the States or anywhere you wish.”

Judd could hardly catch his breath. He had seen pictures and videos of the city Nicolae had built, but he never dreamed he would have the chance to see it in person. Before he could answer, Nada quickly stood and walked out of the attic. Judd called for her but she didn't turn around.

“Is something wrong?” Pavel said.

Judd shook his head. “We just had a disagreement.”

“I assume you'll want to think about the offer,” Pavel said.

“Do I have to come alone?” Judd said. “I have two other friends who want to make it back to the States as well.”

Pavel adjusted his glasses. “I will speak with my father and get back to you at midnight.”

Vicki retrieved her notebook and was ready to meet with the kids from South Carolina the next day. Pete took Carl to hook up with the GC and finish his run to Florida.

Pete told Vicki and the others where and when to meet him. “Give me three days and then we'll head north.”

Carl thanked the kids for their help and made sure they had access to a computer. “After I get back to the GC, I'll be in touch. Look for my e-mail.”

Vicki, Conrad, and Shelly kept the motorcycles and rode behind Luke and Tom's pickup through the lowlands. The smell of saltwater plants was refreshing. They hid the truck and cycles deep in a thicket. Vicki knew she wouldn't be able to find the spot again without Luke and Tom's help.

“What were you guys doing at the station last night?” Vicki said.

“We'd been waiting all day to see who showed up,” Tom said. “We put the word out that anyone interested in getting serious about being a part of the Trib Force should be there.”

“How'd you know we'd show up?” Shelly said.

“We didn't,” Tom said, “but Luke had a dream last night. He was sittin' in a classroom, studying the Bible like nobody's business. I thought he'd had too much shrimp sauce, but he swore it was a message from God.”

Luke helped the kids into a small boat. He pushed off and paddled into the middle of the marsh and started the engine.

Vicki turned to ask a question but Luke stopped her. “Just wait. You'll see.”

Luke took them through a maze of creeks and small rivers. He knew each sandbar and shallow stream. Twenty minutes later the river widened, and it felt like they were headed to the ocean. Luke pulled the boat up to what looked like a tangle of scrub oak and some old logs.

“Who's there?” someone said from behind a tree.

“It's Luke and Tom and some friends,” Luke said.

Vicki stepped out of the boat onto dry ground. What had looked like something to avoid from a distance was actually an island with a cabin stocked with food, drinking water, and even a solar-powered computer.

Several people came out of the cabin to greet the kids. Most were teenagers, but a few were a little older. Some, like Luke and Tom, had the mark of the true believer. Others didn't but for some reason hadn't been stung by the locusts.

Everyone crowded around the cabin. Vicki asked questions and discovered most of the kids had lost one or both parents in the disappearances.

“My daddy was a shrimp boat captain,” one boy said. “I'd work on the boat all day long when I wasn't in school. The summer before, he tried to convince me to come to his church. He used to drink and cuss a lot, but since he started going there he'd quit doing both.

“He convinced me to go out with him one night, said he had a new plan. I didn't want to go, but he kept after me. He talked about God the whole way and I said I wasn't interested.

“Now, when he was fishing, he always tinkered with something. Nets. The motor. But when we got way out and set anchor, I didn't hear anything. Nothing but the waves lapping at the side of the boat.”

“What did you do?” Vicki said.

“I went back to find him, and all that was there were his clothes and his gear. It was the spookiest thing ever. I didn't know if he'd fallen overboard or maybe jumped for some reason. I looked for maybe a half hour before I called a Mayday, but by then things were going crazy. Wasn't too long later that I hooked up with Tom and Luke and they explained stuff to me that made sense.”

“Still doesn't make sense to me,” said a girl who didn't have the mark.

“That's why these guys are here,” Tom said.

Vicki opened her notebook and looked at Shelly and Conrad. She took a deep breath. “All that's happened— from the disappearances to the earthquake, the tidal wave to the locusts—has happened because God wants to get your attention.”

11

FOR THE
next three days, Vicki showed the kids from South Carolina what following God was all about. Shelly and Conrad told their stories and talked with the kids one-on-one.

By the end of the three days, everyone on the island had the mark of the believer. Conrad helped Tom fix their computer and work on the small generator that powered it. Vicki encouraged the kids to read Tsion Ben-Judah's Web site and
theunderground-online.com
and keep looking for what was coming next.