by Thorpe, K.
“It was just sitting on my desk this morning.”
“You keep your office locked?”
“Yeah, of course.”
“Anyone else have a key?”
“The university keeps a backup and my research assistant, Amanda, has one.
But she isn’t involved in this in any way.”
“We don’t know that. What does this mean? “'I know who she is?'”
“I’m pretty sure it’s referencing you, Agent Natan. And, I think now would be a good time to go over the rest of what I couldn’t tell you before.”
Natan puts the photo on Josh’s desk. “O…kay, but I don’t get why I’m important here.”
Josh motions to a cluttered chair. “Wanna sit down?”
Barely able to stand in the clutter, Natan doesn’t want to make herself at home here. “Let’s just hear it,” she says.
“The exact end date of the Mayan calendar is December 21st , 2012, or 13.0.0.0.0. as numbered in their calendar. Here again, the Mayans use the number thirteen.”
“This again? Okay, I’ll bite. What’s the significance of thirteen?” she asks.
“Weren’t paying attention on the plane, were you? It’s the moon cycle, remember. And the Mayans also had thirteen constellations, where we only have twelve. Everything is tied to astronomical phenomena and the number thirteen was a powerful astronomical number for them.”
“Okay. I’m following you,” she says.
“Philosophers, anthropologists, and mathematicians theorize that this date will be a culmination of huge astronomical events during the December solstice. During this time, it’s said that there will be a galactic eclipse of sorts. The closer we get to 2012, the more strange phenomena will occur, particularly during the months of June and December, the opposing solstices.”
Natan tries to understand, “Strange phenomena? It just doesn’t seem possible that the world will end in a matter of a few years. I mean, even global warming will take longer. And, I have lingering questions from our conversation earlier. The Code matrices only provide clues, right? How did you piece this all together? I mean, you must have influenced the outcome somehow.”
“I found the foundation data in the Code itself and then I did additional research to bring it all together,” he explains.
“But, you did do additional research?” she probes.
“Yes, but the clues were exact. The symbols for the riddle were there. Here, let me show you.” Josh shuffles through some other papers and finds a page with a grid of letters. Several words are highlighted in different colors on the page.
“I am just thoroughly impressed that you can find anything in here,” Natan chastises.
“I do have a system.” Josh shows Natan the page. “Now, if you look here, you’ll see several words close together. This is the translated version, mind you.” On the page, words appear across, down, and diagonally forward and backward. The words are in close proximity to one another. The words Mayan, riddle, ruins, and marker appear in the same line. The phrases and numbers 13Symbols, Halfof13, 12211999, 06212006, 12212012, Circleofsun, and 1478333-9238333 also appear in this one matrix.
Natan points to the page. “These four words are in the same line. This can’t be accurate. Are you sure you translated this correctly?”
Josh replies, “Yes. I’ve checked and rechecked and checked again.”
“And this is the billion-to-one odds you were talking about?” she asks.
“It takes your breath away, doesn’t it?”
Natan attempts to make sense of what she’s reading. “What are all of these series of numbers?”
Josh points to the page. “Some are the exact days, months, and years that the symbols will be revealed in 1999, 2006, and 2012.”
Natan questions, “Okay, so this doesn’t look like it reveals the time of day. How did you know the time?”
Josh proudly answers, “It doesn’t reveal it. I took a chance that it was thirteen, or 1 p.m. And, I was right.”
“Good guess. All those thirteens paid off. This long string of numbers. What are they, Professor?”
“Very perceptive, Agent Natan. That actually took me a while to figure out. My dad’s a sailor, and it looked like coordinates. Turns out it is longitude and latitude coordinates for Tapachula, Mexico. I translated this and did some additional research on various geographical Mayan ruin sites in the area…there were a few in the area, two smaller outlying sites and one major altar site. The altar site seemed the most logical choice.”
