by Tim LaHaye
She looked awful, like a ghost or worse, a zombie. Thin, eyes dark, skin pale. She limped to Chloe.
“Hattie!” Chloe said. “It’s been ages.”
“I wanted to see how my godchild was doing.”
“Not here yet, Hattie. We’ll let you know.”
“And I wanted to tell you I’m not jealous.”
Rayford squinted, watching Chloe’s reaction.
“You’re not, huh?” she said. “I never thought you would be.”
“Who would blame me if I was? I lost my baby, but you get to have yours. You’re lucky, I’m not. The story of my life.”
Rayford wanted to talk to her alone. No way he wanted Chloe to know what was going on. “We’re sorry for your loss, Hattie,” he said. “And we’re grateful you still want to be godmother to Chloe’s child.”
“We were going to be godmothers to each other’s,” she said.
“It has to be painful,” Chloe said.
“It’s going to be for the one who did it,” Hattie said.
“If you’ll excuse us,” Rayford said, “we’re trying to do a little doctoring by phone here.” He dialed Floyd.
Hattie drifted away without a word.
Floyd told Rayford he was within a mile of Palwaukee. “But this guy’s still hanging with me.”
Rayford didn’t want to leave Chloe, but he didn’t want to alarm her either. “If you’re comfortable for a while, honey, I want to talk with Hattie.”
Buck found himself fighting drowsiness. That should have been no surprise. He had been up since dawn in the Middle East. Despite the noise and thin air, he was desperate to talk with someone in Mount Prospect. He feared upsetting Chloe, and Rayford might be tending to her. He understood Hattie had been incoherent for months. That left Tsion.
What time was it in the States? Late afternoon? The rabbi should be putting the finishing touches on his daily missive. Buck called him. They’d have to yell and repeat themselves, but any contact was better than none.
“Cameron, my friend! How good to hear from you! Where are you?”
“First, Tsion, assure me I am not keeping you from your work. The world waits with bated breath for everything you—”
“I posted it not twenty minutes ago, Cameron. This is a perfect time to talk. We’re all excited about the baby and your return. Now where are you?”
“I wish I knew. We’re chasing the sunset, but at high altitude in an old jet fighter, I can’t even look down. I’d be looking at the Atlantic, that’s all I know.”
“We will see you in a few hours. There are few small pleasures left in this life, Buck, and rejoining friends and brothers and spouses is one of those. We have been praying for you every day, and you know Chloe is most excited. You’ll be home in plenty of time for the birth, which will likely take place at the hospital in Palatine.”
Buck hesitated. “Tsion, you will be honest with me, won’t you?”
“Always.”
“Are you trying to keep me upbeat because you don’t know about complications with Chloe and the baby, or because you do?”
“Your father-in-law briefed me. Dr. Charles seems to have it under control. Rayford reached you with the news?”
“Actually, Floyd did, and it’s worse than Rayford and Chloe know.”
“Should he not tell them?”
“He has his reasons. I just wondered if Floyd had talked with you.”
“No. I heard someone leave hours ago. I assumed it was he.”
“He’s worried I won’t be back in time if he has to induce.”
“Induce? Why did he not take her to the hospital then?”
“Frankly, Tsion, I’ve been killing myself with questions since he called. I don’t know what Floyd expected of me.”
There was a pause. “Cameron, there is nothing you can do until you get here, except to pray. You have to leave this with the Lord.”
“I’ve never been good at that, sir. I know we’re not supposed to worry, but—”
“Oh, Cameron, I think even the Lord himself allows some latitude on that during the Tribulation. The admonition to not worry was written to people who lived before all the judgments. If we did not worry about what was coming next from heaven, we would not be human. Don’t feel guilty about worrying. Just rely on the Lord for the things you cannot control. This is one of them.”
Buck loved talking with Tsion. They had been through so much together. It hit him that he was whining about his wife’s complicated pregnancy to a man whose wife and children had been murdered. Yet somehow Tsion had the capacity for wisdom and clear thinking and had a calming effect on people. Buck wanted to somehow keep him on the phone.
