by Scalzo, Russ
As soon as their food was ready, Emily put it down in front of them and observed, “Looks like you guys are really getting into it again. You’ll have to tell me more about what you do someday. It must be pretty interesting.”
Frank pulled his plate toward himself and eyed Jack from the corner of his eye. “Yeah, it gets a little crazy sometimes. Jack will explain it all to you, I’m sure.”
“It’s just work. It seems more exciting than it really is,” Jack answered, trying to downplay what they did.
“I’m sure.” Emily said, giving them a sly smile. She knew these men were up to something, but she could see the food was ready for her other table so she reluctantly headed to the kitchen.
Frank dove right back in. “So what is going to happen to this guy now that this spirit is out of him? Does he just go back to the way he was before?”
“Jesus said that when an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through barren places seeking rest and does not find it. It also says I will return to the house I left which refers to the person it used to inhabit. When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. That is the state Hillerbrand is in right now.
“The Bible also says that it will go out and take with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. The final condition of that man is even worse than the first.”
Frank rubbed his forehead in amazement and mustered, “You mean to tell me that he will get worse? He has no hope of a full recovery?”
“I’m not saying that. He could get worse, but it’s really up to him. Here’s what has to happen,” Jack sighed and continued. “The person, in this case Hillerbrand, needs to ask Christ into his life. Getting all cleaned up is great, but it’s not the answer. That’s why so many addicts get clean but can’t stay that way. He will have the opportunity over the next couple of days to confess his sins and ask Jesus to come into his life. If he does that, then the evil spirits can’t get back in because his heart or the house that Jesus talked about is now occupied by God.”
“Amazing. I can’t believe all this stuff has been going on right under my nose and I never saw it. I have to say, it makes a lot of sense. There’s a real war going on and few people realize it.”
Jack smiled, “You understand more than a lot Christians who have been going to church for years do. That’s awesome, bud. You’re growing, my friend.”
Frank finished the last of his cup of coffee and looked back at Jack with a very serious expression on his face. Taking a deep breath, he asked, “What do you want to do about this Dante situation? That whole thing creeps me out.”
“I don’t know. That’s a new one for me. Keep your ear to the ground and if you find out anything more, let me know. It is all very troublesome to say the least, but as the time for the coming of Jesus draws closer, there will be more and more supernatural intrusions. Let’s keep praying about it and go from there.”
Frank eyes widened. “The coming of Jesus? You mean, like the end of the world?”
Jack smiled, “No, my friend, I mean the beginning. We can talk about that another time.”
They finished their lunch and while Frank walked over to the counter to pay the bill, Jack said goodbye to Emily. He wanted to get home and clean his house a bit before their big date.
Frank dropped Jack off at his house and headed over to the local police department to check on the Hillerbrand case. He wanted to meet with Hillerbrand’s wife and daughter and hopefully get a statement from them.
As soon as Jack walked into his house, his cell phone rang. He checked the screen and saw Conni’s name. He picked up. “Hi, Conni. What’s up?”
“I’m not sure Jack,” her voice sounded troubled.
“What’s going on?” Jack asked.
“We just got the okay to resume our prayer meetings, but there’s something that’s really bothering me,” Conni continued.
Jack never expected things to go smoothly. He had been a little wary of the quick turnaround the historical society made concerning the prayer meetings. He knew God was able to change people’s hearts, but there was something in his spirit that didn’t feel right.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Well, the executive board at my church assigned one of their board members to oversee the prayer meetings. The whole idea was to keep it non-denominational. To make things worse, he is very strict and legalistic, if you know what I mean. I need you to pray with me that it will somehow work out.”
Jack knew exactly what she meant. He had encountered a number of Christians that had lost their passion somewhere along the line, but he didn’t want to get her more upset, so he took a different approach.
“I understand completely. I will be praying. Let’s see how it goes. Maybe the Lord has this man there for a reason. Keep me updated. I will try to get there this Wednesday if I can.”
“Thanks, Jack. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Okay, Conni. You take care.”
Jack hung up and thought, The battle rages on. He decided to sit down for a minute before starting his cleaning duties and a quote from one of his favorite movies, Die Hard, immediately came to mind. Just a fly in the ointment, Hans. A monkey in the wrench.
* * *
The light rain that fell earlier in the day had cleared out, dropping the temperature from the mild mid-seventies to a cool fifty-five or so. He picked Emily up and the two of them talked the entire way back to his house. She was very interested in hearing more about what Jack and Frank did for a living.
Once inside, Jack decided it would be nice to make a fire, seeing that it might be the last one of the season. He had everything ready beforehand so all he had to do was light it when he came home. He walked over and got it started, much to Emily’s delight.
“Oh, I love a fireplace,” Emily told Jack. “I’m glad it cooled down tonight. This is so nice!”
Jack smiled, “I thought you might like it. I might not get a chance to use it again until October so it’s the perfect night for it.”
