by Thorpe, K.
Natan replies, “And…he told me about finding a similar code in the two classics I mentioned and that the Bible Code was basically a joke.”
“I’m not laughing,” Josh replies.
“I wasn’t either. But if the Code is real, then why hasn’t he found my information in there? If I’m so damn important, why hasn’t anyone else found this information?” Natan jokes, “Does the Bible Code hide information at will or what?”
“Of course not…that’s impossible,” he says.
“Well…apparently, so is the Code itself,” she counters.
“Agent Natan, the problem is that Dr. Berk and most others who review the Code don’t know what to look for.”
“What do you mean?” Natan asks.
“It’s like September eleventh. Several researchers found matrices with information about September 11, 2001…after it happened. People type in words for events that have already occurred and then they find matrices linking words that describe the event and they make a connection.” Josh watches Natan’s unchanging expression. He continues, “For example, with Hitler…in the early 1900s who would know enough about Hitler to investigate him in the Code? The people then wouldn’t have been able to recognize the information. Though, if they could have known about it, they may have been able to prevent World War II. It’s ironic, actually.”
Natan replies, “…because we can’t know the future until it actually happens.”
“Bingo,” he says. “And, by then, it’s moot, isn’t it? This is actually a good thing for us, but not for predicting the future. That’s why I hoped the symbols would help guide us where the Bible Code couldn’t.”
“So, you’re saying Dr. Berk, a man whose colleagues believe ‘should have won a Nobel Prize, if Nobel Prizes were given for math,’ missed any information about me just because?” she questions.
“Why wouldn’t he? He had no reason to search for you in the Code,” Josh says. “Even I found your information by accident…or through the grace of God…depending on how you look at it.” Josh pauses. “Agent Natan.”
“Yeah?” She looks at him.
Josh probes further. “Did he seem interested in your inquest?”
“When I told him that the N.S.A. was reviewing the Bible Code, he seemed amused more than anything,” she replies.
“You don’t think you’ve intrigued his curiosity now?” Josh wonders aloud.
“Honestly, no,” she says. “He told me to tell the N.S.A. that it would be easier to prove the existence of Santa Claus than it would be to prove the Bible Code.”
“Well, good. Now we can try to regain our focus…” Josh’s voice trails off as Natan hears a heartbeat again. Wincing, she rubs her forehead with her hand, then sees a flash.
In her mind, Natan remembers her walk up to Dr. Berk’s building. “Who can you
trust, Agent Natan?” A voice echoes from a building as she approaches. Natan looks up toward the roof of a building across the way. She sees a man with binoculars watching her.
Inside the car a concerned Josh shakes Natan. “Agent Natan.” No reply. “Agent
Natan!” Josh shakes her again.
Natan snaps back to reality. “What?”
“Are you okay?” he almost demands.
“I’m fine,” she replies weakly.
“You had me concerned there for a moment. What just happened?” he asks.
Natan tries to joke it away as nothing. “I’ve just been having headaches the last few days accompanied with acid flashbacks from drugs I never used.”
“What?” he asks.
“I keep seeing flashes of light,” she replies.
“How many days has this been going on, Agent Natan?”
“Four or five,” she replies.
“Have you been experiencing any other symptoms?” he asks.
Natan hesitates. “Like what?”
“I don’t know…fainting…blacking out?” His voice trails off.
Natan replies, “I haven’t really blacked out as much as I’ve been having hallucinations.”
“What?!” Josh sits dumbfounded. “What do you mean…what kind of hallucinations?”
“It doesn’t matter, Professor.”
“It matters to me. Tell me…please. You can trust me, Agent Natan.”
Josh’s words echo in Natan’s head. You can trust me, Agent Natan.
She continues, “I get a headache and then I see a flash…and then…”
“And then?” he probes.
“I see images, Professor.”
“Images…of what, Agent Natan?”
“I know it sounds crazy…” she hears the word crazy in her mind and pauses a moment for reflection.
Josh interrupts her by reaching out his hand to touch her arm. “I believe you,” he says tenderly.
Natan shifts uncomfortably. Josh pulls back his hand and continues, “This may have something to do with the Code. Were you going to tell me about this?”
“It’s not like I even know what’s happening to me…” Natan admits.
“Agent Natan, have you noticed anything else physically? Anything that may have a connection to the Code…”
Natan jokes, “Well, I ran into my coffee table a few weeks back. You think that could have an affect on the world’s religious populations when kneeling for prayer or something?” Josh sits in silence. Natan continues, “Look. So many things are happening lately…I don’t even know what’s what, let alone the fact that we’ve been experiencing technical difficulties…the fact that I’ve been remanded to desk duty at work…and the fact that I’m under surveillance at my house.”
Josh sits in shock as he watches her confession. She continues, “There. I think that gets us up to date. You still feel deprived of information?”
“I’m bemused,” he replies. “Though, it’s apparent to me that you’re experiencing something here.”
“You think?” she retorts.
“I really think you should see someone about this, Agent Natan.”
“I don’t need a doctor, Professor.”
“I was thinking of a different type of professional,” he counters.
