Читать книгу The Curtain - David T. Maddox - Страница 11

CHAPTER 3

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Thursday, January 31 – MD Minus 115 days

AS PAUL WALKED across the campus toward the Chadwick History Center, Professor Thompson was just completing a lecture in his class entitled, “A Historic Perspective on Biblical Israel.” With his mind on the burning question of what he had seen in his dream, Paul walked quickly passed Abdul Farsi, who was headed to College Church on the corner and then to Kingdom Day Care a couple of blocks over on the other side of the railroad tracks. Coming toward him was a rather non-descript woman who Paul vaguely remembered seeing in some of his classes last year. He didn’t know her name and was unaware that she had just come from an inquiry at Kingdom Day Care. Looking for a part time job is what she had told the workers. The looking part was true.

On the other side of town, some of the armed citizens of Williams gathered as the Citizen’s Militia to organize a campaign to save their city from what they saw as the incompetence of local authorities and the threat of the shooter. Most considered the authorities to be as much of a threat to the citizens as the shooter.

Sam Will was angry. His level of anger surprised even him. Almost overnight he had become passionately determined to stand and fight for the safety of the city. It was becoming even more than a passion; it was a compulsion. He wanted just one clean shot at the shooter and the crisis would be over. He was prepared to fight with anyone who got in his way. He was a little frightened by what he felt but knew he had to finish this and that he was right.

Fortunately, the Citizen’s Militia had their own version of Officer Sally Johnson. It was Tom Campy, a no-nonsense, but no less passionate leader. Tom didn’t have Sam Will’s compulsion; rather, he had a steadfast dedication to labor together until the job was done. He was both persistent and patient, and he was a thinker. The contrast between Sam and Tom was the classic distinction between one who reacts in response to a situation and one who acts in the reality of the situation. At its simplest comparison it was intentional conduct vs. emotional response – thoughts vs. feelings.

Tom had already invested the time to think through a plan to establish the equivalent of a citizen’s army. “We’ve got to take advantage of the state firearms laws to bring the public into this before we have mass panic,” he argued. “People have to see that they are safe, to feel safe, and the law allows us to be in public with guns visible. We need to do that in a way where the public and law enforcement know we are the Citizen’s Militia and not the shooter. If we are successful, we will be invited to provide visible protection in parks, schools, and businesses – just about anywhere in the city. Once we are physically present, the people will feel safe and the shooter will be afraid to show himself. If he does, he dies. We shoot back.”

All agreed that was the answer, but how could it be done quickly and effectively. There were massive organization problems and coordination issues. Fortunately, money would not be a problem, for one of the city’s wealthiest citizen was a gun enthusiast. That ensured access to paid media, the ability to obtain some distinctive clothing as identification for members of the militia, transportation, additional guns and ammunition. Maybe even life and medical insurance. After all, there was a killer out there that would be targeting them even as they targeted him.

Suggestions came from all parts of the room. Although Sam stood up front as the head of the group, Tom drove the discussion because he already knew where he wanted it to go. It was as if he had been directed how to lead, which he had, even as Sam had been directed how to feel. It was light versus darkness, the classic confrontation continued.

“We need to hold a press conference and announce what we are going to do,” said one.

“Yes,” another responded, “but also hold a public meeting of some sort to answer questions and recruit members. We don’t have enough members to carry this out citywide.”

Others expressed their concerns – their questions – some practical, some emotional; they just kept pouring out. “We need an office, some way to organize our people.”

“We need to coordinate with law enforcement and have some kind of uniforms, so we don’t shoot each other.”

“We need to know when to shoot.”

“Can we use automatic weapons?”

“Can we shoot to kill?”

“Won’t we just be making ourselves targets for the shooter by being out there identified as ones who intend to kill him?”

“How do we know where to be to defend against an attack?”

“This shooter has been totally random. What do we protect?”

“How can we identify the shooter?”

“Can we be present on private property?”

Several hours later there was a consensus and a plan. Tom summarized for the group. “We will order red jackets, hats and shirts with ‘Citizen’s Militia’ on them so that members on duty can be readily identifiable to all.” Tom went on, “I will contact the authorities to explain what we are going to do and see if there is a way to coordinate our efforts. We don’t want the police working against us if it can be avoided.”

