“I just wanted to let you know. Even though we wanted a private wedding—so far, we have over five hundred guests to invite including his and my family, friends, business partners, and so forth.”
“What are you thinking, girl?” Roya yelled. She took in a breath, “Hold up. Let me rephrase the question. Are you thinking?” she challenged.
“Um…yeah.”
“Are you two still attending that church after all that happened?”
“Yes, I’m still going to Bernard’s church.”
“Whoa. Really?” Roya’s shock was evident in her voice.
“Those men who were chasing you—they’re no longer at our church.”
“And?”
“We found out that they were CIA agents. Bernard straightened that crap out.”
“Bernard…” Roya paused, continuing with a slow emphasis on each word, “has the power… to ‘straighten things out?’”
“Um…”
“What—he’s on their security team? Head?” Roya felt her sense of suspicion heighten. She wanted to yell, “Run, Sondrea!”
“I wasn’t supposed to say anything, but B’s a secret agent.”
“News alert.”
“All jokes aside, Roy!”
“Only Sol can call me Roy!” She snapped.
Sondrea paused for a long time.
I’m letting Sondrea upset me over nothing, probably. She struggled to return to the subject at hand. “What type of agent?”
“Not CIA.”
“Is this phone being recorded?” Roya spoke without hesitation.
“I don’t think so.”
“Good.”
Sondrea answered the previous question posed, “Sis, I cannot remember exactly. Some agency.”
“How you know this? Did he confess it?”
“He left his paperwork in his office, and I snuck in for some reason…some incident happened… and overheard him on a call later that day about watching movements…tabs on…”
“This could be a serious problem, sis. And you still want to marry this man?”
“What are you saying?” Sondrea snapped. “You don’t want me to marry him?”
Roya bit her lip. “Not trying to say that, exactly.”
“Then what are you saying, Sis?” Sondrea’s voice rose. “You know what…I don’t want to know. I just called to see if you’ll still be there.
“Sorry, Sis. You know I speak my mind.”
“Uh. Yeah, I do know that.”
“Sure, I’ll do my best to get there. I have to stay low-key right now.” She hoped that she could talk in person and talk some sense into her. Phone calls can only make matters worse.
“Still in hiding?”
“Something like that. Who will be invited?”
“Like 500 people.”
“This isn’t private like I said earlier, Sis! That’s too much. Just do fam and close friends, Sis. Bringing too much attraction and attention. Coppers will get footage and leak the entire thing on YouTube,” Roya ranted. “I can’t believe you’re doing a wedding while all this mess is going on and after what happened to us. What date were you looking at?”
Sondrea didn’t stop her. She let her speak and vent everything she needed to say before answering, “July fourth.”
“However, I’m sending invitations to show how I’ve matured and grown into a godly woman with the help of the Whitmore family and Mom.”
“Yeah, cool.” Roya rolled her eyes at Sondrea’s mention of her ‘maturity.’
“So, what’s the latest with Lavonne?”
“Lavonne’s doing really well. We usually go to the movies, shopping, or something on her day of rest that falls on most Fridays and sometimes Saturdays.” Sondrea changed topic. “How are my nephews and niece doing?”
“The boys are on a break. Reading their Bibles. Joy’s asleep.”
“Great. How do you do what you do, Sis?” Sondrea tried to make her voice sound concerned.
“Thanks for asking about me,” Roya didn’t want to share too much info.
There was a long pause, whereas Roya knew her sister was listening carefully to her boys, who were now singing in the background, nearly matching the original artist’s soprano and alto tones. She closed her eyes as she felt their anointing presence as they finished the song. She composed herself after a few warm tears fell down her cheeks, quickly wiping them with the palm of her hands.
“Hey, Sondrea, you there? Did you hear them?”
Sondrea blew her nose. “Yeah, girl. They sound beautiful. How did the seminar competition go?”
“Were you crying, too?”
“How did you guess?”