She sat down on the couch and asked, “So, what’s for dinner? I thought you only cooked breakfast?”
Jack hoped she didn’t mind, but he had taken it upon himself to order diner and have it delivered.
“Well, actually I ordered out. It should be here soon. Is that okay?”
Emily laughed, “Of course that’s fine. What are we eating?”
“Well, I heard you say something about Mexican food the other night so I took the liberty of ordering a bunch of different dishes for us to choose from.”
Emily was impressed he had been listening. “Wow! Nice job. Mexican is one of my favorites.”
Jack got the fire going just the way he liked it and sat down next to her. Once again, Emily looked beautiful tonight in her white-laced top and jeans. He leaned over and gave her a brief kiss. Emily turned to him, wrapped her arms around him and said softly, “This is perfect. A nice quiet evening, a fire, sitting on this couch with you… I couldn’t be happier.”
Jack loved the sound of that. She laid her head on his shoulder and they both stared at the fire for a few moments, not speaking, just sitting and enjoying the moment. After a few minutes, Emily turned toward Jack and gave him a kiss.
Jack looked at her closely. He swiped a lock of her hair away from her face and said, “Would you mind if I just kissed you for a while?”
Emily smiled and they did just that. The fire wasn’t limited to the fireplace. Time seemed to melt away for the two of them until the atmosphere was interrupted by the deliveryman knocking on the door.
Jack straightened himself up a little bit and answered the door.
He promptly paid the delivery guy and brought their food into the kitchen.
“I hope you like what I picked out. I think it looks good.”
Emily came in, looked at all the food and smiled. “Wow! You sure bought a lot of food. Do I look like I eat a lot?”
Jack got nervous and quickly answer
ed, “No, I just wanted to make sure I got what you liked.”
“I’m just kidding, Jack. I love this stuff,” she said as Jack breathed a sigh of relief. “So, this job you and Frank have, it seems very interesting. What kind of paranormal activity do you guys investigate?”
Jack really didn’t want to get into this discussion, but he knew it was inevitable. “All kinds of stuff. Some cases turn out to be nothing and some turn out to be… let’s just say very unusual.”
Jack had piqued Emily’s interest even more. “How unusual?” she asked.
Jack shook his head. He knew it was going to be next-to-impossible to derail Emily from her mission now.
“Let’s take our food into the other room and I will tell you about it,” Jack suggested.
Jack wasn’t sure how much he should tell her. After all, not many people could handle this kind of stuff. He wanted to be honest with her, but he didn’t want to scare her away either. He had strong feelings for Emily and didn’t want to ruin the good thing they had started. In an effort to give himself an out, he smiled and said, “Some of it is classified, you know. I can’t tell you everything.”
“Classified, huh? Well that sounds very intriguing,” Emily flirted.
Jack lifted his eyes to the ceiling and thought, We have the weirdest conversations.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Dante Adal and Senator Wellsenburg got off the elevator and walked into Dante’s office suite. Dante’s secretary met them at the door.
“Mr. Adal, everyone has arrived for the meeting, sir. They are waiting in the conference room. Is there anything else you require?”
Dante kept walking with the senator following right behind.
“Not right now. Make sure the servers are ready when it’s time to assist with lunch. I will call if I need anything else.”
The double doors opened into a large, beautifully decorated conference room overlooking downtown Los Angeles. On one end of the room, there stood a long cherry wood conference table surrounded by eighteen high-back leather chairs. All along the back wall was an elegantly dressed set of tables filled with a lunch spread rivaling a king’s feast. Dante walked in with Senator Wellsenburg in tow, nodded to the group and proceeded to the head of the table to formally welcome his guests.
“Gentleman, thank you for coming. Senator Wellsenburg and I appreciate you taking time from your incredibly busy schedules to join us here today. I hope you found the coffee and fresh fruit to your liking and if you require anything else, please be sure to let me know. I don’t want to waste any of your time, so let’s get right to it.” Dante cleared his throat and confidently continued, “The senator must return to Washington by tomorrow morning, but I felt it imperative, as I know you did as well, that we get together and discuss next year’s presidential campaign. You will have ample time for questions and to become more acquainted with the senator while you enjoy the exquisite lunch we have provided for you. However, at this time the senator would like to introduce himself and make a few opening comments. Please welcome Senator Wellsenburg who I am endorsing to become the next President of the United States of America. Senator…” Dante waved his arm to welcome Wellsenburg to the front of the group.
A chill ran down Wellsenburg’s spine. It was the first time he had been introduced in that fashion. The rush was awesome and he was beyond thrilled. All the men at the table gave him a warm, though subdued, welcome as he stepped forward to speak.
Wellsenburg felt like he was in a whirlwind. Although they did have time to plan a basic strategy and put together his opening statement during the flight, he still felt rushed and unsure about the meeting. Nevertheless, his desire to be the next President of the United States was the powerful driving force pushing him forward.
