by Mark Goodwin
“How does the pretrib school of thought reconcile those passages?” Noah asked.
“For the Olivet Discourse, they say that God’s elect refers to those who will be saved after the first rapture,” Isaiah said.
“The Olivet discourse refers to Matthew twenty-four?” David asked.
“Yes. That conversation occurs on the Mount of Olives, so the Olivet Discourse is the tag for the passage in Matthew, as well as Luke twenty-one and Mark thirteen.”
“What about Revelation fourteen? How do they explain that?” David asked.
Isaiah shrugged. “They will tell you that Revelation is not written chronologically. There are events described in the heavenly realm in Revelation that are obviously not chronologically flowing with the tribulation, but the events occurring on the earth seem to follow a continuous timeline.”
Lacy and Lynette appeared through the door and ran to their respective fathers.
“I guess this means it’s time to go,” Noah said. “It’s certainly going to be a good study.”
“I’m really looking forward to it,” David said.
The girls gave Isaiah a big hug and chatted for a short time before leaving for their homes.
***
The next morning, Noah started his routine just after five o’clock. He brewed his coffee, made a quick breakfast, and got his things ready for work. He set his gym bag by the door and flipped on Fox and Friends at six o’clock.
The celebrity talk-show reporters had slightly somber tones this morning. One of them was covering the global markets.
“Asian shares are significantly down this morning. European markets are just opening, and it is a blood bath. This will certainly cast a shadow of dread across the trading floors in America today. We don’t know of any events that are triggering the global sell-off, but some analysts are suggesting that the run started in Western sovereign debt markets. They say this could be because the BRICS bank will be announcing a new gold-backed currency. For those of you who don’t know, the BRICS bank was established several years ago in Shanghai as a way for member countries to settle international trade. The member nations include Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. We’ll keep you updated throughout the day.
“After the break, nutritional author Lucy Gilbert will be showing us some delicious ways to cut calories, and we’ll have footage of our own Brooke Tanner competing in last weekend’s Lululemon Rollerblade competition. Stay tuned; you won’t want to miss that.”
Noah switched the TV to CNBC and whispered, “I’ll take my chances. We’ve had four market meltdowns this decade, but it’s still more exciting than counting calories and Rollerblading.”
The financial-network reporter was standing outside of the NYSE.
“The iconic charging bull statue is the only bull on the street this morning. Rumors of a collapse in US treasuries have Wall Street buzzing with anxiety. Traders are coming in early, and I’ve never felt such a sense of doom. Indices are down across the board in early morning trading. We’ll see what happens when the markets open, but it doesn’t look pretty.
“An announcement from the BRICS bank to introduce a new global reserve currency could be the final blow for the dollar, which has lost over fifty percent of its value in recent years. Speculators and those who follow the monetary policy of the member nations of the BRICS bank, especially China and Russia, believe the new currency could be fully, or at the very least fractionally, backed by gold. This would introduce a stable currency not seen since the golden days of the dollar.
“The only green showing on any of the early morning trading boards has come from the precious metals and a handful of commodities. Gold is up a stunning fifteen percent to $3,200 per ounce, while silver is up nearly twenty percent, taking it well past its previous resistance level of $100 per ounce.”
Noah glanced at his watch. He was late. He would have to cut his run short today. He switched off the television and headed out the door.
Once at the school, Noah pushed himself on the track to get in more laps in less time. He rushed to the shower and arrived to class just before the bell rang.
Halfway through first period, Assistant Principal Katie Votler interrupted the class. “Noah, James needs to see you in his office right away. I’ll watch your class while you’re gone.”
“Did he say what it is about? What’s so urgent?” Noah asked.
“He didn’t say, but you should probably take your things,” she said.
Noah felt his heart rate pick up. He grabbed his jacket and attaché case and headed toward the office. On the way, his mind raced. Something has happened to Lacy. Dear God, please let my little girl be all right. Or maybe something happened to Cassie. Please God, let them be safe.
When he arrived, he saw two Sevier County Sherriff’s deputies through the glass window of Principal Mitchel’s office. He spoke softly. “Jesus, let it be anything but Cassie and Lacy; please just let them be alive.”
He walked in the office.
James Mitchel greeted him. “Thanks for coming down, Noah.”
“What’s going on?” Noah asked.
“These deputies have a warrant for your arrest,” Principal Mitchel replied.
“For what?” Noah was confused.
“One of the parents claims that you are teaching creationism in biology. It’s a violation of Community Core,” James explained.
Noah was shocked. “I’m not teaching creationism. And even if I was, how can I be arrested for it?”
“Don’t say anything else. Wait until you get a lawyer. The union will get you a lawyer. I’ll let Cassie know that you were taken in, and I’ll help her arrange bail. Just go on in, and we’ll get all of this sorted out,” James said.
Noah’s fear bubbled into anger. “I’m not going anywhere until someone tells me why I’m being arrested!”
