Darius shook his head in amazement. Old William Colgate had made a symbolic list of Matthew 1 right on the side of his building. The one row of bricks above the triangle and the three rows of bricks below it might even be a marker representing the missing names. Pretty clever, but why? Why go to all the trouble to make a symbolic brickwork representing a genealogy from the New Testament?
Darius was not satisfied. There had to be more to it than that. Well, he would have to save it for another day. He had an appointment to go to, and it looked as if he was late already. Making a few notes in the folder, he saved it and turned off his computer. Clever man, that William Colgate, clever man. But what are you trying to tell us?
As he was leaving his office, he couldn’t help but wonder what he was missing.
* * *
Anton Ramirez arrived in Dubai later that night and checked into his hotel. His room was on the fourth floor. Once inside, he took out a small package addressed to the PO box he had been given by the Baker. He walked back down to the front desk and asked them to place it in the outgoing mail. By tomorrow it would make it to the post office, and with any luck, the next day he would be able to track it to whomever was receiving Capsule 13.
Once back in his room, he removed a state-of-the-art GPS tracking device from his luggage. This he turned on and tested to make sure it was still working. You never knew how the bag handlers would treat your luggage, he thought. This device could track his little package from up to ten miles. Anton doubted he would have to test the range on his equipment. He’d bet the person he was looking for was not far from the Dubai World Trade Center.
Turning on the TV, he watched the news for a few minutes with mild interest. World stock markets were crashing again for some reason. Turning the channel, he looked for a good horror movie. He really didn’t care about the news unless he was making it.
Chapter 79
On his way home that night, Marcus received a phone call from his agents on night-shift detail at the bakery. When they arrived for their shift, they had found the day-shift observation team dead—shot with a low-caliber weapon. Marcus turned his car around and headed for the bakery as he called in reinforcements. There were two probable scenarios regarding his agents’ death. The first, and what he considered the most likely, was that the Baker was dead. The guardians of the secret were at work again, eliminating those who had any connection to Capsule 13. Likely, whoever was responsible had interrogated the Baker and now knew the destination of the capsule.
The other option was that the terror network had somehow found out they had been compromised and were eliminating any possible connections between the capsules and their destination. Marcus picked up his phone again and called the operations center. He had another set of agents dispatched to check on Efran Finkelstein. If this was related to the secret, then he was next on the list—if he was not already dead.
When Marcus arrived on scene, he found only sober faces tinged with anger. These two dead agents brought the number now to six, all dead in the past few days. These too had been marked with an unknown symbol. He would not be able to keep this contained any longer. With six dead Mossad agents, this investigation would move to the highest priority. After looking the crime scene over, Marcus grabbed two agents and headed over to the bakery. The light, which was normally on at this time, was still out. There was no evidence of activity inside. As they approached the front of the store, they found the door unlocked. They walked in and called out to see if anyone was about. Finding no one, they walked back into the bakery and found everything as it had been left the night before.
“Do you think he got scared and ran?” one of the agents asked.
Marcus replied, “I doubt it.”
Marcus said no more but headed upstairs, the other two agents a few steps behind. When they reached the living room, they had their answer. The Baker had been tied to the chair. Marcus noticed right away that only seven fingers remained. Three on his left hand and four on his right. They had removed thirteen of his fingers and toes. He knew without a doubt this was a warning to him. Marcus felt the skin on his arms and legs prickle. If he did not find a way to get some leverage on the Guardian, he was soon destined to become a victim as well.
Turning to one of his agents he said, “Call in a forensic team; see if they left anything behind we can use to find them.”
As he was leaving the bakery, he got a call from the apartment of Efran Finkelstein. They had found Efran dead, his throat cut. There went another connection to Capsule 13. Soon others would realize there was more to these deaths than just the terror network. The next likely victims would be whoever was behind Capsule 13 in Dubai, then the Neumanns and Mr. Harrison.
Marcus called Chief Yadin. When he answered, Marcus explained the events of the past few hours. He also explained that he was concerned there might be a link between the Capernaum dig and the terror network. “If there is some greater conspiracy here related to the Capernaum dig, then both the Neumanns and Mr. Harrison might be at risk.”
The chief replied, “Do you have any tangible evidence as to a link between the Capernaum dig and a bigger conspiracy?”
“No, sir, nothing I can prove other than each of the victims have been marked with a strange symbol. We have some of our people trying to track down the meaning of the symbol, but that avenue is not looking to promising right now. Unfortunately, we just lost the one person who might have known. Efran Finkelstein was the only connection we had between the Capernaum dig and the terror network. Sir, I would also suggest we pull in every person we have been watching on the list the FBI provided. Once whoever is behind this terror network realizes that two of their people have been killed, they will likely shut the network down and either move or eliminate their people. We only have a small window of opportunity to get any information from them.”
