Cabal

by Mark Goodwin

  “Thank you for clarifying that, Carl. Now let me to ask you about the sabbatical you took last year when you were writing Enter Faith.”

  “Oh, wow. We had such a wonderful time studying and learning about all the different ways people experience the power that I call God. We spent a month in Jerusalem, and let me tell you something, that place is magical. Jews, Christians, and Muslims, while they all understand him differently, their devotion to the Higher Power is amazing!”

  “After that, we traveled to India. We worshiped with the Hindus, got to know their culture and their method for connecting with the Universal Good. From there we continued our journey to Central Asia.

  “I think people assume that spiritual people in China all study Buddhism, but that region has such richness and diversity. Taoism and Confucianism are both very popular religions.”

  “Do you still consider yourself to be Christian?”

  “Oh, yes. Jesus was my initial path to understanding God, but that’s not to say that I dismiss the truths found through other pathways. Enter Faith is all about appreciating one another. I believe that now more than ever, if we are all going to get along in a common economy, we’re going to have to learn to respect one another. I know the bumper sticker which reads Coexist has become somewhat cliché over time. But to me, the message is vital. In fact, it was that bumper sticker which inspired me to write my new book.

  “For too long, dogma has separated us, dividing us into smaller and smaller boxes. We’ve been forced into these extreme binary belief systems. Either science or faith; creation or evolution; Jesus or Buddha; straight or gay; boy or girl. Like a little bird coming out of its shell, we’ve begun to evolve past some of those erroneous social constructs. I think it’s time we fully emerge from the egg, stretch our wings, and see what a wondrous utopia awaits us when we no longer have religion to separate us. Think about it. If we can have gender fluidity, why not spiritual fluidity?”

  “That’s wonderful,” said the host. “Let me ask you; your church, which is the largest congregation in America, has been called Faith Fellowship for over a decade. Are you considering changing the name? Might we see Enter Faith Fellowship in the near future? Enter Faith with an E?”

  Carl Jacobs laughed. “At the risk of people thinking we don’t know how to spell, yes. We’ve already had the replacement signs fabricated, everything is ready to roll out this weekend. Any CEO of a major corporation will tell you that rebranding is a nightmare. It has been challenging, especially considering Faith Fellowship has more than 1,000 satellite congregations around the world, but I feel it’s all worth it to help convey the message that we welcome everyone. Inclusivity has been our number one core value for over a decade. We’re simply expanding what that word means to us.”

  Tyler White said, “I’ve heard you speak—nothing but positivity. And I’ve seen the music production that your worship team puts on week after week. It’s no wonder you have the largest, fastest-growing church on the planet. Carl, thanks again for making time. Everyone listening, pick up Pastor Carl’s latest book, Enter Faith. I believe this concept is going to be instrumental in our species’ ability to weather the storm which we’re experiencing. I really mean that.”

  “See there,” said Nicole. “I told you this guy was good!”

  “I’m not so sure about that,” said Josh.

  “Oh, come on! How can you find fault in that?”

  “Jesus said He was the only way to God,” Josh replied.

  “Where does it say that?” she challenged.

  Josh wished he had a better command of the Scriptures. But all he had was vague recollections from a time in his life when at least church attendance was a priority. “I don’t know, Google it. Something about, no man comes to the Father except through Me.”

  Emilio took out his phone. “Here it is. John 14:6. Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”

  “Are you on his side now?” she snapped at Emilio.

  “Whoa! Wait a minute. I’m a devoted agnostic. I’m just helping to get the data out for an informed debate.”

  “How can you be a devoted agnostic?” Josh asked.

  “I have a very high level of conviction that it’s impossible to know whether God exists or doesn’t.”

  Josh frowned at the convoluted statement.

  “Anyway,” Nicole waved her hand. “You heard what Pastor Carl said. A lot of those ideas get misinterpreted, cut and pasted together.”