Natan is stunned. “You have got to be kidding me. You pieced this all together?” She doesn’t wait for an answer. “And you have the symbols you retrieved from the ruins?”
Josh pats his bag on the chair next to him. “Right here. Though I still haven’t had time to decipher them. Regardless, this can’t all just be coincidence or chance.”
She shakes her head in disbelief. “There has to be some other explanation.”
“You know, Agent Natan, truth is truth. You can believe the world is flat, but it still doesn’t make it so. If data is what you’re looking for, the Code provides mathematical certainty that even I, as a mathematician, can’t argue with.”
“Professor Sails. As a mathematician, one plus one equals two, right?”
“Yes, of course,” he retorts.
“Well, what you’re trying to tell me is that one plus one equals five. And, I just can’t compute it. This idea is intriguing, but I need more than just one data point.”
“Of course you do,” he says, “And, I have a few more for you. I think you’ll want to sit down for these, though.”
Natan shakes her head. “Just tell me.”
Josh picks up the Matrix. “My full name is in the same matrix with the other clues.” A section of it is folded, hiding some of the page. He hands it to Natan.
Natan takes the page, glancing at the professor’s name, “Okay, I’ll admit, that is really strange.”
Josh then picks up the photograph of the two of them. “I’m not as concerned about me in this picture as I am about you.”
“I’m a N.S.A. agent, remember? Your concern is unwarranted, Professor.”
“That’s not what I mean. Agent Natan…”
Natan smiles at him. “Are you going to tell me or do I have to decipher it from the Code itself?”
“Is your middle name Elizabeth, first name Katherine? Date of birth, December 21, 1973?” Josh asks.
The smile fades from Natan’s face. “Did you get my personal information from the Internet or something? No one calls me Katherine.”
“Agent Natan, your full name and date of birth are in the code in one unbroken line. That’s why I sought you out.” Josh unfolds the section of matrix in Natan’s hand.
Natan’s name and birth date are listed on the page. Her hands begin to shake as she holds the page.
“Why didn’t you mention that your birthday was December 21st when I was explaining the date significance earlier?” Josh questions.
Natan’s voice shakes. “It’s just a coincidence. This is…all just a coincidence.”
Natan maneuvers toward the paper-covered sofa.
Josh sees the color fading from her face. “Are you okay?” he asks.
Natan plops onto the sofa, still holding the page, as paper crunches beneath her. She tries to catch her breath. “I’m fine.”
“If I found both of our names in the Code and someone sent us that photo, then they may have found them too.”
Natan’s N.S.A.-agent mode kicks in. “We don’t know anything yet. It has to be some random thing. Maybe someone who works with you is involved.”
Josh warns, “Look, this is an incredibly delicate situation and we need to be as protective of our contact as we are of these elements of the Code. I haven’t revealed what I found about the riddle, about me, or about your information in the matrices to anyone…not to Congressman Bradshaw and not even to my research assistant.”
“I need to think this th
rough.” Natan runs her fingers through her hair, her mind racing a million miles a minute.
A reluctant Josh continues, “There’s one more thing.”
Natan looks up at Josh with even more shock.
“Agent Natan. Do you know what your last name means?”
Natan regains her composure. Another riddle? This guy is beginning to test my patience, clean-scented or not. “I haven’t the vaguest idea. Why?” she replies.
“The name Natan means “Nathan” in Hebrew.”
Natan retorts, “So? I’m not even Jewish, or religious, nor do I know if I even believe in God. Why would this be significant?”
“Jewish or not, belief or not, Nathan means prophet in Hebrew.” Josh takes a breath. “The word prophet was also listed in the matrix…next to your name.”
Natan drops the page to the floor. Near Natan’s name on the page is the word prophet circled in red pen.
Part II
Underneath
Chapter Nine
July 1, 2006
Natan sleeps in the quiet of her home, lost in her daily dream.