“Okay, go ahead and bring them in. And Marcus, I want you to warn the Neumanns that there is a possible danger to them. If he would like a security detail on his house, get him one. See if you can get some local law enforcement involved. We are spread pretty thin right now. Jacob Neumann is one of the good guys. He is not political, and he is a true patriot. If anything happens to them, Marcus, I will hold you personally responsible.”
When Nigel Yadin ended the call, Marcus made several more calls. First he called Jacob Neumann and explained his concerns. Jacob Neumann listened and then said, “Agent Nayat, I appreciate your concern. Thank you for calling and telling me, but until you have something more concrete, I would prefer not to waste the precious resources of our law-enforcement officials.”
“Very well, Mr. Neumann, but should you change your mind at any time, please call me personally.” Marcus gave Jacob Neumann his number and then made a call to the other Mossad agents watching those on the list the FBI had given them. He directed them to bring in all the suspects. Finally, Marcus called David Johnson and explained the possible danger to Zane Harrison.
David took the call from Marcus Nayat and listened while he explained the situation. Zane was busy typing on his computer, rewriting his research on Daniel’s seventy weeks prophecy.
David snapped his phone closed. “Zane, I just got a call from the Mossad agent in charge of the terror network investigation. They lost two more agents tonight. They believe it is possible that you and the Neumanns might be in danger due to your connection to the Capernaum dig. Right now they don’t have anything concrete, but they cannot explain why four highly trained Mossad agents were killed out there the other night. Tonight Efran Finkelstein was killed along with the person he was passing his messages to. Apparently he was sending messages through the sewer system, and they were collected at a local bakery. The baker has been under surveillance for several weeks, and the two agents watching him were killed tonight. The assailant entered the bakery and killed the baker as well. Thirteen of his fingers and toes were removed and he was marked with a strange symbol. Whoever is out there doing this is one sick dude. You should be very care
ful until you leave for the States.”
Zane looked skeptical. “How can the events of the Capernaum dig and the terror network be connected, David? That makes no sense.”
David was quiet a moment. “Zane, I know it doesn’t make sense right now, but don’t you think it’s just a little too coincidental that the baker lost thirteen fingers and that he was forwarding a flash drive, sent through the sewer by Efran Finkelstein, which was marked by the number thirteen? Now you show me a Bible code hidden for almost two thousand years, the key to which is the number thirteen.”
Zane interrupted, “You said Efran was passing secrets through the sewer and marking them with the number thirteen?”
“Yes, that’s correct. I don’t think we can discount a possible connection between what you found down in that cave and this network. What if there’s a bigger picture we’re missing here?”
David was animated now, his logical brain processing the information as he spoke. Talking more to himself than Zane, he continued, “So to date we have a terror network which uses the sewer to communicate. One of the members of this cell who just happens to mark his messages with the number thirteen. One of the greatest archeological discoveries in Israel in the last twenty years completely destroyed. In addition to priceless scrolls, tablets, and other artifacts, we had a coded inscription whose key in part was the number thirteen. A key, I might add, which you believe proves that in fact Jesus fulfilled a twenty-five-hundred-year-old prophecy in the book of Daniel.”
Zane was listening carefully now, and David carried on. “Tonight we have the death of the only person who could possibly connect the Capernaum dig and the terror network, the same person who was marking secret messages with the number thirteen. Tonight we also have the killing of two Mossad agents and a baker who was the subject of their surveillance. This baker was the person responsible for passing on the messages marked with the number thirteen. Coincidentally, this poor fellow had thirteen of his fingers and toes removed. Now, tell me there is not something more going on here! Until we figure out what is going on you should not take any chances.”
“David, I see your point. It does seem to be a little bit more than coincidence. To put your mind at ease, I promise you I will pay attention. I plan on leaving for home the day after tomorrow anyway. I don’t plan on going anywhere between now and then except for dinner with Rachael tomorrow night. If you don’t mind, I will stay right here in the room and work on my research notes and paper the rest of the time. That way you will not have to worry about me. Deal?”
David smiled. “Okay, Zane, but I think you should cancel your dinner date with Rachael Neumann.”
Zane started to protest.
“Just joking bro, just joking. If I was in your shoes, nothing short of the second coming would keep me away from a date with Rachael Neumann.”
Zane, a smile and just a touch of embarrassment on his face now, laughed with David at his own expense. The rest of the evening they spent catching up on the events of the past year. They made plans for climbing that winter at home—Arizona was a perfect place to go rock climbing during the winter.
Finally, David yawned and said, “I’m going to hit the hay, Zane. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a long day. I’ll be out most of the day tomorrow, so you’ll have the place to yourself. There is a pullout couch, and linens are in the closet over there. Good night.” With that, David walked into the bedroom and closed the door. Zane stayed up for another hour working on his research notes for the prophecy of seventy weeks. Finally satisfied, he saved the file and inserted it in an e-mail.
