Pastor Simonton wasted no time: “We are gathered here today to join two beautiful souls together in Holy matrimony. Even among so much chaos and despair in the world, I can’t help but rejoice joining man and woman together in true Christian love.”
Dick Mulrooney snorted, then shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Even though he never met Jacquelyn, he already disliked the woman. She wasn’t supposed to be his daughter-in-law. Renate was!
While Jacquelyn could make him a grandfather someday, this wasn’t part of the plan; part of the dream. Dick would never be free to indoctrinate that grandchild into the Catholic Church, like he knew he could with the son Renate gave birth to in his dream for three straight nights. If anything, this was a cruel and ridiculous nightmare.
He read her name: Tamika Moseley. It dawned on him. The fugitive? Is my daughter standing alongside a known criminal? He quickly dismissed the thought. After all, they were in Michigan, not New York.
That couldn’t be her, could it? Her hair was much shorter than in the photograph he’d seen numerous times on TV, but fugitives often changed their appearances to avoid capture.
Dick Googled her name and his shock soared to a whole new level. Glaring back at him on his phone screen side by side with Tamika Moseley was his own son’s image in a New York City news feed.
Dick Mulrooney gulped hard. He adjusted his glasses and read how New York City prosecutors were considering pressing charges against his son for aiding and abetting a known criminal.
Not only was Moseley’s cell phone linked to Brian’s account, the boarding house she was staying at was also in his son’s name. That is, until a man from Florida named Charles smuggled her out of the city.
Dick referenced the wedding program: Charles Calloway. Is he the man from Florida?
Dick plugged his earpiece into his phone and listened to a video feed of the owner of the boarding house telling reporters what she said in her police affidavit.
“I was suspicious of him the instant I laid eyes on him,” the woman said regarding Brian Mulrooney, “especially after he insisted on having a room in the back of the building. He said the reason was because he brought his pet cat with him, when it wasn’t even his cat to begin with; it was Moseley’s.
“Now I know why he never left the room. It was Tamika Moseley all along! I saw her leaving my building the night she escaped. The so-called pizza delivery man smuggled her out the back door to safety. Had I known it was her, she wouldn’t have gotten away. She’d be sitting in a jail cell. Him too!”
Finished listening, Dick Mulrooney removed his earpiece and glared angrily at Tamika Moseley. His gaze held her captive. Her knees grew weak. She suddenly felt naked without her bandanna. He knows who I am!
Dick pointed his cell phone at her and started snapping away. Tamika lowered her head and took deep breaths to prevent from fainting.
Dick then took pictures of Charles Calloway. Surely, he was the man from Florida.
At first, Chelsea Mulrooney thought her father was taking pictures of her. She smiled as her father kept snapping away. It quickly became apparent she wasn’t the object of her father’s frenzied picture taking.
Dick Mulrooney glared at his son, “A fugitive as one of your bridesmaids?” he said under his breath, so no one heard him. “Really? You gotta be kidding me!”
His eyes narrowed and shifted to Charles Calloway. Gritting his teeth, he said, “I know who you are, buster! You won’t get away with what you did!” After a brief stare-down, Dick Mulrooney rose from his seat and stormed out of the church, unable to fathom how his own flesh and blood could allow a woman on the run from police to participate in his wedding.
This wasn’t a Christian wedding; it was a dangerous cult gathering, and his son was one of the criminal ringleaders. It was the beautiful side of evil in disguise. What other logical explanation could there be other than his son and daughter-in-law were demon possessed?
Many in the church shook their heads in bewilderment.
Brian shot a desperate look at his mother.
Sarah shrugged her shoulders. She had no idea what had provoked her husband to leave so suddenly. Even if she did, there was no way she would leave her son’s wedding. It would have to wait until later.
Like everyone else, the Leglers didn’t know why Dick Mulrooney left so suddenly. But nobody comes unglued like that unless they had a strong suspicion. Whatever it was, undoubtedly it was all Brian’s fault.