“Umm, Sondrea, your voice patterns have changed and you’re blowing your nose.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“To answer your question about the competition, I guess you didn’t watch the news lately.”
“What?”
“A few men shot at my sons and everyone ran out of the building. There were a few casualties. I think they said that five people were killed in total.”
“Oh, my Lord, what’s going on with this world today?”
“God was there.”
“Praise Him.”
“You should’ve seen the glow over Tavon and even his voice changed to a deeper stern voice, as if I was hearing the voice of God ringing in my ear. You could feel the chills and I even had goosebumps.”
“Amazing, Sis.”
Roya thought a moment. Lord, guide me in this. Let’s see how much Sondrea knows.
“I met Agent Derrick.”
Sondrea’s voice dropped to a near whisper, “Oh, I see. Should we be discussing this over the phone?”
“It’s okay.” Roya paused. “He fully was aware that there’d be Task Force agents in the audience after the boys openly spoke would about their mission, or warned others about what’s to come,” She sighed deeply. “Unfortunately, there are so many people still wearing blinders.”
“What do you mean?” Sondrea quizzed.
“They don’t want to see naked truth. They want to keep flowing and acting like nothing has changed. Continue with their mundane lives.”
“That seems like a harsh assessment, Sis.”
“Just giving you real talk. As if they’re in the Matrix…not wanting to see God’s glory. Being sealed with His mark.”
“Mark? Who?”
“If they have ears to hear, let them hear, like Jesus’ told the Pharisees who refused to hear because they were children of Satan, not Yahweh. God.”
“Huh?”
“The Bible tells us the mark will be in their foreheads, and right hand.”
“What’s this mark again?”
“An implanted chip in the physical sense. In the spiritual sense—choosing sides, Satan or Jesus. No middle ground. No in-between.”
Roya wondered if her explanation was only going in one ear and out the other.
“I saw the chip.” Sondrea admitted.
“How?”
“B had one and showed me earlier.” Sondrea added.
“Whoa! Hold up sis. Did you say what I thought you said?”
She stuttered, “Y-y-yes. I did.”
“What!” Roya screamed. “You gotta be kidding me, Sis. Get out of here. You literally saw that thing!”
Sondrea chimed in to finish, “Well, yeah, he was talking about implanting it. Then, Akira acted weird on my lap, I couldn’t control her movements and she got off my lap.”
“Notice. I would’ve not acted right either. At least the babe had sense.”
“She wouldn’t go to B either. She saw something, Sis.”
“What did my niece see?”
“A ghost, I guess. We couldn’t see anything.”
“Serious?”
“Not sure, though.” She paused. “She kept repeating, ‘No. Go.’ Her voice got louder and louder. She was pushing and slapping at an invisible force or being,” Sondrea rushed her words to get it all out.
“Whoa. Hold on. Akira? Doing all this? How old is she now?”
“She’ll be one on July 17th.”
“I didn’t know she was born in July too, like the boys, they’re on the 2nd.”
“Roya. It scared me.”
“It’s giving me the chills right now. All nonsense aside.”
“When B and I got close to her, she said, ‘Jesus.’”
“Wait. Did I hear you correctly? She said, ‘Jesus.’ At one. I guess that’s possible. Bright kid,” Roya said.
“That’s right.”
“Oh, whew, only coming from the mouth of a wee babe in the end times.” Roya changed the subject. “Tell Mom and everyone I’m fine. I’ll try to call them when I get the chance.” Roya didn’t want to let on that she had not only the chills but goosebumps appearing on her arms. She didn’t want to alarm her sister, but this B, how could she marry him after seeing the chip?
“Okay. Will do.”
“Good. I take it that you have a wedding planner. Anything else you need from me?”
“I’ll text you details.”
“Okay. I’m not in LA. I’m staying at a motel in the area of Philly, not too far from the airport, and Joshua flew back to Florida with Yosef to check on my home down there to see if it is safe to return there for a little while.”
“Really?”