“Do you mind talking a little while longer, Tsion?”
“Not at all. I was beginning to feel isolated anyway.”
“How’s Hattie?”
“Quieter. The worst is over for her, though she is going to require a long recovery.”
“No movement spiritually, Chloe tells me.”
“A tough case, Cameron. I fear for her. I hoped she was merely getting things off her chest and that once she spewed her venom she would turn to God. But she has convinced me she is sincere. She believes in God, knows that he loves her, and knows what he has done for her. But she has decided that she knows better than he, and that she is one person who chooses not to accept his gift for the very reason the rest of us jumped at it.”
“She knows she’s unworthy.”
“It’s difficult to argue with. She is an adult, an independent moral agent. The choice is hers, not ours. But it is painful to see someone you care for make a decision that will cost her her soul.”
“I don’t want to keep you, Tsion, but what was your message today? It’s unlikely I’ll get to read it for days, and I need all the encouragement I can get.”
“Well, Cameron, as we come to the end of the suffering caused by the locusts, it’s time to look ahead to at least the next two ‘woes.’”
“So Trumpet Judgment six is next. What do you expect there?”
Tsion sighed. “The bottom line, Cameron, is an army of two hundred million horsemen who will slay a third of the world’s population.”
Buck was speechless. He had read the prophecy, but he had never boiled it down to its essence. “What possible word of encouragement could you have left people with after that bit of news?”
“Only that whatever we have suffered, whatever ugliness we have faced, all will pale in comparison to this worst judgment yet.”
“And the ones after this get even worse?”
“Hard to imagine, isn’t it?”
“Makes my worry over our baby seem insignificant. I mean, not to me, but who else can get worked up about it when a third of mankind will soon be wiped out?”
“Only one-fourth of the people left behind at the Rapture will survive until the Glorious Appearing, Cameron. I am not afraid of death, but I pray every day that God will allow me the privilege of seeing him return to the earth to set up his kingdom. If he takes me before that, I will be reunited with my family and other loved ones, but oh, the joy of being here when Jesus arrives!”
Rayford found Hattie outside. “What’re you doing?” he asked.
“Getting some air. It’s nice to be able to move around a little.”
“Doc thinks it’s too early.”
“Doc’s in love with me, Rayford. He wants to keep me here, incapacitated if necessary.”
Rayford pretended to study the horizon. “What gives you that idea?”
“He didn’t tell me in so many words,” she said. “But a woman knows. I’ll bet you’ve noticed.”
Rayford was happy to say he had not. He had been surprised when Floyd told him of his feelings, but he was also surprised to know that Hattie had sensed it.
“Has he told you, Rayford?”
“Why do you ask?”
“He has! I knew it! Well, I’m not interested.”
“He had a crush. I’m sure you’ve pushed him
away by now.”
Hattie looked disappointed. “So he’s got the picture that there’s no hope?”
Rayford shrugged. “It’s not like we talk about it.”
“Does he know you had a crush on me once?”
“Hattie, you sound like a schoolgirl.”
“Don’t deny it.”
“Deny what? That I had a wholly inappropriate attraction to a younger woman? We both know nothing ever came of it and—”
“Only because a bunch of people disappeared and you started feeling guilty.”
Rayford turned to go back into the house.
“I still make you nervous, don’t I?”
He turned. “I’ll tell you what makes me nervous. It’s your obsession with this kid at the airport.”
“Ernie? I want to meet him, that’s all.”
“Did you tell him where we are, how to get here?”
“I don’t even know.”
“Did you tell him Floyd was coming to the hospital?”
Hattie looked away. “Why?”
“Did you?”
“I might have.”
“That was pretty stupid, Hattie. So what’s the plan? His buddy, Bo, distracts Floyd long enough for Ernie to go get his bike and follow Floyd back to you?”
