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  “Nada!” Judd said. “You can’t run away from your family!”

  “To be with you,” Nada said, “I have to.”

  “Wait. Back up. Start from the beginning.”

  Nada took a deep breath. “I told my mother you and I were getting more serious. She was excited for me. She likes you a lot. But . . .”

  “Your father?”

  Nada looked away. “She said he likes you as a person but doesn’t think we should go further with our relationship.”

  Judd frowned. “He’s entitled to his opinion.”

  “But he said if you return to Israel, we can’t be together. I was afraid I’d never see you again.”

  Judd pulled Nada’s head to his shoulder and brushed her hair with a hand. “You should call your folks and tell them—”

  “No!” Nada said, jerking away. “They’ll make me come back.”

  “They’ll blame me,” Judd said. “Neither of us wants that.”

  Nada stared at Judd. “You’re scared of him! You care more about what my father thinks than you do about me.”

  Judd shook his head. “I just want to do this the right way. Your dad changed his mind once about me. When he sees how much I care about you, he’ll change it again.”

  “You don’t know my father,” she said. “He can be so stubborn.”

  Judd smiled. “A family trait?”

  Nada opened her mouth wide and punched Judd in the shoulder.

  Vicki helped people onto the truck. Pete told them to move to the front and sit in tight rows. Some panicked and pushed their way inside.

  “Where are you taking us?” an older man said.

  “Away from the GC,” Pete said.

  Locusts buzzed at the back door but apparently flew away when they realized the occupants were believers.

  Conrad returned. “Can’t see the vans. Probably take them five minutes to get past the ridge.”

  Vicki nodded. As people hurried past she said, “Stay calm.” She noticed a woman with a small electronic device. “What’s that?”

  “I record the meetings,” the woman said. “I play it for people who can’t get here.”

  “Can I have it?” Vicki said.

  “But—”

  “Trust me,” Vicki said.

  The woman handed over the recording and Vicki raced to the office and put it into the machine. A man’s voice came through the speakers. “Before we get started, we want to let anyone who wants lead us in prayer.”

  “Perfect,” Vicki said. She turned up the speakers full blast and found the switch for speakers outside the bowling alley.

  When she reached the back door, Pete was closing the truck. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Once the plane made it through the storm, Judd headed to the cockpit.

  “How were you able to hear us?” Judd said.

  Mac stared at him. “Can’t tell you. Let’s just say the conversations back there are relayed to the rest of the Tribulation Force.”

  Judd explained the situation with Nada.

  “The GC let you come because of Pavel’s condition,” Mac said. “Carpathia has no idea the cargo hold is jammed with Ben-Judah’s studies in different languages. An extra person is gonna raise a red flag.”

  “Why do they have to know?”

  “Cargo’s one thing,” Mac said. “Human beings are another. If the guards notice Nada, we could be in trouble.”

  Judd scratched his head.

  Mac said, “What kind of ID does she have?”

  Judd went back and got it from Nada, then showed it to Mac. “Her brother was with the GC in New Babylon. Killed in the earthquake.”

  “You serious?” Mac said.

  “He was a Peacekeeper in Carpathia’s main complex.”

  Mac flipped a few switches and pulled out his cell phone. “What was her brother’s name?”

  Judd told him and returned to his seat.

  A few minutes later, Mac called Judd and Nada forward. “I got through to one of my superiors, one of the few who hasn’t been stung yet. I told him I’d located a family member of a deceased GC worker who wanted to pay her respects. They’re putting you up in the main complex. Who knows, you might even get to meet Carpathia himself.”

  Vicki sat next to Pete as he pulled the truck out of the parking lot.

  “So far so good,” he said as they chugged onto the road back to town.

  “What about all the cars in the parking lot?” Vicki said.

  “I bet the GC will hang around and wait for people to come back.”

  “And then nab them,” Vicki said. “Guess we just lost our motorcycle.”

  Pete gave a low whistle. “Up ahead.”