One businessman piped up, “If we need to we can line up some NRA lawyers to be ready to file suit and protect our right to defend ourselves if we are challenged. We have to organize. The authorities haven’t been able to stop the killing. There won’t be any businesses left in Williams if this shooter isn’t stopped.”

“We will schedule a press conference for early next week,” Tom read from his notes, “where Sam can introduce the Citizens Militia to the public, seek recruits and lay out the plan to defend the city. That will also be an opportunity to promote the Security Fair.”

One of the really exciting ideas to involve the public had come from Josh Douglas, the high school football coach. He had said, “If you want the public’s support, you have to give them something to get excited about. We need something like a pep rally with speeches, a band, contests, bumper stickers, food, something where people can have fun and get their fluids running.”

“Great idea,” another had added. “We can have guns and ammunition available for sale by local businesses, booths to sign up for gun training and to join the Citizen’s Militia. We can have the whole area patrolled by armed Citizen’s Militia in their red shirts and hats. Everyone will want to join.”

“Yes!” shouted Sam and with glee, pumped his fist high into the air. “A visual feast to announce that there is a new sheriff in town. Like that line from that old news movie, ‘I’m mad as hell and won’t take it anymore.’ People will love that.” Josh volunteered to organize the fair.

“We need someone to handle public relations,” Tom had asked. Diane Conway, a writer for the local newspaper, volunteered. “It will be important to get as much positive coverage as possible. You will have to help us know what to do to get free press and how to use advertising to push our message and recruit help.” Diane had recently been the local campaign manager for a state Senate candidate and she knew how it was done. A very good choice thought Tom.

That left the boring part – organization. John Tremble volunteered office space and a computer. His receptionist would answer a separate line for the Citizen’s Militia and it would be set up to receive messages in her absence. “Just in case,” John said, “I will have a security camera installed and the receptionist will be armed. You never can be too careful when confronting violence.”

Tom would coordinate the teams in the field and the requests for protection. All Sam wanted to do was be the face of the organization and be in the field where he could get a shot at the shooter. He wanted blood. “We need our own hit team. We need to figure out where he will strike next and be waiting for him.” Two very different agendas motivated by two very different influences in the same organization.

Tom put in a call to the local police and was referred to Officer Sally Johnson. They agreed to meet tomorrow. Sally was concerned, but something about Tom gave her a sense of peace. Actually, it was something in Tom, for Tom, like Sally, was guided by the light inside. Argon was not pleased with this development and again, the ever present Zaccur was dispatched with the news. He wondered how long he would survive continued bad news. The Dark Master was without mercy and accepted no excuse for failure. Argon was afraid.

Professor Thompson Weighs In

Dr. Daniel P. Thompson was a Bible history professor extraordinaire. His classes filled quickly, for they were interesting, timely, and often controversial – but not religious. The focus was to take the history expressed in the Bible as compared to other writings and traditions that were now generally accepted as fact. He saw it as a search for truth with the Bible simply being another opinion – an often wrongly interpreted opinion, he thought. A case in point was the class he was just wrapping up.

“A Historical Perspective on Biblical Israel” was a fascinating study, if you could take the mysticism away from political Israel. He used the class as an opportunity for an examination of the history of the whole Middle East as a stage upon which a nation called Israel has appeared for several extended performances, the most recent of which began in 1948. The class looked briefly at the history of all the peoples of the Middle East with a focus on Israel as discussed in the Bible. He really planted himself in the study of modern political Israel in comparison with biblical Israel and the land promised to Abram²¹ (later Abraham).²² Were the citizens of Israel today God’s so-called chosen people²³ as spoken of in the Bible? What about the other people in the Middle East and their view of Israel? What about end times mythology?

To say the class was controversial would be to put it very mildly. He made people mad but didn’t really care as long as it made them think. His agenda was transparent. He believed that the nation of Israel was nothing more than another nation that has little connection to the Israel of the Bible, beyond the name and general geographic location. He concluded that others in the Middle East had as good a claim to the dirt as did the citizens of Israel. As he saw it, Israel had no special right to take the land from others.