“I already have a therapist,” she replies.
“That isn’t what I meant,” he says. “Let me worry about it…I’ll look into it. Now, tell me more about these images. What do you see?”
She tries to describe them. “They’re like fractions of pictures…like, glimpses.”
“Glimpses of what?” he asks.
“I…I don’t really know what, Professor.”
“What have you seen, Agent Natan?”
Natan leans in, becoming serious. Can I trust him? He’s going to find out sooner or later. No sense in walking away empty handed. Perhaps a game of barter will do. “I’ll tell you if you explain one thing to me.”
“What?” he asks.
Natan replies coyly, “Why isn’t there a Nobel Prize for math?”
“Ah…you’re kidding me, right? This is a joke?” he asks.
“No…I’m serious,” she replies. “I need to know. They have Nobel Prizes for everything but math? Why?”
Josh is astounded. “You need this information right now…at this particular moment?”
“Absolutely, Professor. You’re a math man…tell me.”
He simply says, “No.”
“No? You don’t know?” Natan reels him in.
“Oh, I know. You tell me about the images first and then I’ll tell you about the non-existent Nobel Prize for math,” he counters.
“You want me to trust you, Professor?”
“Can you, Agent Natan?”
“Actually, I do trust you, Professor…more than anyone in my life at the moment.” Josh softens. Natan changes the subject, “One of the images was about you, Professor.”
“About me?” he asks, “I see where this is going…you were projecting in our argument at the University…”
Natan interrupts him. “Professor…do you want to know or what?” Josh listens.
She continues, “It was strange actually, probably a projection of the childhood I wanted. You and your mother and father were sitting around the dinner table looking at Geographic Planet magazines.
Josh’s face hardens and he is silent. Natan see his expression change. “Professor?” she says.
“How old was I?” he asks.
“Ten or so,” she replies. Natan and Josh sit looking at one another. “It’s just a fantasy,” Natan minimizes. Josh shakes his head no. Unable to face what this means, Natan tries to change the subject. “Okay…your turn…”
“You know, Agent Natan, there are definitely other powers at work here.”
“You think so?” she asks.
Josh knows. “I do,” he replies with certainty.
“You’re stalling, Professor.”
“Fine. Fine,” he gives in. “Legend has it that Alfred Nobel’s wife ran off with a Swedish mathematician. So, to get even, Dr. Nobel shunned the mathematics community and has never issued a prize for math because of the scandal.”
“You’re kidding?” she stammers.
“Actually, the story’s a myth,” he says. “Truth be told, Alfred Nobel was never actually married.”
Natan nudges Josh. “You had me going there.”
Josh replies, “You know, most people actually believe that story, even scientists in the field.”
“What’s the real reason?” she asks.
“It’s interesting, actually,” he says. “Alfred Nobel simply said he never thought about it.”
Natan can’t believe the simplicity of it all. “So, the math field suffers because someone forgot to think of it?”
“For your information, Agent Natan, they do offer an award for math—it’s called the Field’s Medal.”
“Well, good to know. Wouldn’t want restless mathematicians running around feeling slighted, would we?” Natan chides. “I’m thoroughly impressed with your knowledge of this subject, Professor Sails.”
“You should see me do axiomatic foundations of geometry,” he replies with a smile just for her.
“I bet that’s a crowd pleaser, huh?” she replies, sensing his attention.
“You have no idea, Agent Natan.”
Chapter Thirty-three
The van sits down the way from Natan’s house with the van man inside on his cell phone. “She left an hour ago to get her dry cleaning,” he relays to his boss.
The male caller replies, “I’ve met with Dr. Berk. I’ve found some interesting information regarding Agent Natan. When you call in your status report, inform Baxter that I will be in his office within the hour.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Dr. Berk sits in his office at his immaculate desk in front of his computer. The computer screen shows a matrix with Natan’s name. He is intrigued. What do we have here?
Inside Baxter’s office, the head of the N.S.A. sits waiting at his desk. There is a
knock at the door. “Come in,” he replies. Baxter’s yes agent enters the office as the triumphant leader greets him. “Ah…Agent. I supplied the Advisory Committee with the information you gathered on Agent Natan. I hope you’ll be able to provide us additional information…”
Agent Knight stands in front of Baxter holding a folder with information about Agent Natan, tapping his index finger against the folder. “I will, Sir.”
Part V
Faith
Chapter Thirty-four
1983
In a filthy warehouse office, Palko, a tough-looking fellow in his fifties, sits behind his cluttered desk, tapping his fingers to a phantom beat. Jimmy, a younger version but cut from the same hardened background, hastily enters through the office door.
Palko’s patience is tested. “Where the hell’ve you been, Jimmy?”
An apologetic Jimmy replies, “I was out searching, Mr. Palko.”
“Did you find her?” Palko asks.
“Uh…not yet, Mr. Palko.”
“What am I payin’ ya for?” Palko asks, “This needed to be taken care of days ago. I thought you said this wouldn’t take more than forty-eight hours. It’s been nearly two weeks and now so much time has passed…I’m afraid that we may not be able to recover…”
“Mr. Palko, it’s taken longer than we thought, I admit it. My man at the adoption agency hasn’t been able to access the records to track her down. He’s still working on it…” Jimmy’s voice trails off.