Deputy Rodgers said, “The parent is claiming that by teaching creationism, you’re abusing her child. By giving the child false information, you are hindering the child’s ability to learn, which will have detrimental effects on the child’s future.
“In addition to the felony charge of child abuse, you are also being charged under the new bullying law. Part of the Community Core legislation made bullying a criminal offense.”
“I never bullied anyone!” Noah shouted.
Rodgers continued. “Since the Bible was used to bully transgender and homosexual children, any reference to the Bible is considered bullying under Community Core.”
Noah clinched his fists. “At most, I told the students that there were people who disagreed with evolution and believed the Bible’s account of creation. I never told the kids what to think.”
Mitchel grabbed Noah’s arm. “Noah, shut up. You are digging your hole deeper!”
“All teachers were given a copy of the new criminal codes included in the Community Core legislation. It was part of your new contract. It was the only way Tennessee could get federal education funding. You signed an agreement form as part of your new contract,” Deputy Rodgers said.
“That thing was two hundred pages long. No one read that. It was written so that no one could understand it anyway,” Noah said.
“I don’t make the rules, Mr. Parker. I just enforce them. Turn around and put your hands on your head. The sooner you get booked, the sooner you can bond out and get this all straightened out,” Rodgers said.
Noah didn’t turn around. “You don’t make the rules, but by enforcing them, you’re personally responsible for violating my freedom of speech. Do you think this is right? Do you think you should be arresting someone who did nothing but speak his opinion? That is a complete violation of the First Amendment. If you lock me up, you are the criminal. You are the one violating the Constitution. An unconstitutional law has no merit, and it is your duty to disregard it.”
“That’s not up to me to decide,” Rodgers said.
“Yes, it is!” Noah yelled. “You took an oath to defend the Constitution. You are
the first line of defense.”
Rodgers remained calm, though his tone sharpened. “Mr. Parker, I’m sure you don’t want to add resisting arrest to your list of charges. That’s only going to increase your bail.”
Noah ignored the warning. “Answer me! Did you take an oath to protect the Constitution, and do you think arresting me is fulfilling your oath?”
Rodgers clinched his jaw. “It doesn’t matter what I believe. I have a family to feed. If I don’t do it, someone else will. I’ll be the one in the unemployment line, and you’ll still be in jail.”
“Do you think that defense would have held up in Nuremburg?” Noah shot back.
“You calling me a Nazi?” Rodgers drew his Taser.
Noah felt the Taser spikes lodge firmly in his torso just before the voltage from the weapon made the world go black.
CHAPTER 8
This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.
John 3:19–21
Everett Carroll received a text from the office Monday morning asking him to come in as soon as possible. He skipped the gym and had a granola bar, as opposed to his normal bowl of cereal. He went through the drive-thru at Dunkin’ Donuts rather than stopping at Starbucks on the way to work. He made it to the office parking lot at 7:15 AM.
I’m almost two hours early; that should be good enough, he thought as he locked the door of his car.
“Everett,” a familiar voice called from behind.
He looked to see Ken Gordon sprinting his way. “Hey.”
Ken caught up with him, and they proceeded to the security checkpoint together. “Did you get a text to rush in?”
“Yes, I guess you did too. I wonder what this is about.”
“Did you watch any news this morning?”
Everett slowed his pace to listen. “No, what happened?”
“Global markets are in a full meltdown.”
“Wonder what that has to do with the Company?”
Ken straightened his tie. “I’d say we’re about to find out.”
Once the two cleared security, the processing agent said, “Everyone in your department is asked to report to briefing room B.”
“Thanks,” Ken said.
They both went straight to the briefing room.
Agent Jones was in the front of the room, standing near a projector screen. “Take a seat. We’ll give the other folks another fifteen minutes before I start the briefing. In the meantime, I’ll stream Fox Business News so you can get the gist of what the meeting is about.”
Jones clicked on the projector. A Fox Business reporter, Stuart Redman, was interviewing the Chair of the SEC.
“Chairman Douglas, do you anticipate closing the markets early today, or do you intend to allow them to open at all?”
The SEC Chairman’s eyes and mouth were downcast, showing his concern. “We’re going to be keeping a close watch on markets. As of this moment, we do plan to allow markets to open at their normal time. We’ve seen these types of heavy losses in early trading before; markets often rebound once the opening bell sounds. The panic is amplified by the low volume in early-morning trading.”
Redman raised his eyebrows. “That sounds very optimistic, especially considering the ruinous losses in the European markets.”
The SEC Chairman attempted to hide his concern by pursing his lip. “There have been dramatic drops in other markets, but American markets often lead recoveries.”
The reporter said, “I know you have a long day ahead of you Chairman Douglas, I’ll let you get back to your job. Thank you for taking time to let us know that the SEC is going to be watching out for us today.”
Douglas gave the obligatory smile. “Thank you, Stuart.”
The ticker scrolling across the bottom of the screen showed the global indices, all followed by downward-pointing red indicators. The only green symbols followed platinum, gold, silver, and oil.
