“Is this why you question my decision? Have you abandoned me? You, of all people!” Christopher backed away, shaking his head in disbelief. “You told me you’d take the communion, but then you disappeared.”
Coming near again, he looked Decker in the eye. “Bob Milner tried to tell me when you called here saying you needed a vacation that he sensed something was wrong. But I didn’t want to believe it! I said you were probably just tired. I actually got angry with him for suggesting such a thing! But I see I owe him an apology.” Christopher shook his head again. “You never went to get the communion. You were hiding . . . you were—”
Christopher pulled himself up short and studied Decker’s face. “No,” he said more slowly, as a look of sympathy and understanding swept over him. “You were . . . you were kidnapped! Why didn’t you tell me? Are you all right? Did they hurt you? How did you get away?”
Somehow Christopher realized what had happened.
The look of caring and concern was so real, Decker could no longer remain aloof. This was what he had hoped to see when he had watched Christopher’s speech. Now he was sure.
The relief swept over him like a flood, as he knew for certain his concerns about Christopher had been unfounded.
“I’m . . . I’m fine,” Decker stammered, but it was obvious he wasn’t. “Actually,” he said, smiling in relief, “I feel terrible. No worse than anyone else, I’m sure. I’m exhausted, my teeth hurt, my head hurts, and my tongue and the inside of my mouth feel like I’ve been eating broken glass.”
“So, you did go through the plagues. I thought maybe you had been held in Petra all this time.”
“I was only there a few days,” he said. “When they released me, I went back to the U.S. Actually, being kidnapped and held in Petra was a walk in the park compared to the past several weeks.”
“I’m just glad you’re back,” Christopher said. “Did the KDP torture you?”
“No, they just scared me pretty good.” Decker reached for the glass of water, which had thus far gone untouched. “You know what I really need?” he said, as he looked at the water.
“Name it!” Christopher answered.
“What I really need is a beer.”
“Hefeweizen Dunkel?” Christopher asked, referring to a German dark wheat beer that Decker was particularly fond of.
Decker’s eyes lit up. “You have some?”
“I even have one cold.”
Decker nodded eagerly and collapsed back into the chair. It was the first time he had really relaxed since before he was kidnapped, for it was not just his body that relaxed, but his mind as well. He wanted to apologize to Christopher for all the terrible things he had thought about him, but he realized that discussion could wait for another time.
Christopher poured the beer slowly into a tall glass and handed it to Decker.
“This is so good,” Decker said, pausing only long enough to take a breath and lick the foam from his lips before drinking down another refreshing gulp. Christopher stood watching, apparently sharing his enjoyment.
“Decker, look, you’re tired and you’re . . . well, you’re not as young as you used to be,” he smiled. “And like you said, it’s been hard on everyone. Have you seen a doctor?”
“I guess I should,” Decker agreed.
“Why don’t you go home and get a good night’s sleep. I’ll have Jackie make an appointment at the clinic for you tomorrow.”
Decker nodded agreement.
“And while you’re there you can finally take the communion,” Christopher added, “discretely, of course. It wouldn’t be good to have anyone find out you waited so long.”
“I’ll do that,” Decker agreed. Still, though he no longer believed Christopher to be a monster, he had come a long way and had not yet achieved his purpose. “But before I go,” he said, “I really need to talk to you.” His expression made it obvious that he would not be swayed from his intent.
“All right,” Christopher smiled accommodatingly and sat back down opposite Decker. “What is it that’s so important that it can’t wait until morning?”
“Christopher,” Decker began, sitting forward in his seat and setting his beer down so he could use his hands to express himself. “When I was taken to Petra, at first I just wondered whether I’d ever get out of there alive. They didn’t tortured me, but they did their best to convince me of their beliefs. After that,” he shrugged, “I guess they just gave up. They let me go wherever I wanted throughout the whole encampment. I had a chance to meet the people and talk to them, to listen to what they thought about what was happening. And I realized some things. Most of them are not KDP crazies,” he assured him. “They’re just ordinary people who have been convinced by the circumstances that the KDP have their best interests at heart and that you’re their enemy.
“On the plane to Jerusalem after your resurrection,” Decker continued, “you told me that my role would be to serve as communicator of your message to people who weren’t familiar with the concepts of the New Age. Well, I served you in that role for three years, and I thought that job was pretty much complete. There’s not a man or woman on the planet who hasn’t been thoroughly familiarized with the message of the coming advance in the evolution of Humankind: movies, internet, radio, newspapers, magazines, books, songs, plays, billboards, bumper stickers — your vision of the future is everywhere. There’s not a child in school from age three who hasn’t been trained in the ethics and tenets of the New Age. Even the younger ones learn the message through songs, cartoons, toys, and games.
“The mission has gone so well, in fact, that I was beginning to think I had worked myself out of a job. But on my last night in Petra, I realized there was still much work that could be done. But it was with the least likely of audiences: the people of Petra, and maybe even the fundamentalists.”
Christopher shook his head to indicate the hopelessness of what Decker was suggesting. His skepticism didn’t deter Decker. “Christopher, I’m convinced that we can reach these people — make them understand that you’re not their enemy — that what you offer the world is not to be feared, but welcomed.”