Hattie looked stricken. “How do you know all this?”
“You’re working with a teenager, Hattie. And you’re acting like one too. If you want to see this kid so bad, why don’t you ask one of us to take you there?”
“Because Floyd is jealous of him and doesn’t want me to even talk to him on the phone. Then he convinces you I’m too sick to go anywhere, so you won’t take me.”
“So Ernie’s trying to come here to what, get acquainted?”
“Yeah.”
“Bull. Do you know he faked being a believer to get next to Ken and might have infiltrated us if we hadn’t caught on?”
Hattie appeared to be hiding a smile, which infuriated Rayford. “You knew about that too?” he demanded.
“When I told him I wasn’t really part of the Tribulation Force, he told me his plan. It’s what I kinda like about him.”
“That he would endanger our lives? That he’s an opportunist? A gold digger?”
She shrugged. “The other men in my life are getting boring.”
Rayford shook his head. “I hope you’re happy with him.”
“Is he coming here?”
“Floyd’s trying to shake him, but he may have to lead him here. We can’t withhold oxygen from Chloe just because Floyd has a kid following him. I hope you’re happy. There’s no way we can trust that kid once he knows where we are. We’ll have to move again, and where will we go? And could we, with a woman about to give birth or with a brand-new baby? You go on about not being worthy of God’s forgiveness, and then you try to prove it.”
Rayford went in and let the door shut behind him. He hesitated, wanting to say more but not knowing what. She opened the door. “Come back, Rayford. Chloe’s in trouble?”
“Could be. Needs that oxygen.”
“Floyd obviously has his phone with him.”
“Yep.”
“Call him. Let me talk to him.”
Rayford dialed.
“Hey, Rafe,” Floyd said. “He didn’t follow me into the airport, but after meeting T, I know why. We’re thinking of switching cars and seeing if the kid will follow him. That’s one advantage to our looking alike.”
“Good idea, but Hattie wants to talk to you.”
“Hi, Doc. Listen, Ernie will talk to me. Just hold the phone out the window of the car and stop. . . . Yeah, I think he will. It’s worth a try.”
CHAPTER 21
“I have been going too fast!”
Buck was startled awake. Had Abdullah said something? “I’m sorry?” he shouted.
“I have been going too fast!”
Had he been pulled over by the air police, or what? “We’re ahead of schedule then?”
“Yes, but I burned more fuel than I planned, and we need to refuel in New York.”
Buck just wanted to get home. “Where are you going to put down? New York was last on Carpathia’s refurbishing list. Still blaming the U.S. for the rebellion, I guess.”
“I know a place. You will be in Wheeling in two hours.”
Buck checked his watch. It was seven in the Midwest. If they were on the ground by nine, he could be to the safe house before ten. There would be no more sleeping.
Rayford sat with Chloe, who looked pale, her lips bluish. This was getting ridiculous. He had the feeling the baby would be born in that house tonight, and he was going to do everything he could to be sure it had every chance.
“All right, sweetie?”
“Just exhausted, Dad.” She seemed to keep shifting so she could breathe better. He knew she was unaware of how serious that was. When his phone rang, he flipped it open so quickly he dropped it.
“Sorry,” he said, picking it up. “Steele here.”
“Ray, it’s Doc. We switched the oxygen to T’s red Jeep, and I’m on my way. How’s our girl?”
“Yes.”
“You’re right there with her?”
“Correct.”
“On a scale of one to ten, one being the worst, how do you rate her?”
“Five.”
“I’d ask for another fetal pulse, but there’s nothing I can do until I get there anyway.”
Rayford stood and turned his back to Chloe, moseying to look out the window. Hattie was outside, talking animatedly on her phone. “What’s happening with T?” he asked.
“I think Biker took the bait, but he’s going to recognize his old boss right away. We just hope he’ll stop and talk to Hattie anyway.”
“I’m only guessing, Doc, but I think he’s doing that now. Please hurry.”