  Coming around a curve in the distance were the two vans, colored lights swirling on top. Between them was a huge bus with the Global Community insignia on the side.

  “Stay calm,” Pete said.

  The first van passed going far over the speed limit. The wind from the bus nearly drove Pete off the road. The second van slowed and blocked the truck.

  “Let me handle this,” Pete said.

  “I should warn the others,” Vicki said. “Some of us could get away.”

  Pete put a hand on her shoulder.

  A GC Peacekeeper stepped out of the van and was swarmed by locusts. The man slapped them away from his white protective suit and motioned for Pete to roll down his window.

  Pete didn’t seem nervous. “What can I do for you?”

  “You just came from that bowling alley back there.”

  “Me and my little sister got sidetracked. Had to turn around.”

  “Where you headed?”

  “Got a delivery in town,” Pete said. “Hope we make it before the load goes bad.”

  The man moved back, swatting at locusts. “What kind of load—”

  “Sure was a wacky bunch back there,” Vicki interrupted. Pete gave her a look.

  “What do you mean?” the man said.

  “I heard all this preaching and hollering,” Vicki said. “You need to put those people away before they hurt somebody.”

  The Peacekeeper looked toward the bowling alley. Vicki noticed through her outside mirror that the other van and the bus had reached the parking lot. Several officers in protective gear pointed guns toward the building.

  A radio squawked from the other van. “They’re here! We need backup!”

  The Peacekeeper rushed back to his van and sped away.

  “Good work,” Pete said.

  “Thanks,” Vicki said. “Wonder how long it’ll take them to figure out it’s not a real meeting?”

  “Hopefully long enough to get these people to safety.” Pete took the curves at full speed and Vicki wondered how those in the back were holding on.

  “Up there!” Vicki shouted, pointing. The ramp to the highway rose in the distance. She jumped in her seat. “We’ve made it!”

  Pete put up a hand and shook his head. A siren wailed behind them. Vicki’s heart sank as she checked the mirror.

  14

  FLOOR IT! Vicki shouted.

  Pete shook his head. “No way. They’ll know we’re up to something.” He pulled to the side of the road and bowed his head. “Lord, protect us.” The siren wailed behind them. “And please do it fast. Amen.”

  Pete opened the door and jumped down. Vicki followed close. The GC van skidded to a stop in the middle of the road and a man shouted, “Stop where you are, hands in the air!”

  They both put their hands over their heads. “Something wrong?” Pete shouted.

  A Peacekeeper stepped out, surrounded by locusts. He smacked at them with his gun and pointed at Vicki. “On the ground! Hands on your head.”

  Vicki sat in the road. The Peacekeeper trained the gun on Pete.

  “What did we do?” Pete said.

  Vicki studied the guard’s protective white suit. On his back was an oxygen generator. A series of heavy-duty zippers connected the boots with the rest of the suit. The helmet was made of shin
y plastic and latched into the collar. Locusts pinged off the face shield and swarmed near the man’s legs. “Apollyon!” they screamed, but they couldn’t get through.

  “We counted more than a hundred people going into that bowling alley,” the Peacekeeper said.

  “Bowling can take your mind off your problems,” Pete said.

  The Peacekeeper didn’t smile. “Now the place is empty. A tape was playing.”

  “That’s what I heard?” Vicki said.

  “Shut up! Open the truck!” The Peacekeeper waved toward the van and the other man, short and round, got out. The suit made him look like a snowman. He pointed his gun at Pete. A small red dot appeared on Pete’s chest.

  At the back of the man’s protective gear Vicki noticed a zipper at the bottom of the heel. Pete frowned and walked to the trailer.

  “Open it now!”

  Pete unlatched the door and grabbed the handle. Just as he was about to swing it open, Vicki reached and quickly unzipped Snowman’s heel. A locust immediately moved into the hole and began chewing at the inner lining, a thin layer of plastic.

  Vicki scooted left and unzipped the other Peacekeeper’s suit. Several locusts moved in, their hideous voices screaming.