Christopher seemed unconvinced, but Decker continued, clarifying one point, “I’m not saying there’s hope for the KDP. I think they probably are beyond the point where they can be persuaded by reason. But their followers — I’m certain that many of them can be persuaded if they’re just presented with all the facts.”
“Decker, believe me,” Christopher answered, “more than anyone, I understand how you feel about this. I’ve been patient to a fault. But I think you’re underestimating just how hard these people are to deal with. Don’t you think I’ve tried? I’ve had the best cult deprogramming experts and psychiatrists in the world working on this with some of the fundamentalists in prison. They’re still working on it, but they’re getting nowhere.”
Decker was well aware of this. His office had been responsible for distributing information on the program to the press. “But the psychiatrists and deprogrammers are missing the point,” he insisted. “They’re never going to convince the fundamentalists of anything as long as the KDP continue to appear infallible. Everything that the KDP says is going to happen does happen. Everything they attempt, each of the plagues . . . Sure, Bob Milner can come along later and stop what they’ve started, but in the meantime they’ve accomplished their purpose. But if just once, just once,” he emphasized, “we could alter events so that the KDP would fail in one of their prophecies, the whole foundation of their control would collapse!
“In Petra,” Decker continued, “they told me that the plagues were coming. The KDP told their followers that in response to the plagues, you would act first against the fundamentalists and then assemble an army to march on Petra. They even said when it would happen: September. They’ve told everyone. It’s commonly known throughout the camp.
“But you can short circuit their prophecy, prevent it from coming true! If you don’t march on Petra, then the KDP and th
eir followers will have to admit they were wrong.
“I believe you should go to Petra, but instead of assembling an army for war, you could send a peace envoy. Show your true face as peacemaker and benevolent leader instead of the demonic beast the KDP has made you out to be.
“The KDP took me to Petra to convince me that they were right and you were wrong. What I’m suggesting allows us to turn that completely around, so that we can use what I’ve learned to our benefit. So that we can convince their followers of the truth about you and about Yahweh.”
“Decker,” Christopher said, shaking his head and trying to reason with him, “all the KDP have done with their ‘prophecy’ of how I’ll respond, is to state the obvious. It’s like an accomplished chess player or a good military strategist. They can predict what their opponent will do several moves in advance because they know what their own moves will be, and they know their opponent will have no choice in how he’ll respond.”
“But can’t we respond differently?” Decker pressed.
Christopher shook his head. “It’s not that easy, Decker, and the KDP knows it. That’s why they can speak with such confidence. It’s not a coincidence that each of the plagues has been worse than the one before. We have to stop the KDP before they’re strong enough to act again, or the next plague will kill everyone on the planet except the KDP and their followers. No one outside the walls of Petra, not even the fundamentalists, will be spared.”
Decker dropped his head. “I’m only asking for a brief delay. There are so many in Petra who simply have been misled by the KDP,” he entreated. “If you march on Petra in September, they’ll suffer the same fate as those who have misled them.”
“What is it that you think I’m going to do?” Christopher objected. “Do you think we’re just going to go in there and kill everyone? The people of Petra will be given the same opportunity as the fundamentalists have been given to denounce Yahweh and the KDP. Anyone willing to leave Petra and reject the KDP will be allowed to do so.”
“But they won’t!” Decker insisted. “If you march on Petra in September, you’ll be doing exactly what the KDP said you’d do. By your own actions you’ll be giving credence to the KDP. What if you went sooner — next month — in August?’
Christopher shook his head. “We simply can’t be ready that soon.”
“Then, wait until October. You said yourself the KDP have been weakened enough that they won’t be able to call down any more plagues for a while.”
Christopher didn’t answer, but it was obvious he hadn’t changed his mind.
Decker tried another approach. “Christopher, when I recommended that you institute the mark, it was to use the biblical prophecies to our advantage. What I’m suggesting now is the same thing, except I think now we should do just the opposite of what the prophecies say.” Then another thought occurred to him. “Besides,” he said, “if you march on Petra in September, you could be walking right into a trap.”
The suggestion brought an uncharacteristically chilly stare from Christopher. “Odd, Decker, but I get the feeling it’s not me you’re concerned about.”
“Not exclusively, no,” Decker admitted quickly. “I’d be lying to tell you otherwise. But my motives don’t make what I’m saying any less true. If you can wait just a month, the people in Petra will realize that the KDP are wrong and their stranglehold will be broken. We can accomplish our goals and avoid a massacre.”
