Rapture: Where are our Children (A Serial Novel) Episode 3 of 9

by Gary Sapp

the first or even second in command of the country?” Xavier let out a long, low whistle. “All politicians are rich, Quincy. All politicians lie to some extent or the other. And all of them have dirt under their fingernails. But Lavelle cost himself…cost us a wondrous opportunity because people don’t like his personality not his politics. He’s a masterful public speaker, though no more so than my brother Chris would have been, but otherwise he has no innate value to our House. So I put his ass on a plane and sent him home to Cleveland or Akron or wherever the hell he’s from so he can hope to get his act together before the next election.”

  Quincy Morgan searched the table for support…or at least a comment to dispute what Xavier had said but found that none was coming.

  “Anyway,” Xavier Prince continued as if the Lavelle conversation had never taken place. “I want to say how proud of what each and every one of you has accomplished for our House in my absence. You honor yourselves and you honor my father’s vision. I am sorry; however, to inform you that this will likely be our final gathering as a governing body until this crisis concerning Pandora has passed.” He found Percy Harrison on his far left specifically. “I guess you picked one hell of a time to join our ranks full time.”

  Percy Harrison laughed:

  He was tall but slouched enough even when he was seated that he lost in an inch or so off of his given height. He was dark skinned though not to the brilliant opaque skin coloring that Xavier’s brother Chris was shaded with, but dark enough that his thinning mustache and patches and sideburns were almost luminous on his face. Xavier had asked for this man’s full inclusion into the Circle after he learned of Ernestine’s death. He felt that Grace Edward’s background with the FBI, Warren Washington’s ties to the sports and entertainment circles, Quincy’s controversial but successful run as they leader of The New Black Panther Party and his own background in law gave the Circle the versatility and credibility to command both loyalty from its base and a certain element of fear from its opposition. But you are the Everyman I believe that we’ve been missing, Percy. He should indeed feel comfortable even in these close surroundings considering he had come up through the education field.

  “And at what point will this crisis pass, Xavier?” Quincy asked him.

  “Yea,” Percy added. “Serena Tennyson is on the street again.”

  Grace Edwards looked up from her notes. “Her wild escape from the APD and the FBI is a victory for Pandora’s moral alright and a devastation for all law enforcement. I wish I could say it any other way.”

  Grace Edwards: The House in Chains number three was a smaller figured, dark skinned woman in her early 30’s who was pretty enough, but far too slender and sweet for Xavier’s exotic taste. She had big brown eyes made even larger inside her glasses and wore her hair in dozens upon dozens of small, slim braids. She looked professional, as she always did, in a brown business suit and pumps. Xavier knew that Grace’s Intelligence background and her friendship was his biggest assets offsetting the death of Ernestine.

  He heard Warren Washington snort and slouch down in his chair as if someone had let air out of his personal balloon.

  He was a 6’8” tall former hoops legend, who was high yellow in skin tone, still looked very athletic and had been graced with the sparkling gray eyes that most women could find themselves lost in. Xavier only knew the man had been slow to integrate his father’s beliefs as his very own, since he’d come over with Quincy and so many others from the New Black Panther Party.

  “The fucking FBI,” He finally said. “They are such incompetent bastards.”

  Quincy snatched a penny from out of his dress pants tossed it at eye level and tossed it again. “I hope you’re smarter than that, Warren. Serena escaped without a trace of her whereabouts. I know you don’t truly believe that was by mere chance. It was obviously a conspiracy. They were all in on it.”

  Xavier shot out of his chair and got into Quincy’s face.

  “So which party does my brother belong to, the incompetent or the conspirators?”

  Grace played the part of the diplomat, as she had many times before. “We need to concentrate our efforts and our energies on the issues at hand and we have a host of them to consider, gentlemen. Firstly, we have Serena’s not so subtle threats against the children of our communities to consider.”

  “You’re over Intelligence, Grace.” Percy said. “You’re people must know something about Louis Keaton’s whereabouts.”