Sam,
If you have some time take a look at this, will you. I think you will find it fascinating. I would sure like your input on it when you have time. Hope you are well. David said you have a new customer. LOL. Take care and talk to you soon.
Zane
P.S. I will be heading home in a couple of days. I would like to get together and talk when I get back. Maybe we could get together on the weekend and find some rock?
Zane hit send and then addressed a new e-mail to Rachael.
Dear Rachael,
I finished up some of my notes on Daniel’s seventy weeks prophecy tonight. I’ve added some of the information we’ve found relating to the subject. I thought you might like a copy. As always your thoughts and opinions on it are appreciated.
Regards, Zane
Zane hit send and turned in for the night. He was both physically and mentally exhausted. He fell asleep with pleasant thoughts of Rachael Neumann and their date tomorrow night.
* * *
David lay in bed thinking about what Zane had shared with him. The information seemed almost incredible. He wondered about the connection between the terrorist network and the Capernaum dig. Why the symbolism of the number thirteen—why was this number important to a terrorist network? Who was really behind this?
Exhausted as David was, he couldn’t shut his mind off. He lay there thinking about the implications of Zane and Rachael’s discovery. What were the unintended consequences of this information? And there was something more. Something just out of reach of his conscious mind. Turning off the light, he closed his eyes and tried to shut his mind down. David lay there for some time, and just as he was drifting off to sleep, he sat up in bed.
“Pi!” he exclaimed.
That was what he had been trying to remember. That was what had been nagging him. He knew he had recognized the numbers. “Nah, that couldn’t be it,” he said to himself as he lay back down.
In college, David had minored in mathematics. He loved numbers, their order, and their mystery. In his second year of college, he had written a term paper on the properties of pi. The great irrational number. A number with a fractional representation that never repeats and never ends. Believed to be a transcendental number, the value of which cannot be systematically rendered by any algebraic process. During the course of writing his paper, David had memorized the value of pi up to the fiftieth decimal place. Now he recalled those first fifty digits.
David sat up in bed and turned on the light. Looking at the clock, he could see he had been lying in bed almost two hours now. David slid out of the covers and walked over to the small desk against the wall of his room. Getting out a piece of paper, he wrote down the first seven digits of pi:
3.141592
Next, he turned on his computer and opened his BibleWorks software, looking up the reference for the instructions of the Feast of Tabernacles during the seventh month. He remembered Zane telling him about the number of sacrifices: there were thirteen, fourteen , and he thought he remembered seven, but he wanted to make sure of the number and their order. He finally found the reference, and with incredulity he muttered, “Oh, come on, you have got to be kidding me!” The reference was Numbers 29:13.
“Numbers 29:13! Numbers—really?”
He read the verse carefully:
And ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto YHWH; 13 young bullocks, 2 rams, and 14 lambs of the first year; they shall be without blemish.
David shook his head in amazement and not a little awe. And all this took place in the seventh month. Carefully, he wrote out the number of the sacrifices for the seven days of the feast in a table format on his piece of paper.
For the first day of the feast there were 13 + 2 +14 for a total of 29 sacrifices. The bullock sacrifices were in descending order or one less every day for seven days.
Zane had made a point that the biblical religious calendar was based on the cycle of the moon. The early Israelites watched the waxing light for thirteen or fourteen days and then watched it wane for thirteen or fourteen more days. The total lunar cycle was 29.53 days long. David looked at the first seven numbers of pi again. Then he wrote the numbers in reverse, separating them into three groups:
295 14 13
His hand shaking slightly in excitement, he whispered. “Is it possible? The first seven numbers of pi.” Were they a key?
> Next he wrote out the first fifty digits of pi on a piece of paper. Carefully, he circled each seven. The first seven was in the thirteenth decimal place. The second seven was in the twenty-ninth decimal place, and it fell between the two and nine, no less. The third seven was in the thirty-ninth decimal place—three times thirteen. David shook his head in amazement. Had the Creator hidden proof of the Messiah’s identity in pi?
3.14159265358979323846264338327950288419716939937510
All thought of sleep had evaporated. He was too excited to even think about sleep right now. David opened his door and saw Zane sleeping on the couch. Well, he wouldn’t wake him. They could talk about it in the morning. David closed the door and sat back down at the desk. If the Creator had hidden the Messiah factors in pi, might there be other mathematical hints as well? What about prime numbers or the Fibonacci sequence?
The Fibonacci sequence was clearly evident throughout nature. Some of the best examples of it were the spiral arrangement of the seeds in a sunflower or the nautilus shell.
David wrote out the Fibonacci sequence. Each number added to the one proceeding it.
1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89
There it was again, David thought—the numbers seven and thirteen. Thirteen was the seventh number in the sequence. Next, David wrote out the prime numbers.
Prime numbers, natural numbers greater than one that had no positive divisors other than one and the prime number itself, had long fascinated mathematicians. David wrote out the prime numbers he could remember:
The 13th Enumeration Page 37