“Decker, don’t you understand, every day of delay is like putting off the removal of a life threatening cancer. In one month — a single month — these people you’re trying to protect have killed more than half a billion people and nearly every aquatic creature on the planet! I have no desire for a massacre or to end anyone’s life,” Christopher continued, “but you’re wrong. If I delay my plans, they won’t see their error.” He shook his head. “They’ll simply find some way to reinterpret the prophecies to say that I’ll be coming the next month, or the next, or the one after that. Do you have any idea how many times in the past these religious types have used exactly that kind of prophetic revisionism?[152] The Jehovah’s Witnesses practically made an art of it — predicting numerous events that never happened,[153] including the end of the world in the 1870s and 1914,[154] and again in 1975.[155] Time after time their leaders made their predictions, and time after time they failed. And when the predicted dates passed, they’d make up some story about how what they predicted actually did happen but only ‘in the heavenly realm’ or ‘invisibly.’[156] Or else they’d claim that they never actually made the prediction, and that what they said had just been misinterpreted or else taken too literally by others. And yet, time after time their followers just believed them. No amount of truth would shake them from what they wanted to believe.”
Christopher shook his head to indicate the hopelessness of any attempt to convince the KDP’s followers that they were wrong. “If I postpone the march on Petra for a month, the KDP will simply make up some excuse. They’ll do exactly as the leaders of the Jehovah’s Witnesses did. And their followers will go on believing their every word.”
What Christopher was saying made sense. As Decker thought it through, the faces of Rhoda and Tom Jr. and Rachael and Decker Donafin and all the people of Petra seemed to blur in his memory. Maybe Christopher was right; maybe he was just tired and old.
“But we can’t just—” Decker tried to think of something, some new reason, but he was running out of arguments. Still, there had to be a way . . . something he hadn’t thought of yet.
“I’m sorry we can’t agree on this, Decker,” Christopher said, “but I have to do what I believe is best. Now frankly, I just don’t have the time to continue to discuss it.” He got up and went back to his desk, leaving Decker sitting there.
Had he not turned so quickly, Christopher would have noticed the sudden look of startled recollection that swept over Decker’s face, and the expression of sheer horror that followed it: horror so great that all thoughts of Petra — the whole reason he had come here — were totally eclipsed in his mind.
Decker had seen something. It was no monstrous metamorphosis such as in his dream on the plane, but it was every bit as terrifying. It was the look on Christopher’s face when he said he didn’t have time to discuss it. It was only a look, but its meaning seemed inescapable. Decker had seen it just once before. It was exactly the same expression that had been on Christopher’s face all those years ago in Lebanon when he was asked about Tom — indifference.
In that instant, the universe changed.
Then he said it.
“There’s something else.”
With those three words, Decker crossed a line of restraint he had maintained for more than twenty years. He had advised, even argued with Christopher, but never before had he challenged him. In reality, his words could have meant anything. He could simply have let it drop. But to Decker it seemed that he was caught in a maelstrom that he could no longer navigate but could only press through.
“There’s nothing more to discuss,” Christopher insisted, his expression unchanged.
“I’m not talking about Petra,” Decker said, rising from his chair to face Christopher on even ground.
“Then what?” he demanded, apparently unaware of the tempest in Decker’s mind and heart. “What else have I done that has not met with your approval?”
Decker sensed a thinly veiled sarcasm in Christopher’s voice that he had never heard before. Then suddenly, he understood why Christopher hadn’t called him during all those weeks while he was gone. Christopher no longer needed him. He had served his purpose and his usefulness was over. “You were going to leave Tom Donafin,” he answered.
Christopher responded with a look of complete puzzlement. “What in the world are you talking about?” he asked, his voice showing not only confusion, but growing anger.
“When Tom shot you,” Decker began, “I was standing next to him. When I realized what he’d done, I asked him why. He started to answer, bu
t all he had time to say before he was killed was, ‘He was going to leave me.’
“It didn’t make any sense at the time,” Decker continued. “I thought it was just the ramblings of a lunatic. Later I became convinced that the KDP had brainwashed him. But when I was at Petra I had the dream again.” Decker paused to breathe and calm his pounding heart. He hadn’t tried to, but he was beginning to sound more and more like a prosecuting attorney.
Christopher didn’t like being put in this position, and it was obvious that he didn’t care for Decker’s tone.
“What dream?” Christopher demanded, wanting to waste no more time at this game. “What are you talking about?”
“It was the same dream I had in Lebanon.”
There was a long pause while Christopher studied Decker’s face in confusion. “You mean,” he asked, “when I rescued you? That’s what this is all about?”
“That’s what Tom was talking about,” Decker replied. “I never told anyone else about that dream except Tom and Elizabeth.
“You told me it was time to go, but I stopped you to ask about Tom.” Decker watched for any reaction. There was none. “You knew he was there, but you didn’t care. If I hadn’t insisted, you would have left him there to die.”
“But that was just a dream!” Christopher interrupted, his good hand outstretched, appealing to Decker’s reason.
“But it wasn’t just a dream!” Decker shot back. “You told me that yourself!”
Christopher stopped. Unable to argue the point, he dropped his hand to his side.
“You came there to rescue me! Just me! You had no intention of saving Tom. You were going to leave him there to rot!”
Christopher’s disposition suddenly seemed to change. His anger and defensiveness vanished, and instead he just waited and listened.
“I don’t know how Tom knew, but I’m sure that’s what he meant. Somehow, he understood that it wasn’t just a mistake or an oversight. You were going to leave him!
The Christ Clone Trilogy - Book Three: ACTS OF GOD (Revised & Expanded) Page 27