  Four sets of eyes bore into Grace. Xavier had to admit he was curious to what Grace knew as well. She had predicted the 411 attacks…at least the substance of some type of attack against Atlanta citizens’ weeks before the onslaught on the first day of this month. Evans and other Peacekeepers in Calhoun had fed the data to Xavier and the One did what he could from the inside to gain all the information for a defense…any type of resistance against what eventually struck Atlanta and their House; that’s why Julian, myself and his Black Knights approached Michael Davenport in the first place.

  He had gambled and loss. Davenport didn’t know about the attacks, I’m convinced now—but he did know something, and he was confident enough with the information that he tried to bargain for his life with it.

  Xavier wished he had a little more time to drag it out of him.

  Grace was saying: “I don’t have anything, guys. I’m not picking up the levels of chatter that filtered out of the internet, in phone lines, and word off of the street like I did in the days before 411. And to make it worse, Keaton’s disappeared off of the map. Serena has him tucked away somewhere, until she’s ready to unleash that pervert again.”

  “What’s your gut tell you, Grace?”

  Grace gave her leader and the remainder of the room a once over.

  “This so called escalation, where are our children, is no doubt about Keaton kidnapping Black children just like he did 30 years ago when this Caretaker fellow ordered him to do the same.” She looked as if she were searching for some specific terminology, and then decided to dumb it down for the boys. “I expect these abductions to be on a smaller scale. The first fireworks have already been lit by 411and then Deliverance when Serena made her epic escape.”

  “I agree,” Xavier made his fingers into a cage and sucked on his toothpick. I need a cigarette. “We don’t know that Keaton will be involved at all. She may send an individual—“

  “Or a group of individuals,” Grace added.

  “You’re right, Grace, she may send an army of men or women to our neighborhoods trying to abduct of children for ransom…or worse.” Xavier finished his thought.

  Warren and Percy both nodded in unison. Quincy tossed his penny up higher again and caught it. And what is the symbolism behind the penny, Quincy?

  “I have a suggested course of action that I would like us to pursue but I am willing to follow and reasonable idea any of you may have.”

  Warren slunk further down in his chair. Quincy Morgan squeezed his penny. “I apologize if I offended you before, Number One.” He said sardonically. “I didn’t mean to suggest—“

  Grace intervened smoothly again. “What is done is done. We need to concentrate our efforts on the matters at hand. I’m thinking that with Serena back in the field that Pandora’s next attack is days if not hours away. I don’t want to be caught completely flatfooted again as we were with the 411 attacks.”

  “Her escape did serve our cause in a manner of speaking.” Quincy pointed out.

  “How,”

  “Her threats against our children, Percy, caused a huge uptick in applications for admission into A House in Chains in general and the Peacekeepers specifically. We’re struggling to process all of the applications and background checks right now.”

  “That’s good,” Warren sat up straight. “That means more ‘Keepers on the streets.”

  Grace grunted.

  “If you have something to say, Grace—“

  She removed her glasses and chewed on the end of one of them. She was looking up, b
ut not at him and it wasn’t the first time that Xavier had noticed it today. Something very bad has happened. A House of Chains was blessed to have arguably the finest Intelligence officer in the country seated at this table. She knows something she’s not sharing. Xavier made a mental note to ask her about it when the time was right.

  “I have no doubt to what the Peacekeepers are capable of.” She finally said and looked streamlined at Quincy Morgan when she said it. As the Sargent at Arms, he was directly responsible for the recruiting, training, and day to day operations of the Peacekeepers. No one at this table, save Xavier himself, could override his authority in military matters. “But unless you have a personal escort for the 10’s of thousands of school aged children in the Atlanta Metro area then your numbers, no matter how impressive, are ultimately irrelevant.”

  “But surely a heavier Peacekeeper presence will be a deterrent against Keaton or anyone else from trying to abduct our children?” Quincy said.

  Percy looked if he had a point to make as well. “We’ve also set up hundreds of safe houses as well. These families can be counted on to help any child who runs into unexpected trouble. They’ve been asked to notify us first even before the police, if they come in contact with a child or a potential abductor.”

  “These are all wonderful ideas.” Grace went back to taking her notes. “I don’t believe it