His class attracted a lot of foreign students. The current class had three Palestinians who, he learned, lived together. They really invested in the class with passion and added a lot to the discussion by putting a face to the people who were suffering at the hands of political Israel. He saw them as clear evidence in the flesh that he was right in his conviction, that terrorism was a response to violence, not an inherent part of a belief system. These young men were Muslims; but in language, dress and practice they were as Western as the kids born here. They had American friends, went to American movies and acted like American with few exceptions. “Assimilation does work,” he thought. “Reaching out in friendship was the way to deal with terrorism, not violence. Violence would only spawn more violence. The world was certainly big enough for many belief systems. Too bad the current crop of politicians in Washington and London were so stupid. At least, I have a podium from which to teach the next generation of American leaders. They won’t be so blind.”

By contrast, most of the American-born church-going students were angry with him from the first day of the class. To him, they were closed-minded idiots. They actually believed the Bible taught that to mess with modern Israel was to mess with God because they were His people and He had given them that land. “These children of the crusades are not interested in considering the results of violence,” he thought. “They’re as good as Pharisees, as wrong as that crowd of religious leaders who thought they were serving God by killing Jesus.²⁴ It was merely violence to preserve their place in the social and political order. Not much different from today.”

He was thankful for Faith Church of Joy, the place he attended. The leadership was more realistic and modern in their views. They were not the prisoner of tradition and Bible myths. They understood that the Bible was a collection of the thoughts of many men written over hundreds of years. Men could always be wrong. Beyond that, he understood that things change over time and what might have been true two thousand years ago for a society living under the Roman boot was hardly true for America, where values and standards evolve as society matures. The Bible had to be kept in its rightful place – useful but not authoritative.

What really pleased him about his church was that Roy Elkhorn, the Senior Pastor, had asked him to teach what had become the largest class in the church on Sunday mornings. He was given a free hand on what to teach. The class had become a second golden opportunity to debunk Christian fanaticism on a horde of political and social issues.

The students with a Jewish heritage avoided the class. As he saw it, they obviously feared truth, choosing rather to live in their imaginary world of black and white where they were always right regardless of how it impacted others. It was in the blood. There were Jews and then everyone else. They were totally unrealistic. He believed that America had to come to the place where it dealt with political Israel no differently than with Syria or Iran. They were simply three countries from the same part of the world with differing political agendas.

He was exhilarated from the day’s discussion as he left the class and encountered Paul Phillips in the hall. “Professor Thompson, I desperately need a few moments of your time – privately.” Thompson knew Paul Phillips as a serious student and his demeanor indicated that he believed whatever was going on was serious.

“Sure, let’s go to my office,” he responded. “What’s happening? You look like you haven’t slept in a week.” No response.

As they entered his office, Professor Thompson noted that Paul’s hands were shaking and he was as pale as the dead. Something was obviously terrifying him. He was short of breath, having rushed from somewhere to get here. Professor Thompson’s voice rose as he questioned, “Paul, what in the hell is going on?”

“Look Professor, you are a man who knows the Bible and you know history. I’m not crazy, but I saw something in a dream – a nightmare – that I don’t understand and it has me living in absolute terror and fear. Please, just promise me you will hear me out and give me any perspective you have on what happened – on what I saw. I have to know, please.”

Paul’s desperation got his attention and he responded kindly, “I’m listening, but slow down. Take your time and tell me everything you can about whatever happened.”

His Keeper’s large hands grasp more tightly around Professor Thompson’s head to control what was heard and to influence his response. This was an opportunity not to be missed, a chance to end Paul’s search and with it, end any danger of a search by Samantha. But there was the issue of Paul’s Guardian, which put the Keeper ill at ease. Influence was never easy when the forces of light were even in the vicinity. He would have to be careful.

Paul trembled as he spoke, trying hard to miss no detail. His look revealed that he was reliving the moment. Professor Thompson could only wonder at what could cause such a reaction.

“It was after Samantha’s dad’s funeral. He was another of the sniper’s victims. I saw nothing unusual at the funeral, but later in a dream I was back in the cemetery and I saw in the air some kind of creatures, which I can only describe as being like wisps of darkness. There were many different sizes. All had fiery orange eyes, bright yellow skin and huge hands with enormously long fingers. They seemed to be everywhere. Their hands encircled the heads of most of the people. Their long fingers seemed to pierce the skulls as if they held the brains of the people in their hands. The eyes of the people were crusted over. I awoke screaming when I saw hands reaching for me. What did I see? They were real. They were there; only I couldn’t see them. Why are they after me?”