Back in the studio, Heather Smith addressed the viewers.
“Fox Business will be with you throughout the day to bring you the latest developments in real time. The only safe havens seem to be Russian and Chinese bonds. Investors are also rushing into gold and oil, but we’ve seen both of those get taken out when liquidity starts to vanish from the markets.
“The BRICS Bank has announced that they will be issuing a statement at 1:00 PM Eastern time. If this is indeed the long anticipated declaration of a gold-backed currency, currency markets around the world will be reeling for weeks to come.
“It is unclear how a new currency will affect the independent currencies of the member nations of the BRICS Bank. However, it is certain that it would be detrimental, if not an absolute death sentence, for the dollar, the euro, and the yen.”
Jones clicked off the live feed, and a graphic animation of a spinning globe appeared on the screen. “Agents, I’m going to cut to the chase. The president of the BRICS Bank intends to announce a new gold-backed currency this afternoon. It would mean the end of the world as we know it. Safeguards have been put in place to try to circumvent this threat to our national interest.
“It is likely that China and Russia will see these measures as a hostile action against them.
“We are anticipating electronic retaliation against stock exchanges, banking systems, and possibly even defense systems. We have done everything we can to limit access to strategic hardware and disable known threats, but there is always the one attack that slips through the cracks.
“Our facility has been asked to back up the NSA until the threat subsides. Some of you will be monitoring computer logs and communication activities of individuals on lists of known intelligence operatives from China, Russia, and other potentially hostile countries. Others of you will be monitoring electronic infrastructure and watching for potential attacks.
“Today is a big day, people. We’ll be bringing in lunch so you can eat at your workstations. We’ll most likely be asking everyone to work late tonight and come back early tomorrow. We are in a level-red operation condition until further notice. I don’t need to remind you who you work for and how important it is that absolutely none of what you see or hear today can ever leave this facility.
“I’ll be on-site today and personally checking to be sure everyone’s system has the access you need to accomplish your mission.
“Go get ’em.”
Ken and Everett walked back toward their cubicles.
Everett was the first to speak. “Safeguards have been put in place to protect our national interest. What was that supposed to mean?”
Ken shook his head. “You’re a little too inquisitive, but it sounds like the CIA is putting the kibosh on the new currency.”
Once at his desk, Everett logged into his computer and retrieved his assignment. He was tasked with monitoring bank accounts and firewalls for Bank of America.
Just before lunch, Agent Jones passed by his desk. “Anything out of the ordinary?”
“Nothing I can detect,” Everett said.
“Good. Call me over if anything comes up.” Jones started to walk away.
“Sir?” Everett said.
Jones stopped walking and turned around. “Yes, Mr. Carroll?”
“I noticed the price of gold was spiking tremendously. Is that something someone should be trying to get a hold of?” Everett wasn’t sure if he was crossing the line, but his inquisitiveness was getting the best of him.
“I wouldn’t be concerned, at least not today.”
Everett nodded and went back to work.
After Jones left, Everett thought about the way Jones had answered him. At least not today.
Everett looked at his phone on the desk and noticed something underneath. “A matchbook,” he said benea
th his breath.
Everett retrieved the object and opened it to look inside. It appeared to be an ordinary book of matches from McGuire’s Pub. The Irish bar was located just a block from his apartment. He pulled the matches out to see if anything was written inside, but nothing was.
It was obvious that Jones had somehow slipped the matches beneath his phone. Since nothing was written inside, Everett assumed he was expected to go by there after work.
Everett proceeded to watch his screen for telltale signs of cyber-espionage attacks against Bank of America. Lunch was served at noon. The cafeteria was closed, and the workers brought pizza and sodas around to each desk on a cart.
“Thanks,” Everett said as his slices arrived.
The familiar cafeteria worker smiled. “You’re very welcome.”
Everett bit into his first slice. This is probably the best thing I’ve ever eaten at this facility, he thought. If the cafeteria servers didn’t know they worked for a government agency before, I guess they do now. I’m sure they had to go through a much higher level of scrutiny to get a job here. And of course, there is the security screen to pass through every day when they arrive and when they leave. They must know something.
At three o’clock, the cafeteria workers returned with a choice of coffee or energy drink.
Everett selected a Red Bull. “Wow, we’re getting the royal treatment today.”
Everett sipped the cold beverage. What’s that? Looks like someone is attempting to breach the firewall!
Right away, Everett picked up the phone and called Agent Jones. “Sir, I have what looks like an attack against Bank of America’s Merrill Lynch stock trading server. Are the markets still open, or did the SEC close them early?”
“I’ll be right there. Initiate a counter attack against the source and then sever the hard line connection via a direct shut down of the Internet service provider.”
Everett did as he was instructed. “Okay, but this is going to shut down a huge chunk of the Internet when I shut down the ISP.”
Jones didn’t acknowledge the concern, but was at Everett’s desk in seconds. “I’ll forward this activity to the cyber security team, and they’ll handle it from here.”