Tamika’s trembling increased. Her eyes darted left and right looking for the best way to escape before law enforcement showed up. On the run again! It’s like she’d jumped out of the frying pan and straight into the fire. It felt as if her last breath had just been sucked out of her lungs. “Help me, Lord!” she whispered skyward.
Clayton Holmes excused himself from the bridal party and escorted Tamika out of the church. He could feel her left arm trembling. “Relax. We’ll get you out of here...”
Holmes opened the church door and did a quick sweep of the area looking for Brian Mulrooney’s father. Seeing him driving off in a rental car, he said, “Stay here,” to Tamika, then joined Braxton Rice outside.
Rice looked at Clayton quizzically, “What’s wrong, boss?”
“Tell me again about Tamika Moseley’s background check...”
Rice was about to ask why. But seeing his boss drinking in his surroundings without making eye contact with him was so unlike Clayton. Something was wrong.
“Came back clean. You know about her legal issues, right?”
Holmes nodded yes.
“Brian and Charles don’t believe it’s true. Nor do I. She dug up her grandfather’s grave to see if the Rapture was true or not. She didn’t rob nobody. The only possible red flag would be her husband.”
“Husband?”
“Yeah. They separated after he became a Muslim. I checked him out, too.”
“And?”
“Seems they haven’t communicated in years.”
“What’s your gut telling you?”
“She’s ETSM material. After all, she did have the dream.”
“Take her to the cabin immediately. Charles too,” Holmes said. “Your three associates can ride back with us later.”
Rice knew what that meant: the safe-house in Tennessee. “Where are they?”
“Charles is still inside the sanctuary. Tamika’s waiting on the other side of the door.”
“I’ll get the van ready, boss.”
Clayton Holmes nodded then went back inside and briefed Tamika on what would happen next. After that, he went back inside the sanctuary to give Charles his instructions.
Calloway left at once and Holmes rejoined the bridal party.
Meanwhile, Rice huddled with his three associates outside. After a brief explanation, he placed one of them in charge, and went inside to get Tamika. “Follow me.”
Tamika said nothing but followed Braxton Rice to the same white van she was in the day before; it was one of many owned by the ETSM.
“Get in,” Rice said, opening the side door.
“Where you taking me?”
“To Jacquelyn’s to get your things. Just waiting on Charles.”
“And after that?”
“Tennessee.”
“Where in Tennessee?”
“At this point, does it matter?”
“I suppose not...” Tamika climbed in the back seat.
Rice looked in his rear-view mirror and saw the fear in her eyes, “Don’t worry. I’m taking you someplace safe. So long as the cops don’t find us first.”
Tamika was too frightened to utter a reply.
Calloway climbed inside the van and Braxton Rice left at once. They rode mostly in silence until Rice pulled into Jacquelyn’s driveway an hour later. “Let’s be quick about this. We need to get out of Michigan ASAP.”
Before getting out of the van, Tamika said, “I can’t leave my cat behind. He must come with me.”
Under normal conditions, Rice would never agree to such emotional
wishes. But what he saw in the rear-view mirror was a woman about to become completely unhinged. “Suit yourself.”
Rice got out and punched in the code to unlock the door to Jacquelyn’s house. Tamika only had two suitcases and a backpack to collect. Calloway had even less than that.
They were in and out in just minutes.
Tamika climbed in the backseat of the van and took a few deep breaths to steady her erratic breathing. It was like New York City all over again. Only she was unaware of her surroundings and, therefore, wasn’t sure which state line she was desperate to cross this time.
“We’ll be driving a while. Why don’t you both try to take a nap...”
Calloway remained silent. His mind was full of thoughts...
Tamika sighed. “Thanks for saving me, Braxton.”
Rice looked in the rear-view mirror. “Wait till we get there before thanking me.”
“You got it.” Tamika stroked Cocoa’s fur. “Looks like we’re homeless again, girl...”
32
AND IF ALL THAT wasn’t enough, it was about to get a whole lot crazier inside Southeast Michigan Evangelical Church.
