Then again, they were over for Yogesh too...
Amy Wong had her hands lifted toward Heaven, thanking her Maker for this amazing moment. It was right up there with her Camp David experience, when her former boss declared to everyone fortunate enough to be there that he was a Christ follower.
Back then, he was still the most powerful man on the planet, even if in title only. Now he was but a shadow of those days. Amy felt blessed to be here for him at this time.
Holmes received a text message from Braxton Rice. He read it aloud for everyone. “It’s showtime! I’ll update you when I can.”
Holmes replied: Yogesh did his part. Now it’s up to you and Nigel to help him escape!
Rice replied: That’s the plan. Out!
Clayton said, “Time to start praying, y’all…”
Everyone got on their knees and pleaded with God for their success…
AT SAFE HOUSE NUMBER one, most had gathered inside the church sanctuary to watch the BIG NEWS on TV. The only thing Brian and Jacquelyn had told them was something big would soon happen in the Middle East, something they wanted everyone to witness together.
Not that they had much choice, with power still out, the TV in the sanctuary was the only one in use on the entire property. Many space heaters were turned on to combat the bitterly cold temperatures outside.
Lunch was served an hour early so everyone on cafeteria duty could join them in the sanctuary at 12:01 EST, to pay tribute to all who’d vanished a year ago.
After shivering through Romanero’s speech, about the old world still being in the process of being torn down, that it couldn’t be done overnight or without bloodshed, and pregnant women who chose to refuse the top-notch care he provided should quickly reconsider, the real story unfolded for Christians.
When Yogesh declared, “I wish to take this moment to announce to the whole world that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior and I am not ashamed,” the sanctuary became alive with loud cheering.
When Yogesh thanked Brian, only not by name, and said if they didn’t meet on this side, he looked forward to meeting him on the other side, everyone at safe house number one knew to whom Yogesh was referring. Tears streamed down Brian’s cheeks.
But when Yogesh declared that after three months of retirement, he was back in the fishing business, only now as a fisher of men, everyone inside the sanctuary jumped up and down hive-fiving and fist-bumping each other, as if their favorite team had just won the Super Bowl.
Then to watch as he lowered his head and prayed aloud with the antichrist, of all people, seated just a few feet away from him, thanking Jesus for saving him from his false system, and asking Him to remember Yogesh in His kingdom, it was too awesome to put into words.
But when Yogesh addressed all who were visited in dreams by the 144,000, it triggered a massive response in the spirit world. Human eyes couldn’t see or detect it, but whenever the Most High moved, the spirit world was rocked all the way down to the smallest particle.
Patel’s words didn’t lead to explosions in the physical sense—like the world recently experienced at the hands of humanity’s most heinous evildoers, but in the spirit world, it was incalculable, which was why God had sent the dream in the first place…
Even those who were part of the first wave of dreams, who were visited by the Two Witnesses before they arrived in Jerusalem, felt greatly strengthened by Patel’s words.
Tom Dunleavey felt this surge of emotion coursing through his body, as he recalled his meeting with Brian. “Thanks again, brother…”
“Glory to God.” Brian’s phone vibrated in his pants pocket. It was a text message from Clayton Holmes: Great job! God really used you mightily. It must feel good knowing your fingerprints are all over this. You’re a big reason why our brother’s unfiltered words have reached the masses. Imagine the treasure you just stored up in Heaven!
More tears flooded Brian’s eyes. Jacquelyn’s too. It was one of the most satisfying text messages he’d ever received.
Brian replied: Hallelujah! I hope to meet Yogesh soon.
Holmes replied: Lord willing…
Scenes like this unfolded at all other safehouses.
BUT IT WASN’T JUST an ETSM thing. Christians worldwide erupted into songs of praise to their Maker for giving their new brother in Christ the strength to make his bold declaration.
God used his words to break many from their stupors and wake them up spiritually, especially those who were still confused after being visited in dreams by the 144,000.
