The Twelve

by William Gladstone

  Max took C.D. by the hand and led him out to the clearing where the others were sitting quietly, still absorbing what, for each of them, had been a miraculous encounter.

  They compared notes, and each had seen the spiritual being of their belief. They had been given the same message as C.D., and each felt blessed to be part of the journey.

  Each was hoping to be the one who would find and bring back the One. They had entered the clearing that morning as twelve separate individuals, with only their acquaintance with Max to bind them. Now they were united, sharing a common purpose and a mission.

  Together they hiked back down the mountain in the dark until they saw the light of a torch. Manuel greeted them without questions, and it was a silent group that returned to Tapachula.

  ***

  Over dinner, Max told Shilpa of C.D.’s experience, and what he had heard in the cave. He also explained that it would be necessary for them to return to Izapa in December.

  Whereas there had been doubters, everyone was now eager for the return trip—even Dr. Alan. Shilpa was concerned that C.D. wouldn’t really be able to search for the One, but Max reassured her.

  “I will come and help, but I doubt that any real searching will be necessary. I think the One has already decided who will find him—or her—and if C.D. is meant to succeed, the One will come to him.”

  Chapter Thirty

  Retracing Steps

  August 2012

  AFTER A DAY OF CONTEMPLATING WHAT HAD OCCURRED, ONCE again they gathered for dinner—this time to compare notes and plan for the future.

  There was one common element to the instructions given to each of the Twelve by the Thirteenth Apostle.

  “Retrace your steps to the most sacred places you have traveled or lived in this human life. Max will go with you—although he is not one of the Twelve, it is through his connection that you have come together with the rest.”

  As soon as they had finished eating, Erol sat down with Max and worked out a schedule so that he would spend at least ten days with each of the Twelve.

  “We have exactly one hundred and thirty days, including today,” Erol noted. “If you spend ten or eleven days with each of us, you will have just enough time. We must book your travel immediately and we must share the itinerary that each will choose to retrace their steps to those places where there is the greatest chance of finding the One.” He then offered to pay for the travel expenses.

  “You are more than generous, Erol,” Max said, relieved to be free of the burden of the cost. “I do not know how we would have managed without you.”

  “There is no price to put on our mission,” Erol said, and his voice was somber. “The message the Thirteenth Apostle delivered to me was perhaps the most dire. He said that if we failed to return with the One, the world would not enter the shift that has been predestined. We will not perish immediately if we fail, but the chaos—the environmental degradation, the violence and the wars, the poverty, greed, and fear which have dominated so much of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries—will continue until the planet itself will enter a dormant period during which humans will eventually destroy themselves.

  “This will create a twenty-six-thousand-year period of blackness before humans emerge again to repair the damage that will have been done.”

  “The Apostle didn’t share such dire consequences of failure with C.D.,” Max interjected.

  “Why would he?” Erol offered. “C.D. alone among us is the true innocent. If he is meant to find the One, it will be by the pure magic of his personality. More likely, the One will find him.

  “So C.D. does not need any added motivation. Thus, I suggest that we arrange your travel so C.D. is at the final stop on your journey. You should start with Juan, I think, whose sacred places should be close at hand here in Chiapas and perhaps other sites in Mexico and Guatemala. Then make plans to travel with Alan and Chill, right in your backyard in California.

  “Let me talk with the others to see which sites they will choose, so I can make the necessary arrangements for you.”

  ***

  As it turned out, Max did not need the full eleven days to travel with Juan.

  Juan had been to Chichen Itza, to most of the sacred pyramids throughout Chiapas and the Yucatan, and to some magical hidden oases in the volcanoes that surrounded Izapa. Often they journeyed on foot with Juan’s father, Manuel, who accompanied them throughout their journey.

  Since they didn’t exactly know what they were looking for, the entire time they were alert for any sign—an unexplainable energy, or an individual who said something or did something out of the ordinary.

  They bonded, but they did not find the One. Max experienced the magic of the volcanos and felt the presence of ancient spirits at the pyramids, but no person came forth who even seemed a likely candidate.

  Max returned to Dana Point and learned that Dr. Alan had spent his youth in Ohio, near many ancient Native American burial mounds. Dr. Alan had also been a mountain climber, and together with Max he visited several peaks outside of Aspen, Colorado, where he had spent winters and then some summers as a boy. But despite spending their full allotment of eleven days in Colorado, Ohio, and other parts of the Midwest, they found no trace of the One.

  Since Dr. Alan confided to Max that he had actually seen a UFO many years before in his home state of Ohio, he even thought the One might be an alien. But that didn’t help—they still didn’t really know what they were searching for.

  Max arranged to meet with Chill at the Grand Canyon in Arizona. Chill had felt great joy when visiting natural parks such as this when he was a young boy, and thus he thought the One might return to him in such a place of natural beauty.

  From the Grand Canyon, they went next to Yellowstone and then back to California’s remote coasts along Big Sur—among the redwoods—and finally Yosemite.