Entering through the same back door that Tamika Moseley and Charles Calloway had just left were Renate McCallister’s sister, Megan, accompanied by her father.
Renate wasn’t with them. Neither was her mother, Rose.
Brian winced. He couldn’t believe what his eyes were seeing. Why are they here? How did they even know about it?
Dressed all in black, Dylan and Megan McCallister looked more like they were attending a funeral than a wedding. Both appeared grief-stricken, as if in deep mourning.
Side by side, the two walked the entire aisle way before taking a seat in the front row, a few spaces away from Sarah Mulrooney.
Sarah’s eyes nearly popped out of her head upon seeing them. She gasped, then nodded politely.
They didn’t nod back.
Brian then nodded nervously at his two uninvited guests. Instead of nodding back, they glared at the groom somberly with no emotion whatsoever. They looked tired, numb.
Seeing Jacquelyn’s brow furrow, Brian whispered to her, “Renate’s father and sister.”
Jacquelyn sighed, closed her eyes and lowered her head. Can it get any worse?
“Remain focused. Let’s finish this,” said Pastor Simonton to Brian and Jacquelyn, in a near whisper. But even Jim was having difficulty wrapping his mind around what was going on. The wedding had barely even started, yet it couldn’t be any more bizarre!
Brian looked at Clayton Holmes. His spiritual mentor nodded as if everything was okay with Tamika.
The groom snapped out of it. “I’m okay, Pastor! Let’s do this.”
Tom Dunleavey stood two spaces away from Brian Mulrooney and was able to hear his whispering. His heart sank for his good friend.
Brian briefly glanced at the McCallisters again. How could he possibly ignore them when they were seated in the front row with his mother?
As uncomfortable as seeing them made him feel, Mulrooney knew in his heart that he was always faithful to Renate, in the five-and-a-half years they were together. Then he became a Christian and everything changed. He never planned for any of this to happen. It just happened.
Even so, just seeing them caused guilt to mushroom through him.
Brian looked away from them and shot a quick glance at his soon-to-be father-in-law. He was thankful Jacquelyn couldn’t see him. If she looked at her father for even a split second, she would completely unravel and start weeping hysterically. But she remained true to her promise, never once breaking eye contact with the one she was about to marry.
Brian had already accepted that unless his in-laws became Christians, there would be no relationship with them of any kind. It pained him to think such unhealthy thoughts, especially while in the process of marrying their only daughter, but it was something he needed to accept.
Usually when couples exchanged wedding vows, they planned far into the future together as husband and wife, starting with being parents and ultimately becoming grandparents. And if they were truly blessed, great-grandparents.
But Brian and Jacquelyn didn’t have the luxury of thinking along those lines. The remaining sand at the top of the hourglass was steadily finding its way to the bottom. There was nothing they could do to stop it. Unless they miraculously survived the next seven years, their time together as husband and wife would be short, and filled with constant challenges, to say the least.
The positive side to exchanging vows under such adverse conditions was that it heightened overall awareness by creating a sense of urgency, which allowed the couple to fully embrace each moment spent together.
By only having so much time with which to work, emotions were naturally deepened and intensified on all levels, thus safeguarding the marriage, and protecting it from experiencing a season of inertia, or possibly even a time of unfaithfulness.
After sharing the Gospel message of Jesus Christ—a message originally prepared for the parents of the bride and groom; everyone else was saved—Pastor Simonton said, “Does anyone here object? If so, speak now or forever hold your peace.”
Brian and Jacquelyn braced themselves fearing the worst. Both expected Jacquelyn’s father to rise from his seat and condemn the marriage as a sham. Miraculously, he remained seated.
Their eyes quickly shifted to Dylan and Megan McCallister. As if on cue, they rose as one, causing all eyes to focus on them. An awkward silence fell upon the church that hung thick in the air for what seemed an eternity.