They represented every nation, people and tribe. After Yogesh explained God’s salvation to them, all fell on their faces in repentance before the Lord Jesus Christ, including many Muslims.
Those who’d been searching for Truth all this time, who didn’t have Bibles, did all they could to obtain them. Just like that, nothing mattered more to them than obtaining a copy of the Word of God.
Though most were poor and had nothing to offer, they were willing to trade what little they had for the salvation of their souls.
In a frenzy of emotion, many posted on Patel’s social media platforms confirming such dreams, saying his words were received as confirmation. By letting their feelings rise above their discipline—along with the numerous Christ followers who didn’t have dreams, but foolishly did the same—they would soon suffer the consequences...
MEANWHILE, THE INSTANT YOGESH made his bold declaration, Ajit Laghari, who was given full access to Patel’s social media platforms went on a posting tirade. With millions of followers suddenly at his disposal, what better witnessing tool was there?
Up until now, Ajit kept himself busy making a list of the Scriptures he would share online. The moment Yogesh made his declaration for Jesus, he copied and pasted them one after another, on Patel’s accounts.
Sensing the end was near for him, he would keep posting until he was caught, or Yogesh’s accounts were frozen. It was just a matter of time before one or both of those scenarios played out. Then life would become infinitely more difficult for him, physically speaking.
Even so, it was well with his soul.
Ajit’s first post was: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!
His next post read: Trust in God, not man!
Almost immediately, someone replied: Correction Yogesh: Trust in Romanero, not man! What you did was evil! You disgust me!
To which Laghari replied: Not in Romanero, but in Christ alone!
The woman quickly erupted into an online diatribe full of hate-filled profanities. What did Hana ever see in you? While many are starving, Romanero made you a very wealthy man! This is how you repay him? You’ll burn in hell for this!
Many others replied similarly, to include numerous death threats.
Instead of wasting time challenging them, Laghari kept his eye on the prize and kept posting Scripture after Scripture, and challenging Romanero’s followers with questions for their leader.
Ask Romanero to breathe fire out of his mouth. He can’t! Only God can give someone that power.
Ask him to kill the Two Witnesses! Once again, he can’t. Not until they have accomplished all that God has purposed for them to do.
If Romanero truly is God, why isn’t he all-powerful and without limits like the God I serve?
I can assure you your leader is not God! Nor is he with God. Not only is Romanero with Satan, He is the antichrist written about in the Bible!
The same will be true with the 144,000. Romanero will have no power over them as well, until their missions are completed!
After that, Laghari posted Scripture after Scripture on all of Yogesh’s social media platforms, until he could no longer keep his eyes open.
At any rate, the dark cloud hanging over the Christian communities of the world just got a whole lot darker. The celebrating among believers would be short lived, especially for those whose locations were revealed by their IP addresses.
Much like what Romanero did to Muslims after Universal Children’s Day, he w
ould use the Day of New Beginnings celebration to tighten the screws on Christians. Yes, they were next to be hunted...
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THE WILD GOOSE CHASE Yogesh Patel had dreamt about for many weeks had just begun. He left the building through the exit from which Braxton Rice had told him, knowing his bold declaration for Jesus and ultimate rejection of Salvador Romanero had just sealed his fate.
His prayer now was that his actions wouldn’t place Hana and the baby in danger as well. In his last conversation with Ajit Laghari before leaving for the Middle East, Yogesh expressed his indecision, but only because he didn’t want to see any harm come to his family. Laghari reminded him of God’s promise in Romans 8:28 that He would work all things for good for those who love Him and were called according to His purpose.
Looking out at the sea of humanity circling the arena, Yogesh said, “Work all things for good, Lord, I beg you!”
Patel did his best to blend in as he weaved through the crowd with his head down, looking for his first contact person. Now more than ever, he would need God’s favor if he had any chance of miraculously escaping capture in the Middle East.