  It was their last day together, and they were walking through their campsite when Chill saw a strange-looking, bearded man, grilling hot dogs far apart from the other campers. He had disheveled, white hair, sported a grizzly long, white beard, and wore jeans and a flannel work shirt. He was talking to himself in a loud erratic way.

  Their first impression was that the man might be more crazy than enlightened. However, given that they’d already spent eleven days looking for the One without even a glimmer of hope and prompted by Chill’s own strong belief that the One would actually be Jesus, they approached the man.

  As they approached, something about the man did seem familiar, and, with the shock of realization, Max could hardly believe his eyes.

  This was Louis.

  Max hadn’t seen his brother for more than twenty years and had been left with no idea if he was even still alive.

  Louis looked up from his rambling and spoke.

  “Well, it’s about time you showed up.”

  For a brief second Max thought that—against all odds—perhaps Louis was actually the One. But then he remembered how violent Louis had been for most of his life, and he fervently believed that the One would never have taken such a form.

  Chill, however, had no such baggage, and even after Max introduced his brother, he persisted. The fact that Louis was Max’s brother actually made Chill think it more probable that Louis could be the person they were seeking. So they sat down at the picnic table next to the grill and shared the hot dogs, chips, and beer that Louis had brought.

  During dinner, while Max sat quietly and watched, Chill described the adventure in Izapa and their mission to find the One. Louis showed no surprise at the story, but he peered at Max with a kind of jealousy and inner hatred he had always shown when confronted with any of his brother’s accomplishments.

  Max became increasingly uncomfortable and suggested to Chill that they had to leave and that he had to meet with Running Bear later that evening to continue his search.

  Hearing this, Louis looked at Max and spoke.

  “You will never find the One unless you take me with you,” he said
. “I’ll pack up my things and be ready to go shortly.”

  Max was instantly flustered.

  “But there’s no time to make the arrangements,” he said quickly, “and we don’t have the money to make them.”

  “Money!” Louis shouted. “That’s all you ever cared about and all our father ever cared about.” Suddenly it was as if fifty years had melted away.

  Louis lunged at Max and started choking him with all the manic force he had possessed in his youth. But he was only three weeks short of celebrating his sixty-fifth birthday, and although the sudden burst of adrenaline had given him the upper hand, the energy rush didn’t last more than a minute.

  Chill, at six foot two and in excellent physical condition, was able to pull Louis off Max and hold him down. Other campers heard the commotion and ran to assist as well.

  A park ranger was summoned, and Louis was taken off by the local police to be held for assault. Even though his neck was sore, Max was otherwise unharmed. He thanked Chill for saving him, and they departed.

  Soon they went their separate ways, and Max continued with his plan to meet with Running Bear that evening.

  ***

  Running Bear joined Max at a lodge in Yosemite, and they began a journey that took Max to ancient Indian sites spread throughout Montana and Canada. Yet despite the ability Running Bear had to enter into communion with the Great Spirit, there was no sign of the One.

  Sun Pak was the next person with whom Max was scheduled to travel, and they met in Vancouver. Traveling along the northern coast of British Columbia, they visited places of beauty, but Sun Pak confessed that if he were to find the One, it would most likely be in China, because that was his true home—and the true home of his most sacred memories.

  So they crossed the Pacific, landing in Beijing. But despite visits to the Great Wall and the small remote village where Sun Pak had been born, there was no sign of their quarry.

  From China, Max flew directly to Japan to meet with Yoko.

  Together they traveled to Hokkaido, Niko, and many other sacred sites where Max had also been while making In Search of Ancient Mysteries, and yet they found no trace.

  Then Max went to Vietnam. Melody had brought her grandmother along in case they located the One in the sacred land of her ancestors. Melody’s grandmother had been told the story of the Twelve, and she seemed nonplussed, though proud, that her granddaughter should be part of something so very important.

  Yet she cried as she toured the beautiful countryside of her youth. Despite the fact that they visited more than twenty sacred sites and villages throughout the country, their trip proved fruitless.

  Melody was very disappointed, but not so her grandmother.

  “It is enough that we have sought the One in our sacred land,” she said. “Intent is sometimes just as important as results. Our intent has been pure, and have no doubt that it will assist the others in their search for the One.”

  Max realized then that this woman believed wholeheartedly in their mission, and it gave him new hope as well.

  “I am confident,” she continued, “that the One will appear as prophesized. The existence of the One is similar to a belief that has been in our family for centuries, along with predictions of the coming of end-times.

  “Our role in bringing about heaven on Earth shall soon be realized,” she assured Melody and Max, with a wisdom and certainty that comforted them both.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Earthly Love

  November 2012

  FROM VIETNAM, MAX FLEW TO LIMA, PERU, AND THEN ON TO Trujillo where he was met by Maria and her two eldest sons at the Trujillo airport.

  Maria gave Max a warm hug, and he remembered fleetingly how intoxicatingly beautiful Maria had been when they first met almost forty years before.

  Stepping back and looking at her as he was introduced to her sons Andreas and Sebastian, Max saw again a woman still beautiful, with a softness and knowingness that only added to her allure.