“I’ll keep in touch. I…”
Sondrea cut her off, “Wait! What did you say? Did I hear you say that the boys’ lives are in danger? You mean those men in the audience at the contest were trying to shoot at them?” Sondrea inquired.
Roya was speaking so fast and loaded her with information she wasn’t seeking. “Yes, I said that earlier. It’s a miracle they’re alive. You forgot we were on that subject a few minutes ago.”
“Yeah, Sis.”
“I saw everything with my two eyes, girl. Tavon raised one of the men from the dead, in Jesus’ name, to go back to his headquarters to tell the Task Force about the powers of God, not the powers of man.”
“Too much sis. Overload.”
“Okay. Look, I think I’m talking too much. I’ll get a flight to your wedding. What time I need to be there? Send me your plans via email to get the dress that I need.” Roya remarked.
“Sis, don’t worry, because I’ll have your dress tailored. Send me your measurements.”
“Okay, I’ll make it happen.”
“I have a tour starting next month,” Sondrea sighed loudly, thinking about all the touring rehearsals she had to get done with the different bands and venues over the next few weeks. “You know that Bernard is my heart. My prince in shining armor.”
“Whatever girl. I’ll be there, for you.”
“Love you so much! You know, I could send a private jet out for you now?”
“I pray it’ll be the safest way to travel.” Roya added.
“I’ll have my church home pray for your safety and your family.” She gave a breather. “I love you guys. Kiss all of them for me and hugs, and tell them how much their aunt Sondrea misses them.”
“Done.”
“Sunny said it too.”
“She’s there with you?”
“Yes, she just stopped by. She’s helping me with the wedding. She’s a jewel. She wants you to call her ASAP too. She said it’s something about Mom. Peace.”
“One love.” Roya pushed END call on her cell phone.
Roya dropped the phone back in her Gucci handbag. She turned to walk to the boys’ bedroom, as the motel suite had grown eerily quiet. She was stunned to discover that, instead of sleeping, her sons were praying and enjoying a meditation time with God. She blinked her eyes several times within seconds; she thought she was seeing things. She recalled her experience with an angel at the church warning her about sudden danger. She fell to her knees. Her body felt paralyzed. She tried to lift herself off her knees. Along with her boys, she remained frozen in a praise position, and her hands rested mid-way near her chest.
Tavon and Javon were surrounded with angelic figures, praising the Father, and then Roya felt in her spirit that Moses and Elijah were also in the room speaking to the boys in a foreign tongue. She assumed it was Hebrew or Arabic. She reached outward to the transparent figures, but her hands remained locked in praise. Then, she heard a calm, firm voice as it spoke to her. “Roya. You’ll soon encounter Gabriel. He will be ready for battle.”
“I’ve had a glimpse of him before, haven’t I, Lord? He’s your warrior angel, holding a sword and wearing his armor,” She interjected.
“You’ll be in danger again, but I, Yahweh, will protect you.”
“No! Please, I cannot bear another ordeal. For real,” she muttered.
“Your sons are covered with such an anointing and have gained courage from previous leaders.”
“Who? Josh. Iz. Sol?” She blurted.
“They’ll rise soon to preach to the young, elders, and many men in a position of leadership.”
Roya’s body dropped forward on the floor, bowing to the presence, and saw a luminous light surrounding her as she seemed to float above her body. Nearly blinded by the light, she didn’t raise her head off the carpeted floor until the presence left.
“Mom, are you okay?” Javon asked, shaking her. He knelt down next to her, and cradled her.
“Yes, I’m fine,” Roya looked down to see her tears had left a wet spot in the carpet. She began to shiver at what the Lord had told her.
Javon wrapped his arm around Roya’s head as if she was a precious infant. “Shhh, Mom. We know.”
A car could be heard honking outside of the motel. Tavon raced to the door, unlocking it, before Roya could say Stop. The door hung wide open as he rushed outside. Javon rose off the floor and ran to the door. He stood near the door and stared outside of the motel. A black stretch limousine had parked near the motel, in between the curb and the parking lot of the motel. She crawled, reaching for the edge of the bed to get her balance to stand, and resolutely walked to join Javon.