“I have to ask,” said Professor Thompson, “are you on anything?”

“No nothing,” was the response. “I wished it was that simple.”

“Did anyone else tell you they had seen anything?”

“No,” Paul answered, “and I asked Samantha, she saw nothing.”

“You only saw this in a dream? It was not real.”

“It sure seemed real to me,” Paul replied, “but it was only in the dream.”

Sitting up in his chair and assuming his professorial demeanor, Thompson began his analysis. “OK, let’s take the emotion out of this and get logical. First, it was a dream, a nightmare, probably nothing more. You are afraid because whatever it was seemed to be coming for you, but is that any different from when you saw a horror film as a child? After watching such a movie, did you ever have nightmares? Were you ever afraid to be alone?”

“Sure,” was the answer, “but this wasn’t like that. I actually could smell sulfur and sensed physical danger.”

Honing in for the kill, Professor Thompson began, “Think about what you are imagining – dark wisps who, by your description, are ghost-like, controlling humans by literally holding their brains, blinding them to the outside world and, by implication, using them for whatever they want. Religion, folklore and mythology would all tell you that the creatures you imagined in your dream are demons. They are described as supernatural beings considered to be malicious hurtful spirits. The Bible says they are fallen angels if you take the Bible literally.²⁵

“The rest of what you saw would be a classic portrayal of demonic activity in humans, most often described as demonic possession. Historically, the view regarding demon possession is that one possessed is under the absolute control of the demon. You probably saw the movie The Exorcist. That was Hollywood’s view of demon possession. Sells tickets, but pretty thin. What you dreamed would make a better movie.

“The Bible says a lot about people possessed by demons and what that does to them. A lot of the healings credited to Jesus were really exorcisms, which had the result of freeing the victim from some disease or disability.²⁶ There is not much science to support that, but then how would you be able to test and observe the invisible?

“Here is my problem with what you describe. It simply doesn’t work by any historical measure and is inconsistent with all studies of demonic activity I have seen, even including what is discussed in the Bible. In your dream, virtually everyone is pictured as possessed by demons. That is not the teaching of anyone at any time in history. It is certainly not your experience or mine. I am not demon possessed and I don’t believe you are either. You may be mixed up, but not possessed. I can’t say I have ever been around anyone who is demon possessed. Demons may somehow cause disease or disabilities, but even those demons would not be completely in control of the person. What you dreamed was a dream and nothing more. You are not in danger and need to simply let go of this as nothing more than a nightmare, which is all it is.”

Professor Thompson’s Keeper smiled as the forces of darkness literally danced with joy, leaping in the air and howling the praises of the Dark Master. Paul’s former Keeper once again reached out to surround Paul’s head and dig deeply into his skull to grasp his brain, to initiate influence and end the search. This Keeper had a lot of years of experience with Paul and he was anxious to get back on the job, but that was not to be for Paul’s Guardian stood as a hedge of protection around Paul, blocking every attempt to reach him.

Paul response was not as expected. “Professor, all you say is logical and fits with what I have heard, but I know what I saw and I cannot simply walk away from it. It was too real.”

Professor Thompson responded in frustration and a bit condescendingly, “If you want to live with fear that some demon is reaching for your brain, that is your choice, but be realistic, everyone you encounter is not demon possessed. You cannot get around that truth. I don’t know what you saw, but I know you didn’t see a world of demon possessed people because it does not exist anywhere except in the movies. Go find yourself a Catholic priest or Chaplain Forrest or some other religious person and they will tell you the same thing I am telling you. If you want to be afraid of something, get real and be afraid of that crazed killer out there who shot your girlfriend’s Dad. That is who you should fear, not some imagined evil force seeking to control all mankind. You are far too intelligent to be that stupid.”

Paul left somehow strangely encouraged. “I don’t know a Catholic priest or any other religious person I respect enough to listen to” he thought, “so Chaplain Forrest it is.” At least he now had some direction and some new questions.

Also unseen, but now present with Paul, was a Provider named Peace, exactly what Paul needed at that moment to continue his search.