Within her mind, the wind blows gently against the backdrop of deep blue sky. She observes a few white clouds as they dot the background. Natan reaches out to them, finding herself lifting off the ground. She flies, soaring through the sky as if God’s hand is cradling her. The wind whooshes past her, dancing on her skin as the small, gentle clouds she reaches for mount in the distance, pulling her toward them. As she gets closer she sees a lone white door suspended in the air with only its frame. A sudden silence encloses her as the door looms, the wind drifting into the abyss of eternity. She approaches and slowly the door begins to open. Natan is blinded by a bright light.
The voice of God speaks her name. “Katherine.”
Natan hears a loud knock on the door, pausing to look around her.
Josh’s voice emerges from a distance. “Agent Natan.”
Natan sees white ceiling as she slowly opens her eyes, trying to get her bearings as she wakes.
“Agent Natan. It’s Josh Sails. I really need to speak to you!” Josh’s voice is muffled by Natan’s front door.
With eyes fully open, Natan lies on the couch in her living room. One of Josh’s penned symbol books is spread over her chest. She is soaked with perspiration, her face gleaming. Josh knocks on the door again. Natan jerks up, registering that it’s Josh.
What the…? Natan, in shorts and a tank top, gets up and heads to the door.
An unrelenting Josh continues, “Agent Natan. I hear you in there.”
Natan opens the door to find a frantic Professor Sails.
Her annoyance is unshielded, “So now you’re intruding on my private residence?”
Josh’s eyes shoot downward, attempting to avoid confrontation. “I apologize. I’ve tried contacting you by phone on several occasions. It’s imperative that we speak.”
“I’ve said all I need to say. I can’t help you in your quest, Professor Sails.”
Josh pushes closer to her. “Agent Natan, your information is in the Bible Code, believe it or not.”
Natan shifts uncomfortably in the doorway, backing away from him. “We’ve gone over this, Professor.”
“I need you to listen to me. We’re running out of time.” Josh grabs Natan’s hand. Both are startled at the unexpected gesture.
“I…I just don’t think I can be a part of this.” Natan pulls her hand back.
Josh reaches into a bag to get some papers. “Each day that passes is one less that we have to figure this out,” he says as he hands Natan some papers. “Here. Please review them yourself.”
Natan pushes the papers back at Josh. “I can’t.”
He pushes them back toward her, “I beg you. Please just look them over…and then make your decision. I believe that you are the biggest piece in this puzzle and I need you to help me figure out just exactly what that piece is.”
Natan runs her fingers through her hair. “Uh. All right. I’ll review it, though I don’t think it will make much difference. In the meantime, I want you to arrange me a meeting with your research assistant, so that I can find out if she was involved in leaving that package. I need to find out why someone would want to photograph an N.S.A. agent and eliminate any links to terrorism here.”
“I’ll arrange it…though I must say again that Amanda has no involvement in this. I told you that she doesn’t even know what I’ve been working on the past few months,” he complies.
Natan takes the pages from Josh. “I’ll call you. Please don’t contact me again until then.” Natan shuts the door in Josh’s face just as he’s about to say something.
“Please just read it,” he struggles to get his final thought through the door.
“Yeah…yeah…” Natan says to herself as she looks at the papers in her hand. “It’s time. No use putting it off any longer.” Natan tosses the papers on the coffee table next to Josh’s book and grabs her pants from a chair next to the couch. She fumbles through the pockets, pulling out the card that Alice gave her for the therapist. The card reads, “Christine Jacobs, Psychologist, Ph.D.”
Natan grabs her cell phone and dials a number. She hears a woman’s voice answer. “Hello. This is Christine Jacobs.”
Chapter Ten
Josh sits at his desk inside his office at the university with the infamous bag open near him. Pages of the chalk shadings from the ruin litter his desk. He picks up the first symbol page and looks at it as his memory drifts to a class lecture he gave six months ago.
Josh stands with his back to more than a hundred students, scribbling notes on a chalk board. “It’s time, Professor,” a student shouts from the back of the room.