  Pete opened both doors, revealing the huddled mass of believers. Conrad and Shelly, near the door, squinted at the light.

  An alarm sounded in Snowman’s helmet. He cursed as air hissed from his leg. “Oxygen breach!”

  “Your leg!” the other yelled.

  The man screamed, dropped his gun, and fell in a heap.

  The other Peacekeeper ran toward him as an alarm sounded in his suit. He stopped and swatted at the locusts boring through the plastic at his heel. Before he could zip his suit, he straightened, threw his arms into the air, and let out a terrifying scream. He pitched forward and smashed face first onto the pavement. Locusts swarmed.

  Pete ran to the GC van, grabbed the keys, and threw them over an embankment. Vicki did the same with the guns.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Pete said, taking something from the van.

  “What about them?” Vicki said. One guard writhed, the other lay still, unconscious.

  “It’s already too late for them,” Pete said.

  Judd told Lionel and Sam what was going on as the plane neared New Babylon. At Mac’s suggestion, Nada took his cell phone and called her parents in Israel.

  Judd returned to the cockpit. He guessed Mac was about fifty. Mac said he was twice divorced, no kids. He had flown commercial and military planes.

  “How did you become a member of the Tribulation Force?” Judd said.

  “It’s a long story, but briefly, I was flying with a guy who had become a believer after his wife and son disappeared. He told me his story and I believed. When I went to tell him, I saw the mark on his forehead. That was some morning.”

  “Where were you when the earthquake hit?”

  “Right on top of Carpathia’s building,” Mac said. “Makes me sick to think about it. The guy actually kicked people away from the helicopter so he could save his own skin.”

  “So Nada’s brother didn’t have a chance,” Judd said.

  “The only ones with a prayer were the people on the roof. If her brother was inside or nearby, he was probably killed instantly. Leon Fortunato says he himself was killed in the collapse.”

  “Yeah, he says Carpathia raised him from the dead.”

  Mac snickered. “I say Leon’s as big a liar as Nicolae.”

  He pointed out New Babylon on the horizon and a strange feeling came over Judd. It was as if they were entering a place of evil. Judd had heard and read so much about the gleaming buildings and streets second to none. After the earthquake, Nicolae Carpathia had made rebuilding the city his top priority.

  As the plane neared the city, Judd was impressed by the sparkle of glass in the sunshine. Beautiful buildings rose out of the sand, each a monument celebrating the reign of Nicolae Carpathia.

  Judd went back to his seat. Nada was wiping her eyes.

  “What happened?” Judd said.

  Nada laid her head on his shoulder. “They were frantic trying to find me. Yitzhak and my father had just gotten back from looking in the streets.”

  “What did you tell them?”

  “That I didn’t mean to cause trouble. I just wanted to be with you. I told my mother I was going to visit the place where Kasim died.”

  “Let me guess. It didn’t help.”

  “No. And my father was so angry he could hardly talk. I told him I loved him and would see him soon. He called me an impulsive teenager.” She imitated her father’s voice, “ ‘We don’t have time to play love games. A wrong move could cost our lives.’ ”

  Nada’s father was right. She was impulsive. But that appealed to Judd.

  Mac landed and escorted the kids through a private entrance for GC employees. He explained that the believers working behind the scenes for the Global Community had faked locust stings.

  “Are there many believers here?” Lionel said.

  “Not many,” Mac said, “but we’re finding new ones who read Tsion Ben-Judah’s Web site. We have a guy who knows computers. There’s another pilot. And we hope many more new believers before we have to get out of here.”

  “Why wouldn’t you stay?” Lionel said.

  “Sooner or later Carpathia will make everybody take some form of ID right on their skin. You’ll have to have it to buy or sell or move around.”

  Mac told Nada to be careful. “If anyone finds out you’re a believer, they’ll report you in a second.”

  “Just keep quiet and let them go to hell?” Nada said.

  Mac scratched his neck. “If you were my kids, I’d say the same thing.”