“What’s going on, Daddy?” Chloe asked.
“Doc got hung up at the hospital and had to run an errand on the way back. He’s coming with the oxygen.”
“Good. And he thought it could wait until tomorrow.”
“He was only hoping.”
“My baby’s going to be all right, isn’t it?”
“If you keep breathing deeply until the O2 gets here,” Rayford said, eager to talk to Hattie. “I’m going to get some air.”
“Get me some,” she said, smiling weakly.
“Just do it, Ernie,” Hattie was saying, her back to Rayford as he stepped out. “Prove you’re a man, and I mean it.” She heard the door and slapped her phone shut.
“Cooled his jets,” she said.
“Yeah? How?”
“Just told him the situation and that it was stupid of me to ask him to try to get here. I told him maybe you’d take me to Palwaukee one of these days if I take care of myself.”
“Maybe. What’s he going to do now?”
“Go home, I guess.”
“He lives at the airport.”
“That’s what I mean.”
“He got bit the same day you did. How’s he feeling?”
“Pretty weak, I guess, but he said it was fun to get out riding again.”
Rayford’s phone rang. “Excuse me, Hattie,” he said, but she didn’t move. “Am I going inside?” he added. “Or are you?”
“Well, excuse me!” she said and left.
“Steele.”
“It’s T. Ol’ Ernie turned three colors when he caught up and found out I was driving. He started to scoot away, but I said, ‘Your girlfriend’s on the phone.’ He took it and the first thing he said was, ‘No, it isn’t.’ I’m sure I didn’t sound like Doc Charles, and she probably asked him if that’s who I was. Then she really must have been reading him the riot act because all he did was apologize and say yes a dozen times.”
“She claims she told him to back off and that she’d see him again some other time.”
“Doc’s long gone, so Ernie’s out of options anyway. He headed back to Palwaukee. At least he said he did.”
“You busy tonight,
T?”
“I let everybody else go home, and I was going to handle Buck’s arrival. We took a message out of New York that they’ve refueled and should be here by nine. You know they’re in a Z-two-nine?”
“The Egyptian fighter? You’re kidding.”
“That’s what it says. He could make it from New York in an hour if he had to. Anyway, what do you need?”
“Keep an eye on Ernie. I don’t trust him or Hattie.”
“What can he do? He doesn’t know where you are.”
“He might follow me when I pick up Buck. Who knows?”
“If he’s around when Buck gets in, I won’t let him out of my sight. Fair enough?”
Buck was claustrophobic by the time Abdullah streaked over Ohio airspace, but his discomfort was covered by excitement. Seeing Chloe was his end-all goal. Whatever was wrong with the pregnancy was out of his hands. All he could do was pray and get there. They could get through anything together. The next few years weren’t going to be easy regardless.
He reached forward and gripped Abdullah’s shoulders. “Thanks for the ride, friend!”
“Thanks for the job, sir! Tell Mr. McCullum what a nice ride you had.”
Buck laughed but didn’t let Abdullah hear him. He would never again use a fighter as a passenger plane, but he was grateful for the lift home. “Everything all right? On course, on schedule, got all our fluids?”
“OK, Mr. Williams. I will need a place to sleep.”
“I believe there are accommodations at the airport. I’d invite you to our place, but we’re in hiding and crowded as it is.”
“I need very little,” Abdullah said. “Just a place to sleep and a place to plug in.”
“Your computer?”
“Ben-Judah.”
Buck nodded. What more needed to be said?
Rayford was never happier to see a vehicle chug past the north side of the house. He ran out to help Floyd lug the oxygen tanks. “I’ve got these, Doc. Go check on her.”
“Leave the other one in the car for now. She needs O2 more than she needs anything else.”
Rayford was only half a minute behind Doc, but by the time he hefted the tank close enough, Floyd had the fetal monitor on Chloe and looked grave. Tsion stood watching from the bottom of the stairs. Hattie was in the opposite corner looking warily from the top of the basement stairs.