Even if he did escape, which was highly unlikely, he would be forced into a life of complete obscurity, like Ajit Laghari and his friend in America. For that to happen, everything had to go his way…
And even then, Romanero’s henchmen would keep following him until he was caught. One mistake, one misstep, was all it would take. Then who knew what would happen? But with so much heat on him, it was just a matter of time before GC officials apprehended him.
One thing was certain: life would never be the same.
Yogesh pushed his way through the humungous crowd with his head down, shaking considerably. Not that it mattered much; everyone on the planet possessing a sound mind knew his face, making it impossible for him to go unseen. The fact that he was only one of a few walking away from the arena, instead of toward it, was another giveaway.
With helicopters hovering above, cameras mounted everywhere, wall to wall security, and thousands of mobile devices at the ready, his smugglers knew it would be impossible for their brother in Christ to escape, if he didn’t change his appearance in the soonest possible fashion.
Finally, Yogesh spotted the top of the bright yellow canopy tent he was told to look for and hurried off in that direction.
Nigel Jones was waiting inside with two other men. “Remove the jacket, hurry!” Jones handed Yogesh the safari hat and dark sunglasses. “Put these on and keep walking in the same direction looking for you know who, wearing a yellow T-shirt and baseball cap with smiley faces, roughly a hundred meters ahead.”
Yogesh was clearly stressed. He was perspiring profusely. He nodded and went on his way.
The two men in the canopy tent with Jones were Middle Eastern ETSM members recruited to help Yogesh escape. Wearing blue pinstripe suits and matching blue and white striped ties, the put on the safari hats and sunglasses, and went in different directions to hopefully throw those pursuing their brother in Christ off his scent.
Nigel Jones removed anything that might have his fingerprints on it and placed them in a bag, then left for the next meeting place.
It didn’t take long for Yogesh to spot Braxton Rice. The smiley face on his shirt was diametrically opposed to the expression on his face. Clearly, he was growing more paranoid as the seconds passed...
Without looking at Yogesh, Rice said, “Get in the tent!”
Yogesh practically dove inside the canopy tent. His three amateur body doubles, dressed as women wearing black burqas, formed a circle around him, “You must hurry.”
If Yogesh needed proof that the burqa-wearing women really were men, his voice just confirmed it.
As Rice stood guard outside the tent, Yogesh tore off what was left of his $2k tailored suit as quickly as he could, strapped on fake breasts—which were quite weighty—and slipped into the black burqa.
One of the men pointed and said, “The white Audi SUV is over there. Remember to look for a bright pink ‘I Love Dubai’ baseball cap on the dashboard…” Yogesh nodded that he understood. “Good. You must go now before authorities surround the tent!”
“Pray for me brothers…”
Seeing the fear in Patel’s eyes, he was assured, “Many have been praying for you without ceasing. I can only imagine how many more after this! We’re so proud of you, brother. Godspeed.”
Yogesh saw the admiration and sincerity in his eyes. The fact that he was covered from head to toe in a burqa, that’s all he saw. “Thank you.”
The two men embraced, and Yogesh left at once—his walk more of a clumsy wobble than a stride—hoping the disguise would work. Feeling the weight of the world bearing down on him, he picked up the pace. “Lord, please deliver me safely to the car…”
The three Middle Eastern ETSM members bolted out of the tent. After taking a few steps together in the same direction, they quickly scattered and went their separate ways.
Everyone outside the arena knew what was happening; they watched it unfolding on big screen monitors before Patel left the arena. The whole world knew. But with the spotlight focused solely on what was happening inside the arena, it took a while for networks to obtain a live feed outside.
Many outside the arena were recording Patel live on social media when he left the arena. Many phones were quickly confiscated as evidence so the footage could be investigated for clues.
Yogesh prayed Romanero’s fanatical followers wouldn’t recognize him. If they did, they would surely shred him to pieces.
Finally, Patel spotted the white Audi SUV. He picked up the pace, wobbly legs and all, and quickly got inside the vehicle. He was shaking uncontrollably, doing his best to keep from having a nervous breakdown.