  “You have arrived on a very special day,” she explained with a glow of pride. “Sebastian’s oldest daughter Renata is observing her fifteenth birthday today. The entire family will be celebrating with her at my home, so you will get to meet all the Tucanos at once.

  “I know you must be tired from your flight,” she added. “Andreas will take you to your hotel, while Sebastian and I prepare for the festivities. Andreas will come back and pick you up at your hotel at six this evening. No doubt we will party all night, so get some rest.” She laughed as she gave Max a kiss on the cheek and another quick embrace.

  In the car, Max found it easy to converse with Andreas, who was curious to hear how Max and his mother had met, long before his birth. His mother had never spoken of it, and until Max called and invited her to join him in Izapa, Andreas had had no idea of his existence.

  Enjoying the young man’s easygoing demeanor, Max decided to open up to him and told him the whole story.

  Why not, he thought. The worst that will happen is that he’ll think of me as his mother’s crazy American friend.

  But Andreas didn’t act surprised when told what had occurred in Izapa, nor even by the appearance of the Thirteenth Apostle.

  “My mother described her encounter and explained that you would be coming to help her search for the One. She is a wonderful mother, and I believe every word she says.

  “I do not know if she will be the one to find this One,” he added, glancing over at Max and smiling, “but I am glad that you have come and brought this adventure into her life. She was very much in love with my father, and when he died so suddenly, she went into deep mourning. It is only now that she is starting to laugh and smile again. It will be wonderful for her to travel with you and revisit places from her youth.”

  At the mention of Maria’s husband, Max was curious.

  “Well, your mother is a very special woman,” he said, “and I am sure your father must have been a very special man. I am sorry that he died so young.”

  “Yes, dad was wonderful,” Andreas offered. “He was a wonderful provider and such a fun-loving man. He made my mother very happy and was always joking with me and my brothers. The grandchildren miss him so much as well, but we are so happy to have had him in our lives.

  “You will see at the party tonight how lively the Tucano clan is,” he explained. “My father was from a very large family, and his brothers and my cousins will be joining us. Altogether, there will be more than one hundred people, and almost all of them are family.”

  At that moment he pulled the car into the parking lot of the same Sheraton Hotel where Max had first met Maria, so many years before. He couldn’t help but glance across at the park.

  “I will pick you up at 6:00 p.m. Here is my number,” he said, handing Max a card. “If you need anything, just call. Sebastian and my mother are handling all the party details, so I really am available to help you should the need arise.”

  Max exited the car, and the bellman took his suitcase.

  “No, I’ll be fine,” Max insisted. “We have about four hours before you pick me up, and I can certainly use a good nap.” He walked around the car, hugged Andreas, and thanked him for his hospitality.

  ***

  Max was asleep within minutes of hitting the bed.

  His last thought before sleep was of Maria as the young woman he had met so many years before, kissing him in the park outside the window of his hotel room and telling him that she would love him forever—just as he loved her—but that their destinies would not allow them to be together in this lifetime.

  But Max realized, just seeing her at the airport, that part of him was still in love with her and still longing for the peaceful domestic life she had had with her husband.

  And not with him.

  ***

  Max had been to many parties in his life, but the love, laughter, music, and festivities at the quinceañera for Renata truly amazed him.

  There were grandchildren ranging from three years old and up
and even a newborn from one of the cousins. There were Renata’s closest girlfriends, dressed in colorful gowns, and young suitors dressed in their best suits. There were aunts and uncles and great-aunts and great-uncles, and flowers and decorations, and colored lights, and above all, love.

  Everyone danced and everyone sang—it seemed as if half the family could have been professional musicians. They sang folk songs, they sang classic love songs, they played special songs they had written themselves, some of them romantic and some of them full of jokes about Renata and her friends.

  As Maria had predicted, the party really did go on all night. They roasted an entire lamb on a spit and had every kind of delicacy imaginable, including a beautiful cake almost five-feet high.

  Max was introduced to everyone, and they all hugged him and made him feel part of the family. It was the first time since Izapa that Max actually forgot about his search for the One and just had fun. He danced, and ate, and drank. He flirted with the girls old and young, joked with the grandchildren, and found himself playing word games and number games with the children.

  He delighted them with his stories of India and far-off lands, but no matter what he found himself doing throughout the evening, Max could not take his eyes off Maria.

  She was dressed modestly in a black dress and spent most of her time playing with the children. A smile stayed on her face almost the entire evening, and she was so animated during the games with the youngest of her grandchildren that one might have mistaken her for one of the grandchildren and not the grandmother she was.

  Toward the end of the evening—or the beginning of the morning—after Max had helped Maria put several of the grandchildren to bed, she turned to Max and thanked him.

  “Tomorrow, well, I guess, actually today, given how late it is, we will sleep in late, and then I will pick you up at your hotel, and we will fly to Arequipa,” she said. “From there we will go to Cuzco, Machu Picchu, Puno, Copacabana, and Lake Titicaca. Those were the most sacred trips of my youth and the most likely places we might find what we are looking for.”