Scowl on his face, Dylan McCallister pointed his trembling finger at Brian Mulrooney. Just as he was about to say something, the grieved man started sobbing loudly.
After a few uneasy moments, Dylan McCallister wiped tears from his eyes and uttered something unintelligible before he and his daughter left the church. Their pace was dreadfully slow.
Everyone shifted uncomfortably in their seats waiting for them to finally reach the back of the congregation.
The tension was palpable.
This caused yet another alarm to go off in George and Sheila Legler’s minds. First Brian’s father, now this bombshell? They both feared for their daughter, who stood beside this maniac with her head down, trembling more than Dylan McCallister’s finger a few moments ago.
It made them detest Brian Mulrooney even more.
Seeing that Jacquelyn was a breath away from coming apart at the seams, Sheila Legler stood to comfort her daughter.
George Legler grabbed his wife’s arm: “She made her bed, Sheila. Let her sleep in it a while until she finally wakes up and sees her husband is nothing but trouble. Hopefully soon she’ll come to her senses and leave him! Then the healing process can finally begin for us.”
Sheila sheepishly sat down.
The Leglers didn’t know what had caused Brian and Renate to go their separate ways—only what Jacquelyn had told them—but this sudden outburst from the McCallisters told them all they needed to know: Brian must have brainwashed their daughter into thinking she loved him when she really didn’t, much like he did with Jacquelyn.
They glared at their son-in-law with growing contempt. How dare you subject our daughter to such madness!
Brian gazed out at the congregation looking completely disheveled. Many shot comforting looks at him, but it wasn’t enough to remove this new coating of shock from his face.
“Come on, Brian, stay focused,” said Pastor Simonton in a near whisper. “Let’s make it official.”
Brian cleared his throat, “I’m okay, Pastor. Let’s finish this!”
Pastor Simonton cleared his throat, trying to alleviate the uneasy tension everyone felt, and said, “Brian and Jacquelyn, turn and face each other. Brian, repeat after me: Jacquelyn, with this ring, I thee wed.”
Brian did as he was instructed, shaky voice and all. He was clearly rattled.
Then to Jacquelyn: “Jacquelyn, repeat after me: Brian, with this ring, I thee wed.”
Jacquelyn repeated her vows.
“By the authority vested in me by the state of Michigan, and more importantly, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Brian, you may now kiss your bride.”
Not counting the Leglers, everyone else rose to their feet and gave the newlyweds a thunderous ovation.
Once everyone calmed down, Pastor Simonton said, “For those of you who are unfamiliar with our church, the dinner reception will be held down in the basement. Once you leave through the back doors, you’ll be directed to a side door which will lead you there. See you all down there...”
Leaving the church, everyone saw two large cardboard boxes on either side of the rear exit doors full of wrapped gifts. A sign was posted on each box: Please take one. Love, Brian and Jacquelyn Mulrooney.
Jacquelyn noticed them—it was impossible not to—but didn’t know what was inside the boxes. All she knew was they weren’t there earlier. A smile crossed her face. Was it Pastor Simonton’s idea?
The new bride had no idea that Dylan and Megan McCallister had placed the boxes there, not her pastor or anyone else from the church. It took some doing, but they were finally able to convince the three men Braxton Rice left behind to safeguard the church that the gifts were DVDs for wedding guests to take home with them.
Since they were unable to confirm it—after all, the wedding had already started—the three security men let down their guards and even helped the McCallisters place the boxes by the rear door exits so everyone would grab a gift on the way out.
Totally oblivious to this, Jacquelyn stood alongside her husband and greeted everyone as they filed out of the church and made their way down to the basement. She wasn’t expecting her parents to join them for dinner, but when they left the church without saying a word to anyone, including her, her heart ached.
Jacquelyn knew they were totally against the wedding. She also knew they despised Brian. But they never even bothered to congratulate their own daughter. Nor did they bother taking a wrapped gift home with them.
Soon, very soon, the new bride would rejoice knowing they didn’t take one...
The Countdown Begins Page 22