  “Okay, how else would you translate that statement? It sounds pretty obvious to me. Buddha, Mohammad, Confucius, those guys can’t get you to God. Only Jesus.”

  “Well, we don’t know if it was properly translated.” She crossed her arms.

  Josh looked across the seat. “Emilio, see what language that part of the Bible was written in and see if you can get the statement as it was originally spoken, then translate it into English.”

  “I think it would be better if I stayed out of this.”

  “You’re a dispassionate observer, simply providing the data for an informed debate, remember?” Josh urged.

  “It might take me a while.” He pecked away on his phone.

  “That’s okay,” said Josh. “It will be good practice for your investigative side hustle.”

  “What’s he talking about?” Nicole asked.

  “You can tell her. She might be a pain sometimes, but I trust her with my life.”

  “Says the guy who wouldn’t tell me the economy was going to implode.” She turned away from her brother. “But seriously, what is he talking about?”

  Emilio looked at Josh as if for a second round of verification. “A phone that was supposed to go to the FBI ended up in our custody.”

  “Ended up in your custody,” Josh clarified.

  “Ended up in my custody. I dumped the contacts and have been working with one of the analysts back in Tampa…”

  Josh cut him off. “A girl at the office who has no idea that he has a girlfriend now.”

  “What?” Nicole’s eyes narrowed.

  “Would you let me tell it?” Emilio sounded aggravated.

  Josh suppressed his grin. “Go ahead.”

  “An analyst, with whom I’ve never had anything other than a professional relationship with, is assisting me in tracking down leads from the phone.”

  “And?” Nicole asked.

  “I’ve been looking into these guys, and I think I’ve discovered a terrorist cell of Saudi Nationals. Maybe multiple cells, with operations in Tampa, Cincinnati, New Jersey, and California.”

  “Saudis? Haven’t they already done enough damage by destroying the global economy? What’s the point in kicking a dead horse?” Nicole looked to her brother for commentary.

  “This King Abdulla bin Mohammad is the most religiously pious member of the Saudi Royal Family we’ve ever seen. He was highly critical of his father and his older brother, who was in line for the crown. Prior to their untimely and unfortunate deaths, he said they were seduced by the great Satan and abhorred by Allah.”

  “So what are you going to do?” She looked at Emilio.

  “When I have actionable intelligence, I’ll send an anonymous email to our former SAC in Tampa.” Emilio looked up from his phone. “This should help with your Bible verse. I found an app called E-Sword. It has the original Greek overlaid on the King James Version. And, you can click each Greek word for the definition.”

  “Good, let’s hear it,” Josh said.

  “Okay, John 14:6 in Greek is, Oudeis, erchomai pros pater ei me dia emou. Here’s what it means; Oudeis, which literally is no one; erchomai, to come; pros, which can mean at, near, by, to, or towards; pater, father; ei me, can mean except, or but; dia, through or by means of; emou, which is me, my, or mine.”

  “Boy, they really butchered that one didn’t they? Talk about twisting the truth!” Josh laughed.

  “Shut up!” She slapped his arm playfully. “You’re such a
smart-aleck.”

  Josh thought about his recent encounter. “That old man back at the filling station, he said something about thinking that Lucius Alexander was the anti-Christ.”

  Nicole rolled her eyes. “Of course, the crusty old coot at a gas station is going to be an authority on the matter over the pastor of the world’s largest megachurch, who also happens to have written like ten New York Times bestsellers.”

  “How about we call a truce on the debates for a while and listen to some music?” Emilio reached for the tuner on the radio.

  “Fine by me,” said Josh.

  Nicole looked out Emilio’s window. “Go ahead.”

  ***

  Three hours later, Josh pulled into the parking lot where they’d left Nicole’s BMW the night before. “What are these guys doing?”

  “They’re towing my car!” she exclaimed.

  CHAPTER 15

  Some even believe we are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as 'internationalists' and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global political and economic structure—One World, if you will. If that's the charge, I stand guilty, and I am proud of it.