The driver, another ETSM member residing at a safe house in Abu Dhabi, looked in his rear-view mirror and put his pointer finger to his mouth. He wore a leather Jeff hat and matching leather gloves. The beard and moustache on his face was obviously fake.
Yogesh nodded. Besides, even if he wanted to talk, he couldn’t; he was too frightened!
Meanwhile, Braxton Rice and the pilot of Nigel Jones’ plane, tore off their florescent colored shirts, placed them in bags to be later burned, and stiff-armed their way through the crowd to the designated meeting spot.
They were thankful to see Nigel there waiting for them. Once it was confirmed that Patel was in the getaway car, Rice sent a text message to another ETSM driver on a burner phone. The man had been circling the arena the past 45 minutes waiting for the text message.
Spotting them, he pulled over. The three men practically dove into the car and the driver left at once for the airport. If they didn’t leave Dubai now, chances were good they might never leave.
Rice adjusted the surgical mask on his face. With authorities no doubt poring over surveillance video and slowly piecing things together, the ETSM security chief didn’t like their chances.
At the outset, the driver was told to take Patel to the underground location at which the driver was staying, not too far from the arena. But when Rice arrived in Dubai and saw the massive security presence, the plan was quickly changed.
With so many eyes and ears on the ground and in the sky, the last thing they wanted was to expose the safehouse to Romanero’s massive security detail. It was time for Plan B.
The driver of the white Audi sped off. They had many stops to make before Yogesh could be taken to the airport. They had to move quickly in total silence. Every word spoken might be heard and recorded by those who were tracking them.
Having seen his passenger’s face many times on TV and online, the former Muslim felt like he was chauffeuring a celebrity; a burqa-wearing male celebrity now on the run and fearing for his life.
The two men drove in silence until they reached their first destination: a multi-level parking lot connected to a massive shopping mall a short distance away from the arena. Had they ventured any further, they surely would have been caught.
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br /> The driver found a parking space on the third floor and gently eased his car into it. With the economy still severely under water, parking spaces were plentiful.
Turning to face Yogesh, in broken English, the driver with warm, friendly eyes said, “Proceed to the black Toyota minivan three cars to your right and climb in the back seat. The doors are unlocked. The backseats have been removed.
“It may take a while before you arrive at the next destination. There are plenty of blankets to cover yourself with, and pillows to keep you comfortable. There are crackers and water in case you get hungry or thirsty. I admire what you did so much. You’re a hero to so many. I’m praying for you, brother. Many are, in fact.”
Yogesh’s eyes betrayed anything that could be described as “heroic”. “Thank you…”
“Go now, brother…” He was noticeably jittery. If caught, he too would be imprisoned or put to death.
Yogesh nodded his appreciation, took a few deep breaths to steady himself and got out of the car. Once he was inside the trunk of the other car, Rice received a text message.
He gave his two colleagues a thumbs up gesture. So far, so good!
Rice then forwarded the message to Clayton and Travis. They were moments away from arriving at Abu Dhabi International (UAE) Airport.
Once cleared, if cleared, they would fly on one of Jones’ two Gulfstream V jets to the Philippines ahead of Yogesh. If he was fortunate to escape Dubai, they would meet him in Manila to take the next step.
Meanwhile, not even 20 minutes later, a man appeared carrying a shopping bag full of clothing for his world-famous passenger in the black Toyota minivan. He opened the back door on the driver’s side and placed them carefully inside the car, then slid behind the steering wheel.
He pushed the keyless ignition button and left the parking garage for the next destination, knowing full well that if he was pulled over, it would mean death for himself and Yogesh. Protect us, Lord!
The first driver removed his beard and mustache disguise, bright pink cap and leather gloves and placed them in a department store shopping bag. Tempted as he was to deposit the evidence in a trash can, he held onto it. The bag would be burned if he made it to safety.
The Sealing Page 22