  Judd and the others nodded.

  “How do we get back home?” Nada said.

  Mac shrugged. “I doubt you’ll be able to fly commercial. Let Judd work that out with this Pavel and his dad.”

  Mac led them through the nearly deserted airport. The locusts had hit the GC hard. An older man checked the kids’ identification. Mac explained who they were, and the man eyed them carefully, then waved them through.

  Vicki held on as Pete drove as fast as possible to the highway. She kept watching for the white GC vans.

  Pete pulled out a tiny radio and flipped it on. “I got it from the van.”

  The radio squawked message after message to the downed Peacekeepers. Finally, another crew reported the mishap.

  “They’ll come after us now,” Pete said.

  He took an exit and barreled into the gas station where he had switched trailers. Pete raced inside. Vicki opened the trailer and the people tumbled out, looking dazed and disoriented.

  “We thought we were goners,” Shelly said.

  A call came over the radio. “We’re almost to the highway. They couldn’t have gotten far.”

  Pete returned with Roger Cornwell and yelled for everyone to be quiet. “They’re on their way, so we have to hide. I’m taking the truck back to the highway—”

  “No!” Vicki shouted.

  “It’s the only way,” Pete said. “Roger says there’s a cave about a half a mile back in the trees behind the station.”

  “We know where it is,” a teenage boy shouted.

  “Good,” Pete said. “Lead the way.”

  “But, Pete,” Vicki pleaded.

  “Trust me,” Pete said. “I’ll be all right.”

  Vicki ran with the others into the woods. She stopped at the tree line and watched Pete drive away. “Protect him,” she prayed.

  New Babylon gleamed in the sunlight. Mac drove near all the sights the kids had seen on television and pointed out significant buildings and landmarks. The streets were nearly deserted. Locusts were out in full force, waiting to sting anyone without the mark of the believer.

  When they came to Nicolae Carpathia’s office complex, Mac slowed. He told them the structure had been built on the same site as the old building that had collapsed dur
ing the great earthquake.

  “This is where my brother worked,” Nada said, her voice trembling.

  “You’ll stay in the apartment complex over there,” Mac said.

  “What about us?” Lionel said.

  Mac stopped and opened the door for Nada. “You guys are down a few more blocks.”

  Judd hugged Nada. “Be careful,” he said. “I want us back in Israel in one piece.”

  Nada smiled. “You’re the one I’m worried about.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Judd saw Lionel shake his head.

  15

  MARK Eisman struggled with his role at the schoolhouse. He wanted to follow the latest news and work on their Web site, theunderground-online.com, but with Vicki, Conrad, and Shelly gone, and no chance of Judd or Lionel returning soon, his job was holding everything together.

  Lenore Barker was a big help with the daily chores, but she had to look after her baby, Tolan. Melinda and Janie, who had been stung by locusts, suffered great pain. They wailed and moaned from their room upstairs.

  Mark put Darrion Stahley in charge of following the travels of Vicki and the others. She had kept in contact with the kids through South Carolina, but something went wrong as they neared Tennessee. Darrion hadn’t heard anything more from them. She also monitored what was going on in Baltimore with another crackdown on believers. She kept track of incoming e-mail and watched for news from Carl Meninger at the GC outpost in Florida.

  But Mark was baffled by Charlie. He was the only unbeliever who hadn’t been stung. Lenore and Darrion met with Mark after dinner to talk.

  “I don’t know what to think,” Darrion said. “If he were disabled in some way he would have been taken in the Rapture, right?”

  “There must be some way to explain it,” Mark said.

  Lenore shook her head. “If it hadn’t been for you guys, I wouldn’t have escaped those things.”

  “Let me throw something out,” Mark said. “The locusts didn’t sting Tolan because he’s a baby. Even though he doesn’t have the mark on his forehead, God must have put some kind of protection around him.”

  “Okay,” Darrion said.

  “What if there’s some kind of protection from God around Charlie?”