  David Rockefeller—Memoirs page 405

  Josh pulled up to the tow truck where two men were attaching the apparatus to haul away Nicole’s BMW. Another supervised the progress of the first two. Josh cut the engine and stepped out. “Hey, guys. What’s going on?”

  The foreman man wore greasy coveralls. “The vehicle was abandoned here. We’re taking it away.”

  “We ran out of gas.” Emilio stepped out and came around the pickup. “We just left it here overnight.”

  Josh watched the two other men walk behind the tow truck. He turned toward his sister and held up his hand. “Stay in the car.” Nicole was about to get out but complied with Josh’s directive.

  “I’m sorry, we’ve already got it hooked up. You’ll have to pick it up at the yard. Just call the number.” The foreman seemed nervous.

  Josh looked around the parking lot but didn’t see any tow-away signs. “Where’s the yard? What company are you guys with?” He saw no signage on the side of the truck.

  “I guess we could save you a trip. Do you have cash on you?”

  Josh didn’t give a direct answer. “How much to settle up with you right here?”

  “ Five hundred dollars, if you have cash,” said the man.

  “No deal,” said Josh. “I’ll give you $100. We all know what’s going on here. I think giving you $100 with no questions asked is far beyond fair.”

  “Alright. $100.” The foreman held his hand out and stepped toward Josh.

  Josh took a one-hundred-dollar bill out of his wallet. “Unhook the car, and I’ll give you the money.”

  “How much you got in there?” The man watched Josh’s wallet.

  “It doesn’t matter. We’ve already made a deal.”

  “I reserve the right to renegotiate.” He glanced back toward the tow truck. “Tom, Bob, let’s show the folks we’re serious.” He unzipped his coveralls, revealing a shoulder holster. Tom and Bob appeared on either side of the tow truck pointing shotguns; one at Josh and the other at Emilio.

  Josh swallowed hard and glanced at Emilio who gave the faintest nod.

  Josh held his hands up. “Okay. We don’t want any trouble.” He took his wallet out and held it with his arm extended toward the foreman.”

  The foreman stepped closer. Josh tossed the wallet to the man who bent down to get it. When he did, Josh grabbed the man around the neck from above with his left arm and drew his pistol with his right. He dropped to one knee, swung the pistol under the armpit of his opponent's left shoulder, and fired at the man pointing the shotgun at him. The shotgun erupted simultaneously, and Josh buried his head in the foreman’s shoulder to shield his face. He looked up to see that the foreman had taken a direct hit from the shotgun blast. Out of the corner of his eye, Josh saw Emilio running to draw the fire away from the pickup where Nicole was. Emilio shot at the other hostile as he moved.

  Josh had hit his target, but the man was still on his feet. Now the man racked a second round and took aim at Josh’s head. Josh released the grip of the foreman and shoved him toward the shooter. Staying on one knee, he shot the assailant several more times, but not before he could pull the trigger of the shotgun. BOOM! Once again, the blast hit the foreman who fell dead, only a few feet away from his deceased comrade. “You okay?” Josh called out to Emilio.

  “Yeah.” Emilio lowered his pistol and walked toward the corpse of the man he’d killed.

  Josh sprinted to the pickup and looked inside to see Nicole squatting down on the floorboard. “Are you alright?”

  She looked up slowly. “Yeah. Is it over?”

  “It’s over.” Josh looked at Emilio who was examining the foreman’s back.

  “Lucky for you, these guys weren’t shooting slugs. Probably would have gone right through.”

  “Nobody uses slugs unless they’re hunting bear or elk or something,” Josh dismissed the concern.

  “I’d hate to take a chance like that if they’d been running nickel-plated buckshot,” Emilio added.

  “Do these lowlifes look like the type who’d pay extra for nickel-plated?”

  “Probably not. I’m just saying, you took a big risk. If he’d gone for a headshot, we might be sweeping your brains up right now.”