Josh looks down at his watch, then places the chalk neatly in its place on the board.
He dusts his hands off, then offers the class his final thought for the day. “Okay everyone. That’ll do it for today. And, remember, creating symbols with a mathematic congruency is the central theme here. I promise if the Mayans can do it, then you, twenty-first-century graduate students, certainly can. Have a great weekend.”
Several students snicker in the back of the classroom as they shuffle out of their chairs to the exits. Henry, the second-best student in the program, approaches Josh as he erases Mayan references from the chalk board at the front of the lecture hall.
“Professor Sails, do you have a moment?” he asks.
Josh acknowledges him. “For you, Henry, of course.”
Henry hands Josh a few research pages, “I thought you would find this interesting.” The article title reads “Mathematics of the Bible Code.”
Josh flips through the pages, looking at Henry quizzically. “The Bible Code?”
Henry looks hopeful. “Supposedly there’s a sound mathematical foundation for it.”
“You can’t believe everything you read, Henry,” Josh retorts.
“I know, I just thought you might want to review it.”
“Well, thanks for thinking of me.”
“No problem, Professor Sails. See ya Monday.” Henry leaves Josh to finish his erasing.
“Take care.” Josh shakes his head, tossing the papers aside, and returns to the board.
Josh blinks to another memory, finding himself completely enthralled by the article findings. What began as a brief review to casually cast aside, quickly became a significant scientific discovery to the professor. Sitting in his university office, Josh surrounds himself with a collage of Hebrew writings as he peruses duplicate pages on his computer. The screen shows a Bible matrix with circled Mayan references, including Josh’s name. This can’t be right. It’s not possible…is it? He frantically continues reviewing the notes, closing his eyes for a brief second to get his bearings.
Josh flashes to another memory: he holds a drink and stands in the foyer of Congressman Kent Bradshaw’s immaculate Victorian home. Congressman Bradshaw comes from old money, a history of Democratic politicians in his family. The cold, museum-like quality of
Kent’s home didn’t fit Josh’s understanding of Kent himself. Kent was like an older brother—he could be stern, but he was usually as warm and likeable a guy as anybody, not a politician at all. Kent had been in Congress a fair time now and Josh could see it wearing on his Democratic friend as he rode the minority tide, not only surviving the Republican storm of recent years, but seating a committee to become the man he had promised to his constituents. In Josh’s mind, Kent was two men, the politician and the friend, and Josh felt the ever-growing gap between the two.
Not enjoying the taste of alcohol, Josh takes an infinitesimal sip of his drink out of politeness. “I’m heading to Mexico tomorrow to review some Mayan artifacts.”
“Looking for anything in particular?” Kent questions.
“You know me, just looking to find whatever needs finding,” Josh smiles.
“This is the huge revelation you wanted to tell me about? Mayan artifacts? You’re not dabbling where you shouldn’t be, are ya, Josh?” Kent’s older brother side comes on.
“No…no,” Josh replies. “I think I’m on to something, but I can’t really discuss it
until I investigate it further. I will say that I may have found a unicorn, Kent.”
“I’ve heard those mathematical unicorns are quite hard to find,” Kent jokes as he downs his own drink in one fell swoop.
“Go ahead…jest at my expense,” Josh retorts. “But when I show up on your doorstep with the discovery of a lifetime, you’ll be begging me for a meeting with your committee.”
Kent salutes Josh with his own drink. “I guess time will tell.”
Josh smiles, looking down into his nearly full drink. Let’s hope so.
Josh’s thoughts drift back to present day reality as he sits at his desk pondering the beginning of this journey. Natan emerges in the open doorway, interrupting his thoughts. “You always leave your door open, Professor?”
Josh is startled. “You always sneak up on others, Agent Natan?”
“It’s not really sneaking if you have an appointment.” Natan looks at her watch. “You said nine, yes?”