“How hard is it to find a ten-year-old girl? We’ve been watching her for all these years, Jimmy. We can’t lose her now…not now.”
“We’ll find her, Mr. Palko. I won’t give up.”
“It’s not about giving up, you idiot. It’s about losing time.” Palko shoves a young Natan’s photo across his desk. “She’s missing…has blended into the world now. She could be anywhere…we may never find her…and you’ll be the one responsible.”
“I’ve handled the situation up to this point, haven’t I? We’ll find her, Mr. Palko. I swear to you, no matter how long it takes, we will,” Jimmy promises.
1986
Outside of her middle school, a thirteen-year-old Natan holds her backpack and stands on a curb waiting for a ride. Natan’s adoptive father pulls up in his Buick with the passenger window down. “Hey there, kiddo. You ready?”
“Hey, Dad.” Natan opens the door and gets into the car, sliding her backpack between herself and her father as he drives away from the school.
“So how was your day, Katie?”
“It was school, Dad. It’s the same every day.”
“Ah…come on. You mean to tell me that you didn’t learn one new thing today?” he challenges.
Natan looks at William, who has an expression of interest. She gives in. “The population of the United States is now over 240 million.”
William puts his free arm around her, pulling her closer as he keeps his eyes on the road. “See, now that’s a fact that I wouldn’t have known otherwise.”
Natan smiles and wiggles out of William’s grip. “Glad I could lift your mood
with statistics on overpopulation.” As they slow to a red light, Natan turns serious. “Dad, look, you should really let me take the bus with the other kids. You have to get off early and it’s out of your way…”
William interrupts, “You know the drive home is time I wouldn’t get to spend with you otherwise. And, since when is it okay for a thirteen-year-old girl to worry so much about such things?”
“Since I hear you talking about you needing more hours since the government cut your pay,” she says.
“You eavesdropping on my phone calls again, Katherine?” he asks.
The light turns green. William is about to go, when Natan stops him by putting her arm in front of him.
William asks, “What are you doing, Katie?”
“Wait a sec, Dad,” she instructs.
“The light’s green, kiddo. We can’t wait…green means go.” William starts to put his foot on the gas when another car speeds through the intersection. He quickly hits the brake. A dazed William and Natan sit in the rocking car as it reverberates from the sudden stop. The light turns red.
William continues, “How…how’d you know…?”
Natan shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know.” The two sit in silence as they watch the light turn green. Natan continues, “You can go now…I think it’s okay.” William looks at Natan in awe as he maneuvers through the light.
Chapter Thirty-five
September 29, 2006
Natan sits inside Josh’s parked car in front of an anonymous house. Natan has her hand over her eyes as Josh coaxes her, “Agent Natan. Our appointment began five minutes ago.”
An unmoving Natan answers, “I’m really not comfortable with this, Professor.”
“We can’t just sit out here in front of this woman’s house. It’s just not polite,” he replies.
Natan looks at Josh. “Tell me again why you made this appointment for me without my knowledge.”
Josh counters
, “Listen, this woman is one of the best psychics in town, if not the
best.”
“Uh…yeah. That word again…” she trails off.
“What word? Psychic?” he asks.
“Yep, that’s it. Notice how the word “psychic” and the word “psycho” are almost interchangeable? It’s not a coincidence,” she says defiantly.
“Agent Natan. Look…I’m asking you to make a leap of faith…”
Natan interrupts him. “It’s just one leap of faith after another with you, isn’t it? You ever thought about becoming a pastor or a minister?”
“Look, Agent Natan. Deciphering the symbols is taking longer than I expected. The second one is even more complex and difficult than the first one…and I’m assuming the complexity will only increase progressively with each additional symbol. The Bible Code isn’t offering up any new leads either at the moment and…”
Natan interrupts again, stalling. “I thought your expertise was in Mayan symbols. Why are you having such difficulty with them?”
“The symbols I retrieved are unlike any that I’ve worked with before, Agent Natan,” he replies, stifling his annoyance.
She continues, “Maybe we should bring in some other experts or something.”
“You know that’s too risky of a proposition,” he says.
“Ah…but seeing a psychic…yeah, that’s the answer,” she chides.
“It is the most logical choice, Agent Natan.”
“Whose logic are we working with here, Professor…when nothing about any of this is logical?”
Josh touches her shoulder. “We need to figure out what to do next.”
Natan pulls away, replying, “I know what to do.”
“And what would that be?” he asks.
“We wait,” she says proudly.
“Agent Natan, waiting will be the death of us. It’d be better to talk to an expert.”
“Great. Let’s do that then,” she says.
“That’s exactly what I’m doing. It’s time to go, Agent Natan.”
“Oh, must we?” she whines.
Josh continues his encouragement. “There aren’t even any signs identifying her, so no one will have a remote idea as to why you’re here. Come on. We’re already late.” Josh unbuckles his seat belt. “Doesn’t it look benign?”