  “But we’re not.” Josh helped Nicole out of the truck. “Come on. We need to get your car gassed up and get out of here.”

  Emilio asked, “Aren’t you going to call this in?”

  “I can’t. I’m supposed to be staying off the radar.”

  “Shouldn’t you at least phone it in to your SAC?”

  Josh gritted his teeth. “I’ve already had one altercation where she had to call the locals for me. These guys aren’t hurting anyone. Someone will see them soon enough. Me getting in hot water isn’t going to change what happened.”

  Emilio grinned. “Wow! What happened to following the rules?”

  “We’re making up new rules right now. This is a whole new game.” Josh frowned and pulled two gallons of gas out of the truck bed. “Pour these in your tank, Nicole. Emilio and I will unhook the car from the tow truck.”

  “Two gallons won’t get us far.”

  “It will get us away from this mess. We’ll fill you up once we’re out of the area.”

  Josh and Emilio quickly unhitched the BMW. Josh asked, “How do you feel about taking their guns? It helps to ensure that other criminals won’t get a hold of them.”

  Emilio raised his broad shoulders. “To the victors go the spoils.”

  Josh looked at his sister. “I’m sure Emilio wants to ride with you anyway. You two lead the way to his truck. Watch the odometer. Once we’re twenty miles out, pull off, and we’ll put more gas in your car.”

  She took Josh’s hand. “Thank you, for everything. I’m sorry I caused all this. If I had come when you first told me, none of this would have happened.”

  “It’s okay.” Josh hugged Nicole who was tearing up. He glanced over at Emilio. “Maybe you should drive her car for now.”

  “Sure. But first, let’s get those guns.”

  Josh and Emilio gathered up the firearms, stashed them in the trunk of the BMW, and continued their mission to retrieve Emilio’s truck, refuel, and get back home.

  ***

  Josh was a day behind schedule on getting started at the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics in Frankfort. He walked into the building on Tuesday, just before 9:00 AM. “Good morning,” he said to the receptionist. “I’m from the US Census Bureau. I’m conducting a routine records audit. My office should have contacted you to let you know I was coming.”

  The robust polite woman looked up with a smile. “You must be Mr. Carter. We were expecting you yesterday. Samuel, our IT guy, blocked out most of the day to help you get situated. I can show you to your wo
rkspace, but I’ll have to check to see when Samuel is available.”

  “I’m sorry. I should have called to let you know I was running a day behind.”

  “It’s no trouble at all.” She stood up and motioned for him to follow. “I’m Julia, by the way.” She led him to a small room that had a narrow work station and a desktop computer. It also held boxes upon boxes of printer paper stacked to the ceiling and shelves of office supplies. “I apologize about the accommodations. This was our storage room. Believe it or not, Samuel and I did try to clean it up a little for you.” The space was too small for them both to fit in comfortably, so Julia stood just outside the door.

  “It’s fine. I’ll be working a lot from my apartment anyway.”

  “Are you here in town?”

  “Versailles.”

  “Oh, that’s not far. At least it wasn’t back when gas was $3 a gallon.”

  “Those were the days.” Josh smiled.

  Julia said, “Here comes Samuel now. Sam, the man from Census is here, do you have a minute?”

  “Hey!” Samuel poked his head in the room and offered his hand. “Good to meet you, Mr. Carter.”

  “Call me Josh, please.”

  “I’ll get out of the way. Let me know if I can get anything for you, Mr. Carter.” Julia walked away.

  “Thanks.” Josh waved.

  “Listen, I’ve got about twenty minutes. I can walk you through the basics and get your password set up. I’m afraid I can’t give you the grand tour.” Samuel handed him a card. “But text me anytime if you have a question. It’s usually small stuff that I can answer easily. If you feel like you need the official presentation, we can reschedule that for later in the week. If we still have jobs, that is.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Everything that’s going on. Did you catch President Winter on WNN last night? From the sound of things, the United States is now just a cog in the Global Union.”