Wellsenburg began, “Gentleman, as Mr. Adal has stated I am very appreciative of your time and your interest in my candidacy. I am Senator Wellsenburg from New York and I am very happy to be here with you today.”
Easing into his position, he continued, “I believe that a strong economy is the heart and soul of this nation. It keeps the people of America happy and motivated. The world is getting smaller every day and we must keep pace with the ever-changing economic and moral landscape. Profits are the wheels that turn the engine of progress and whatever it takes to increase those profits is of vital importance to this country, and to you and me.
“There are many issues that confront us today, but I will address the ones I know you are most concerned about - regulations on the spread of religion, Israel, and a universal monetary system.
“Religion has become a thorn in the side of humanity. All our problems stem from this blind obedience to a so-called god that those of us in this room know doesn’t even exist. In my view, the Christians pose our greatest threat with their narrow thinking and archaic belief system. In a move towards a more secular science-based society, I would like to see a ban on all religious broadcasting and a removal of the tax-free status for all churches. This will not eliminate the problem, but will be a step in the right direction.”
He took a quick glance around the room trying to get a read on how he was doing with his audience. There were a few nods of agreement, but most were waiting to hear more.
He continued, “Second, we need to label Israel what it really is - an aggressive terrorist nation. A new survey by the UK think-tank Chatham House finds that 35% of the UK public have an especially unfavorable view of Israel. This is double the 17% who held such a view during the previous survey in June 2012. That number has grown since that time. In the U.S., it’s still only 17%. We are working hard on changing that through our university and college campus initiatives. If elected, I will push for a reduction, and ultimately a complete withdrawal of our support for Israel, both financially and militarily.”
These statements really seemed to strike a chord with the crowd. There were more nods of approval and looks of agreement among all of Dante’s guests. Wellsenburg was feeling more confident by the minute.
“On the third issue, my position has always been the same. I am a strong advocate for a universal monetary system based on digital currency. I will do all in my power to expedite such a system.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Wellsenburg caught Dante, who looked pleased with his performance.
“I look forward to meeting and talking with each one of you this afternoon. Thank you,” Wellsenburg closed.
Dante stood up and invited everyone to enjoy the wide variety of foods in the incredible buffet. The doors opened and four waiters entered the room to assist in serving. The meeting went on for hours, with all in attendance asking the senator questions and discussing issues among themselves. Dante had been successful in assuring that the senator would have plenty of financial support for his campaign. He was always fond of the idiom, The devil is in the details. In this case, he was in everything and that’s the way he liked it.
* * *
With the senator on his way back to Washington, Dante turned his attention to another meeting… a much different type of meeting. His guests were now coming from all over the world. He would not have to supply any garnishes for this group, only the cloak of nightfall. He wasn’t sure why the meeting was called or what the agenda was, but he didn’t mind the company.
It was now nine o’clock on the West Coast. Dante knew his guests would be arriving soon. He sat at the conference table perusing the Internet, catching up on the news from the Middle East. He envied those of his cohorts who had been assigned to that area. They had very few obstacles to overcome and were free to do just about anything they wanted. After all, they were so close to home, the place where it all began. He missed the days of ancient Babylon and all the open worship he and the others received there. He looked forward to the time when the entire world would be back under their control. Darkness was on the rise on every level and he knew, at least hoped, that soon the gods of Babylon would rule the world once more.
Suddenly the room began to fill with a reddi
sh orange mist. It started at the floor and rose, swirling to the ceiling, twisting upon itself. Dante watched and waited, content in his chair. The mist grew heavier and thicker. Dante breathed in deep, like someone delighting in a deep breath of fresh spring air. It seemed to rejuvenate him. His eyes began to glow, pulsating back and forth from a hideous blood-red color to his human eye color. He could hear a wheezing, hissing sound coming from all directions, which grew louder and louder, so much so that he could no longer distinguish one sound from another. Slowly, the mist began to fall to the floor revealing five tall figures, each with blackish, damp gray streaked skin and leather-like wings. They folded their wings and tucked them behind them in unison like soldiers standing at ease.
Dante welcomed them, “Marduk, Anshar, Kishar, Nabu and Asaru. Did you have any trouble getting here?”
Anshar rolled his head on his shoulders making a dull, crackling sound. He spoke with a deep muttering voice that hissed after each word, “It is so much easier moving about Asia and Europe than here in this country.”
Kishar leaned forward, twisting and stretching his body. He spoke much clearer, but in an extremely deep tone., “There is still much work to be done here, Dante. However, I do see and feel progress.”
Nabu and Asaru traveled from Iran and Iraq where they had been since the days of Babylon and the Persian Empire.
Nabu spoke, “We prefer to stay in Babylon. It is still very taxing to enter this country.”
Dante looked at Marduk saying, “Marduk you seem to have no problem. What’s your secret?”
Marduk shrugged his shoulders and said confidently, “I have more experience. You just need to travel in from the north. Stay away from the Bible belt. It’s not as bad as it use to be, but it can still be a problem.”