“Mom, it’s only our Vice President from Valley Forge College, secretary, and the professor. Tavon ran out to get the reward that we won from the contest.” Javon cheesed.
“What do you mean? You won…how’s that possible?”
He shrugged.
“I mean, you know…. what happened?”
“I don’t know.”
“You still won!” She breathed. “God is good. That means that you also won that award money for college!”
“Shhh! Calm down, Mom. They’re coming to the door,” Javon hugged her as she popped her head out of the door to see Tavon holding onto the wall-plaque.
Roya’s intuition hit strongly. Something’s about to happen! She pushed Javon out of the way and ran.
Joy woke up, yelling for her mother. Javon looked at Joy and flagged her to come to the doorway. As they turned to look out, they saw their mother falling on her knees, screaming from the top of her lungs, “HELP!”
In front of Roya’s eyes, two pale men climbed from the backseat of the limo, holding up their black magnums. They forced the driver to get out of the car, and one of them climbed into the driver’s seat. The brothers’ professor, Vice President and Secretary were ordered out of the car with a wave of a gun. The other man pulled on Tavon’s shirt, and although he yanked to get free, the man put the gun to his head and forced him to get inside. The brothers’ professor, Vice President, and secretary were left standing on the side of the curb. Roya had raced to Tavon’s rescue until a gun appeared in the lowered window, pointed to mid-air and fired.
The plaque had fallen near the curb and the envelope containing the award laid inches away. Javon jogged to Roya’s side and Joy ran to her other side.
Roya’s eyes watered, breathing deeply, and tears rolled down her face. She screamed repeatedly, “No! No! God, no!”
“Mom, where’s Tay?” Joy cried.
“They’ll kill him!”
“That can’t be true, Mom,” Joy screamed and lowered to her side.
Javon’s voice cracked as he spoke, “Mom, he didn’t have any way of knowing. They were bent on getting one of us,”
“Lord, not Tavon! Lord, No! I need you now! Lord, no! Oh God! Oh God!”
The Vice President shook with his eyes widened and his mouth hung open. His assistant held his hand as they stumbled over to Roya. She bellowed in pain and anguish.
Javon raised his head and muttered, “Hi, Mr. Hawthorne, Mrs. Greene and Miss Whitley. This is my mother, Roya Whitmore.”
“I’m so sorry for what happened. I had no idea. I knew it was strange these men were with us.”
Roya shrieked, and then cried loudly.
“Mr. Hawthorne recently hired these new security guards to come along. I had no idea they’d kidnap your son,” Miss Whitley exclaimed and dropped to her knees next to Roya. After digging in her purse for tissue, she raised her hand to wipe Roya’s tears away.
Mr. Hawthorne helped Roya off the parking lot asphalt. She leaned on his shoulder while they began to walk toward the open door of the suite. Spectators in the motel rooms had opened their doors to peer outside when they heard the gunshot and her ensuing wails. Neighbors ran up to her, questioning Roya and her guests, “What happened?”
“How can we help?”
“Call the police, please? I…we…need to rest.”
Shortly after they had settled into their chairs, Roya heard a car pull up. “The police are here. So quickly, thank God,” Roya said, and raced to the door. She saw the limo and watched the back door swing wide as Tavon crawled out of the car. She felt like she ran in slow motion as if she was daydreaming. She embraced him in her arms and kissed his cheeks. Joy hugged them both. Javon sauntered up to grab his brother’s shoulders, looking up and down to see if there were any injuries.
“Tavon! Tavon! You’re back, bro. What happened, man?”
Tavon explained, “These men aren’t who we thought they were.”
Roya raised her hands, “Then who? Why would they shoot stray bullets in the air and drive off speedily like madmen?”
“Yeah, bro, what she said,” Javon added.
“They’re detectives. Here to protect us.”
“Really?” Joy questioned, her voice betraying her doubt.
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